All-Time MVPs Build a Team [POLL ADDED]

[rand]

Build a 5 man lineup for a 7 game series played against another superteam with 2004 rules/refs. Teams have no coaches, the players get two weeks to practice together before the game. All players are in their prime.

$12 budget. Price list in spoilers below. I'll add the first 10 teams built into a poll, though I may pass one over if it's similar to a prior team.

Spoiler:

LeBron James $5
Michael Jordan $5
Nikola Jokić $4
Stephen Curry $4
Tim Duncan $4
Shaquille O'Neal $4
Hakeem Olajuwon $4
Magic Johnson $4
Larry Bird $4
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar $4
Wilt Chamberlain $4
Kevin Garnett $4
David Robinson $4
Giannis Antetokounmpo $3
Kevin Durant $3
Kobe Bryant $3
Dirk Nowitzki $3
Charles Barkley $3
Moses Malone $3
Kawhi Leonard $3
Joel Embiid $3
Julius Erving $3
Dwyane Wade $3
Jerry West $3
Bill Russell $3
Bill Walton $3
Steve Nash $2
James Harden $2
Karl Malone $2
Paul Pierce $2
Oscar Robertson $2
Russell Westbrook $1
Derrick Rose $1
Isiah Thomas $1
Allen Iverson $1
Joe Dumars $1
Jaylen Brown $1
Andre Iguodala $1
Tony Parker $1
Chauncey Billups $1
Rick Barry $1
Bob McAdoo $1
John Havlicek $1
Dave Cowens $0
Willis Reed $0
Wes Unseld $0
Bob Pettit $0
Bob Cousy $0
James Worthy $0
Cedric Maxwell $0
Dennis Johnson $0
Jo Jo White $0

The menu of course is populated by the winners of the NBA MVP or Finals MVP.

Edit: I've raised the cost of Havlicek, KG, Robinson and Kawhi each by $1. I'm aiming to get a couple of fresh teams which don't include any of them.

[Im Your Father]

Assuming everyone is at their peak?

Also is this team playing real NBA teams from 2004 or other super teams constructed from this list? I.e., am I constructing a team to beat real NBA teams (i.e. the 2004 pistons) or theoretical super teams (MJ, Shaq and Rose)?

My first thought for the modern NBA (and I'm not sure it would change much against 04 teams) is:

Curry
Jaylen Brown
Iguodala
Leonard
Garnett

[Dutchball97]

Among MVPs there are a lot of good centers so it's the question whether you want to spend big to get a premium guy at a strong position or go budget and try to beat other teams 1-4 instead. With guys like Reed, Unseld and Cowens being completely free, that second option sounds like the best way forward to me. Well, until I saw the best center ever available for $3. Russell is a huge steal here imo as the 2004 rules would be amazing for him, he'd be just as impactful as he was in the 60s. Remember this is the year Ben Wallace won a championship with significantly worse offense than Russell, while also not being on the same tier as a defender.

KG for $3 is another one I just can't pass up here. This scenario is even set during his peak season. Someone who has a legit top 10 peak, while being so versatile on both sides of the ball is just unfair at that price. With a Russell/KG frontcourt you are just about guaranteed to have an impossibly strong defense and with both of them being able to guard the perimeter just fine I'm not worried about playing 2 bigs together at all.

While 2 of the best defenders were sitting there at $3 a piece, there are 2 top 5 offensive hubs available for just $2. It's a shame an offense with Oscar and Nash together would probably detract from each other but either guy here makes sure the offense will be elite as well and neither of them would have to worry about playing next to lackluster teammates either in this format. Oscar's size, willingness to score and defensive effort in his later years makes me more confident in him than Nash overall.

Giving Havlicek away for free also seems like a bit of an oversight. He is such an incredibly versatile player on both sides of the ball who could fit at the 2 or 3 for nearly every team. With my remaining $4 I'd finish off the line-up with Bird to get someone who would have an insane 2 man game with Oscar.

For the wings I also contemplated Kawhi + Dumars or Iggy but with Russell/KG in the frontcourt already I think going more offensive oriented on the wings is the better option as I'm not sure this defense could get much better as is.

PG - Oscar Robertson
SG - John Havlicek
SF - Larry Bird
PF - Kevin Garnett
C - Bill Russell

[rand]

Assuming everyone is at their peak?

Also is this team playing real NBA teams from 2004 or other super teams constructed from this list? I.e., am I constructing a team to beat real NBA teams (i.e. the 2004 pistons) or theoretical super teams (MJ, Shaq and Rose)?

My first thought for the modern NBA (and I'm not sure it would change much against 04 teams) is:

Curry
Jaylen Brown
Iguodala
Leonard
Garnett

Everyone is in their prime but not necessarily their peak. Assume they're in any one of the random years which span the player's prime, but with health guaranteed.

You're playing against another superteam operating under the same conditions as you are. The ref year is specified not only to set the rules environment but to give an idea of how contact (hand-checking, hard fouls, offensive dislodging, etc) will be officiated.

[oaktownwarriors87]

Garnett
Durant
Kawhi
Harden
Iguodala

[Im Your Father]

Assuming everyone is at their peak?

Also is this team playing real NBA teams from 2004 or other super teams constructed from this list? I.e., am I constructing a team to beat real NBA teams (i.e. the 2004 pistons) or theoretical super teams (MJ, Shaq and Rose)?

My first thought for the modern NBA (and I'm not sure it would change much against 04 teams) is:

Curry
Jaylen Brown
Iguodala
Leonard
Garnett

Everyone is in their prime but not necessarily their peak. Assume they're in any one of the random years which span the player's prime, but with health guaranteed.

You're playing against another superteam operating under the same conditions as you are. The ref year is specified not only to set the rules environment but to give an idea of how contact (hand-checking, hard fouls, offensive dislodging, etc) will be officiated.

OK, in that case, I think I want Embiid instead of Garnett.

Curry
Jaylen Brown
Iguodala
Leonard
Embiid

He's not the defensive Savant that Garnett is, but he's a strong defensive anchor, particularly when he doesn't need to be a first option on offense. He also has the size to match up with the Shaqs and Olajuwons and Wilts of the world, which is more imporant since I'm going small at the 4 with Iggy/Kawhi. I also like that he adds another reliable 3 point shooter

[jojo4341]

DRob - 3
James Worthy - 0
Kawhi Leonard - 3
MJ - 5
Dumars - 1

Great midrange game, great perimeter defense, decent 3-point shooting with Dumars and Kawhi, and solid rim protection with DRob. Kawhi can play either SF or PF depending on the matchup. They might struggle with twin-tower lineups under 2004 rules, but it goes both ways.

[AEnigma]

Initial thoughts:
PG — Billups ($1)
SG — Havlicek ($0, disrespectful)
SF — Kawhi ($3)
PF — Lebron ($5)
C — Garnett ($3)

In an environment with no coaches, I like that I have a literal NBA coach (albeit not a good one) and two of the best ever on-court coaches, plus two wings who know how to play supplemental roles. Also, I would rather just take Anthony Davis over Kawhi for $3, but I understand he has neither an MVP nor a Finals MVP so was excluded.

Considered playing larger until I saw no one else is committing to twin towers. My twin towers lineup would substitute Billups and Kawhi for Curry and Reed.

[Tim Lehrbach]

Havlicek for free is a cheat code. Just give him Russell and shooters. Something like this works:

West
Leonard
Havlicek
Durant
Russell

[penbeast0]

Does it affect any decisions on Kawhi that he only played 60 games that year or are we just assuming the talent level is high enough to make it to the playoffs despite that?

[AEnigma]

OP seemed to suggest general prime years rather than award years, without a regular season. If someone wants to discount Kawhi for generally being a risk for injury in any given series, I think that is fair, but so long as we are inventing a hypothetical I will say I am operating under the assumption that any increased injury risk is just to the extent that he can be reasonably debated with the other wings, because a guaranteed 100% healthy prime Kawhi to me is a clear step ahead of Durant or Kobe.

[Ol Roy]

Billups-$1
Dumars-$1
Bird-$4
Garnett-$3
Robinson-$3

Everyone here is a team player. More than enough size, defense, passing, and shooting. Given an unlimited budget, I'd upgrade the backcourt to West and Jordan and that would be my all-time team.

[kdawg32086]

DJ- $0
Jordan- $5
Worthy- $0
Duncan- $4
Robinson- $3

[The Explorer]

Bob Cousy $0
Michael Jordan $5
Rick Barry $1
Charles Barkley $3
Bill Russell $3

[Note30]

Could go with a favorite players or mine setup

Tony Parker $1, Kobe Bryant $3, Andre Igoudala $, Kevin Durant $3, Shaq $4

The fact that Shaq isn't on most lineups is crazy.

But I think this is a much better lineup.

It's essentially the 2017 warriors with Shaq. Steph is Steph, Brown is an excellent defender and shooter, KD is KD, McAdoo was the original stretch 4 and could actually shoot and pass, and of course Shaq pieces it all together.

Steph $4
Jaylen Brown$1
Kevin Durant $3
McAdoo $0
Shaq $4

[Djoker]

PG: Dennis Johnson ($0)
SG: Michael Jordan ($5)
SF: John Havlicek ($0)
PF: Bill Russell ($0)
C: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ($4)

2004 rules so defense galore and with MJ/Kareem more than enough scoring and good playmaking all around.

[Doug_12]

Build a 5 man lineup for a 7 game series played against another superteam with 2004 rules/refs. Teams have no coaches, the players get two weeks to practice together before the game. All players are in their prime.

$12 budget. Price list in spoilers below. I'll add the first 10 teams built into a poll, though I may pass one over if it's similar to a prior team.

Spoiler:

LeBron James $5
Michael Jordan $5
Nikola Jokić $4
Stephen Curry $4
Tim Duncan $4
Shaquille O'Neal $4
Hakeem Olajuwon $4
Magic Johnson $4
Larry Bird $4
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar $4
Wilt Chamberlain $4
Kevin Garnett $3
Giannis Antetokounmpo $3
Kevin Durant $3
Kobe Bryant $3
Dirk Nowitzki $3
David Robinson $3
Charles Barkley $3
Moses Malone $3
Kawhi Leonard $3
Joel Embiid $3
Julius Erving $3
Dwyane Wade $3
Jerry West $3
Bill Russell $3
Bill Walton $3
Steve Nash $2
James Harden $2
Karl Malone $2
Paul Pierce $2
Oscar Robertson $2
Russell Westbrook $1
Derrick Rose $1
Isiah Thomas $1
Allen Iverson $1
Joe Dumars $1
Jaylen Brown $1
Andre Iguodala $1
Tony Parker $1
Chauncey Billups $1
Rick Barry $1
Bob McAdoo $1
Dave Cowens $0
Willis Reed $0
Wes Unseld $0
Bob Pettit $0
Bob Cousy $0
James Worthy $0
Cedric Maxwell $0
Dennis Johnson $0
Jo Jo White $0
John Havlicek $0

The menu of course is populated by the winners of the NBA MVP or Finals MVP.

Billups - 1
Dumars - 1
Pierce - 2
Lebron - 5
Robinson - 3

Good to great defenders in every position backed up by one of the best defenders all time under the rim. 4 out offense fitting to Lebron's rim pressure and playmaking. If Lebron needs to rest, Biillups & Dumars can operate as a secondary playmaker.

[SilentA]

Magic 4
Dumars 1
Worthy 0
Bird 4
Bill Russell 3

--

Magic and Bird are just going to out-IQ everyone when playing together on the same team with how they read the floor and pass. Dumars as a smart 3&D combo guard. Worthy guards the best wing and plays as an efficient cutter/finisher, but with a relatively light usage %. Bill Russell anchors the defense, obviously.

[OhayoKD]

Probably not the ideal roster but

-> Giannis is a 4$ talent that can play so him at 3 is a bargain.
-> Curry is a 4$ talent at a price-point many 2-3$ talents are being placed at 4(cough bird cough) and synergises perfectly with Giannis so another bargain
-> Lebron is the most talented player here, the most versatile in terms of role, and is being placed at the same price point as a dramatically less talented one. Bargain though may need to be used more creatively next to Giannis. Realistically you get rid of him or giannis if you want the best possible roster but I want to splurge
-> Havelick (0$) I don't know how well he translates but relative to his in-era quality this is also a bargain
-> Cowens (0$) ditto

Some rosters should be able to beat mine. That said, this team destroys any that decided Bird at 4 or Jordan at 5 was a good idea.

[OhayoKD]

Among MVPs there are a lot of good centers so it's the question whether you want to spend big to get a premium guy at a strong position or go budget and try to beat other teams 1-4 instead. With guys like Reed, Unseld and Cowens being completely free, that second option sounds like the best way forward to me. Well, until I saw the best center ever available for $3. Russell is a huge steal here imo as the 2004 rules would be amazing for him, he'd be just as impactful as he was in the 60s. Remember this is the year Ben Wallace won a championship with significantly worse offense than Russell, while also not being on the same tier as a defender.

Meh. You basically have russell already in KG. wouldn't that money be better spent on offense? Curry-KG covers alot more than KG-Russell and only costs 1$ more for example. I don't think Russell is giving you 3$ more worth next to russell-lite than cowens is.