How good was Vlade Divacs?

Speedlot · Post #1 » by **Speedlot** » Mon May 19, 2008 10:57 pm

Excellent passing BIG? How was his defense and his overall offense?

carrottop12 · Post #2 » by **carrottop12** » Mon May 19, 2008 11:08 pm

He was a great flopper which is pretty much what his D consisted of, although he could block a shot if it was needed.

His offense was far more valuable because of his passing ability, he was just a very smart player, didn't make a lot of mistakes.

The kind of you guy any team would love to have, from contender down to bottom dweller.

Point forward · Post #3 » by **Point forward** » Mon May 19, 2008 11:44 pm

Very good passer with high basketball IQ. Good rebounder and potent low post threat with a nice share of moves. Notorious for his flopping, quite foul prone (many seasons with 3.5 PF/game) and never a star (0x All-NBA), but a very useful player. Very handy to have around. A nice character, too.

Post #4 » by **pillwenney** » Tue May 20, 2008 2:37 am

One of the best non-stars ever. Nothing he did ever made him a superstar but he was just over all a fine player. Had range out to 3 offensively and a fine post game, and was undoubtedly (along with Sabonis) the best passing center since Walton. You could run a ton of different sets through him affectively.

Defensively, he was known for his flopping, but he was really solid over all against centers. He would struggle when teams went small defensively because he couldn't guard many PFs, but fortunately he could also often make that up on the offensive end because he had such a nice array of post moves.

Also one of the smartest, craftiest players ever, and also an absolutely amazing locker room guy, and from every single person I have heard from about him (which is several people, as he used to live like a minute away from me) he's just an absolutely fantastic guy (this also shows up in his great charity work).

ponder276 · Post #5 » by **ponder276** » Tue May 20, 2008 4:53 am

Couldn't handle Shaq

Otherwise, what mitchweber said.

Warspite · Post #6 » by **Warspite** » Tue May 20, 2008 5:38 am

Traded for Kobe.....

Chocolate City Jordanaire · Post #7 » by **Chocolate City Jordanaire** » Tue May 20, 2008 6:14 am

mitchweber wrote:One of the best non-stars ever. Nothing he did ever made him a superstar but he was just over all a fine player. Had range out to 3 offensively and a fine post game, and was undoubtedly (along with Sabonis) the best passing center since Walton. You could run a ton of different sets through him affectively.

Defensively, he was known for his flopping, but he was really solid over all against centers. He would struggle when teams went small defensively because he couldn't guard many PFs, but fortunately he could also often make that up on the offensive end because he had such a nice array of post moves.

Also one of the smartest, craftiest players ever, and also an absolutely amazing locker room guy, and from every single person I have heard from about him (which is several people, as he used to live like a minute away from me) he's just an absolutely fantastic guy (this also shows up in his great charity work).

Excellent post, mitchweber. Divac's one of my all-time favorite players because he made the most of what he had.

Just for the rest who doubt this, consider that Vlade held his own against:

Laimbeer at his best, Parish when he was still good, Hakeem at his best, Patrick Ewing at his best, David Robinson at his best, Mutombo at his best, Mourning at his best, Shaq at his best, and even Tim Duncan at his best.

Vlade played well against all those guys, particularly Hakeem. Shaq owned him physically, but Vlade's methods almost worked and his team won its share against Shaq in the regular season.

Here's a link to all the categories of top-25's Vlade posted in the NBA from years 1989-2004.

http://www.draftexpress.com/profile/Vla ... s/leaders/

Very underrated player, Vlade Divac.

Kabookalu · Post #8 » by **Kabookalu** » Tue May 20, 2008 7:09 am

Warspite wrote:Traded for Kobe.....

Not only that, but the freed up cap allowed them to sign Shaq. Come to think of it, if the Hornets refused that trade, the Lakers dynasty wouldn't have happened.

Wile E. Coyote · Post #9 » by **Wile E. Coyote** » Tue May 20, 2008 12:05 pm

He was pretty good in his prime, and I had only wished he still had some in the tank when the Lakers resigned him just before he retired. I always liked the guy, but I was all in favor of the Lakers trading him for the whippersnapper from Philly.

Lazy Faizy · Post #10 » by **Lazy Faizy** » Tue May 20, 2008 1:44 pm

Post #11 » by **studcrackers** » Tue May 20, 2008 6:11 pm

he probably smells

Magz50 · Post #12 » by **Magz50** » Tue May 20, 2008 6:45 pm

Best flopper of all time

blazersmaniac8 · Post #13 » by **blazersmaniac8** » Tue May 20, 2008 7:41 pm

Ask Shaq...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=OOlYt7Xf5pA