How Good Was Peak Jermaine O'Neal?

[ItsThatEasy]

I was a huge JO fan when I was younger but now that I understand the game better I'm starting to find lots of my childhood stars weren't as good as I remember.

How do you view peak Jermaine O'Neal?

6x All Star
3x All-NBA Player

I recall his defense being just as good as his offense in his prime, a real two-way star.

[Quotatious]

Definitely a top 10 player in 2003 and 2004. Best player on 61-win Pacers team in 2004. One of the best defenders in the league. Good rebounder. Didn't turn the ball over a lot. Poor shot selection was a problem, and he was a mediocre passer.

I would say a bit better than LaMarcus Aldridge at his best. Very good player, lower level franchise cornerstone.

I'm torn as far as his peak season - it's '03 or '04. He was a lot more efficient as a scorer in '03, and boxscore-derived metrics favor '03, while plus/minus metrics favor '04 (I think Rick Carlisle's superiority over Isiah Thomas as a coach, has something to do with that - Carlisle knew how to maximize his players' defensive potential more so than Thomas).

[2klegend]

No you're wrong. The stars of the 00s were as good as star of today. What difference is the style of play change because of rule and a better understanding of the game. The constant movement of today basketball is the best ever. 00s was brutal. A lot of isolation, traditional post play, slow movement and often stagnant offense which heavily rely on star players to score in isolation. This caused the 00s star efficiency looks worser against today. But a lot of that is due to style and a lack of understanding space and ball movement. Put peak JO in today era and he will be a superstar C. He was basically a better version of Chris Bosh.

[KobesScarf]

He's arguably the best rim protector since Mutombo. Blackhole on offense though