Rank the following duos from “most talented” to “least talented”

rtiff68 · Post #1 » by **rtiff68** » Sat May 23, 2020 4:42 pm

Magic/Kareem

Bird/McHale

Zeke/Dumars (or whomever you deem to be #2)

Jordan/Pippen

Duncan/Ginobili or Parker

Shaq/Kobe

LeBron/Wade

Curry/Durant

Tim Kempton · Post #2 » by **Tim Kempton** » Sat May 23, 2020 4:49 pm

Magic/Kareem
Jordan/Pippen
Shaq/Kobe
Bird/McHale
Duncan/Ginobili
LeBron/Wade
Curry/Durant
Zeke/Dumars

Petergrifindor · Post #3 » by **Petergrifindor** » Sat May 23, 2020 4:52 pm

Magic Kareem
Shaq Kobe
Lebron Wade
Curry Durant
Jordan Pippen
Duncan Ginobili
Bird McHale
Thomas Dumars

leolozon · Post #4 » by **leolozon** » Sat May 23, 2020 5:15 pm

The only duo that didn’t play any prime years together and had to suddenly learn to play with each other is Lebron and Wade, so they are hard to rank. I feel like they aren’t on the same playing field as the rest. The names sound better than what we actually got.

1-Jordan-Pippen
2-Curry-Durant (controversial, but I stand by it when it comes to them playing together at their best and both are top 15 talent)
3-Magic-Kareem (prime years didn’t really overlap that much)
4-Shaq-Kobe (prime years didn’t overlap perfectly)
5-Lebron-Wade (in 2012 I guess...)
6a- Bird-McHale
6b -Duncan-Ginobli
7-Zeke-Dumars

Not quite sure about a lot of them. It’s quite close and I didn’t know if I had to consider just their best year together, or how many years at peak form they’ve played together...

Hellcrooner · Post #5 » by **Hellcrooner** » Sat May 23, 2020 5:24 pm

1994 Jordan 10 / Pippen 9 = 19
2000 Shaq 10/Kobe 8 = 18
1980 Magic 7/Kareem 10 = 17
2003 Shaq 8/ kobe 9 = 17
2012 LeBron 10/Wade7 = 17
2010 Kobe 10 / Pau 7= 17
2009 Kobe 9 /pau 8 =17
1985 Magic 9 /Kareem8 = 17
1991 Jordan 10/Pippen 6 =16
1998 Jordan 9/Pippen7 =16
2017 Curry 7/Durant 9 = 16
1984 Bird 9/Mchale 7=16
1988 Magic 10/Kareem 5= 15
1999 Duncan8/robinson 7 = 15
1988Zeke 8/Dumars6 =14
1981 Bird 7/McHale5= 12

rtiff68 · Post #6 » by **rtiff68** » Sat May 23, 2020 6:19 pm

Thanks for the responses, guys. I started this thread because I think this is very tough— if I did it 10 times, I’d likely have 10 different versions. That said...

Shaq/Kobe: Prime Shaq was arguably the most dominant force in NBA history, I’d argue that “latter half of 3-peat Kobe” was a better 2-way player than “B2B” Kobe.

Jordan/Pippen: Jordan is the GOAT, MJ and Pippen were arguably the best two perimeter defenders in the league, Jordan was also the best offensive player in the league, and their primes almost completely overlapped.

Curry/Durant: Short window together, but both were MVP caliber players at the peak of their respective powers, and they complimented each other as well as any other duo like that.

Magic/Kareem: If Kareem’s prime overlapped more with Magic’s, they’d be number 1.

LeBron/Wade: LeBron is 2nd best player ever, and he was in his absolute prime. Wade fell off a fair amount their last 2 years together.

Bird/McHale: Can’t drop peak Bird any lower than this.

Duncan/Ginobili: Manu and Dumars are the weakest players from these duos (not an insult). Their teams were also more collaborative or mostly one guy (Duncan) than duos.

Zeke/Dumars: See above.

rtiff68 · Post #7 » by **rtiff68** » Sat May 23, 2020 6:23 pm

Hellcrooner wrote:1994 Jordan 10 / Pippen 9 = 19
2000 Shaq 10/Kobe 8 = 18
1980 Magic 7/Kareem 10 = 17
2003 Shaq 8/ kobe 9 = 17
2012 LeBron 10/Wade7 = 17
2010 Kobe 10 / Pau 7= 17
2009 Kobe 9 /pau 8 =17
1991 Jordan 10/Pippen 6 =16
1998 Jordan 9/Pippen7 =16
2017 Curry 7/Durant 9 = 16
1985 Magic 9 /Kareem8 = 15
1988 Magic 10/Kareem 5= 15
1999 Duncan/robinson 7 = 15
1984 Bird 9/Mchale 7=14
1988Zeke 8/Dumars6 =14
1981 Bird 7/McHale5= 12

I like that you were ambitious enough to attach numeric values while making your assessment. The danger in doing that is you can pretty easily force yourself into conclusions you don’t want to come to.

Like, calling Pau equal to (2010) and greater than (2009) 2017 Curry, and equal to ‘85 Kareem.

I dig Pau...but no. If you’re willing, I’d love to hear that argument.

Hellcrooner · Post #8 » by **Hellcrooner** » Sat May 23, 2020 6:30 pm

rtiff68 wrote:
Hellcrooner wrote:1994 Jordan 10 / Pippen 9 = 19
2000 Shaq 10/Kobe 8 = 18
1980 Magic 7/Kareem 10 = 17
2003 Shaq 8/ kobe 9 = 17
2012 LeBron 10/Wade7 = 17
2010 Kobe 10 / Pau 7= 17
2009 Kobe 9 /pau 8 =17
1991 Jordan 10/Pippen 6 =16
1998 Jordan 9/Pippen7 =16
2017 Curry 7/Durant 9 = 16
1985 Magic 9 /Kareem8 = 15
1988 Magic 10/Kareem 5= 15
1999 Duncan/robinson 7 = 15
1984 Bird 9/Mchale 7=14
1988Zeke 8/Dumars6 =14
1981 Bird 7/McHale5= 12

I like that you were ambitious enough to attach numeric values while making your assessment. The danger in doing that is you can pretty easily force yourself into conclusions you don’t want to come to.

Like, calling Pau equal to (2010) and greater than (2009) 2017 Curry, and equal to ‘85 Kareem.

I dig Pau...but no. If you’re willing, I’d love to hear that argument.

as in one is at the totalpeak of his abilities, the other is just overrated like hell and the last one is matuzalem old going down and not retired because someone had ran away with his money?

chitownsalesmen · Post #9 » by **chitownsalesmen** » Sat May 23, 2020 6:30 pm

Tier 1
Magic/Kareem
Shaq/Kobe
Curry/Durant

Gap

Tier 2
Jordan/Pippen

Slightly big gap

Tier 3
Duncan/Ginobili
LeBron/Wade
mini gap
Tier 3.5
Bird/McHale

Gaping grand canyon gap

Tier 4
Zeke/Dumars

rtiff68 · Post #10 » by **rtiff68** » Sat May 23, 2020 8:08 pm

Hellcrooner wrote:
rtiff68 wrote:
Hellcrooner wrote:1994 Jordan 10 / Pippen 9 = 19
2000 Shaq 10/Kobe 8 = 18
1980 Magic 7/Kareem 10 = 17
2003 Shaq 8/ kobe 9 = 17
2012 LeBron 10/Wade7 = 17
2010 Kobe 10 / Pau 7= 17
2009 Kobe 9 /pau 8 =17
1991 Jordan 10/Pippen 6 =16
1998 Jordan 9/Pippen7 =16
2017 Curry 7/Durant 9 = 16
1985 Magic 9 /Kareem8 = 15
1988 Magic 10/Kareem 5= 15
1999 Duncan/robinson 7 = 15
1984 Bird 9/Mchale 7=14
1988Zeke 8/Dumars6 =14
1981 Bird 7/McHale5= 12

I like that you were ambitious enough to attach numeric values while making your assessment. The danger in doing that is you can pretty easily force yourself into conclusions you don’t want to come to.

Like, calling Pau equal to (2010) and greater than (2009) 2017 Curry, and equal to ‘85 Kareem.

I dig Pau...but no. If you’re willing, I’d love to hear that argument.

as in one is at the totalpeak of his abilities, the other is just overrated like hell and the last one is matuzalem old going down and not retired because someone had ran away with his money?

Is that English?

Tim Kempton · Post #11 » by **Tim Kempton** » Sat May 23, 2020 8:15 pm

Hellcrooner wrote:1994 Jordan 10 / Pippen 9 = 19
2000 Shaq 10/Kobe 8 = 18
1980 Magic 7/Kareem 10 = 17
2003 Shaq 8/ kobe 9 = 17
2012 LeBron 10/Wade7 = 17
2010 Kobe 10 / Pau 7= 17
2009 Kobe 9 /pau 8 =17
1991 Jordan 10/Pippen 6 =16
1998 Jordan 9/Pippen7 =16
2017 Curry 7/Durant 9 = 16
1985 Magic 9 /Kareem8 = 15
1988 Magic 10/Kareem 5= 15
1999 Duncan/robinson 7 = 15
1984 Bird 9/Mchale 7=14
1988Zeke 8/Dumars6 =14
1981 Bird 7/McHale5= 12

Your math skills are frightening.

Duncan as an 8 in 1999 is ridiculous, also.

Hellcrooner · Post #12 » by **Hellcrooner** » Sat May 23, 2020 9:09 pm

rtiff68 wrote:
Hellcrooner wrote:
rtiff68 wrote:
I like that you were ambitious enough to attach numeric values while making your assessment. The danger in doing that is you can pretty easily force yourself into conclusions you don’t want to come to.

Like, calling Pau equal to (2010) and greater than (2009) 2017 Curry, and equal to ‘85 Kareem.

I dig Pau...but no. If you’re willing, I’d love to hear that argument.

as in one is at the totalpeak of his abilities, the other is just overrated like hell and the last one is matuzalem old going down and not retired because someone had ran away with his money?

Is that English?

你会说汉语马?
Hablas quizas en español?
Or maybe voÇe posse falar portugues.

ein bisschen deutsch?

rtiff68 · Post #13 » by **rtiff68** » Sat May 23, 2020 9:20 pm

Hellcrooner wrote:
rtiff68 wrote:
Hellcrooner wrote:
as in one is at the totalpeak of his abilities, the other is just overrated like hell and the last one is matuzalem old going down and not retired because someone had ran away with his money?

Is that English?

你会说汉语马?
Hablas quizas en español?
Or maybe voÇe posse falar portugues.

ein bisschen deutsch?

Your Mandarin, Spanish, Portuguese, and German are all much better than your English.

Maybe you should Google translate your sentences in English before you post them.

draftnightsuit · Post #14 » by **draftnightsuit** » Sat May 23, 2020 9:31 pm

Magic/Kareem
Shaq/Kobe
Lebron/Wade
Durant/Curry
Jordan/Pippen
Bird/McHale
Duncan/Ginobili
Zeke/Dumars

Hellcrooner · Post #15 » by **Hellcrooner** » Sat May 23, 2020 9:33 pm

rtiff68 wrote:
Hellcrooner wrote:
rtiff68 wrote:
Is that English?

你会说汉语马?
Hablas quizas en español?
Or maybe voÇe posse falar portugues.

ein bisschen deutsch?

Your Mandarin, Spanish, Portuguese, and German are all much better than your English.

Maybe you should Google translate your sentences in English before you post them.

or maybe im just a little lazy and consider meaning is much more important than the shape in wich you deliver your message.

Post #16 » by **Goudelock** » Sat May 23, 2020 9:58 pm

rtiff68 wrote:
Hellcrooner wrote:
rtiff68 wrote:
Is that English?

你会说汉语马?
Hablas quizas en español?
Or maybe voÇe posse falar portugues.

ein bisschen deutsch?

Your Mandarin, Spanish, Portuguese, and German are all much better than your English.

Maybe you should Google translate your sentences in English before you post them.

Y'all need to relax. This is derailing the thread.

RSP83 · Post #17 » by **RSP83** » Sat May 23, 2020 10:03 pm

rtiff68 wrote:Magic/Kareem

Bird/McHale

Zeke/Dumars (or whomever you deem to be #2)

Jordan/Pippen

Duncan/Ginobili or Parker

Shaq/Kobe

LeBron/Wade

Curry/Durant

Kareem/Magic
Shaq/Kobe
Jordan/Pippen
Curry/KD
LeBron/Wade
Bird/McHale
Duncan/Many or Parker
Zeke/Dumars

rtiff68 · Post #18 » by **rtiff68** » Sat May 23, 2020 11:36 pm

Hellcrooner wrote:
rtiff68 wrote:
Hellcrooner wrote:
你会说汉语马?
Hablas quizas en español?
Or maybe voÇe posse falar portugues.

ein bisschen deutsch?

Your Mandarin, Spanish, Portuguese, and German are all much better than your English.

Maybe you should Google translate your sentences in English before you post them.

or maybe im just a little lazy and consider meaning is much more important than the shape in wich you deliver your message.

“as in one is at the totalpeak of his abilities, the other is just overrated like hell and the last one is matuzalem old going down and not retired because someone had ran away with his money?”

From this, I assumed that Curry was the “overrated as hell” one in your mind. Outside of that, I didn’t know what the hell you were talking about.

So, again, if you don’t mind, why do you consider any version of Pau Gasol equal to or better than ‘17 Curry and ‘85 Kareem?

rtiff68 · Post #19 » by **rtiff68** » Sat May 23, 2020 11:42 pm

Goudelock wrote:
rtiff68 wrote:
Hellcrooner wrote:
你会说汉语马?
Hablas quizas en español?
Or maybe voÇe posse falar portugues.

ein bisschen deutsch?

Your Mandarin, Spanish, Portuguese, and German are all much better than your English.

Maybe you should Google translate your sentences in English before you post them.

Y'all need to relax. This is derailing the thread.

With all due respect— and I mean that sincerely, not as a throwaway cliche— I don’t think a few lighthearted barbs tossed back and forth in a sports debate warrants Mod intervention.

I appreciate what you do, mostly because I’ve done it, and on a hoops board no less— it’s a thankless job, and you guys do it well.

...but we’re good. I was an English teacher, and I continue to teach in my current career, so I’m probably more apt to poke people when it comes to such things.

I don’t think the guy I responded to took great offense. If he did, I apologize.

Bertrob · Post #20 » by **Bertrob** » Sun May 24, 2020 1:45 am

Basing off the level they were when they played together

Shaq/Kobe
Magic/Kareem
Jordan/Pippen
Bird/McHale
Curry/Durant
LeBron/Wade
Duncan/Ginobili
Zeke/Dumars