Vote change. Adding Vlade Divac to my list.
HeartBreakKid wrote:1) 1995 Alonzo Mourning - Defensive two way beast. Easily the best player they've had when factoring in defense. Was underrated before he went to Miami. Media was more concerned with Muggsy and LJ.
2) 2002 Baron Davis - Not positive on this one, but I've always been a fan of his playmaking. He didn't have a bad playoffs either. Baron struggles with shooting and defense, but I think it was good enough this season to not hold back his passing. The Hornets haven't had many great creators, so Baron sticks out.
3) 2010 Gerald Wallace - I was going to give this to LJ at first but then I realized I am kind of just going off of name value. Larry Johnson was such a big name for a guy who didn't do that much back in the day while Gerald Wallace....was not. Crash really only had one great season, but he did everything very well. The scoring between him and LJ is surprisingly not much, and I am almost positive Crash was a better defender than LJ.
4) 1996 Larry Johnson - Similar strengths to Crash but more passing and perhaps better shooting relative to his era. LJ is a weaker defender though.
5) 2000 Eddie Jones - Eddie is one of those "super roleplayer" types. He's a glue guy. He's a solid shooter, he can create his own shot and he's a great defender - but he's not really out wordly at any of those things but clearly better than a typical roleplayer at any one of those things. This last spot was between him and Rice and I think Jones portability is a major strength. Rice is really awful defensively, so while 1997 was a great scoring season the net difference is likely in Jones favor. Glen was just too one dimensional if he wasn't the first option.
Kemba Walker doesn't make it because his scoring just isn't special enough. He doesn't give you much passing and he's a bad defender usually as well. He never had much chance to prove himself as a playoff player either. Portability matters more for these level of players.
1)
1995 Alonzo Mourning - Defensive two way beast. Easily the best player they've had when factoring in defense. Was underrated before he went to Miami. Media was more concerned with Muggsy and LJ.
2)
1997 Vlade Divac - I don't think I ever saw a single game from Vlade during his pit stop in Charlotte. But given this is right in between his LA and SAC run, he had to have been pretty dang good still. I'm not positive if he's my #2 guy or #3, but he does a lot of the good things you want in a basketball player. After Mourning, most of my votes are going to who is the best "team" player and portability is playing a big factor because most of these guys aren't anywhere near consistent or good enough to be an anchor. Vlade is an excellent defender and passer, and a very good rebounder. His only weakness is that he's not much of a scorer, but he still plays team basketball very well, so it off sets that.
3)
2002 Baron Davis - Not positive on this one, but I've always been a fan of his playmaking. He didn't have a bad playoffs either. Baron struggles with shooting and defense, but I think it was good enough this season to not hold back his passing. The Hornets haven't had many great creators, so Baron sticks out.
4)
2010 Gerald Wallace - I was going to give this to LJ at first but then I realized I am kind of just going off of name value. Larry Johnson was such a big name for a guy who didn't do that much back in the day while Gerald Wallace....was not. Crash really only had one great season, but he did everything very well. The scoring between him and LJ is surprisingly not much, and I am almost positive Crash was a better defender than LJ.
5)
1996 Larry Johnson - Similar strengths to Crash but more passing and perhaps better shooting relative to his era. LJ is a weaker defender though.
Not positive about leaving Eddie Jones out of LJ. I can see myself changing my vote on that.
Rice is really awful defensively, so while 1997 was a great scoring season the net difference is likely in Johnson and Jones favor.
Kemba Walker doesn't make it because his scoring just isn't special enough. He doesn't give you much passing and he's a bad defender usually as well. He never had much chance to prove himself as a playoff player either.
