12-22-2020, 07:32 PM
(12-22-2020, 04:04 PM)StepBackJay Wrote: Getting back to a serious argument, can you point to me a defensive, dunking center leading to a championship in the last decade (or longer)?
I am just thinking about some very good all-star defensive, dunking, rebounding centers of the last decade:
- DAJ
- Whiteside
- Adams
- Capella
- Chandler
These are all centers without much of an offensive game outside of dunking. I do not include guys like either Gasol brother or even Dwight Howard who had more offensive game in their prime. How many of these guys could carry a team?
Interestingly enough all of these guys the Mavs have had interest in over the years. Chandler was the lynchpin to the Mavs getting over the hump but the Mavs didn't build a team around him. The Knicks got Chandler the next year who was DPOY but he and Carmelo + old Kidd got only to the second round.
I would say Capella has had the most success out of this bunch in terms of team success. The Rockets came very close to beating the stacked Warriors. I don't think any of these guys were ever the first or 2nd building block. At best maybe the 3rd core piece? And honestly I don't believe any of these players in their prime are much different than Gobert in his current prime.
Are you really going to believe that Gobert is able to be your first or second best player and win a championship? Honestly I think the Jazz have a shot at contention but mostly bc they have a very solid roster including extremely underrated Bojan Bogdan who was injured last year. Bojan, Mitchell, Ingles, Gobert, Favors, Conley, Clarkson. They are solid. Their ceiling to me is tied more to their playmakers Bojan and Mitchell than Gobert.
1-Gobert here won't be best player, so he fits the Chandler description.
2-Regarding to leading to a championship, the last C who won finals MVP was Shaq in 2002. So, do we stop looking for a good C anyway? Maybe we choose wrong teammate for Luka since folks here think KP is a C.
3-In fact, the last 9 winners of finals MVP were all SF. Lebron/KD/Kawhi/Iggy.
4-If you take those guys, add Curry to the list, remove Iggy and say those are the elite players in the NBA today? those would be top 4 anyway.
So, who forms the rest of top 10 if you believes that those are the only one to lead you to true contention? Maybe another young point forward like Luka? and that is it?
There are more room in top 10 (or even top 7) for players who can't lead you to too championship team.