KG Missed the Playoffs 3 Years in a Row in his Prime

[SilkkTheShocker]

I don't care how bad the supporting cast might have been. That's pathetic. No way does that happen if you replaced him with Dirk

[MiamiThrice]

Yeah thats why Dirk will always be ranked over KG in the rankings. KG can't carry a team like Dirk can. He needs someone else to take over as the primary option. Even in Garnetts MVP year Cassell was the first option on offense when they needed a crucial bucket.

Dirk had Dallas winning 50+ games every single year and if you look at Dirks prime when he had Josh Howard as his best teammate his supporting cast wasn't even that good yet he was getting number one seeds and everything. Yet KG can't even make the playoffs? KG is a shaft rider. He needs to ride someones shaft which is why he was successful in Boston when Pierce would take over games. Good complimentary star, but not going to lead your team to a title himself.

[SilkkTheShocker]

Yeah thats why Dirk will always be ranked over KG in the rankings. KG can't carry a team like Dirk can. He needs someone else to take over as the primary option. Even in Garnetts MVP year Cassell was the first option on offense when they needed a crucial bucket.

Dirk had Dallas winning 50+ games every single year and if you look at Dirks prime when he had Josh Howard as his best teammate his supporting cast wasn't even that good yet he was getting number one seeds and everything. Yet KG can't even make the playoffs? KG is a shaft rider. He needs to ride someones shaft which is why he was successful in Boston when Pierce would take over games. Good complimentary star, but not going to lead your team to a title himself.
Great post.

[noosaman]

KG is the greatest second banana of all time

[HardwoodLegend]

T-Mac > KG?

[JellyBean]

:facepalm I would love to have seen Dirk try to carry a team with a starting lineup of:
Trenton Hassell
Wally Szczerbiak
Marko Jaric
Michael Olowokandi

And then throw in classic bench players like:
Ricky Davis
Rashard McCants
Marcus Banks
Mark Blount
Troy Hudson
Eddie Griffin

Yeah Dirk would have made the playoffs :rolleyes:

[L.Kizzle]

Can anyone remember who was on the Wolves post Sprewell/Cassell, I sure can't?

Dirk as always had Michael Finley, Steve Nash, Nick Van Exel, Jason Terry, Antoine & Antawn, Devin Harris, Josh Howard, Jason Kidd, Shawn Marion, ect.

TROY 'F-N" Hudson.

[SilkkTheShocker]

:facepalm I would love to have seen Dirk try to carry a team with a starting lineup of:
Trenton Hassell
Wally Szczerbiak
Marko Jaric
Michael Olowokandi

And then throw in classic bench players like:
Ricky Davis
Rashard McCants
Marcus Banks
Mark Blount
Troy Hudson
Eddie Griffin

Yeah Dirk would have made the playoffs :rolleyes:
Dirk would take them to the playoffs IMO. KG just isnt lead dog material

[SilkkTheShocker]

T-Mac > KG?
Cooler shoes. Definitely.

[noosaman]

:facepalm I would love to have seen Dirk try to carry a team with a starting lineup of:
Trenton Hassell
Wally Szczerbiak
Marko Jaric
Michael Olowokandi

And then throw in classic bench players like:
Ricky Davis
Rashard McCants
Marcus Banks
Mark Blount
Troy Hudson
Eddie Griffin

Yeah Dirk would have made the playoffs :rolleyes:

dirk made the playoffs with this team

dampier
antoine wright
terry
kidd

so something tells me he could have made it with KGs squads.

[StateOfMind12]

Kevin Garnett is more comparable to Tim Duncan than he is to Dirk Nowitzki.

I'm sure I'll get heat for saying it but the truth is that the main reason why Duncan is considered greater and better than Garnett is because he played on better teams and with much better coaches.

[jalbert009]

dirk made the playoffs with this team

dampier
antoine wright
terry
kidd

so something tells me he could have made it with KGs squads.

HOF PG and 6th man of the year Terry. Better than whatever KG ever had..

[KG215]

Dirk had Dallas winning 50+ games every single year and if you look at Dirks prime when he had Josh Howard as his best teammate his supporting cast wasn't even that good yet he was getting number one seeds and everything. Yet KG can't even make the playoffs? KG is a shaft rider. He needs to ride someones shaft which is why he was successful in Boston when Pierce would take over games. Good complimentary star, but not going to lead your team to a title himself.

And in what season was Josh Howard his best teammate? 2006-2007, the year they had the best record in the league then got beat in the first round?

How about Garnett's best teammates those three years? In 2004-2005 it was Wally Szczerbiak, 35 year old Sam Cassell who missed 23 games, 34 year old Sprewell, Troy Hudson, and Eddie Griffin. It got even worse the next season when he had Szczerbiak, Ricky Davis, Mark Blount, Marcus Banks, and Troy Hudson. And his last year in Minnesota he had Ricky Davis, Mark Blount, Mike James, Randy Foye, Craig Smith, Trenton Hassell. And weren't they starting freaking Michael Olowakandi at center some of those years? It was KG and a bunch of 7th-12th men.

I'm not saying KG is the clear cut choice, but his supporting casts those three years were awful. Szczerbiak was probably, at worst, as good as Howard, but Szczerbiak was his second best teammate two years, and Howard was kinda sorta Dirk's best one year.

Before Dirk's 2011 playoff run, I would've taken KG to build a team around, no questions asked. Now, though, I'd lean towards Dirk, but it's very close. KG's defense sh*ts all over Dirk's, in their prime, now, whenever. Dirk is obviously the superior offensive player but, strictly speaking about their primes, I personally think the gap between their defense is larger than the gap between their offense.

[Young X]

Is it a coincidence that the only year KG had a good supporting cast with the Wolves, they went to the WCF?

[KG215]

dirk made the playoffs with this team

dampier
antoine wright
terry
kidd

so something tells me he could have made it with KGs squads.

Nobody takes anything you say seriously. You're the biggest Dirk homer on ISH and do things to knockdown comparable players like Kevin Durant by saying he's just a taller Monta Ellis and would be better suited as a 2nd or 3rd option.

[jalbert009]

Is it a coincidence that the only year KG had a good supporting cast with the Wolves, they went to the WCF?

You are dead wrong :no: . I woudn;t call that a good supporting cast. Compared to what was in the West at the time it was an average supporting cast.

[SilkkTheShocker]

Dirk went to two finals with average talent. I don't think he would miss the playoffs with the t-wolf teams

[MiamiThrice]

dirk made the playoffs with this team

dampier
antoine wright
terry
kidd

so something tells me he could have made it with KGs squads.

Good point.

Not only did he take them to the playoffs, but he took them to the second round... IN THE WEST, a privilege for teams that are contending. KG can't get past the first round unless he has multiple allstar talents on his team(Cassell/Sprewell and Pierce/Allen/Rondo).

Look at Duncan in 03 winning a title with his 2nd option being a 14 PPG Tony Parker. KG isn't anywhere close to the level of franchise players that Dirk/Duncan are at. It all comes down to results, and KG can't do that without exceptionally more talent than either Dirk or Duncan can.

[noosaman]

HOF PG and 6th man of the year Terry. Better than whatever KG ever had..

So an over the hill PG living off his name and an overrated streaky shooter who gives you nothing outside of when he scores, are Dirk's "great" teammates? Give me a break.

[StateOfMind12]

Honestly, Kevin Garnett's offensive talent around him was never that bad, it was the defensive talent he was surrounded by that was pathetic and also for having the idiot of a coach in Flip Saunders.

KG is the only reason why Flip still got coaching gigs and any NBA job for that matter.

[KG215]

Is it a coincidence that the only year KG had a good supporting cast with the Wolves, they went to the WCF?

And who knows what happens that year if Cassell doesn't get hurt. Cassell got hurt and I think barely played in game two (think he got hurt at the beginning of the game) and I think he missed two more entire games and barely played in another.

His total minutes in the series were in the 50 range for a six game series. Not sure they win if he's healthy, but it would've been a lot more interesting.

Besides, that wasn't prime Cassell and prime Sprewell in 2004. They were 33 and 34 years old.

[noosaman]

Honestly, Kevin Garnett's offensive talent around him was never that bad, it was the defensive talent he was surrounded by that was pathetic and also for having the idiot of a coach in Flip Saunders.

KG is the only reason why Flip still got coaching gigs and any NBA job for that matter.

How about Dirk's teams under Don Nelson? They had no emphasis on defense at all.

Dirk has singlehandedly "made" players--Diop, Howard, Harris...the list goes on.

[PJR]

Joe Smith debacle. KG gets a pass from me due to that. Four first round picks is no joke.

[KG215]

How about Dirk's teams under Don Nelson? They had no emphasis on defense at all.

Dirk has singlehandedly "made" players--Diop, Howard, Harris...the list goes on.

Please, continue the list then.

[SilkkTheShocker]

So an over the hill PG living off his name and an overrated streaky shooter who gives you nothing outside of when he scores, are Dirk's "great" teammates? Give me a break.
Yea, I'm one of the biggest Lebron fans on he board and I can admit Dirks finals team was far from stacked. His 2nd best player was Jason Terry for christs sake. Terry played well, but he isnt an ideal 2nd option. And chandler wasn't even a consistent starter the year before in Charlotte. Replace dirk with KG and that team probably loses to Portland

[KG215]

Joe Smith debacle. KG gets a pass from me due to that. Four first round picks is no joke.

This too. That was a mess. The T-Wolves front office really f*cked themselves in the ass and hindered their ability to build an actual legit contender around Garnett.

[noosaman]

Please, continue the list then.

Sure...

Antoine wright-Jj barea--deshawn stevenson-tyson chandler

[MiamiThrice]

And in what season was Josh Howard his best teammate? 2006-2007, the year they had the best record in the league then got beat in the first round?

How about Garnett's best teammates those three years? In 2004-2005 it was Wally Szczerbiak, 35 year old Sam Cassell who missed 23 games, 34 year old Sprewell, Troy Hudson, and Eddie Griffin. It got even worse the next season when he had Szczerbiak, Ricky Davis, Mark Blount, Marcus Banks, and Troy Hudson. And his last year in Minnesota he had Ricky Davis, Mark Blount, Mike James, Randy Foye, Craig Smith, Trenton Hassell. And weren't they starting freaking Michael Olowakandi at center some of those years? It was KG and a bunch of 7th-12th men.

I'm not saying KG is the clear cut choice, but his supporting casts those three years were awful. Szczerbiak was probably, at worst, as good as Howard, but Szczerbiak was his second best teammate two years, and Howard was kinda sorta Dirk's best one year.

Before Dirk's 2011 playoff run, I would've taken KG to build a team around, no questions asked. Now, though, I'd lean towards Dirk, but it's very close. KG's defense sh*ts all over Dirk's, in their prime, now, whenever. Dirk is obviously the superior offensive player but, strictly speaking about their primes, I personally think the gap between their defense is larger than the gap between their offense.

How about 2006 when he got to the ****ing NBA Finals? That's right, Dirk getting to the Finals with Josh ****ing Howard as his best teammate. KG can't even MAKE the playoffs with Wally Szcerbiak a comparable level of talent.

2005 is one of the funniest things of Garnetts career. There was one glaring difference. SAM CASSELL! The reason Minnesota experienced a ton of success in 2004. He wasn't able to play like his allstar self. KG played just as well. Hell they even got Sczerbiak back from an injury and he was shooting over 50% as a SHOOTER and 16 PPG.. Yet in those crucial moments when Garnett shrinks time after time again there was noone to bail Minnesota out. Without Sam Cassell playing at an elite level they were toast. It's the reason everyone knew LA/SA would wreck their assholes in the 2004 playoffs.

KG was destined to be a second fiddle, not a first option.

[jalbert009]

Dirk went to two finals with average talent. I don't think he would miss the playoffs with the t-wolf teams

He also got eliminated in the first round when he was the first seed with a good cast of Howard, Terry amd Stackhouse.

Don't get me wrong, I love Dirk and respect what he did in 2011 but Dirk was always blessed with better team mates than KG. I think Dirk would have missed at least one playoff series had him and KG swapped teams but in saying that if KG was in Dallas all those years Dirk was I think KG would have won a championship before 2011.

To me there is no denying Dirk is a better scorer than KG but KG does everything else better.

[noosaman]

Yea, I'm one of the biggest Lebron fans on he board and I can admit Dirks finals team was far from stacked. His 2nd best player was Jason Terry for christs sake. Terry played well, but he isnt an ideal 2nd option. And chandler wasn't even a consistent starter the year before in Charlotte. Replace dirk with KG and that team probably loses to Portland

exactly. You had guys like chandler and marion who were traded multiple times and left for dead, but after playing with The Almighty they became revitalized and viewed as Dirk's "great team." Funny how it happens.

[CJ Mustard]

KG never lost a Playoff series he was supposed to win. Dirk on the other hand....

KG has been the most important player on both ends of the floor on a championship team. Dirk on the other hand....

[SilkkTheShocker]

Sure...

Antoine wright-Jj barea--deshawn stevenson-tyson chandler
Wright isn't even in the league anymore :oldlol:

[noosaman]

Wright isn't even in the league anymore :oldlol:

And that dude was finishing out games for the Mavs in a postseason run...

[SilkkTheShocker]

KG never lost a Playoff series he was supposed to win. Dirk on the other hand....

KG has been the most important player on both ends of the floor on a championship team. Dirk on the other hand....
Dirk has never missed the playoffs in prime and has had far more success as a lead dog. You are basically saying Dirk gets penalized because his teams were actually good enough to make the playoffs

[CJ Mustard]

Dirk has never missed the playoffs in prime and has had far more success as a lead dog. You are basically saying Dirk gets penalized because his teams were actually good enough to make the playoffs
Um...no I'm not. I'm saying Dirk has lost in the Playoffs as the "leader" when his team was more talented and heavily favored to win. KG has never lost when he was favored.

And :oldlol: @ thinking Dirk would make the Playoffs with any of those Wolves teams. The guy was the 7th seed with a very talented team in 08 and a 6th seed in 09. Dirk has played on talented teams his for most of his career. And you're either delusional or weren't watching basketball at the time to say otherwise.

:oldlol: @ the guy who put Wally Szcerbiak on the same level as Josh Howard, Jason Terry, and Michael Finley BTW.

[Mach_3]

35 year old Garnett outplayed/had a better playoff run a still in his prime Dirk Nowitzki in the playoffs last year. That's all you need to know

[Kblaze8855]

I don't care how bad the supporting cast might have been.

Which is enough to prove you dont need to be listened to.

[Deuce Bigalow]

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar missed the Playoffs 2 Years in a row in his prime ('75, '76)

:confusedshrug:

[KG215]

How about some of the teams Garnett did get to the playoffs with?

1999
Terrell Brandon
Joe Smith
Sam Mitchell
Anthony Peeler
Dean Garrett
Malik Sealy

2000
Pretty much the exact same team as 1999

2001
Terrell Brandon
Wally Szczerbiak
Anthony Peeler
Laphonso Ellis
Rasho Nesterovic
Felipe Lopez
Reggie Slater
Chauncey Billups - A few years before he emerged and at the time he wasn't "Chauncey Billups" yet, if that makes sense.

2002
Billups
Anthony Peeler
Szczerbiak
Nesterovic
Joe Smith
Gary Trent

2003
Troy Hudson
Nesterovic
Szczerbiak
Marc Jackson
34 year old Kendall Gill
Peeler


I'm not even trying to say Dirk had a ton of help. I think he did do some pretty impressive things in the playoffs considering some of his supporting casts; but Kevin Garnett, for more of his career, had worse supporting casts and most years it wasn't even close.

It's more than just a list of forgettable names, too. Those Minny teams just weren't very well constructed.

[jalbert009]

How about some of the teams Garnett did get to the playoffs with?

1999
Terrell Brandon
Joe Smith
Sam Mitchell
Anthony Peeler
Dean Garrett
Malik Sealy

2000
Pretty much the exact same team as 1999

2001
Terrell Brandon
Wally Szczerbiak
Anthony Peeler
Laphonso Ellis
Rasho Nesterovic
Felipe Lopez
Reggie Slater
Chauncey Billups - A few years before he emerged and at the time he wasn't "Chauncey Billups" yet, if that makes sense.

2002
Billups
Anthony Peeler
Szczerbiak
Nesterovic
Joe Smith
Gary Trent

2003
Troy Hudson
Nesterovic
Szczerbiak
Marc Jackson
34 year old Kendall Gill
Peeler


I'm not even trying to say Dirk had a ton of help. I think he did do some pretty impressive things in the playoffs considering some of his supporting casts; but Kevin Garnett, for more of his career, had worse supporting casts and most years it wasn't even close.

It's more than just a list of forgettable names, too. Those Minny teams just weren't very well constructed.

Repped. Good post! :applause: Like iposted earlier, If Dirk and KG swapped teams, Dirk would have missed at least one playoffs in his prime and KG could have won a chip before 2011.

[fsvr54]

Dirk went to two finals with average talent. I don't think he would miss the playoffs with the t-wolf teams

Dirk's supporting cast went APES-HIT in 2011

[Dictator]

Dirk went to two finals with average talent. I don't think he would miss the playoffs with the t-wolf teams


Marion, Terry, Tyson?.............Dirk had a great team. Did you guys forget what Terry did to '11 Lebron?

[SilkkTheShocker]

Marion, Terry, Tyson?.............Dirk had a great team. Did you guys forget what Terry did to '11 Lebron?
Terry did great. But he still isn't an ideal 2nd option.

[Hittin_Shots]

Terry did great. But he still isn't an ideal 2nd option.

You are clearly going by name and not his performance, he was clearly more than ideal that playoffs...

[noosaman]

35 year old Garnett outplayed/had a better playoff run a still in his prime Dirk Nowitzki in the playoffs last year. That's all you need to know

LOL yeah beasted against the freaking Hawks and Sixers!

[SilkkTheShocker]

LOL yeah beasted against the freaking Hawks and Sixers!
Exactly.

[noosaman]

Marion, Terry, Tyson?.............Dirk had a great team. Did you guys forget what Terry did to '11 Lebron?

LOL I love the revisionist history. Every team Dallas beat had superior talent and more all stars. I love it when people ignore the fact that Terry was mediocre in half of the games in that run

You can make up all the bullshit you want about Dirk's supporting cast going nuts but the truth is Dirk thoroughly outplayed the entire league that entire season.

[MiseryCityTexas]

If KG had the Lebron mindstate, he woulda left and won championships somewhere else with better players than Contract Albatross Chief Hoe Smith, useless garbage man Dean Garrett, great practice player, but terrible NBA player master wizard himself, Mr. Gary Trent, Fred Hoiberg, soft ass Nesterovic, JR Rider a.k.a. the Andray Blatche before Andray Blatche only he's a shooting guard, always hurt Terrell Brandon, "forever inactive injury list guru god" Gugliotta, production in play = still no wins type of player in Christian Leattner, Anthony Peeler, old past prime Terry Porter, stat padder, but your team still sucks player in Ricky Davis, veteran scrub Doug West, average wiley Timberwolf vet Sam Mitchell, poor Pooh Richardson and other trash T Wolves role players.

Timber Puppies should've also kept Marbury. Derrick Coleman talking all that shit in Slam magazine about how a prime him and Kenny Anderson could have been on the same level, or possibly even been better than Stockton/Malone. I think a Garnett/Marbury duo would destroy a Kenny Anderson/Coleman duo. T Wolves woulda had a couple of Finals appearances if they woulda kept Marbury, and added a better supporting cast alot sooner.

[MiseryCityTexas]

Can't forget about "NBA Allstar" Wally Serwbiack

[noosaman]

Can't forget about "NBA Allstar" Wally Serwbiack

He was just as good as Josh Howard and/or Jason terry

[Pointguard]

How about some of the teams Garnett did get to the playoffs with?

1999
Terrell Brandon
Joe Smith
Sam Mitchell
Anthony Peeler
Dean Garrett
Malik Sealy

2000
Pretty much the exact same team as 1999

2001
Terrell Brandon
Wally Szczerbiak
Anthony Peeler
Laphonso Ellis
Rasho Nesterovic
Felipe Lopez
Reggie Slater
Chauncey Billups - A few years before he emerged and at the time he wasn't "Chauncey Billups" yet, if that makes sense.

2002
Billups
Anthony Peeler
Szczerbiak
Nesterovic
Joe Smith
Gary Trent

2003
Troy Hudson
Nesterovic
Szczerbiak
Marc Jackson
34 year old Kendall Gill
Peeler


I'm not even trying to say Dirk had a ton of help. I think he did do some pretty impressive things in the playoffs considering some of his supporting casts; but Kevin Garnett, for more of his career, had worse supporting casts and most years it wasn't even close.

It's more than just a list of forgettable names, too. Those Minny teams just weren't very well constructed.
No player can compensate for super bad management. Kareem was the best player in the 70's and in his prime yet he missed the playoffs three times.

But Minny was horrendous.

KG did come after Stephon Marbury who was traded for Ray Allen, who would have been a great compliment to KG. Minny had also traded JR Rider to Portland for James Robinson just before KG arrives. Downhill was set in motion.

Minny Relinquished 5 first-round draft choices and was fined $3.5 million for illegally signing Joe Smith. Joe Smith played KG's position and he didn't play it well. So for a misplaced, mediocre backup player they loose all chances of rebuilding thru the draft which was their primary option. And then traded Cassell and a unprotected 1st rounder for MARCO JARIC.

Later on Brandon Roy to Portland for Randy Foye and cash

Six unprotected draft picks! Gone from a team that has to rebuild because their returns were Marco Jaric and Joe Smith, neither of which were good 7th men from the bench. They, Minny, remarkably loose Nestorovic, who looked great next to KG, to contenders SA. They couldn't even retain Sprewell in his last career year. Marbury is traded for the often injured Terrell Brandon who can only give two decent years.

Their biggest signings? Signed Trenton Hassell to 6-year, $27 million contract; signed Troy Hudson to 6-year, $37 million contract. You think that team is going places. You can't win like that. If a team could work out a three way trade for six high, unprotected draft picks the returns could have easily been Chris Paul and Dwight Howard within the last two years alone.

No great player can make a team bent on getting worse, a consistent playoff team. KG played harder and with more intensity than any other big-man in the modern era, while being the most versatile. The missing playoffs weren't on KG at all.

[SilkkTheShocker]

Dirks finals team was nothing special. No Butler, Haywood was hurt, etc remember those games they lost without Dirk? They stepped up in the finals, but they weren't anything special. Every team they played in the playoffs had more talent IMO. No way in hell does KG do anything with that team

[Mach_3]

LOL yeah beasted against the freaking Hawks and Sixers!

Lol while Dirk was to busy getting swept out the playoffs again :roll:

Also OP is a closet KG fanboy

[SilkkTheShocker]

Lol while Dirk was to busy getting swept out the playoffs again :roll:

Also OP is a closet KG fanboy

KG wouldnt even have been able to take that Mavs team to the playoffs. They wouldn't have a consitent 4th quarter player at all

[MiseryCityTexas]

He was just as good as Josh Howard and/or Jason terry


hell no.

[Smoke117]

The Timberwolves should have never traded Ray Allen for Marbury. What a horrible trade that ended up being. A Prime Ray and Prime KG would have complimented each other so well too. It's easy to forget how athletic both players were, especially KG, who was just a beast when he was younger. Neither player ever had a problem with selfishness either and would have developed well together.

[JellyBean]

dirk made the playoffs with this team

dampier
antoine wright
terry
kidd

so something tells me he could have made it with KGs squads.


I doubt it. If Dirk had the supporting cast that KG had, Dirk would not have gotten the Timberwolves into the playoffs. Then you throw in a coaching change, I seriously doubt that Dirk would have gotten the Timberwolves into the playoffs during that 3 year window.

[keepinitreal]

If KG had the Lebron mindstate, he woulda left and won championships somewhere else with better players

:lebronamazed:











































http://cache.boston.com/bonzai-fba/Globe_Photo/2008/06/18/1213765144_0659.jpg

[JellyBean]

The Timberwolves should have never traded Ray Allen for Marbury. What a horrible trade that ended up being. A Prime Ray and Prime KG would have complimented each other so well too. It's easy to forget how athletic both players were, especially KG, who was just a beast when he was younger. Neither player ever had a problem with selfishness either and would have developed well together.


I remember when this trade went down. All of the hype behind Marbury being the PG of the future made that trade seem legit. Sad that we only had that one draft pick in 1996.

[Carbine]

It's the biggest asterisk on his resume. Nobody should fault him for not winning titles in Minnesota, he never had the talent around him to do so.....but to not make the playoffs? 3 years in a row in your prime?

That's inexcusable, IMO.

[StateOfMind12]

You know, there aren't that many players in NBA history that could take any NBA team to the playoffs regardless of how bad their team is.

I find it funny how people act as if every superstar should take a team into the nba playoffs regardless of the supporting cast. It's more of a requirement for a top 5-10 player of all-time, not a top 15-20 player of all-time which is what KG was.

[Harison]

I find it funny how people act as if every superstar should take a team into the nba playoffs regardless of the supporting cast. It's more of a requirement for a top 5-10 player of all-time, not a top 15-20 player of all-time which is what KG was.

Prime Kareem and Kobe missed some Playoffs with bad teams. It doesnt matter where players are All-time, if team is really bad and competition strong - they'll miss the Playoffs.

[kenny817]

:facepalm I would love to have seen Dirk try to carry a team with a starting lineup of:
Trenton Hassell
Wally Szczerbiak
Marko Jaric
Michael Olowokandi

And then throw in classic bench players like:
Ricky Davis
Rashard McCants
Marcus Banks
Mark Blount
Troy Hudson
Eddie Griffin

Yeah Dirk would have made the playoffs :rolleyes:


prime Dirk + 11 bums = playoffs

No doubt about it

[veilside23]

here we go again??

as far as i know KG's team has been past the 2nd round most of the time after having a good core .. while dirk on the other hand he even had better bench players than what kg had when he was in minny.

After championship what happened to dallas? they just lost tyson chandler who'm you said wont even matter... but look at what kg did even after losing perk... still took the heat to 7 games.

in his prime kg can only do this

22 pts
13 reb (led the league)
5 asts
1.5 blocks
1.4 steals


only thing dirk did more was to score nothing else. but its not like he led the league in scoring for crying out loud.

dirk

24 pts
8.8 reb i am being generous here
barely 3 ast considering the fact that he gets double team most of the time.
barely a block and a steal...

yes dirk so great that 22 pts is really a glaring difference from dirks 24 ...

silk i guess you are bored right ?

well you got some attention what else do you need?

[veilside23]

prime Dirk + 11 bums = playoffs

No doubt about it


first round exit :D ... i never thought that playoffs matter alot really ...

[Carbine]

You know, there aren't that many players in NBA history that could take any NBA team to the playoffs regardless of how bad their team is.

I find it funny how people act as if every superstar should take a team into the nba playoffs regardless of the supporting cast. It's more of a requirement for a top 5-10 player of all-time, not a top 15-20 player of all-time which is what KG was.

He was in the prime of his career though and missed 3 straight playoffs. One is understandable I guess, injuries happen like to Kobe in the year he didn't make it... but KG played pretty much all games in those 3 years.

People want to compare him to Duncan all the time. You see KG vs. Duncan threads all the time here.....so if you want to be compared to Duncan, you have to realize that missing 3 straight playoffs in your prime is a huge thing to get past when comparing.

Want to compare him to Karl Malone? Not much of a problem because Malone has huge faults as well.....but is it what it is, a huge stain on his resume, IMO.

[Mach_3]

KG wouldnt even have been able to take that Mavs team to the playoffs. They wouldn't have a consitent 4th quarter player at all

Dirks not even taking KG's wolves teams to 35 wins any year out side of like 04 :lol

[jalbert009]

People want to compare him to Duncan all the time. You see KG vs. Duncan threads all the time here.....so if you want to be compared to Duncan, you have to realize that missing 3 straight playoffs in your prime is a huge thing to get past when comparing.


I think the reason people compare KG to Duncan all the time is because who else do you compare the #1 GOAT PF to? the #2 PF right? :lol

I am a huge KG fan but I admit Duncan is the GOAT PF.

[The Choken One]

He's no Tim Duncan...

[necya]

when you take all money, don't be surprised you have a poor cast :rolleyes:
even if the dude is good at basketball, i really don't see how people can support this clown. he is an asshole on and off the court, not a secret afterall.

[StateOfMind12]

People want to compare him to Duncan all the time. You see KG vs. Duncan threads all the time here.....so if you want to be compared to Duncan, you have to realize that missing 3 straight playoffs in your prime is a huge thing to get past when comparing.
You still need to take the teammates into consideration and the context.

Kevin Garnett was playing with hot garbage in 2006 and 2007. He had one of the biggest cancers ever in Ricky Davis, one of the worst coaches in the league (possibly worse than Flip), and just an overall a crappy team. I believe even some of his crappy role players got hurt and missed multiple games which disrupts the chemistry/balance of the team.

Like I said, it really isn't common for stars to get their team to the playoffs regardless of how bad their teams are. That is not to say that there aren't stars that are incapable of doing that but not most of them can. It's very rare like 0.01% of NBA history rare.

Garnett and Duncan is a lot closer than most people are willing to admit. Duncan's peak/prime was better but it honestly wasn't by much. The biggest difference is their scoring ability and that was it but if we don't factor in scoring then I would probably give Garnett the edge but scoring is the name of the game so I can't ignore it even if I wanted to.

Duncan's career is obviously better because he achieved more but you still have to ponder at what Kevin Garnett would have done with those Spurs teams. He could have done worse, he could have done the same, he could have done better, we will never know because he wasted his best years in Minnesota.

I'm not someone who plays with too many hypotheticals. I always give the edge to players that have proven to be able to do it though which is why Duncan is higher than Garnett in my GOAT list.

[wpdougie2180]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZdXQIezguo&feature=related

Starting Line ups:

Lakers:
PG Gary Payton
SG Kobe Bryant
SF Devean George
PF Karl Malone
C Shaquille O'Neal

Wolves:
PG Darrick Martin
SG Trenton Hassell
SF Latrell Sprewell
PF Kevin Garnett
C Michael Olowokandi

Nuff said

[TheBigVeto]

Yeah thats why Dirk will always be ranked over KG in the rankings. KG can't carry a team like Dirk can. He needs someone else to take over as the primary option. Even in Garnetts MVP year Cassell was the first option on offense when they needed a crucial bucket.

Dirk had Dallas winning 50+ games every single year and if you look at Dirks prime when he had Josh Howard as his best teammate his supporting cast wasn't even that good yet he was getting number one seeds and everything. Yet KG can't even make the playoffs? KG is a shaft rider. He needs to ride someones shaft which is why he was successful in Boston when Pierce would take over games. Good complimentary star, but not going to lead your team to a title himself.

This.
KG is great, but he is not better than Dirk.

[Lebron23]

He wasted his prime in Minnesota.

[Pointguard]

Originally Posted by MiamiThrice

Yeah thats why Dirk will always be ranked over KG in the rankings. KG can't carry a team like Dirk can. He needs someone else to take over as the primary option. Even in Garnetts MVP year Cassell was the first option on offense when they needed a crucial bucket.

Dirk had Dallas winning 50+ games every single year and if you look at Dirks prime when he had Josh Howard as his best teammate his supporting cast wasn't even that good yet he was getting number one seeds and everything. Yet KG can't even make the playoffs? KG is a shaft rider. He needs to ride someones shaft which is why he was successful in Boston when Pierce would take over games. Good complimentary star, but not going to lead your team to a title himself.

Josh Howard wasn't that bad. In fact, when the pressure was on Dallas to win the next year, he was the best player on Dallas in the playoffs. If KG had somebody on his team that outplayed him in the playoffs he would have made every playoffs without question. And Jason Terry role goes up big time when Dallas needed him. He's usually the most accurate shooter in the biggest games and scores very similar to Dirk in the finals, after the first two games. If KG had those type of conviences things would have been very different.

[noosaman]

Josh Howard wasn't that bad. In fact, when the pressure was on Dallas to win the next year, he was the best player on Dallas in the playoffs. If KG had somebody on his team that outplayed him in the playoffs he would have made every playoffs without question. And Jason Terry role goes up big time when Dallas needed him. He's usually the most accurate shooter in the biggest games and scores very similar to Dirk in the finals, after the first two games. If KG had those type of conviences things would have been very different.


Do you actually believe the shit you type?

Terry got specifically called out by Dirk because he was so garbage the first 3 games of the Finals.

Howard and Terry have NEVER outplayed Dirk, not once. Terry is in fact a mediocre playoffs performed except for 3 runs, if you have actually bothered to follow him instead of trying to develop an excuse to cut down Dirk's greatness.

[noosaman]

Something I find extremely interesting--people are rushing to make excuses for KG for not leading his Wolves team and praise his huge numbers but yet when Kevin Love puts up even better numbers on an even shittier Wolves squad it's because he;s overrated and only a stats padder. Funny how that works...

[Pointguard]

Do you actually believe the shit you type?

Terry got specifically called out by Dirk because he was so garbage the first 3 games of the Finals.

Howard and Terry have NEVER outplayed Dirk, not once. Terry is in fact a mediocre playoffs performed except for 3 runs, if you have actually bothered to follow him instead of trying to develop an excuse to cut down Dirk's greatness.
:lol
I didn't say once, that's pretty easy - he outplayed Dirk for the whole series. Why don't you know basic stuff if you are a fan.

After their first finals run there was pressure for Dallas to come back strong the next year.

Not only did Josh Howard outscore Dirk 21.3 to 19.7 but he outshot him 515% to 387% - more than 100 percentage points. Outshot him in threes 389% to 211%. Dirk had more turnovers and the rebounding was a only 1.3 difference in favor of Dirk who had a 4 inch height advantage on his man.

[KG215]

:lol
I didn't say once, that's pretty easy - he outplayed Dirk for the whole series. Why don't you know basic stuff if you are a fan.

After their first finals run there was pressure for Dallas to come back strong the next year.

Not only did Josh Howard outscore Dirk 21.3 to 19.7 but he outshot him 515% to 387% - more than 100 percentage points. Outshot him in threes 389% to 211%. Dirk had more turnovers and the rebounding was a only 1.3 difference in favor of Dirk who had a 4 inch height advantage on his man.

Dude, you're arguing with the kennethgriffin of Dirk stans. In fact, I think he's the only Dirk stan on ISH.

[lakerstekkenn]

kg never had a balanced team that's why its simple and a great coach

Lakers always build a balanced team and get the best coach

kg never had that kg only balanced team was with Boston

kg never had a point guard like Nash never had a Kobe team had no balance

dirk had Nash and still lost why no balance

that's why love didn't make the playoffs no balance team is great but no balance
team don't fit together

why did the heat lose last year not a balanced team no post up player bench was weak

why this year only reason why heat where a better slow it down okc didn't have a post up player both teams where the same okc didn't have a balanced team both didn't but heat where better at it

watch the clips they are stacked no balance to many players that play the same role and a bad coach is that Cris Paul fault no

same with kg not his fault teams where not balanced and bad coaching

understand the game