Isiah Thomas is the most underrated player in ISH history

[JtotheIzzo]

Beat Magic, Bird and Jordan in their primes and lead a flawed team to back to back titles.

Had one of the greatest quarters in NBA finals history.

Had GOAT shook for his entire career.

Anyone who says Stockton, Payton or Kidd were better needs to be slapped. Second best PG of all time behind Earvin.

[ZMonkey11]

I approve of this message.

[G-train]

Beat Magic, Bird and Jordan in their primes and lead a flawed team to back to back titles.

Had one of the greatest quarters in NBA finals history.

Had GOAT shook for his entire career.

Anyone who says Stockton, Payton or Kidd were better needs to be slapped. Second best PG of all time behind Earvin.

Are you including Oscar Robertson as a PG?

[Young X]

No he didn't, the PISTONS beat the Lakers, Celtics, and Bulls because they were the better, more healthy team. Nobody wins alone. Joe Dumars was playing just as well as him and not only did he make the All NBA 3rd team over Isiah, he won FMVP over him too.

You can't beat teams by yourself when you're not even making All NBA 3rd teams in your prime.

Why is that Pistons team so underrated? They're one of the deepest teams ever and one of the best defenses of all time. They had 5-6 all-star caliber player on one team.

[To4]

too bad he retired somewhat young or early old at only 33 years old..

[Marchesk]

Beat Magic, Bird and Jordan in their primes and lead a flawed team to back to back titles.

Flawed but deep. That was a stacked steam.

[bdreason]

I agree. Possibly the most overlooked and under-appreciated player in the history of the game.

[bdreason]

And I'd probably throw Kareem into the conversation as well. The media parades around MJ like he's the undisputed GOAT, occasionally mentioning players like Russell, Wilt, Magic, and Bird... but never so much as a whisper about Kareem.



Not surprising that neither Isiah nor Kareem were media friendly people.

[ZMonkey11]

No he didn't, the PISTONS beat the Lakers, Celtics, and Bulls because they were the better, more healthy team. Nobody wins alone. Joe Dumars was playing just as well as him and not only did he make the All NBA 3rd team over Isiah, he won FMVP over him too.

You can't beat teams by yourself when you're not even making All NBA 3rd teams in your prime.

Why is that Pistons team so underrated? They're one of the deepest teams ever and one of the best defenses of all time. They had 5-6 all-star caliber player on one team.

Paul Pierce a better player than Kevin Garnett? And the year Joe Dumars took 3rd team All-NBA. who was the FMVP?

2x champion and undisputed leader of the Pistons. Lead them to 3 straight NBA Finals, 2x All-Star game MVP, 12x All-Star, only missing his last season.

And boy was only 6 foot tall! Straight from Salleys mouth, Isiah was the BEST player he ever played with, and he's played with Kobe, Shaq, Jordan, and Pippen.

Come on maaaaan

[tpols]

No he didn't, the PISTONS beat the Lakers, Celtics, and Bulls because they were the better, more healthy team. Nobody wins alone. Joe Dumars was playing just as well as him and not only did he make the All NBA 3rd team over Isiah, he won FMVP over him too.

You can't beat teams by yourself when you're not even making All NBA 3rd teams in your prime.

Why is that Pistons team so underrated? They're one of the deepest teams ever and one of the best defenses of all time. They had 5-6 all-star caliber player on one team.
And Michael Jordan played with Scottie Pippen, who for a long stretch, was twice the player Dumars was. Jordan when he was winning played on teams, that were always better than his competitions.

Nobody wins alone can really be applied to anyone.

[Young X]

Paul Pierce a better player than Kevin Garnett? And the year Joe Dumars took 3rd team All-NBA. who was the FMVP?

2x champion and undisputed leader of the Pistons. Lead them to 3 straight NBA Finals, 2x All-Star game MVP, 12x All-Star, only missing his last season.

And boy was only 6 foot tall! Straight from Salleys mouth, Isiah was the BEST player he ever played with, and he's played with Kobe, Shaq, Jordan, and Pippen.

Come on maaaaanI'm not saying that, I'm just saying you don't win by yourself if there's another player on your team playing on the same level as you. I'm not denying his greatness at all, he's one of the best PG's in history. I just get annoyed when people underrate those Pistons teams - those weren't one man teams and Isiah didn't beat Jordan/Bird/Magic by himself.

[SamuraiSWISH]

Jordan when he was winning played on teams, that were always better than his competitions.
Because of Jordan and his performance. No one is suggesting it's one v.s. five. There were plenty of times that when removing each team's best player, an opponent had superior and deeper talent than MJ had with the Bulls. The early 90's Bulls many times were on the lesser side of the talent pool v.s. other teams like the Blazers, Knicks, Suns, Sonics, Magic, Heat, etc.

Sure he had Pippen, a perfect sidekick, but there were many teams with superior rosters that he had to overcome. Don't pawn off bull shit to suit your "bring Jordan down a peg" agenda here.

[fpliii]

Because of Jordan and his performance. No one is suggesting it's one v.s. five. There were plenty of times that when removing each team's best player, an opponent had superior and deeper talent than MJ had with the Bulls. The early 90's Bulls many times were on the lesser side of the talent pool v.s. other teams like the Blazers, Knicks, Suns, Sonics, Magic, Heat, etc.

Sure he had Pippen, a perfect sidekick, but there were many teams with superior rosters that he had to overcome. Don't pawn off bull shit to suit your "bring Jordan down a peg" agenda here.
http://i.imgur.com/I6GSf.gif

[Round Mound]

No he didn't, the PISTONS beat the Lakers, Celtics, and Bulls because they were the better, more healthy team. Nobody wins alone. Joe Dumars was playing just as well as him and not only did he make the All NBA 3rd team over Isiah, he won FMVP over him too.

You can't beat teams by yourself when you're not even making All NBA 3rd teams in your prime.

Why is that Pistons team so underrated? They're one of the deepest teams ever and one of the best defenses of all time. They had 5-6 all-star caliber player on one team.

This

[Round Mound]

Bob McAdoo? Artis Gilmore? Those Where Dominant Players That Get Overlooked More Than Isiah.

Bob McAdoo Was Easily a Top 10 Forward (even though he played center sometimes it was clear his style of play was all forward)

What About Adrian Dantley? Best Scoring SF Ever!

[tpols]

Because of Jordan and his performance. No one is suggesting it's one v.s. five. There were plenty of times that when removing each team's best player, an opponent had superior and deeper talent than MJ had with the Bulls. The early 90's Bulls many times were on the lesser side of the talent pool v.s. other teams like the Blazers, Knicks, Suns, Sonics, Magic, Heat, etc.

Sure he had Pippen, a perfect sidekick, but there were many teams with superior rosters that he had to overcome. Don't pawn off bull shit to suit your "bring Jordan down a peg" agenda here.
The Bulls minus Jordan were better than the Sonics. Take off Gary Payton and you have a team led by Shawn Kemp.. which wasnt much better or deeper outside of what the Bulls had.

Take Ewing off the early-mid 90s knicks you have a team led by John Starks and I guess Charles Oakley or Anthony Mason. Tough team but they dont compare to bulls without MJ. Who the hell is taking

starks/anthony/oakley/greg anthony/hubert davis

over

pippen/kukoc/grant/armstrong

??

Nobody. Best first two players and they had guys to take care of the dirty work as well.


Magic? So you take Shaq off that team and what are they? Its not even close.

Only team that can really be made a case for even being equal to is the trailblazers outside of clyde.. suns might be close but Id still take bulls supporting cast. Scottie was always the best second option. Phil was always the best coach.


Isaih was just as fierce a competitor as Jordan and he in much the same way willed his teams to victory in an absolutely stacked era.

[Fawker]

stockton or isiah for final pg spot on the dream team?

[Young X]

Isaih was just as fierce a competitor as Jordan and he in much the same way willed his teams to victory in an absolutely stacked era.Yes, but you're not realizing that those Pistons teams were some of the most stacked and deep teams of all time. Isiah while great, wasn't the clear cut most productive player on those teams, Dumars was just as productive and had the same recognition as Isiah. Jordan on the other hand was the clear cut most productive player on his team. Neither won alone though which is what people don't understand.


Only team that can really be made a case for even being equal to is the trailblazers outside of clyde.. suns might be close but Id still take bulls supporting cast. Scottie was always the best second option. Phil was always the best coach.If Jordan and Barkley canceled each other out and played equally the Suns definitely have a chance to beat the Bulls. If Jordan and Drexler canceled each other out would the Blazers not have great chance against the Bulls? Jordan was the difference.

[Sarcastic]

http://www.reactiongifs.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/recursive-yes.gif

[L.Kizzle]

No he didn't, the PISTONS beat the Lakers, Celtics, and Bulls because they were the better, more healthy team. Nobody wins alone. Joe Dumars was playing just as well as him and not only did he make the All NBA 3rd team over Isiah, he won FMVP over him too.

You can't beat teams by yourself when you're not even making All NBA 3rd teams in your prime.

Why is that Pistons team so underrated? They're one of the deepest teams ever and one of the best defenses of all time. They had 5-6 all-star caliber player on one team.
Everyone knows Joe isn't in the same league at Zeke Thomas.

Zeke was blackballed from individual awards in the late 80s. There no way guys like his teammate Joe D and Dale Ellis should have been making All League Teams over him.

And speaking of injuries, if Zeke isn't hurt in 1988, they win 3 straight titles.

[joeyjoejoe]

Na he's not underated that pistons team was a collective effort that's for sure he's an all-time great pg but don't compare him to mj more comparable to Nash or cp3

[ZMonkey11]

This is a thread about him being underrated. Not him being better than Jordan, not him having a deep team.

You guys just haters.

[MastahX]

stockton was better period

[Marchesk]

This is a thread about him being underrated. Not him being better than Jordan, not him having a deep team.

You guys just haters.

It's not about hating on Isiah, it's about countering the claim that he carried the Pistons to two titles, when they had Dumars, Lambier, Acquire, Rodman, and Vinnie Johnson.

[AirFederer]

Ja ja!

[ProfessorMurder]

He's not underrated when he's on nearly everybody's top 3 PGs list.

[FatComputerNerd]

Most people recognize how great Thomas was.

An underrated PG would be Mark Price, who in his prime was considered by many to be on par (or even better) than Stockton, yet nobody ever talks about him.

[ZMonkey11]

It's not about hating on Isiah, it's about countering the claim that he carried the Pistons to two titles, when they had Dumars, Lambier, Acquire, Rodman, and Vinnie Johnson.

But would you say he was the main reason the Pistons took those championships? The smallest guy on the court got the team to take on his personality. Made all of them stronger.

The Pistons 1989 championship run, one all-star and it was Isiah that year.
1990, 3 All-stars in Isiah, Joe, and Rodman.

In Isiah's buildup to the championship teams, he had 2 teammates make the All-star team, Bill Laimbeer (4x) and Kelly Tripucka (2x).
When the Pistons were getting to be very dangerous (1987), he was playing with no All-star teammates. He was willing these dudes to win.

Yes, these Pistons teams were deep, but you make it seem like a deep team is a super talented team. Isiah made these teams deep. He expected more out of his players. And those players stepped up their games because of Isiah. Watch some documentaries on the Bad Boys and see how those players talk about Isiah. He whipped those mugs into shape.

Isiah gets the Kobe hate treatment here without any of the adoring fans. That is why he is the most underrated player on ISH. Good job OP.

[ZMonkey11]

Most people recognize how great Thomas was.

An underrated PG would be Mark Price, who in his prime was considered by many to be on par (or even better) than Stockton, yet nobody ever talks about him.

Same class as KJ. Why? No chips.

Who did these players have to go through to get to the championship? Look at the road Stockton had to take. Accolade after accolade after accolade for Stockton, he just couldn't do it. Couldn't get over the hurdle. And he had one of the top PFs of all time by his side.

Mark Price had to go through Jordan, someone Isiah and his Bad Boys dominated for the longest time. And he had one of the great centers in Brad Daugherty.

Isiah took out the guys that stopped these other PGs from getting chips. And then people mention these dudes in the same tier as Isiah. Naaaaahhhh, no thanks.

[TheMan]

OP gonna act like Dumars, Dantley, Aguirre, Laimbeer, VJohnson, Rodman, Mahorn, Salley and JEdwards isn't a stacked team. They also were coached by one of the best NBA coaches in Chuck Daly...that team was hella deep.

[ZMonkey11]

OP gonna act like Dumars, Dantley, Aguirre, Laimbeer, VJohnson, Rodman, Mahorn, Salley and JEdwards isn't a stacked team. They also were coached by one of the best NBA coaches in Chuck Daly...that team was hella deep.

And once again, poster gonna act like deep means super talented. The pieces they had worked. Just like the 2000 era Pistons worked. But Isiah made that team into what it was. Go read up on how those same guys (besides Dantley) talked about Isiah.

[andgar923]

And once again, poster gonna act like deep means super talented. The pieces they had worked. Just like the 2000 era Pistons worked. But Isiah made that team into what it was. Go read up on how those same guys (besides Dantley) talked about Isiah.

This is true.

One can have an all star team but it has to still work. Zeke was clearly their leader and they followed his lead.

I think Zeke gets lost in the conversation as one of the top pgs of all time by some (as is usually the case). But I've seen him get tons of love here by some of us as well.

The younger generation (as expected) judge zeke on his stats, some of us that saw him play regard him as top 3 pgs of all time.

[magnax1]

Everyone knows Joe isn't in the same league at Zeke Thomas.

Zeke was blackballed from individual awards in the late 80s. There no way guys like his teammate Joe D and Dale Ellis should have been making All League Teams over him.

And speaking of injuries, if Zeke isn't hurt in 1988, they win 3 straight titles.
Not really true at all. Dumars was one of the two pieces that drove the pistons to be one of the best defenses ever. People act like Isiah was some sort of offensive juggernaut in the late 80s that he really just wasnt. He was an incredibly streaky scorer as his athleticism declined and he needed a jumper more, which he really just never had. People remember Isiah because of the big games he had, but forget that he had just as many horrific games on the other end of the spectrum.

[Dro]

The Bulls minus Jordan were better than the Sonics. Take off Gary Payton and you have a team led by Shawn Kemp.. which wasnt much better or deeper outside of what the Bulls had.

Isaih was just as fierce a competitor as Jordan and he in much the same way willed his teams to victory in an absolutely stacked era.
I disagree with the bolded. I agree with you and the thread about Isaiah being underrated. But I don't agree that the Bulls without Jordan were better than the Sonics without Payton.

The Sonics had Nate Mcmillan backing up Payton. Nate can get the job the done in his own right and he was arguably the second best defender on the team and one of the best defenders in the league. Guy averaged 2 spg in 22 mpg. Detlef Shrempf, Sam Perkins, Ervin Johnson who was a better defensive center than any center that the Bulls had during the Jordan years. Hersey Hawkins who was a very good shooter and defender and Vincent Askew off the bench. And then you have Kemp who averaged 20 pts, 11 reb, and 2 blocks per game on 56% shooting. Detlef averaged 17 ppg and Hawkins averaged 15 ppg while GP was averaging close to 20ppg himself. These guys could score and the Bulls would have a tougher time scoring consistently without Jordan than the Sonics without GP. Plus when you take away Jordan, thats basically all the leadership gone. At least the Sonics had another floor general in Nate and even Detlef who was a point forward, similar to Pippen.

[FatComputerNerd]

Same class as KJ. Why? No chips.

Who did these players have to go through to get to the championship? Look at the road Stockton had to take. Accolade after accolade after accolade for Stockton, he just couldn't do it. Couldn't get over the hurdle. And he had one of the top PFs of all time by his side.

Mark Price had to go through Jordan, someone Isiah and his Bad Boys dominated for the longest time. And he had one of the great centers in Brad Daugherty.

Isiah took out the guys that stopped these other PGs from getting chips. And then people mention these dudes in the same tier as Isiah. Naaaaahhhh, no thanks.

I wasn't trying to say Price was the better player or in the same tier as Isiah...only that he is underrated, while I don't see Isiah being underrated. Most place him in the top 3-5 PG of all time list.

[imdaman99]

i just have a bad taste in my mouth (no homo) cuz of his GM'ing for the knicks.

[hateraid]

And Michael Jordan played with Scottie Pippen, who for a long stretch, was twice the player Dumars was. Jordan when he was winning played on teams, that were always better than his competitions.

Nobody wins alone can really be applied to anyone.

Amen, Jordan may be the only player where his fanbase uses this as a double standard
BTW, 100% on Isiah. The only player to win during the holy trinity of the Brid, Magic, Jordan era.

[JimmyMcAdocious]

Didn't read.

I agree. The general on ISH seem to throw him under the bus at every opportunity and he may be the second in line for the GOAT PG. :facepalm I've seen people list him in the 50 range on all time lists... Disgusting.

[kshutts1]

Zeke may not get his due, but I can't toss around the word "Underrated" for any player that played after the 70s. This board seriously undervalues anyone before Jordan.

[ILLsmak]

Not really true at all. Dumars was one of the two pieces that drove the pistons to be one of the best defenses ever. People act like Isiah was some sort of offensive juggernaut in the late 80s that he really just wasnt. He was an incredibly streaky scorer as his athleticism declined and he needed a jumper more, which he really just never had. People remember Isiah because of the big games he had, but forget that he had just as many horrific games on the other end of the spectrum.

Yeah, I mean gimme Stockton. Dude mentioned Payton... it's hard to say, depends on what you need. Kidd is good, too.

I don't think it's cut and dry. I think most people know Isiah balled, but I don't think he's the consensus 2nd best PG. That's kind of ridic. Why? Cuz he won rings? That's basically the only argument you can use.

I don't see how you can put him over Stockton. I think if anyone is underrated its John.

-Smak

[hateraid]

OP gonna act like Dumars, Dantley, Aguirre, Laimbeer, VJohnson, Rodman, Mahorn, Salley and JEdwards isn't a stacked team. They also were coached by one of the best NBA coaches in Chuck Daly...that team was hella deep.

First off Dantley and Aguirre never played at the same time. Vinnie was only good when he got off, like an old version of Jimmer. Bhudda was a shell of himself, he was an old man on that squad. Rodman wasn't the defensive rebound monster he was on Chicago. Laimbeer was more of an x-factor getting into the heads of opponents. Dumars was a good 2 way guard, but couldn't carry a team. I think you're giving way too much credit.
Second, you can't use this example and not hold it against Jordan, who's team was way more stacked and a better coach in a weaker era.
Give credit where it's due.

[hateraid]

I disagree with the bolded. I agree with you and the thread about Isaiah being underrated. But I don't agree that the Bulls without Jordan were better than the Sonics without Payton.

The Sonics had Nate Mcmillan backing up Payton. Nate can get the job the done in his own right and he was arguably the second best defender on the team and one of the best defenders in the league. Guy averaged 2 spg in 22 mpg. Detlef Shrempf, Sam Perkins, Ervin Johnson who was a better defensive center than any center that the Bulls had during the Jordan years. Hersey Hawkins who was a very good shooter and defender and Vincent Askew off the bench. And then you have Kemp who averaged 20 pts, 11 reb, and 2 blocks per game on 56% shooting. Detlef averaged 17 ppg and Hawkins averaged 15 ppg while GP was averaging close to 20ppg himself. These guys could score and the Bulls would have a tougher time scoring consistently without Jordan than the Sonics without GP. Plus when you take away Jordan, thats basically all the leadership gone. At least the Sonics had another floor general in Nate and even Detlef who was a point forward, similar to Pippen.

You can bring all that but doesn't change the fact Scottie was still better than anyone on that team, Phil Jackson was and will always be a better coach than Karl, Rodman made up for the defensive liabilities at center, Kerr is a better shooter than anyone on that Sonics team, and Harper was a better defender than Nate. Take for the fact that in Jordan's absence they still were title contenders.
Bulls were just as stacked, maybe even more considering all the intangibles.

[Dro]

You can bring all that but doesn't change the fact Scottie was still better than anyone on that team, Phil Jackson was and will always be a better coach than Karl, Rodman made up for the defensive liabilities at center, Kerr is a better shooter than anyone on that Sonics team, and Harper was a better defender than Nate. Take for the fact that in Jordan's absence they still were title contenders.
Bulls were just as stacked, maybe even more considering all the intangibles.
Scottie was better than GP and Kemp but not by THAT much. And as far as the Bulls role players, none of them get any open shots without MJ in the lineup. None of them can create for themselves. At least Detlef, Kemp, and even Hawkins can get there own shot. I wasn't including the coaches because I thought we were just talking about the players. If you include Phil, then yeah, the Bulls would probably be better off.

[Fresh Kid]

yes I agree he iz underrated, back 2 back titles in a league vs bird, magic, jordan, ewing and hakeem.

[Vienceslav]

Most people just state their top 10 and don't give too much of a mind to the rest(tells you a lot about the level of discussion here), there is a lot of guys who you'd say they are top 10 by their resume, trouble is there's like 15 of those.
I'm pretty sure Thomas being passed up for the Olympic team in 1992 has a lot to do with that, not that a gold medal on the best team ever would make him automatically more recognized, but it is a good metaphor for his place(however unfair)among the would be 92 Olympics teammates.

[MiseryCityTexas]

No he didn't, the PISTONS beat the Lakers, Celtics, and Bulls because they were the better, more healthy team. Nobody wins alone. Joe Dumars was playing just as well as him and not only did he make the All NBA 3rd team over Isiah, he won FMVP over him too.

You can't beat teams by yourself when you're not even making All NBA 3rd teams in your prime.

Why is that Pistons team so underrated? They're one of the deepest teams ever and one of the best defenses of all time. They had 5-6 all-star caliber player on one team.
Pistons first championship is kinda suspect. They beat a Lakers team with no Magic. Lakers are a 5th-7th seed at best without Magic so that's kinda unfair.

[Young X]

Pistons first championship is kinda suspect. They beat a Lakers team with no Magic. Lakers are a 5th-7th seed without Magic so that's kinda unfair.I always wonder what would've happened if Magic and Scott were healthy. That Laker team has to be one of the best teams to not win.

[Bigsmoke]

The 2nd best player to ever grew up in chicago

[Fresh Kid]

The 2nd best player to ever grew up in chicago
who's tha first?:lol

[secund2nun]

Why is that Pistons team so underrated? They're one of the deepest teams ever and one of the best defenses of all time. They had 5-6 all-star caliber player on one team.

+1

Why do people always like to give all of the credit of team that wins on defense and team rebounding to PGs who have little role in those categories (kinda like Rose and Chicago)?

No PG will ever be the most underrated player. In fact, almost all PGs are overrated. Big men dominate the list of most underrated players.

Let's not act like Thomas carried them when they won as a team. Shaq, Duncan, Lebron he was not.

[joeyjoejoe]

That last paragraph is dumb you can't honestly believe the late 80's bulls was anywhere near as good as the bulls that Utah faced in the finals

[joeyjoejoe]

Same class as KJ. Why? No chips.

Who did these players have to go through to get to the championship? Look at the road Stockton had to take. Accolade after accolade after accolade for Stockton, he just couldn't do it. Couldn't get over the hurdle. And he had one of the top PFs of all time by his side.

Mark Price had to go through Jordan, someone Isiah and his Bad Boys dominated for the longest time. And he had one of the great centers in Brad Daugherty.

Isiah took out the guys that stopped these other PGs from getting chips. And then people mention these dudes in the same tier as Isiah. Naaaaahhhh, no thanks.

My post above was to quote this

[TheBigVeto]

Wrong. Will neg.

[Bigsmoke]

who's tha first?:lol
Flash

[pauk]

Beat Magic, Bird and Jordan in their primes and lead a flawed team to back to back titles.

Had one of the greatest quarters in NBA finals history.

Had GOAT shook for his entire career.

Anyone who says Stockton, Payton or Kidd were better needs to be slapped. Second best PG of all time behind Earvin.

Ever heard of Oscar Robertson?

[JimmyMcAdocious]

who's tha first?:lol

Antoine Walker

[bizil]

Bob McAdoo? Artis Gilmore? Those Where Dominant Players That Get Overlooked More Than Isiah.

Bob McAdoo Was Easily a Top 10 Forward (even though he played center sometimes it was clear his style of play was all forward)

What About Adrian Dantley? Best Scoring SF Ever!

Ya I agree. I don't think Zeke is underrated. He's usually regarded as the best little man (under 6'2) of all time. After MJ, Magic, and Bird, he was front and center as one of the L's more prominent superstars. Everybody knows he beat Bird, Magic, and MJ in the playoffs on the way to two rings.

But Isiah is one of the more CONTROVERSIAL AND HATED superstars of all time. I think that's more of the issue. If u count McAdoo as a PF (which is really his natural position), peak value wise he's a top 5-6 PF to me. He was like Dirk, but was ALSO a dominant rebounder and more athletic. Guys like McAdoo, Gilmore, Dantley, etc. are underrated by the casuals. U could ask many guys in their 30's and 40's who McAdoo, Dantley, or Gilmore were and they wouldn't even know. Or they wouldn't know their skillset and what made them great. If u are a TRUE STUDENT of BASKETBALL, u should know of guys like Dantley, McAdoo, or Gilmore if u are in your 30's to 40's.

Students of the game do the knowledge and learn about the game. Or at least know about the legends good enough. If u don't know then fine. But don't knock those guys or doubt their greatness either. Just because they weren't media darlings or guys who the L built their promotion or league awareness around. U have guys who were superstars ON AND OFF the court. McAdoo may not have been a transcendant superstar off the court, BUT he sure as hell was a superstar ON THE COURT!

[no pun intended]

Only player to has his full name on the back of the jersey=GOAT PG

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2078/1560546003_53aa765f7c_m.jpg

[tontoz]

The Pistons strength was their defense and that wasn't because of Isiah. Dumars was the one guarding Jordan. Jordan said Dumars defended him better than anyone in the league.

Isiah was already on the decline when the Pistons won their first title. His strength was going to the basket and that was a rough era for a little guy to make a living taking it to the rim. His jumper was weak.

[Psileas]

If by "underrated" we only mean "non discussed enough", I'll say around 80% of all-time greats are equally or more underrated. Actually, if you're a retired great and your name isn't Jordan, chances are you won't be talked about much.
If we mean "ranked lower than he should", I've seen people pretend that Wilt isn't even top-10 all-time and many that rank him in the 6-10 range, so I'll say he's probably the most underrated one. He's what Kareem used to be a few years ago (but not that much now).
On Isiah, more specifically, I've also seen multiple threads where he's compared to Stockton and, not only do most people pick Isiah, but some claim or imply that it's not even close. This doesn't necessarily mean that Isiah wasn't better, but Stockton has a good argument for being even more underrated.
Oh, and Malone isn't that highly regarded or remembered, either. Just look at this very recent thread: http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/showthread.php?t=312652&page=2 Only one person correctly mentions him among the players who have scored 25+ ppg in 12 seasons and nobody even pays any notice.

[MiseryCityTexas]

Bob McAdoo? Artis Gilmore? Those Where Dominant Players That Get Overlooked More Than Isiah.

Bob McAdoo Was Easily a Top 10 Forward (even though he played center sometimes it was clear his style of play was all forward)

What About Adrian Dantley? Best Scoring SF Ever! I'm a little shocked that them 70s Lakers teams that had a front court of Kareem and Dantley never won any championships.