How come today's Point Guards are celebrated for their style of play...

[DOUBLE DRIBBLE]

and Point Guards of the past were hated on and called selfish for the exact same style? Is it a cultural thing?

Example...

Stephon Marbury vs Stephen Curry

Curry took more shots than Marbury and averaged less assists yet I've never heard anybody refer to Curry as a selfish basketball player but always heard people talking about how Marbury was a selfish player because of his style of play.

[TripleA]

and Point Guards of the past were hated on and called selfish for the exact same style? Is it a cultural thing?

Example...

Stephon Marbury vs Stephen Curry

Curry took more shots than Marbury and averaged less assists yet I've never heard anybody refer to Curry as a selfish basketball player but always heard people talking about how Marbury was a selfish player because of his style of play.

people confuse selfish playing style with selfish personality.

[DOUBLE DRIBBLE]

people confuse selfish playing style with selfish personality.The media, fans and spectators... of that era called his style of play selfish... Im not sure why opinions from then till now have changed. I wonder if Marbury was playing today in the league if he'd be celebrated for his style of play if Curry played back then how his game would be received.


Marbury was one of the best at his position during his playing days... I think most of the critisizm he received for his style of play was unfair. I know he didn't have that great of an attitude at the time but I think his skills and play spoke for themself. I think a lot of the hate for him was because of his attitude and demeanor.... I just never understood why his style was considered selfish when he always was in or near top 5 in assists.

Also considering today's standards... Shoot first and pass second PG's are praised so much more then the past.

[3ball]

The PG-gunner style wasn't celebrated because you couldn't win with it back then.

But today's spacing and defensive 3 seconds "opens up the middle of the floor", while the hand-check ban makes defense hands-off.

These factors make it easier to execute the PG-gunner style in today's era.. Naturally, it was only a matter of time before a #1 option PG came along (Curry) that was skilled enough to win a championship under these perimeter-friendly rules, playing style and era.. (Curry is new age - a blend of Kyrie and Reggie Miller into one)

We see these things in hindsight now.. This is the "drive-and-kick" era - optimally suited for perimeter ballhandlers.
.

[HoopologyPhD]

Probably similar to the reason why bigs are now encouraged to shoot jumpers as opposed to being called soft and unskilled for the lack of post game.

Not many true old-school PGs or Cs anymore, that is the way the league is going...

[WorldWarriors]

The media, fans and spectators... of that era called his style of play selfish... Im not sure why opinions from then till now have changed. I wonder if Marbury was playing today in the league if he'd be celebrated for his style of play if Curry played back then how his game would be received.


Marbury was one of the best at his position during his playing days... I think most of the critisizm he received for his style of play was unfair. I know he didn't have that great of an attitude at the time but I think his skills and play spoke for themself. I think a lot of the hate for him was because of his attitude and demeanor.... I just never understood why his style was considered selfish when he always was in or near top 5 in assists.

Also considering today's standards... Shoot first and pass second PG's are praised so much more then the past.

I see exactly what you're saying. Marbury was a baller and I'm not sure it was because of his play or his attitude in general. I agree with the posters who said the game has changed quite a bit. But you raise a good point. It's changed so much that true point guards like CP3 are criticized for not shooting more.

I will say this about Curry, he's a great shooter. So he should shoot the ball. Kyrie is too.

[Fire Colangelo]

The media, fans and spectators... of that era called his style of play selfish... Im not sure why opinions from then till now have changed. I wonder if Marbury was playing today in the league if he'd be celebrated for his style of play if Curry played back then how his game would be received.


Marbury was one of the best at his position during his playing days... I think most of the critisizm he received for his style of play was unfair. I know he didn't have that great of an attitude at the time but I think his skills and play spoke for themself. I think a lot of the hate for him was because of his attitude and demeanor.... I just never understood why his style was considered selfish when he always was in or near top 5 in assists.

Also considering today's standards... Shoot first and pass second PG's are praised so much more then the past.

He was criticized because he never led his teams anywhere.

Had a shitty attitude, didn't play defense, just exactly everything you didn't want from your best player. It really isn't a coincidence that the Nets started winning after trading him for Jason Kidd, and it really isn't a coincidence that the Suns started beasting after they got rid of him and signed Nash.

Dude was just cancer all around, and is better suited for the Chinese league.

[WorldWarriors]

He was criticized because he never led his teams anywhere.

Had a shitty attitude, didn't play defense, just exactly everything you didn't want from your best player. It really isn't a coincidence that the Nets started winning after trading him for Jason Kidd, and it really isn't a coincidence that the Suns started beasting after they got rid of him and signed Nash.

Dude was just cancer all around, and is better suited for the Chinese league.

Whoa. You brought back some memories there.

[RedBlackAttack]

The PG-gunner style wasn't celebrated because you couldn't win with it back then.
So, I guess when the Bad Boys and the Pistons were an absolute pain in the balls for every team in the league in the mid-to-late 1980s, including and most notably Jordan's Bulls, he wasn't doing so averaging upwards of 20 FGAs per game -- by far the most on his team, eh?

Those teams were pretty successful too, as I recall.

Or maybe it was just a fever dream and none of those things which work counter to all your points here never really happened.

Can someone back me up on this? Isiah Thomas was a score-first PG, his team gave the best player in the league fits for years and became his biggest rival, and won back-to-back titles right in the middle of the Lakers/Blazers/Bulls era dominance.

Again, I'm open to the idea that I just made that up.

If not, this entire thread may well be deemed moot.

[DonDadda59]

He was criticized because he never led his teams anywhere.

Had a shitty attitude, didn't play defense, just exactly everything you didn't want from your best player. It really isn't a coincidence that the Nets started winning after trading him for Jason Kidd, and it really isn't a coincidence that the Suns started beasting after they got rid of him and signed Nash.

Dude was just cancer all around, and is better suited for the Chinese league.

1000% this. Especially the bold.

Every team that he left instantly became a title contender and improved dramatically as soon as he was replaced by a great PG.

Marbury was the ultimate empty stats player.

[Mr. I'm So Rad]

Because taking a lot of shots doesn't mean that you're selfish. It's isn't like the Warriors don't want Curry shooting 11 3's a game. Him doing that gives them a great chance of winning. Steve Kerr draws up plays specifically for Curry to get shots. It's part of their plan.

People just look at field goal attempts and assists and determine if a player is selfish or not. It's silly.

And for the guy talking about Kidd, Kidd was getting more praise in the '02 playoffs when his scoring was up and his assists were down than in the regular season when people were calling him the MVP. You have to look at each player by a case by case basis.