What players did you have an odd affinity for? Perhaps even an irrational one.

[Kblaze8855]

For me?

Gotta be Jamaal Tinsley....because I cant even explain why.

He wasnt that good. He couldnt shoot. He didnt play any defense....at all. He didnt win anything. He was flashy sure....but not in a terribly useful way. He did a lot of:


https://thumbs.gfycat.com/ElderlyGraciousBullfrog-size_restricted.gif



Where you look kinda silly but he didnt really accomplish anything.



He did have some of the best handles ever....in that Kyrie/Rod Strickland/Isiah Thomas way where you just cant take it from him. They may not do one big exaggerated AI style crossover.....but you cant really phase them with pressure. All time elite in ball control.

If he wanted to keep his dribble there was nothing you could do about it:










https://thumbs.gfycat.com/MajesticFinishedHorsemouse-size_restricted.gif
















So yea...he was flashy and had nasty handles...but so was Carlos Arroyo. And Rafer Alston. I didnt really have much fanhood of them. Im not sure what it was about Jamaal. He had an old man game when he was young and an even older mans game after he was in the Dleague then came back. All of this is from one game:








https://thumbs.gfycat.com/ConcreteShyBarebirdbat-size_restricted.gif










https://thumbs.gfycat.com/UnhappyBarrenGerbil-size_restricted.gif





He was tricky. Crafty. whatever you wanna call it.....but he was NOT all that good.

He was a nice ass playmaker which early in his career I think created my fanhood. I saw him have a game with like 25 assists vs Jordans Wizards and I think it may have made me follow him a bit closer than his usual play justified but...whatever the reason?





I ****ed with Jamaal Tinsley despite feeling no desire to argue with anyone who is about to tell me he sucked.




Who is your "Hes not even that good....." guy you just love but other people may not understand?

[Kblaze8855]

It was 23 assists. 19/23/11 triple double at the very start of his career.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-XQd8ALsp4&t=



Im sure that game warped my perception for years.

[superduper]

Anthony Parker for me. His shooting was just so smooth.

[superduper]

https://thumbs.gfycat.com/MajesticFinishedHorsemouse-size_restricted.gif


:biggums: :biggums:

[Kblaze8855]

Isnt it weird? Half of your mind is like "Pass the ****ing ball!" and the rest is like "He is Globetrottering these bitches!".


To his credit he was intentionally stalling to run down the clock in a close college game like Dean Smith did with the 4 Corners offense. You just give it to a guy nobody can take it from and let him kill the clock.

Dean had Phil Ford do it before there was a shot clock and he might literally play keep away for 3 minutes. Totally ruined basketball for a while.

[Loco 50]

I used to like players that broke the mold of the position they were playing:

David Robinson for having guard speed and being able to shoot and drive.

Anthony Mason for having point forward game at the 4.

Sam Perkins for hitting 3's (now every 5 today shooting 3's makes me sick)

Mark Jackson and Sam Cassell for being slower post up guards.

Gary Payton for being a lockdown defender at the point.

Sabonis for being a basketball wizard.

I usually liked players that coaches back in the day were probably telling them to stop doing what they're doing as they were coming up, but they ended up doing it so well they got free reign as professionals.

Screw the shackles let that man fly free kinda shit.

[Shogon]

Darko. Supremely skilled for his size headcase that couldn't put it together mentally. Oh what could have been.

[Prometheus]

Not that he wasn't good, but Shane Battier. I rooted for him always... at the absolute scrub, sub-6'0 ymca level of playing basketball, I would say I play like him with a tiny bit of Rip Hamilton mixed in on offense. I always go for tough covers, always contest with the hand in face as opposed to the faux block, and I'm generally very smart and heads up in the game. And he just always struck me as both a good dude, and an intelligent one. I could never not root for him.

And I was in denial about it for the last three years, but Al Horford. FTC, but I think I like him for the same reasons I liked Battier. Just a smart, savvy, mature player.

Boris Diaw too. I never noticed this pattern until I tried answering your question.

[stalkerforlife]

Tinsley was a very talented ball handler and playmaker.

I seem to recall him derailing himself by being out of shape.

But my irrational affinity would have to be Jason Williams; although, I think if he just dedicated himself to getting in the lane, he could've been an all-star. No one could stay in front of Jwill, but he settled for long range shots instead of using his superior handles and quickness. He didn't believe in getting stronger in the weight room because he thought it would hurt his quickness and shot, but it would've been helpful at allowing him to absorb contact and finishing plays.

[stalkerforlife]

Jwill against Tinsley head to head.

15 games.

Jwill got him.

But it was close.

https://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/h2h_finder.cgi

[HylianNightmare]

Luis scola

[JEFFERSON MONEY]

Crawford and DeRozan.

They may not be the best in the NBA---but put them in the hood---they'll be highlight reels dropping 50 !

[ImKobe]

Jamal Crawford, he was never a star(deserved to be in the mid-2000s) but i wouldn't miss a single minute when he was on the court

https://media3.giphy.com/media/ohXtU5yCed4ly/giphy.gif

http://33.media.tumblr.com/daddf7024b2b69e69ee355294bce3821/tumblr_n5yjh2aKBm1rgx7ico1_250.gif

[tpols]

boris diaw's gotta be one. too much skill, not enough motor.

marshon brooks was nice for like a year dont know what happened to him

[Basketbolero]

Derrick Coleman was probably too good to list here but I always thought he'd contend the moment he had a good team around him...

Larry Hughes is mostly remember for his forgettable Cavs years but before, I'd watch any Wizards game even if Arenas was out. He was playing PG, running the team and scoring at will for a while ... then he forgot how to balance both and never developed a reliable outside shot. League caught up and he was done as a weapon.

Some never heard/ won't remember Michael Dickerson, who put up loads of empty points in Vancouver. Today he would be get paid whatever Eric Gordon got, maybe even more. Struggles with minor Injuries and inability to stay fit pushed him out of the league snd eventually on to Europe.

Raul Lopez, the best Spanish point guard the Utah Jazz ever had.

Earl Boykins: watching him and AI score on peopke was just fun AF to watch and I don't care what efficiency stat you want to bring up, he was an offensive force.

[fsvr54]

Marvin Williams or Millsap.

Jrue Holiday is my current favorite player, but I wouldn't consider that all that odd.

[Reggie43]

Lamar Odom 6'10" playmaker that could do it all and fill up the stat sheet. Was obviously a franchise player and thought he would be close to averaging a triple double at his peak. Sucks that he never had that mentality/personality to be the main guy on a team.

[Jasper]

loyd Walton 1970's Bucks

Dude had a jack knife jumper...

His pre-game was basically his game , and he lit-it-up

he is one of three players in the history of the NBA to become a Doctor !!!!

[ScalsFan21]

Guess my username answers this, but the White Mamba at least has that element that makes the affinity less "odd". :lol Nenad Krstic was one of my favorites; he had flashes of offensive brilliance before he tore up his leg. He was on borderline All-Star trajectory (not really but kinda), then it was all over.

Jannero Pargo. Travis Best. Darvin Ham. Eddie Jones. Rip Hamilton. Sarunas Jasikevicius. Brent Barry. Kittles.

[andgar923]

Chris Gatling, he just scored. It was an almost automatic bucket when he was in.

Nick Van Exel, imo still the most unguardable player ever. His glitchy stop and go snake like movements haven't been matched by anyone. Players have had better handles, been quicker, more athletic, but he was almost impossible to guard because he was constantly in motion.

[72-10]

Well I don't have an affinity for any of them. Doesn't affinity mean attraction?

Of course the players I've studied the most tend to be the ones that matched up with the position I thought I'd play on the court, which is the 2 guard.

[Psileas]

Well, maybe this doesn't 100% answer the question, but I could easily watch simply long range FG or even FT shooting compilations of good shooters with weird or simply unusual shooting styles. Especially if they are bigs. E.g, I like watching Jack Sikma shoot (higher career FT% than Jordan and Magic) or Shawn Marion or Bill Cartwright shoot. Rick Barry a little less so, because he only shot strangely from the FT line and, well, he was a superstar, albeit unliked.

[TheBranStan]

I'm attracted to LeBron.

[Levity]

terrence williams :lol

wanted him on the lakers during our early 2010ish dark ages.

[superduper]

Well I don't have an affinity for any of them. Doesn't affinity mean attraction?

Of course the players I've studied the most tend to be the ones that matched up with the position I thought I'd play on the court, which is the 2 guard.

What do you think about the current state of 2 guards?

[Boki4MVP]

Marko jaric

[reppy]

Most irrational fanhood might be that guy that was obsessed with Stromile Swift. StroShow5 or something was his nickname.

I used to really like Stacey Augmon aka The Plastic Man. But I heard he was kind of an asshole so that made me dislike him.

[Bosnian Sajo]

I ****ing hate this site :oldlol:


Again, I typed out a long post on "post quick reply" detailing the two players I selected and why, back story and everything...and by the time I hit post, the site logged me out and all that writing is lost.



Derek Fisher and Mike Beasley, those are the two. Not gonna write out my post again :cry:

[Bosnian Sajo]

Marko jaric

You a serb?

[Kblaze8855]

The computers at my job log me out all the time. The posts always go through when I sign in on the page that pops up after hitting reply.

[Bosnian Sajo]

The computers at my job log me out all the time. The posts always go through when I sign in on the page that pops up after hitting reply.

If I'm quoting the person and "replying to thread", same thing for me.


But If I hit quick reply and attempt to reply at the bottom of the page, without quoting anyone, and the computer logs me out? Once I sign back in I get an error saying "Thread has been removed, please notify admin" when in reality, the thread is still there.


Anyways it's all good, I gotta get used to ctrl+a, ctrl+c my posts before hitting reply :lol Just to be safe.

[FKAri]

There were several. I only understood the reasoning behind the affinity once I hit puberty.

[Bosnian Sajo]

There were several. I only understood the reasoning behind the affinity once I hit puberty.


Do you get it, guys?



It's cause he's gay.

[kuniva_dAMiGhTy]

Odd affinity?

At one point, I felt Steph could do no wrong.

During his MVP season? Legit thought dude was the best offensive player of all time. Or close to it. It was probably irrational, but his regular-season was THAT good...of course the Dubs also won 73 games that year.

The 2016 finals was a quick reality check.

Another one is Glen Rice. Didn't care if he was a black hole, or that Phil wanted to trade him because he wanted more touches. That shot was nice. May be a hot take, but I don't think LA wins in 2000 without him. His numbers were pedestrian but still spaced the floor with his range. I remember thinking the Lakers were going to be unstoppable after the Eddie Jones trade.

[brownmamba00]

I used to watch Dee Brown a lot. One man fastbreak. And1 era.

http://cdn0.sbnation.com/assets/3834075/5z5nu.gif

[NBAGOAT]

Odd affinity?

At one point, I felt Steph could do no wrong.

During his MVP season? Legit thought dude was the best offensive player of all time. Or close to it. It was probably irrational, but his regular-season was THAT good...of course the Dubs also won 73 games that year.

The 2016 finals was a quick reality check.

Another one is Glen Rice. Didn't care if he was a black hole, or that Phil wanted to trade him because he wanted more touches. That shot was nice. May be a hot take, but I don't think LA wins in 2000 without him. His numbers were pedestrian but still spaced the floor with his range. I remember thinking the Lakers were going to be unstoppable after the Eddie Jones trade.

Stephs still u there imo. We

[72-10]

What do you think about the current state of 2 guards?

I think there's some excellent 2 guards in Jimmy Butler and Paul George in this progressively position-less era. I also think there's more combo guards than ever, and they're some of the most skilled players to ever play the game. The 2 guard itself seems to be a dying breed.

[72-10]

I used to watch Dee Brown a lot. One man fastbreak. And1 era.

http://cdn0.sbnation.com/assets/3834075/5z5nu.gif

His game was clearly influenced by AI, though he didn't dominate the ball nearly as much and couldn't score on his own nearly as well.

[Doranku]

Domantas Sabonis. Just love the way the dude plays ball. Very intelligent basketball player.

[brownmamba00]

His game was clearly influenced by AI, though he didn't dominate the ball nearly as much and couldn't score on his own nearly as well.
True he couldn't shoot off the bounce but he was a real point guard. Iverson was more of a combo guard.


I've seen Robert Hite last night watching big3 highlights. 6'2 Lefty slasher. 40 inch vert absolute monster in the air. That guy was fun to watch when he was young. No gifs tho.

[Spurs m8]

Davis Bertans.

And then we traded the cvnt for no reason hahaha fvck

Jonathan Simmons

[72-10]

True he couldn't shoot off the bounce but he was a real point guard. Iverson was more of a combo guard.


I've seen Robert Hite last night watching big3 highlights. 6'2 Lefty slasher. 40 inch vert absolute monster in the air. That guy was fun to watch when he was young. No gifs tho.

Brown was great at running an offense, great bounce passer, and a brilliant team leader.

I remember hearing great things about Hite.

[brownmamba00]

Brown was great at running an offense, great bounce passer, and a brilliant team leader.
.
Crazy how Illy's starting PG Deron Williams made the pros and got paid millions while having none of these attributes when he came out of college. Don't get me wrong I love me some Utah DWill but no way Brown was playing back up for him AGAIN this time in Utah.

[72-10]

Crazy how Illy's starting PG Deron Williams made the pros and got paid millions while having none of these attributes when he came out of college. Don't get me wrong I love me some Utah DWill but no way Brown was playing back up for him AGAIN this time in Utah.

Unlike Brown (well, he might be able to, actually, it's hard to tell), D-Will could shoot the NBA three.:D

[Andrei89]

Zach Randolph

Bully

[DaHeezy]

I love the guys who were breakneck fast down the court. One end to the other. Darrell Armstrong, Eddie Jones, Bobby Jackson.... The greyhound types. Maybe it's my hockey roots. I love the straight line speed. Guys who play like McDavid. I guess that's why I like D'Aaron Fox currently and coming into the league Ja Morant.

Is that irrational enough?

[INDI]

Chris Gatling, Rafer Alston, Tony Allen, Sundiata Gaines

Chris Gatling because I grew up a GSW fan (in the 90

[Basketbolero]

[QUOTE=INDI]Chris Gatling, Rafer Alston, Tony Allen, Sundiata Gaines

Chris Gatling because I grew up a GSW fan (in the 90

[Bosnian Sajo]

I'd like to add Lonzo Ball to my list.


Everyone says his jumpshot ugly...but I like it tbh. Plays high tempo basketball, great defender, even better teammate. The team always plays better with him on the floor.

https://media.giphy.com/media/xUOxflKEaIjbBBXdba/giphy.gif

Did I mention that the boy can fly?

[TemporaMutantur]

My boy Lance Stephenson.

So much swag

[red1]

raptors players I've rooted for all sorts of scrubs over the years. guys like keon clark jerome junkyard dog williams mike james ton of guys.


on other teams one of those guys would be mario chalmers. he was a scrub and was lebron's whipping boy when he made low-IQ mistakes but damn he was the clutchest player on that team several times in the first two years. before ray allen.

[brooks_thompson]

I'll always remember my introduction to the 'fan favorite scrub' type back when I first got serious about watching the NBA due to Penny, Shaq, and the Magic. The man was Joe Wolf. The crowd would howl 'arooooooo' when he came in, even though he was a 3rd stringer. He played behind Jon Koncak, Shaq's backup, for god's sake, but he had a turnaround jumper in the post I saw him hit 2 or 3 times. Just looked it up and he was actually drafted 13th in '87. 4 ppg, 3 rpg career totals.

[RRR3]

raptors players I've rooted for all sorts of scrubs over the years. guys like keon clark jerome junkyard dog williams mike james ton of guys.


on other teams one of those guys would be mario chalmers. he was a scrub and was lebron's whipping boy when he made low-IQ mistakes but damn he was the clutchest player on that team several times in the first two years. before ray allen.
Chalmers was no scrub. Very useful role player.

But he absolutely is the answer to this thread for me. One of my all time favorites. Just loved his swag and how much he wanted to win. He was huge in the 2012 playoffs.

[ILLsmak]

Stacey augmon because he was the player whose game most resembles mine, too bad I never got that 12 inch growth spurt haha. Insane motor, fearless. On the boards, in the paint, good d. Not great handles but surprising moves and footwork to get looks.

The only difference between the way I play and the way he plays (even if i was playing on a hoop I can easily dunk on), is that he is way more fearless w dunks. Ill go into people but I'm wary of jumping full and being exposed. I like to finish w power lay ups or go over people, but not all the way to the rim.


-Smak

[Thunder_Up]

Kendrick Perkins, before him we had Nenad Krstić who played outside the paint as a kind of stretch C. When we made the trade for Perkins I was so happy to finally have a true center who could defend and make plays inside the paint....he just needs to fully recover from that knee injury. He'll be back to form soon...well maybe this year...for sure this year....welp :/

Second place goes to Enes Kanter, would still take him back in a heartbeat too.

[tpols]

I love the guys who were breakneck fast down the court. One end to the other. Darrell Armstrong, Eddie Jones, Bobby Jackson.... The greyhound types. Maybe it's my hockey roots. I love the straight line speed. Guys who play like McDavid. I guess that's why I like D'Aaron Fox currently and coming into the league Ja Morant.

Is that irrational enough?


shout out speedy claxton & iverson

[ArbitraryWater]

Beaubois on the '10 Mavs

he was a damn 25th pick too!

[fsvr54]

Zach Randolph

Bully

Good choice, especially loved him in his Grizzlies days. That post game and face-up midrange :bowdown:

[superduper]

Good choice, especially loved him in his Grizzlies days. That post game and face-up midrange :bowdown:

I will never forget the series he carried vs the Spurs. That whole Memphis team was great but Randolph especially those playoffs was special.

[DaHeezy]

shout out speedy claxton & iverson

I wouldn't say Iverson was fast as opposed to ultra quick. Iverson was fast, but at the time Darrell Armstrong would beat him end to end. Armstrong is like John Wall fast. D'Aaron Fox fast.

[brooks_thompson]

I will never forget the series he carried vs the Spurs. That whole Memphis team was great but Randolph especially those playoffs was special.

Randolph that playoffs was on another planet (until the last couple games of the Thunder series when Nick Collison decided to show out). I looked back at the stats recently and they don't do him justice. He was THE man on that team as they were just starting to rise, and he had some legendary 4th quarters. As a Memphis fan, I couldn't believe what I was watching when I realized my team was about to upset the Spurs of all people. Zach was what I call 'dilated' that series...you could just look at his eyes and tell he was locked in at a level few ever get to.

[clipps]

Boban.