I don’t know if I agree with the title since Mike had 39 but still nice to see Drob….

[Kblaze8855]

…..play with that passion.




https://youtu.be/cR7y2gx3LiU


David with Mikes heart might be the GOAT but….really wanting it does count. Hard to be goat tier with basketball as your second or third passion. Kareem pulled it off but most can’t.

[PeroAntic]

Watching this video makes me wonder how juiced up Robinson was later in his career. The difference is huge.

Also did MJ ever do a Eurostep? The first fast break was a perfect opportunity, wouldn't have been blocked that way.

[Phoenix]

Watching this video makes me wonder how juiced up Robinson was later in his career. The difference is huge.

Also did MJ ever do a Eurostep? The first fast break was a perfect opportunity, wouldn't have been blocked that way.

Don't recall him doing it often but here's one example


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWL3ucao0ZQ

Like many of his moves, it was mostly an instinctual reaction to how the defense played his initial drive, in that case Terry Cummings came over to cut off the baseline.

[3ba11]

https://i.makeagif.com/media/3-04-2019/qT9MEe.gif

[Phoenix]

Anyways there was a point when the Admiral was considered the future, before Shaq came on-board in 93. IIRC there was some discussion as to whether he was more valuable than MJ. Crazy to think about in hindsight, but it was a talking point around 92. Chips and MVPs and legacies aside, David Robinson( at least in the regular season) could hang with mostly everyone that's ever played in the NBA.

[Kblaze8855]

Anyways there was a point when the Admiral was considered the future, before Shaq came on-board in 93. IIRC there was some discussion as to whether he was more valuable than MJ. Crazy to think about in hindsight, but it was a talking point around 92. Chips and MVPs and legacies aside, David Robinson( at least in the regular season) could hang with mostly everyone that's ever played in the NBA.


That was a fairly common opinion back then. This is from a 1991 gm survey:



If you could add any player in the league to your roster, who would it be?

David Robinson (San Antonio), 8 votes

Magic Johnson (Lakers), 5 votes

Michael Jordan (Chicago), 3 votes

Larry Bird (Boston), 2 votes

Akeem Olajuwon (Houston), 1 vote

James Worthy (Lakers), 1 vote

Patrick Ewing (New York), 1 vote

Abstain, 1 vote.



In real time nobody is as far ahead of their peers as history remembers.

[Phoenix]

That was a fairly common opinion back then. This is from a 1991 gm survey:






In real time nobody is as far ahead of their peers as history remembers.

I also remember there was an award he used to win all the time.....the IBM award or something like that......basically on account of overall statistical contributions to a team. Sounded basically like a 'PER' award but I don't recall PER actually being a thing back then?

[3ba11]

That was a fairly common opinion back then. This is from a 1991 gm survey:






In real time nobody is as far ahead of their peers as history remembers.


that was before Jordan won the title and no one thought they would win heading into that season.

what was the survey like in 92' and 93' after he'd won?

We already know that Magic and Isiah stated unequivocally in 1993 that Jordan's cast was VASTLY inferior to their championship teams and he was simply carrying the Bulls to a 3-peat... This was right before he averaged 41/9/6 in the Finals (low pace)

[Phoenix]

that was before Jordan won the title and no one thought they would win heading into that season.

what was the survey like in 92' and 93' after he'd won?



Who cares? If it was the season before MJ won the title then you're talking about Robinson's rookie year. 1990 MJ was peak MJ. If anything it just says the kind of impact Robinson had right away. It also speaks to the fact that he was younger and BECAUSE MJ hadn't won yet, adhering to conventional wisdom at the time that the best path to titles still required a dominant big if you had the chance to grab one. Use your brain for once instead of going into auto-pilot MJ defense mode.

[3ba11]

Who cares? If it was the season before MJ won the title then you're talking about Robinson's rookie year. 1990 MJ was peak MJ. If anything it just says the kind of impact Robinson had right away. It also speaks to the fact that he was younger and BECAUSE MJ hadn't won yet, adhering to conventional wisdom at the time that the best path to titles still required a dominant big if you had the chance to grab one. Use your brain for once instead of going into auto-pilot MJ defense mode.


Before Jordan won, most people didn't consider him the best.

But after he won, literally everyone did.. He completely dominated Magic for 5 straight games on national TV - no one thought Magic was better after that.. That's ludicrous

Again, many people thought Jordan would never win.. But after he broke the mold and won as a guard scoring champ, everyone knew his brand of ball was the best..

Other players had to tone it down to win and fit into a team concept - only Jordan could win as scoring champ and completely carrying the scoring load because his scoring was so fundamentally-sound (no ball-dominance, low TO's, etc)

Btw, Jordan thoroughly dominated Robinson - you think that's the only gif that I have?

Robinson was Jordan's personal poster collection - and Jordan was his bully.. the tape don't lie

[Phoenix]

Before Jordan won, most people didn't consider him the best.

But after he won, literally everyone did.. He completely dominated Magic for 5 straight games on national TV - no one thought Magic was better after that.. That's ludicrous

Again, many people thought Jordan would never win.. But after he broke the mold and won as a guard scoring champ, everyone knew his brand of ball was the best..

Other players had to tone it down to win and fit into a team concept - only Jordan could win as scoring champ and completely carrying the scoring load because his scoring was so fundamentally-sound (no ball-dominance, low TO's, etc)

Btw, Jordan thoroughly dominated Robinson - you think that's the only gif that I have?

Robinson was Jordan's personal poster collection - and Jordan was his bully.. the tape don't lie

Again....jackass....this is hindsight. People in 1991 arguing that Robinson may have been a better choice came before MJ started winning, by your own words. It came from watching Robinson drop 24/12/4 as a rookie. It came from being billed as Bill Russell with defense. It came from seeing Robinson convert the Spurs from 21 wins in 1989 to 56 wins in 1990.

I'm not arguing that Robinson was better in 1990. I'm not arguing whether Jordan got the better of him more often than not. I'm telling you WHY people may have had cause BEFORE MJ WON ANYTHING to think that a younger dominant big may have been the safer conventional choice to build a team around.

[3ba11]

Again....jackass....this is hindsight. People in 1991 arguing that Robinson may have been a better choice came before MJ started winning, by your own words. It came from watching Robinson drop 24/12/4 as a rookie. It came from being billed as Bill Russell with defense. It came from seeing Robinson convert the Spurs from 21 wins in 1989 to 56 wins in 1990.

I'm not arguing that Robinson was better in 1990. I'm not arguing whether Jordan got the better of him more often than not. I'm telling you WHY people may have had cause BEFORE MJ WON ANYTHING to think that a younger dominant big may have been the safer conventional choice to build a team around.


Yeah we know all that - my point was that the stuff you're saying was before he won, which was omitted from Kblaze original post.. It's kind of an important distinction to include, don't you think?

Btw, the Spurs added All-NBA'er Terry Cummings in Robinson's rookie year.. Jordan probably wins some titles with Cummings if Cummings had a tenure with prime Jordan in a parity 2-star team league (like Pippen did)

[Phoenix]

Yeah we know all that - my point was that the stuff you're saying was before he won, which was omitted from Kblaze original post.. It's kind of an important distinction to include, don't you think?

Btw, the Spurs added All-NBA'er Terry Cummings in Robinson's rookie year.. Jordan probably wins some titles with Cummings if Cummings had a tenure with prime Jordan in a parity 2-star team league (like Pippen did)

It wasn't vital to the overall point, because it wasn't intended as a knock on MJ. Simply how highly Robinson was viewed coming into the league. You realize Robinson was like 3rd in MVP his 2nd year? Take your brain back to 1990.

Actually you know what? Join us in 2022 and watch the damn game on tonight like everyone else not stuck 30 years in the past.

[3ba11]

It wasn't vital to the overall point, because it wasn't intended as a knock on MJ. Simply how highly Robinson was viewed coming into the league. You realize Robinson was like 3rd in MVP his 2nd year? Take your brain back to 1990.

Actually you know what? Join us in 2022 and watch the damn game on tonight like everyone else not stuck 30 years in the past.


Rookie Robinson was near his peak at 24 years old and would be a top 5 player today - he could be the best depending on how his game improves with modern advantages (including seeing moves from others) - the raw talent was there

[Phoenix]

Rookie Robinson was near his peak at 24 years old and would be a top 5 player today - he could be the best depending on how his game improves with modern advantages (including seeing moves from others) - the raw talent was there

Probably. The most obvious physical comparison is Giannis, and Robinson was more skilled( playing a completely different way of course in a league that didn't require the bigs to play like Giannis does now).

[999Guy]

Most likely the single greatest regular season player ever.

Brought it all multiple years straight, no coasting, no mental head case years, healthy within a system built around him that he dominated on both ends.

Every single player I can think of, in any era had one of those issues in their prime. Everyone of them except D-Rob. Which isn’t to say I think he was RS GOAT because of consistency. I believe he would give any team a better chance to win than every player in the history of the sport in a random RS Game.


By the mid-90’s D-Rob was an unthinkable video game player like current Jokic is. Who is also playing literally GOAT levels of basketball.

Statistically Giannis would be D-Rob’s comprising but the defensive presence is not at all comparable. Giannis isn’t the high motor paint deterrent D-Rob. Didn’t have the same level of instincts on that end.

[FultzNationRISE]

In real time nobody is as far ahead of their peers as history remembers.


except.........







Lebron.

[BarberSchool]

Imagine a bigger, stronger, better Giannis, with a US Military background, that moved more fluidly, with a truly great, consistent face up midrange jumper, better shot blocking, and much better footwork and understanding of the game.