Another rediscovered coach/executive poll from the 90s.

[Kblaze8855]

WOULD YOU RATHER HAVE SPUD WEBB OR MUGGSY BOGUES?
Spud Webb - 19 votes
Muggsy Bogues - 2 votes
"Muggsy's a [figuratively] bigger pest." - voted Bogues
BRAD DAUGHERTY OR KEVIN DUCKWORTH
Brad Daugherty - 24 votes
"I would go for the more skilled player by a slight edge, and that's Daugherty. But though you might look better with Daugherty, you might win more with Duckworth." - voted Daugherty
"Duck's made some progress, and right now he might be a slightly better player. But Brad has more consistency, and I'll take him for that reason." - voted Daugherty
Kevin Duckworth- 1 vote
"Duckworth plays harder." - Duckworth’s only fan
WOULD YOU RATHER HAVE HORACE GRANT OR HARVEY GRANT?”
Harvey Grant - 10 votes
"Horace is sort of lost because he doesn't really have a role in their offense." - voted Harvey
Horace Grant - 10 votes
"Horace has shown a lot of character in the way he's handled himself. He's under a lot of pressure to produce, and he has in playoff situations." - voted Horace
"As for which one is better looking, I'll take Harvey. I don't like goggles." - on the aesthetics of basketball eyewear
"Let me get it straight; Horace plays for the Bulls, Harvey for the Bullets. Right?" - Paul Westhead, confused
WOULD YOU RATHER HAVE RICKY PIERCE OR DAN MAJERLE?“
Dan Majerle - 12 votes
"Dan's the type of guy who cannot score a point but will still win games for you. There is only one other player in the NBA who has come off the bench with that kind of impact: Dennis Rodman." - on Majerle
Ricky Pierce - 8 votes
”An offensive assassin." - on Pierce
"You like to have any player in this league who can score.” - voted Pierce
"Despite the fact that Majerle has all the qualities coaches talk about, the one thing Pierce can do, score points quickly, is so overwhelming that you have to take him." - voted Pierce
(Pierce was traded soon after this poll was conducted)
REGGIE MILLER OR REGGIE LEWIS?
Reggie Miller - 9 votes
"That's a part of the game that's underrated, getting to the line, especially when you're as good a foul shooter as Miller is.” - voted Miller
"I've got to go with Miller. As good as he is now, if he were with [the Celtics], he'd be... whew!" - voted Miller
Reggie Lewis - 8 votes
"Lewis is a more complete player, and he's maybe a little more team oriented." - voted Lewis
"Lewis can play two positions, and he can help you without scoring points." - voted Lewis
“They are Interchangeable” - 2 votes
"Reggie Lewis is more versatile, but Reggie Miller is tough—he doesn't back away from anybody." - Bernie Bicker-staff
(Miller was an All-Star over Lewis the previous year; Lewis would be an All-Star over Miller the following year, then suffer a sudden cardiac death in ‘93)

[Kblaze8855]

SCOTTIE PIPPEN OR DENNIS RODMAN?
Dennis Rodman - 11 votes
"Rodman is the ultimate team player. Night in and night out, he just kills himself every minute of every game. That's an unbelievable quality in any player." - Larry Brown
Scottie Pippen - 9 votes
"If they ever make ‘The Michael Jordan Story’, Pippen might get the title role. I think he gets distracted, though, in trying to be a little too much like Michael." - on Jordan’s influence on Pippen
"He's obviously following the right guy." - Bill Fitch on Jordan’s influence on Pippen
(Votes were tied for those out West, but their own Eastern Conference broke the tie by voting: Rodman-5, Pippen-3.)
WOULD YOU RATHER HAVE JOHN STOCKTON OR KEVIN JOHNSON?
Kevin Johnson - 16 votes
”They both do so many things for you, but you know Kevin can always score.” - Richie Adubato, voted Johnson
John Stockton - 5 votes
"When a point guard has himself as the leading scorer of the team, somehow that doesn't make sense to me. KJ is the Suns' leading scorer, while both Karl Malone and Jeff Malone score more than Stockton." - voted Stockton
"I laugh because that's a ridiculous question. I love ice cream, and that's like choosing between my two favorite flavors." - Larry Brown, joining 3 other coaches who abstained from voting
(According to writer Jack McCallum, the voting was much closer than the results: “… because so many respondents had trouble deciding, the result was rather like that of the tennis player who wins in straight sets but needs a tiebreaker in each of them.”)
DERRICK MCKEY OR DANNY MANNING?
Derrick McKey - 15 votes
"He's expanding as a player every game." - Mike Dunleavy on Mckey
Danny Manning - 7 votes
"No way he has #1-pick ability. We all overrated him." - on Manning

[Kblaze8855]

From just before the all star break in 1991 if you’re wondering.

[Xiao Yao You]

Mugsy
Daugherty(not even close)
Horace
Majerle
Lewis

[Kblaze8855]

I was surprised to see the Duckworth question. The blazers were running wild, so maybe he was a bigger deal than usual for a little while but I don’t remember him being all that highly regarded. More highly regarded than he appears when you look at his stats, but his stats are terrible so that isn’t saying much.

I don’t remember many comparisons between him and the other star centers. He was just another good player on a team full of them. I don’t believe I’ve ever heard of anyone asking a Kevin Duckworth versus such and such All-Star center question before now.

[SouBeachTalents]

Dan's the type of guy who cannot score a point but will still win games for you. There is only one other player in the NBA who has come off the bench with that kind of impact: Dennis Rodman.
This comment stuck out to me. By '91 Majerlie was averaging 14 a night in under 30 minutes per game, so I would've liked to see how whoever made that comment reached the conclusion he "couldn't score a point". He described him like he was Matisse Thybulle or something :lol

[Kblaze8855]

I’m gonna post a number of these I’ve not seen posted before. I’ll skip the 91 nba poll because it’s been covered many times. SI used to do these all the time polling players or coaches and execs. Dominique Wilkins was voted most overrated player 2 years in a row by the other players once. Here is one that resulted in an almost 2023 like assumption of racism




Coaches and general managers were asked a difficult question in this week's poll: Who is the league's smartest player? In an extremely close race Larry Bird of the Celtics collected 10 votes and Jazz point guard John Stockton got 8.5. (Rocket coach Don Chaney split his ballot between Stockton and point guard Isiah Thomas of the Pistons.) Forward Chris Mullin of the Warriors and guard Jeff Hornacek of the Suns got two votes each, Thomas got 1.5, and Cav point guard Mark Price got one. In voting for Bird, Laker assistant coach Randy Pfund tells a typical story:
"In the 1987 Finals every time Bird would hear us call out the Celtics' offensive play from the bench, he'd change it. Maybe they'd call, say, a 1-up, which is a pick-and-roll involving him and Robert Parish. So we'd call out '1-up' to prepare our defense, and—boom!—Bird would go back-door on us for a basket. It got so we tried to call the play without him hearing us, and finally it became counterproductive. I'm not saying Larry Bird is the only, or even the first, player to do that, but it's just an example of how he plays the game and how he thinks the game."
The fact that five of the six above-mentioned players are white suggests that the vote may have been tinged by racial stereotyping; indeed, it says here that any number of black players—Michael Jordan, Joe Dumars and Maurice Cheeks, to name just three—merit serious consideration for smartest player. But Thomas's court sense was recognized in the balloting, and several respondents indicated that Magic Johnson would have won easily were he still active.

[Kblaze8855]

The above and following are all from 1992

IF MAGIC DOESN’T PLAY IN THE OLYMPICS, WHO SHOULD TAKE HIS PLACE?
Tim Hardaway - 6 votes
Joe Dumars - 4 votes
Mark Price - 3.5 votes
Isiah Thomas - 3 votes
Kevin Johnson - 2.5 votes
Clyde Drexler & Dee Brown - 1 vote
"I think this team needs some defense, and Dee is a young guard who can apply defensive pressure all the way up the floor." - on Brown
WHO DESERVES TO BE THE “ROOKIE OF THE YEAR”?
Dikembe Mutombo - 21 votes
"Dikembe gets double-teamed, even triple-teamed, night in and night out.” - Paul Westhead
Larry Johnson - 4 votes
"I love Dikembe, absolutely love him, but Larry Johnson's the total focal point of that team. He's the best basketball player among the rookies." - Cotton Fitzsimmons
Steve Smith - 1 vote
(In the R.O.Y. voting, Johnson received 90.5 votes, Mutombo received 3.5 votes, & Billy Owens received 2 votes)
WHO WOULD YOU CHOOSE AS “MOST IMPROVED” IF THE BALLOT WERE TAKEN TODAY?”
Pervis Ellison - 7 votes
"We always thought he was a player, but it didn't seem like he'd reach his potential here. We shouldn't have done the deal, but I'm happy for him. He's always been a good kid." - Jerry Reynolds, who traded Ellison in 1990
Tim Perry - 4 votes
Reggie Williams - 3 votes
Sarunas Marciulionis & Kevin Willis - 2 votes
Sam Bowie, Drazen Petrović, Terry Davis, Glen Rice, & John Starks - 1 vote
(In the M.I.P. voting, Ellison received 40 votes, Petrović received 22 votes, Willis received 12 votes, & no one else received more than 4)


WHO IS THE MOST DISAPPOINTING NON-ROOKIE IN THE NBA?
Kevin Duckworth - 8 votes
"Duckworth is a guy who, if he's in shape and playing well, can be a tremendous force in the league. The Blazers are getting by without a major contribution from him now, but if they're going to win a championship, Kevin's got to step up his game." - on Duckworth
"Duckworth has enormous talent, but he's not using it. He's on my all-Ken-L-Ration team." - comparing Duckworth to dogfood
Charles Shackleford - 4 votes
Thurl Bailey - 3 votes
Benoit Benjamin - 2 votes
Ledell Eackles, Bo Kimble, Jon Koncak, Chuck Person, & Brian Shaw - 1 vote
WHICH TEAM HAD BEEN THE MOST DISAPPOINTING SO FAR?
Pacers - 11 votes
"They can't rebound, and they don't defend." - on the Pacers
"They have too much talent to be struggling the way they have." - on the Pacers
"It's just not working with what they have. I don't see how they can stay together much longer." - on the Pacers
Magic - 6 votes
"They're one of those teams that went backwards, and they're not young.” - on the Magic
Spurs & Trail Blazers - 2 votes
"I'd have to say their record is a disappointment for a team everyone thought was going to be very good." - Paul Westhead on the Spurs
”[Trail Blazers are] still the team to beat." - coach who voted for Trail Blazers
Timberwolves - 1 vote
"They had a lot of player turmoil, and that was supposed to be the reason they got a new coach. So they get a new coach and come right back with more player turmoil." - on the Timberwolves
"I'll coach my own team. I'm busy enough doing that." - Lenny Wilkens on declining to vote

[Kblaze8855]

SUGGESTIONS FOR RULE CHANGES?
The game's rules should be left alone - 8 votes
3 free throws awarded to a player fouled in the act of attempting a 3-point shot - 2 votes
A line 3 feet from the basket to help officials better judge the troublesome block-or-charge question. A defensive player who positions himself in front of the line would draw the charge; if there is contact inside the line, it's a block. - 1 vote
"This is too tough a call right now. All you need is a line, and everyone can see it." - Mike Dunleavy on what would later become the “restricted area”
Reset the 24-second clock for changed possession on jump balls - 1 vote
"When you play good defense, you should be rewarded. If the shot clock is at five seconds, then it should stay that way. If the team that was on defense wins the tip, then you reset it." - George Karl
Elimination of the jump ball in favor of a coin flip at the outset and alternate possessions thereafter, after jump balls or at the beginning of periods - 1 vote
Instant replay for officials - 1 vote
"We should have it in the last minute of games, so decisions that are made, sometimes under pressure, can be reviewed and we can have a true winner." - Richie Adubato on use of instant replay, which David Stern had been adamantly against
KENDALL GILL OR GLEN RICE?
Glen Rice - 13 votes
"Gill is more versatile, but Rice takes over games with his scoring. You can teach ball-handling skills and defense if a guy's willing to work. But great shooters don't come along often, so when you get your hands on one, don't let him go." - on Rice
Kendall Gill - 6 votes
"I'll take Gill because he does so many things well. Gill won't get you 30 as often as Rice will, but then his guy won't get 30 either." - on Gill
"Ain't a G.M. in the league that can make a pick between those two." - Brendan Suhr
"Dale didn't become a superstar, because he didn't develop his floor game. If Rice works on handling the ball and passing, he will be one of the great players in IC '90s." - on the “Dale Ellis syndrome”
PATRICK EWING OR DAVID ROBINSON?
David Robinson - 20 votes
"His size, quickness and touch make him unique on both ends of the floor. He's Bill Russell, only four inches taller and with a great shooting touch." - on Robinson
Patrick Ewing - 5 votes
"When you get right down to it, Patrick's defensive principles are awful." - on Ewing
"If it's true that Patrick is more competitive than David, all I can say is that it hasn't shown up in David's productivity." - on Robinson not playing hard all the time
CHARLES BARKLEY OR KARL MALONE?
Karl Malone - 15 votes
"If it was just basketball you were talking about, I'd go with Barkley. But it's gotten so bad this year with the off-court distractions and his unhappiness with being on the Sixers that it finally has had an effect on his play. He hasn't been as consistent. With the Mailman, you know he's going to play hard every night, and you don't have the worries of what might happen after the game." - voted Malone
"This isn't to say Charles is a bad guy, because he isn't. But the off-court baggage detracts from his game and, more important, is a constant distraction to the team."- voted Malone
"Charles is better when he wants [to play hard], but you never know when that's going to be. I'll take Karl." - voted Malone
Charles Barkley - 7 votes
"I like Charles's heart, the way he overcomes the size disadvantage, the way he takes over a game all by himself." - voted Barkley
"I want to write my own book someday, and he'd make it more interesting." - voted Barkley
NBA’S BEST REFEREE?
Jake O'Donnell - 18 votes
"That's the easiest question of the year." - on O’Donnell
Joey Crawford, Dick Bavetta, & Ed T. Rush - 2 votes
Jess Kersey - 1 vote
THE BEST BENCH COACH? (most adept at making changes and reacting to situations during the flow of the game)
Don Nelson (Warriors) - 8 votes
”Nellie gets you playing his game. Also, his game changes. He's got fast little people this season, and they run around the floor like crazy. But in the past he just pounded you with big people." - Donnie Walsh
"He has the best combination of abilities in dealing with players, motivating, reading situations in the game. His teams historically overachieve." - Pete Babcock
Jimmy Lynam (76ers) - 4 votes
Chuck Daly (Pistons), Cotton Fitzsimmons (Suns), & Phil Jackson (Bulls) - 3 votes
Lenny Wilkens (Cavaliers) - 2 votes
Pat Riley (Knicks) - 1 vote

[Xiao Yao You]

I was surprised to see the Duckworth question. The blazers were running wild, so maybe he was a bigger deal than usual for a little while but I don’t remember him being all that highly regarded. More highly regarded than he appears when you look at his stats, but his stats are terrible so that isn’t saying much.

I don’t remember many comparisons between him and the other star centers. He was just another good player on a team full of them. I don’t believe I’ve ever heard of anyone asking a Kevin Duckworth versus such and such All-Star center question before now.

better low post player maybe

[Kblaze8855]

Player poll from 2005

Will LeBron James be one of the 10 greatest players of all time?
Yes 62%
No 27%
Maybe 11%
FAST FACTS: Among respondents with more than 10 years in the league, 35% answered “No”.... James, who turned 20 on Dec. 30, became the youngest player ever to win Rookie of the Year when he won it last season. He was also the third rookie (after Oscar Robertson and Michael Jordan) to average at least 20 points, five rebounds and five assists in a season.
Who is the best defensive player in the NBA?
Ron Artest 34%
Ben Wallace 18%
Bruce Bowen 15%
Kevin Garnett 8%
Andrei Kirilenko 7%
FAST FACTS: 41% of shooting guards and small forwards picked Artest; 26% of centers chose Wallace.
Who is the best pure passer in the NBA?
Jason Kidd 49%
Steve Nash 43%
LeBron James 3%
Jason Williams 1%
Vlade Divac & Jamaal Tinsley 1%
FAST FACTS: No other players got multiple votes.... Kidd led the NBA in assists per game in five of the past six seasons. He's fourth this year.... Nash leads this year (11.5). Bobcats' point guard Brevin Knight (8.5) is second but did not get a vote.
Who is the best point guard in the NBA?
Steve Nash 55%
Jason Kidd 31%
Baron Davis 3%
Allen Iverson 3%
Stephon Marbury 2.5%
FAST FACTS: Nash leads the NBA with 10.9 assists a game.... Miami's Dwyane Wade, who's eighth in scoring average (23.8) and fourth in assists (7.6), got just one vote.
Which opponent do you most fear when he has the ball and a chance to win the game?
Kobe Bryant 56%
Allen Iverson 13%
Reggie Miller 9%
Tracy McGrady 7%
Tim Duncan 2%
FAST FACTS: * No other player got more than 1%.... Ten of the 14 players who received multiple votes are guards.... Bryant leads all NBA players with an average of 8.6 fourth-quarter points this season.... Miller, 39, received 27% of the vote from respondents who were 35 and older.*
Who has the best shot in the NBA?
Ray Allen 47%
Peja Stojakovic 21%
Dirk Nowitzki 9%
Allan Houston & Reggie Miller 4%
Michael Redd 3.6%
Who is the smartest player in the NBA?
Tim Duncan 25%
Jason Kidd 21%
Steve Nash 16%
Reggie Miller 8%
Kobe Bryant 5%
FAST FACTS: Duncan has a psychology degree from Wake Forest.... Kidd, who got 54% of the vote from players 35 and older, is the only one of the top four who did not attend four years of college.
Which current NBA player would you most like to play with?
Shaquille O'Neal 29%
Kevin Garnett 17%
Steve Nash 15%
Tim Duncan 15%
LeBron James & Jason Kidd 5%
FAST FACTS: Among voters who've played six years or more, Duncan got 24%.... Kobe Bryant, Ben Wallace and Allen Iverson were the only other players to receive multiple votes.

[Kblaze8855]

Magic fans still acted Shocked when he left:




Shockingly, some Orlando fans are ready to wish the big fella
good riddance. The city is still smarting from the Bulls'
humiliating four-game sweep of the Magic in the Eastern
Conference finals, and the finger has been pointed squarely at
Shaq and his errant free throw shooting (36.4%) during the
series. On June 2, a week after Chicago's triumph, The Orlando
Sentinel published the results of a survey conducted in Magic
country by America's Research Group. It asked whether the Magic
should fire coach Brian Hill if that were one of O'Neal's
conditions for returning. An overwhelming 82% answered no. The
survey also inquired if O'Neal was worth his current seven-year,
$41 million contract. Only 49% answered yes.

While losing O'Neal would be catastrophic on the court for
Orlando, apparently the public outrage would be moderate. When
the America's Research survey asked Magic fans if Orlando should
match a contract offer for O'Neal, 69% said no, and that was
without a dollar figure attached.

[FultzNationRISE]

This comment stuck out to me. By '91 Majerlie was averaging 14 a night in under 30 minutes per game, so I would've liked to see how whoever made that comment reached the conclusion he "couldn't score a point". He described him like he was Matisse Thybulle or something :lol


”Cannot” without a space is clearly a transliteration error and mistakenly implies the assertion is he CANNOT score.

Obviously the intent of the statement was to say hes a guy with the ability to make an impact even IF he doesnt score.

“He can… not score a point and still make an impact.”

[Kblaze8855]

Yea he’s Saying that even if Dan didn’t score, he would contribute. He was a good defender and a high energy player. The type coaches always love.

[John8204]

Man that Stockton take aged like milk...but I see it's 1991

[Kblaze8855]

Man that Stockton take aged like milk...but I see it's 1991

I don’t think a question about right now can age poorly because of the future. They weren’t asked to project who would have the better career. They couldn’t know he’d only have one more healthy season till 1997. He was all nba over Stockton that year. That said….Stockton had a much better series when they played.

Either way it wasn’t some weird question at the time it just sounds like it 30 years later when Stockton got all the records and KJ only had like 4-5 great healthy years.

It’s kinda like Mark Price. He was all nba over both of them but only had like 1 more healthy season. Life’s a bitch.

[Shaquille O'Neal]

I remember when MJ retired the first time, and the league / media was pumping up Barkley to be the next "main guy" of the league. They constantly ran that "I am not a role model" quote in commercials. Another Barkley commercial I remember had Chuck doing his own talk show, complete with Salt N' Pepa's "Whatta man" playing in the background (it was 94 after all).
To be 20 again...man.

[John8204]

I don’t think a question about right now can age poorly because of the future. They weren’t asked to project who would have the better career. They couldn’t know he’d only have one more healthy season till 1997. He was all nba over Stockton that year. That said….Stockton had a much better series when they played.

Either way it wasn’t some weird question at the time it just sounds like it 30 years later when Stockton got all the records and KJ only had like 4-5 great healthy years.

It’s kinda like Mark Price. He was all nba over both of them but only had like 1 more healthy season. Life’s a bitch.

They didn't value the 14 APG line that Stockton broke (and would never be broken again). KJ is a fine player and all but this contextualizes stats.

[Wardell Curry]

These are serious people making lots of money with serious takes. Don't question them. They're always right. Fans are always wrong. I would always take the word of the front offices or players over ALL fans any day of the week.

And who are you? Some dumb fat slob posting on the internet. Ha! These guys did this for a living! No fans that post on any of these sites are smarter and know more than these people. This is their craft! You're just some dumb dumb!

[Wardell Curry]

For the record, since you're "skipping my posts now", the entire point of the trolling is to utterly hammer home the fact that appealing to authority and citing someone's opinion, at the end of the day, doesn't mean jack shit.

Yes, your prototypical GM or prototypical player knows more than your prototypical fan. Of course that's true. And of course the general consensus among most fans is often wrong, just as it is often wrong in these offices and teams.

But someone else's opinion should not be something you are citing during any of these specific discussions. It's just lazy idiocy, to be blunt.

That is the entire point. Do not cite someone else's opinion as "proof" of jack shit. Because it isn't. Opinions are like assholes, and just because one person said something or one group of people said something, doesn't make it true. It might be more often statistically true than the other person's or other group's', but it's definitely no where near an absolute.

GMs and players aren't right >99% of the time which is exactly what some of you pretend they are when you're trying to win an argument and they happen to agree with you.

It's just straight up laziness and refusing to do your own thinking and explaining.

[Kblaze8855]

They didn't value the 14 APG line that Stockton broke (and would never be broken again). KJ is a fine player and all but this contextualizes stats.


The previous season Hakeem put up 24 points 14 rebounds, five blocks and two steals a game. He wasn’t all NBA first team. That doesn’t mean people didn’t value what he did. It means there are a lot of great players at the same time. The same group of people were polled that year and named Stockton the second smartest player in the league after Bird.

[jayfan]

Wow, the voters fell flat on their face in the Spud v. Bogues poll.

Was that taken right after Spud won the dunk contest or something?


.

[meat]

Dell Curry are you OK? You seem to be yelling at a wall or something.

[90sgoat]

What this shows is that every year there are a lot of good players, but with time, most of them get forgotten and generations that never watched them come to call them scrubs and so on.

Yes, Kevin Johnson was a very high level player, he was definitely one of the more exciting players in the league, crazy athleticism. People just don't remember him.

Kendall Gill, right there, another shooting guard that was very good and that MJ went against, but people don't remember.

It's this way all around.

[RRR3]

I was surprised to see the Duckworth question. The blazers were running wild, so maybe he was a bigger deal than usual for a little while but I don’t remember him being all that highly regarded. More highly regarded than he appears when you look at his stats, but his stats are terrible so that isn’t saying much.

I don’t remember many comparisons between him and the other star centers. He was just another good player on a team full of them. I don’t believe I’ve ever heard of anyone asking a Kevin Duckworth versus such and such All-Star center question before now.
Kevin Duckworth has by far the worst advanced stats of any all-star I'm aware of. No one else is even remotely close. What was he even good at? Chucking up too many shots I guess.

[eliteballer]

Who's become more overrated in retirement, Reggie or Dirk?

[Kblaze8855]

Dirk was always considered elite. He was an MVP and an mvp runner up. Reggie was ranked next to guys history doesn’t even remember but might actually be more famous than Dirk.

[tpols]

Dirk was always considered elite. He was an MVP and an mvp runner up. Reggie was ranked next to guys history doesn’t even remember but might actually be more famous than Dirk.


You stay Playa hating on Reggie. :oldlol:

He must've pissed you off back in the day with his playoff antics.

[ShawkFactory]

Who's become more overrated in retirement, Reggie or Dirk?

Reggie obviously.

[Baller234]

I remember having an argument on this forum not long ago regarding John Stockton and how historically overrated he's become. I was met with pushback but these old discussions pretty much affirm my argument.

I don't take pleasure in saying that because he's actually one of my favorite players of all time, but the reality is that while he was playing he never really "separated" himself from the other elite PG's. He was arguably the best but never definitively the best.

[Kblaze8855]

You stay Playa hating on Reggie. :oldlol:

He must've pissed you off back in the day with his playoff antics.

Reggie never did anything of consequence vs any team I wanted to see win. He wasn’t as big a deal at the time as people make him in retrospect. We weren’t just…sitting around talking Reggie Miller. Not till the Spike Lee thing. Knick fans no doubt held a grudge. But the Knicks beat him 3 times I believe. I don’t know that any fanbase really has nightmares of Reggie beating up on them without getting him back more.

[Kblaze8855]

In fact I’d say John Starks was more of an adversary than Reggie Miller back then. I wasnt up nights worried about what Reggie was gonna do.

Last 3 playoff games vs the Bulls combined he hit 14 total shots playing 40 minutes a game. Of course one of them was that famous push off game winner when he was like 2-13 and that sticks in peoples mind despite him not actually being very good. But that’s the Reggie experience. Don’t do much….hit a famous shot…still lose.

Wasn’t worried about that guy.

The Knicks had me losing a little sleep.

[tpols]

Reggie never did anything of consequence vs any team I wanted to see win. He wasn’t as big a deal at the time as people make him in retrospect. We weren’t just…sitting around talking Reggie Miller. Not till the Spike Lee thing. Knick fans no doubt held a grudge. But the Knicks beat him 3 times I believe. I don’t know that any fanbase really has nightmares of Reggie beating up on them without getting him back more.

I feel you big bro but all I'm hearing is...


https://youtu.be/Oq30K8EZe7k?si=7NcN4AgcbyAz6-nq

"Playa haterrr... lay on the ground... turn your head round... you've been robbed..."




When it comes to Reggie Miller you're like Jordan when he got so mad he tried to strangle him Homer Simpson style.


https://youtu.be/qiMqsqC0ZZo?si=rQHVvic2_Jwpgzma

[Kblaze8855]

Real fact:

Reggie played the Bulls the week that album came out. In fact, a game versus the Bulls 3 days prior was the last time I’d have seen him before buying it. He had 18 points on 5-17 shooting as we blew them out and dropped them to 31-36 and make us 58-9.

There was nothing to hate. It was like the current Celtics playing the Raptors or something. As a fan Reggie wasn’t even on my radar.

He was a Pascal Siakam ass player relevancy wise. He was a non all star, non all nba, on a mediocre ass squad nobody cared about.

If I were hating on anyone at that time it would have been like….Alonzo Mourning or someone on the Knicks. Nobody hates on Siakams.

[tpols]

Reggie and the Pacers took Michael Jordan and the Bulls to the wire in a 7 game series in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Don't act like this was present day Celtics vs the Raptors. They were two top contenders slugging it out.

Your reality on this situation is skewed.

[Kblaze8855]

Seems Reggie Miller got his ass kicked and blown out game before that album came out and on the day of release Michael Finley actually outplayed Jordan in a 2 point loss. As usual, people we barely even remember existing at the time were routinely playing as well or better with absolutely nobody caring.

[tpols]

And btw Siakam is actually nice. He has no help currently but his Game 1 performance against the warriors was the catalyst to them winning the ring.


https://youtu.be/3ugrYiEl9gg?si=wbHwArGZFtSkXTd_

That set the tone. Dubs were winning without that.

[Kblaze8855]

Reggie and the Pacers took Michael Jordan and the Bulls to the wire in a 7 game series in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Don't act like this was present day Celtics vs the Raptors. They were two top contenders slugging it out.

Your reality on this situation is skewed.


The Pacers were the 10th seed the year that album dropped. Reggie played 81 games but they had traded Mark Jackson and fell apart and panicked and traded for him back.

He was just another guy at the time.

He was the same guy sub .500 as when they were good. They just didn’t have Jackson and Smits was out some of that year. Reggie wasn’t the type to make a team good. Not really a floor raiser. They were good when they had a gang of healthy good bigs and Mark Jackson to run the offense and get people shots.

[Kblaze8855]

And btw Siakam is actually nice. He has no help currently but his Game 1 performance against the warriors was the catalyst to them winning the ring.


https://youtu.be/3ugrYiEl9gg?si=wbHwArGZFtSkXTd_

That set the tone. Dubs were winning without that.

“Dubs” were winning if they had their actual team. There is little else to it. No KD and Klay going down as well while he was killing it leaving Steph with guys who couldn’t score. That was the story.

That said Siakam is fine. Reggie was fine too.

But teams aren’t shook they are coming to town.

[Kblaze8855]

Unrelated but I’m just gonna stick this here since both these names came up earlier


https://www.hostpic.org/images/2312022231320094.jpeg

[tpols]

In fact I’d say John Starks was more of an adversary than Reggie Miller back then. I wasnt up nights worried about what Reggie was gonna do.

Last 3 playoff games vs the Bulls combined he hit 14 total shots playing 40 minutes a game. Of course one of them was that famous push off game winner when he was like 2-13 and that sticks in peoples mind despite him not actually being very good. But that’s the Reggie experience. Don’t do much….hit a famous shot…still lose.

Wasn’t worried about that guy.

The Knicks had me losing a little sleep.

"Wake up... *wake up*... open the door... don't cry no more... you've been robbed..."

:roll:

[tpols]

https://media0.giphy.com/media/TizHAKYviTw6rDWSNV/giphy.gif?cid=6c09b952ljnyzix6gf63astksl8706blnzro 1p4us0f20f0b&ep=v1_internal_gif_by_id&rid=giphy.gif&ct=g

[Kblaze8855]

https://media0.giphy.com/media/TizHAKYviTw6rDWSNV/giphy.gif?cid=6c09b952ljnyzix6gf63astksl8706blnzro 1p4us0f20f0b&ep=v1_internal_gif_by_id&rid=giphy.gif&ct=g


Then he got out played by John Starks to lose game six to make the finals, then lost game seven as well As they collapsed in the fourth quarter, so of course you don’t even remember it happened. Not that you remember that happening either but the media you hate has long shaped your opinion on the matter, and has convinced you Reggie was generally coming through when it mattered with highlights and dramatic music from losses.

just spoon that media narrative down, then turn around and talk about how much you hate the media. Their campaigns are just as effective on you, as they are on the most casual of fans. The truth is whatever a lifetime of ESPN documentaries tell you it is.

[tpols]

What Reggie did was as gangster as it comes. A skinny poor athlete hanging as many playoff points in the 90s 2nd only behind MJ. (look it up) And coming through in the clutch a bunch of times to an absurd degree. The media didn't have to tell me anything.

[Kblaze8855]

We really talking playoff Point totals like you’re a LeBron fan? Nobody gives a **** how many total points of king scored in the playoffs from 1990 to 1999 In comparison to Reggie Miller. Same for David Robinson, or Barkley or anybody else. Kinda like you don’t care how many times somebody “Comes through in the clutch” while losing in any other situation.

Double digit game winners means shit when your team doesn’t score for eight minutes straight getting eliminated and everyone is asking where the hell you went again. Your entire opinion is built on the back of your hated media, because everyone who was actually there remembers Reggie, being an absolute no-show all the time. He’s the only guy who would come up in a clutch discussion who could consistently score 14 points in the playoffs with 10 of them in the first half and nobody be surprised.

all kinds of random players, who never come up busted Reggie Miller’s ass in key moments. Hed go 9-10 plays and not look at the basket while his team didn’t score and the only reason you don’t care is he wasn’t a good enough player to expect him to do something all the time.

he would come off the screen and not get open and go ghost for the next 18 seconds while people you never heard of dribbles and put up a contested jumper with a game on the line and you have no idea it happened because you aren’t informed. You just have very strong opinions without very strong information. But we have talked about this before and you can go on believing I’m making up shit when I can show you his own coaches saying it’s unacceptable that he doesn’t just go get the ball and let’s Mark Jackson decide games.

that dude was passed the ball only to hot potato it to a role-player and stand there like he forgot how to play basketball while his team gave up a 12-0 run that put it out of reach so often it would be a meme these days. ****ing Dale Davis post Ups , Mark, Jackson, and Haywood workman floaters to lose games. Derek McKey, who was as reluctant to shoot as Ben Simmons at times, trying to make something happen, while Reggie stood with his hands, literally on his hips. The way Reggie stood back and let his offense fall to shit a lot of the time in the playoffs would make him laughingstock these days.

Well, it would, if he played the same way. But he wouldn’t. A coach would demand he takes 12 threes a game and he might score 31 a night but that’s a different discussion.

no need for version 50 of this. I’ll just pretend I didn’t literally sit in person in the arena and watch him not do shit in the clutch because you think media fairytales are reality.

Anyway, I forgot what this topic is about.

[Kblaze8855]

Ah. Polls. Let me get you a few more. Maybe a Reggie vs Derek Harper in Harper’s favor while you pretend people coaching at the time know less about what’s in front of them than you do by googling what they saw 30 years later and call a coach breaking down his own team an appeal to authority when you don’t even know the people he’s talking about and have never seen them play.

[Kblaze8855]

Obviously kidding a bit in the last post but if you were wondering, he does come up in several polls. Players once voted him third most feared with the game on the line, he got 8 percent of a poll on smartest player, and 4 percent(bit low no?) for best shot.

[tpols]

I could be down in the last round, on the ground, and get up, and come at you in the last 8 seconds like this.


https://youtu.be/YoCpMguR4cQ?si=2-rywjXBxN_gJTnU

And what you gon do bitch nigg@?

[ShawkFactory]

I could be down in the last round, on the ground, and get up, and come at you in the last 8 seconds like this.


https://youtu.be/YoCpMguR4cQ?si=2-rywjXBxN_gJTnU

And what you gon do bitch nigg@?

You’re arguments aren’t getting better.

[tpols]

You’re arguments aren’t getting better.

And neither is your grammar brother.

[Kblaze8855]

I could be down in the last round, on the ground, and get up, and come at you in the last 8 seconds like this.


https://youtu.be/YoCpMguR4cQ?si=2-rywjXBxN_gJTnU

And what you gon do bitch nigg@?

Wait for you to score 10 points on three of 10 shooting the next game and lose. Which is exactly what happened.

[tpols]

That was a great comeback lmao.

Reggie still legit though. Whether you admit it or not.

[ShawkFactory]

That was a great comeback lmao.

Reggie still legit though. Whether you admit it or not.

Yes it was.

If you’re boiling it down to a 9 second span of someone career then you’ve lost.

[tpols]

Yes it was.

If you’re boiling it down to a 9 second span of someone career then you’ve lost.

100+ games across dozens of playoff series sounds different then 9 seconds.

[Kblaze8855]

That was a great comeback lmao.

Reggie still legit though. Whether you admit it or not.

of course he’s legit. He scored 25,000 points in the NBA as a guard with middle school handles. Hes in the hall of fame and he should be(based on who else is there). He was clearly legit. Just more famous than a lot of people who were equally or more legit. Legit has levels. So does recognition. They don’t always line up. But he was a great player either way.

[tpols]

of course he’s legit. He scored 25,000 points in the NBA as a guard with middle school handles. Hes in the hall of fame and he should be(based on who else is there). He was clearly legit. Just more famous than a lot of people who were equally or more legit. Legit has levels. So does recognition. They don’t always line up. But he was a great player either way.

Sorry for cursing at you either way I just don't have much motivation to live but to argue

[90sgoat]

Reggie never did anything of consequence vs any team I wanted to see win. He wasn’t as big a deal at the time as people make him in retrospect. We weren’t just…sitting around talking Reggie Miller. Not till the Spike Lee thing. Knick fans no doubt held a grudge. But the Knicks beat him 3 times I believe. I don’t know that any fanbase really has nightmares of Reggie beating up on them without getting him back more.

I think Reggie was solidly behind Clyde Drexler for most of his career.

He just didn't have an argument, stats or results vs Clyde the Glide. And he was also not ranked significantly above Mitch Ritchmond.

He did show what he could do with Larry as coach and I think people understood that his style of play and shooting ability was very ahead of his time.

I would argue that Detroit doesn't win without Rip Hamilton clearly doing his best Reggie impression. Same with Tony Parker later on and then of course Steph.

[Kblaze8855]

Sorry for cursing at you either way I just don't have much motivation to live but to argue


I don’t care about that. You would have to work very hard for me to take anything personal. I routinely cuss out and get cussed out by my best friends. You know who not to take shit serious from. I’ve been watching Oppenheimer off and on for like the last five hours. I’m almost to the test bomb. This movie is long as ****.

[L.Kizzle]

Kevin Duckworth has by far the worst advanced stats of any all-star I'm aware of. No one else is even remotely close. What was he even good at? Chucking up too many shots I guess.
Who was better, him or Jamaal Magloire?

[L.Kizzle]

KJ was a damn fine player. People are not realizing he was All-NBA 2nd Team FOUR seasons in the late 80s-early 90s.
MJ and MJ were obviously shoe-ins for the top two spots.
From 89-94, he made five All-NBA Teams in six seasons. He missed 93 due to injury.
Stockton has six in six. Jordan has five, as he was retired in 94.
Price has four.
Drexler and Dumars and Magic have three.
Tim Hardaway has 2 and a bunch of one times during that span.

[Carbine]

I don’t care about that. You would have to work very hard for me to take anything personal. I routinely cuss out and get cussed out by my best friends. You know who not to take shit serious from. I’ve been watching Oppenheimer off and on for like the last five hours. I’m almost to the test bomb. This movie is long as ****.

Worth watching?

[3ba11]

WOULD YOU RATHER HAVE HORACE GRANT OR HARVEY GRANT?”

Harvey Grant - 10 votes
"Horace is sort of lost because he doesn't really have a role in their offense." - voted Harvey
Horace Grant - 10 votes





I've always said that if Horace never played alongside MJ, he would be just like his brother Harvey where no one knows he's an NBA player

This poll confirms what I said

Most 3rd options on contenders were 3x all-stars (Majerle, Nance, Aguirre, Laimbeer), while during the 2nd three-peat they were all-nba players (Schrempf, Mason, Mashburn), so Horace was nowhere near the typical 3rd option and got out-produced by every opposing 3rd option like Vlade, Kersey or Majerle.. Horace was a really a 5th or 6th option - just a banger; not a scoring option like other 3rd options - but he played 3rd option on the thin Bulls' casts.

[Kblaze8855]

Worth watching?

It’s worth watching but I’m already passed what I assumed would be the climax and there’s 45 more minutes. Feels like the end of the lord of the rings where they drug it out for another hour. Maybe it picks up. It’s worth watching though. I’m glad I didn’t watch it in the theater. Nothing has happened that requires a big screen. It’s a dialogue movie and the scenes you imagine they will try to make epic they really don’t. It’s people talking not a movie about a bomb. Which is about what I expected.

it’s three hours of worrying about communist ties with some breaks for talking science.

[Xiao Yao You]

Who was better, him or Jamaal Magloire?

Magloire

[Kblaze8855]

I’d like to see him out there today shooting one handed floater threes.

[Kblaze8855]

https://youtu.be/CrK80h8_QWU?si=mroW0FitLpQxP0DO

[Kblaze8855]

Back to it


1997:





A 1997 panel, which consisted of one representative from each of the NBA’s 29 teams, voted on various topics for Sports Illustrated.
TOP PICK SETTER?
5 votes - Charles Oakley
4 votes - Karl Malone
3 votes - Dennis Rodman, Rick Mahorn, and John Stockton
"One of the best ever [at setting picks].” - panelist on Charles Oakley
"You stay picked." - panelist on Karl Malone
“When he sets a pick on you, he wants to kill you." - panelist on Rick Mahorn
"I know this may sound strange, but for a little guy Stockton sets a mean pick." - panelist on John Stockton
DIRTIEST PLAYER?
10 votes - Dennis Rodman
5 votes - John Stockton
4 votes - Charles Oakley
3 votes - Karl Malone
"A certain element likes the sideshow atmosphere, but the game isn't going to miss him when he's gone." - panelist on Dennis Rodman
"He's sneaky, always grabbing, pulling and tugging. He holds as he sets picks." - panelist on John Stockton
"He's a cheap-shot artist." - panelist on Karl Malone
BEST FUTURE COACH?
8 votes - John Stockton
4 votes - Joe Dumars
2 votes - Steve Kerr
1 vote - Rick Mahorn
“I've thought about doing it, but everyone I talk to tells me not to.” - Steve Kerr
"Obviously being in the league for so long, you do have something to offer as a coach, but I don't see that as being in the cards right now for me. I think [my coaching] would be with younger kids." - John Stockton
MOST RELIABLE REFEREE?
8 votes - Hugh Evans
4 votes - Mike Mathis, Dick Bavetta and Joey Crawford
2 votes - Dan Crawford and Jess Kersey
1 vote - Earl Strom (retired 7 years earlier), Hue Hollins*
*In the 1994 playoffs it was Hollins who whistled Scottie Pippen for a last-second foul against the Knicks' Hubert Davis, costing theBulls a win. Phil Jackson was the panelist who voted for Hollins, saying, "He owes us a favor."
QUICKEST FIRST STEP?
13 votes - Michael Jordan
4 votes - Allen Iverson
3 votes - Grant Hill
2 votes - Eddie Jones and Latrell Sprewell
1 vote - Michael Finley, Kevin Johnson, Jerry Stackhouse, Damon Stoudamire, and Donald Royal
WHERE TO EXPAND?
7 votes - New Orleans
5 votes - San Diego
4 votes - Nashville
2 votes - St. Louis and Memphis
"I don't think we should expand, but if we do, let's give the name ‘Jazz’ back and go to New Orleans." - Jim Paxson
“It’s the best city we don’t go to.” - panelist on New Orleans
"There are so many fans there. It would help the NBA continue to grow." - panelist on Mexico City (only non-US/Canada city to receive a vote)
"I'd move a team. The Carolinas need another one. Those people understand basketball." - panelist giving an alternative to further diluting the talent pool
ASSISTANT MOST DESERVING OF A HEAD COACHING JOB?
6 votes - Paul Silas
3 votes - Dennis Johnson and Gar Heard
TOP CHARGE-TAKER?
6 votes - Dennis Rodman
3 votes - Darrell Armstrong
2 votes - Popeye Jones, DanMajerle, Charles Oakley, Will Perdue,and Scottie Pippen
“A good actor." - panelist on John Starks
“A flopper." - panelist on Chris Gatling
"Guys just won't take them anymore. Agents tell them not to because they don't want their guys toget hurt and jeopardize their money. But when you take a charge right, it doesn't hurt." - Dick Motta
DESIRED RULE CHANGE?
9 votes - Restrict player timeouts to situations with complete possession of the ball and both feet planted on the court
7 votes - Allow for zone defenses
2 votes - Move the three-point line from 22 feet to its original 23'9"; Relaxing the restrictions on hand-checking
1 vote - Cease compiling individual statistics; enforce palming; 7 foul limit
"That falling out-of-bounds thing--I hate that." - panelist on players taking a timeout while sailing out-of-bounds with the ball
BEST CLUTCH BOMBER?
7 votes - Reggie Miller
5 votes - Michael Jordan
3 votes - Glen Rice
2 votes - Joe Dumars, Terry Mills
"A lot of guys will take those tough shots, but Reggie thinks they're going in." - panelist on Reggie Miller
"I'll take Jordan because he's Michael Jordan." - panelist on Michael Jordan
IF YOU WERE BUILDING A TEAM FOR THE YEAR 2000?
10 votes - Kevin Garnett
7 votes - Grant Hill
4 votes - Shaquille O’Neal
1 vote - Penny Hardaway, Jason Kidd, Michael Jordan (even though he will be 37 by the 2000 Finals), and Wake Forest senior center Tim Duncan.
"In the next three years his game is going to keep exploding." - Jim Paxson on Kevin Garnett
"He can play three or four positions and not hurt his team." - Gary Wortman on Kevin Garnett
WITH WHOM WOULD YOU MOST LIKE TO KILL AN HOUR?
8 votes - Charles Barkley
4 votes - Michael Jordan
2 votes - Robert Parish, Dennis Rodman, Joe Dumars, and Karl Malone
1 vote - Derrick Coleman
"Never a dull moment with Charles." - Danny Ainge on Charles Barkley
"Probably wouldn't want to talk to me." - panelist on Michael Jordan (voted for Jordan)
"He could tell you about the greatness and the toughness of the league, and how to change the 11th wheel on a 12-wheel truck." - panelist on Karl Malone
"There's a lot more to Derrick than people know.” - Steve Smith on Derrick Coleman
BEST UNIFORMS?
6 votes - The Bulls
5 votes - The Celtics
4 votes - The Magic
WORST UNIFORMS?
11 votes - The Rockets
"I can't believe they didn't keep the old uniforms after two straight championships. Why would you change?"- panelist on The Rockets
MOST ELECTRIC ARENA?
8 votes - Chicago's United Center
6 votes - The Delta Center (Utah)
2 votes - The home courts of Indiana, Phoenix, and Seattle
"Chicago is the loudest because they're winning, and that's what it takes." - panelist on Chicago's United Center
"It's an absolutely crazy place to play, the fans are incredibly supportive and vocal." - panelist on The Delta Center

[Kblaze8855]

2002




After Shaquille O'Neal, which player would you take to build a
team around?
Because NBA honchos tend to develop repetitive Shaq Syndrome
when asked to identify the league's most coveted franchise
player, we eliminated him from consideration. With O'Neal out,
Tim Duncan's name came up the most (14 times). "Duncan (right)
has great character, and he comes to play every night," says one
Eastern Conference coach. Others praised Duncan's complete post
game, his passing ability and the fact that, as a Western G.M.
put it, "he's already proven that he can win it all."
The runner-up, with six votes, was Kevin Garnett, who was
extolled for his versatility, enthusiasm and leadership. Jason
Kidd received four nods, while two votes went to Tracy
McGrady--"because he can do so many things in so many ways"--and
two to Kobe Bryant, whom one Western Conference source picked
because "he's got what Michael Jordan had: He flat-out wins games
for you at the end."


Speaking of Jordan, he got one vote, from an Eastern Conference
coach (no, not Doug Collins). "He'll sell out 41 arenas, and he
can play multiple positions," said the coach. "He'll make role
players better, and he's the one thing every coach is dying to
have: a leader in the locker room. You're obviously getting on TV
a lot--that means guys want to play for you. And what's he playing
for, $1 million? That's practically nothing." --C.B.

Down by two points with five seconds left, whom do you want to
take the last shot? Down by three points?
The vast majority of our panel selected the slashers over the
sequoias when faced with a two-point deficit and five ticks
remaining. (Tim Duncan and Shaquille O'Neal each received a
solitary mention.) The winner, garnering 12 votes, was Kobe
Bryant, who has bailed out the Lakers at the end of more than a
few games. "He can shoot," says one Eastern Conference coach,
"and he'll make the play if defenders come to him." Adds a
Western Conference G.M., "It used to be Jordan, but now it's
Kobe." (Jordan placed second with six votes.)


When it's a three-pointer that's needed, three of our panelists
still picked Bryant, two fewer than chose Reggie Miller, whose
greatest-hits collection of last-gasp threes for the Pacers would
be a boxed set. The winner? Bucks All-Star guard Ray Allen (six
votes). Allen is not only accurate--he was connecting on 43.5% of
his threes at the All-Star break--but also has the athleticism to
get clear looks. "He's got range," says one Eastern Conference
executive. "And he gets that shot off against anyone."





Sixth Man
Quentin Richardson CLIPPERS
At the break the Clippers' 6'6", 223-pound guard, who received
six votes, had led his team in scoring more times--11--than any
other bench player. After adding 10 pounds over the summer, he
has become a formidable inside-outside threat, capable of taking
his man off the dribble, scoring in the low post and hitting the
three. Another 21-year-old, Pacers forward Al Harrington, placed
second with four votes, though he tore his right ACL on Jan. 23
and is out for the season. While Harrington's scoring average
rose more than five points from last season (to 13.1), it's his
defense that draws the high marks. Says one Eastern Conference
coach, "He's played Michael [Jordan] the toughest of anyone."

[Kblaze8855]

Defensive Player of the Year
Dikembe Mutombo 76ERS
Even at the doddering age of 35, the four-time Defensive Player
of the Year was named on seven ballots because he can still
dramatically change a game by controlling the lane and
neutralizing his opposing number. Timberwolves forward Kevin
Garnett placed second with four votes. Surprisingly, Pistons
power forward Ben Wallace, the league leader in blocks (3.19),
received only one mention.


..




MVP
Jason Kidd NETS
Beyond the assists (9.9 per game, second in the league at the
All-Star break), rebounds (7.1) and scoring (14.3), these are the
numbers that explain why Kidd received 20 votes: Last season the
Nets finished 26-56; thanks to Kidd's leadership New Jersey was
an Eastern Conference-best 32-15 through Sunday. The last time
the Nets were this much fun to watch, the team played with a
red-white-and-blue ball. Kidd's abysmal 37.7% shooting prompted
some to vote for Shaq (who was second with seven), but when you
can dominate on both ends of the court without taking a shot--as
only Kidd can--that's a minor deficiency.
Rookie of the Year
Pau Gasol GRIZZLIES
The teams that doubted whether the 7-foot Spaniard could play
are taking one--Pau!--right in the kisser. Gasol, who received
20 votes, ranks among the top 13 in rebounds (8.8), blocks
(2.37) and field goal percentage (52.5). He uses both hands
deftly, doesn't force shots and, for a player two years removed
from averaging 4.2 points for FC Barcelona, has grasped the
nuances of the NBA remarkably fast. "He's got all the tricks
down around the basket," says a Western Conference G.M., "and
he's a lot tougher than most Europeans." Pacers point guard
Jamaal Tinsley was a distant runner-up, with four votes.

[Kblaze8855]

..



How far will Michael Jordan take the Wizards?
Before the season, most observers agreed: Michael Jordan was too
old and would have too little help to lift Washington out of the
lottery slums. What's more, the pundits posited, once Mike's
pride had taken enough hits, he would slink back into retirement
because of a convenient groin pull or some other phantom injury.
That was before Jordan led Washington to a 26-21 record at the
All-Star break, which tied the Pistons for fifth best in the
East. According to our poll, MJ will drag Washington's cast of
castoffs into the postseason "like Jack LaLanne holding the rope
in his teeth," as one Eastern Conference G.M. put it. Only three
respondents figured the Wizards' run would end with the regular
season, while 18 predicted Jordan would reach the first round;
three believed he'd even go beyond that. (Five were undecided.)
Said a Western Conference executive, "[The Wizards will reach]
the second round if they're healthy." --Chris Ballard

[Kblaze8855]

Who is the most underrated player, and who gets the least out of
his talent?
Cavaliers point guard Andre Miller is cited so frequently as
underrated that he almost ceases to be. At the All-Star break he
was leading the league in assists (10.4 per game), which is all
the more impressive given that his fellow starters are Jumaine
Jones, Chris Mihm, Lamond Murray and Wesley Person. "He's one of
the better point guards in the NBA--not just the East," says one
Eastern Conference executive.


Miller received five votes, most in our poll. The others
receiving multiple votes--Mavericks guard Steve Nash, Celtics
forward Paul Pierce, Kings forward Peja Stojakovic and
Timberwolves guard Wally Szczerbiak--were each selected to the
All-Star team for the first time, suggesting that perhaps they're
not all that underappreciated. One Eastern Conference coach
mentioned Pierce's All-Star teammate in Boston, power forward
Antoine Walker, long considered by many to be an underachiever.
"The fans and the media beat him up early in his career, but he
gets 20 [points] and 10 [boards] consistently," the coach says.
"The Celtics are running their offense through a four."


And who are the underachievers? The players cited most often were
Trail Blazers forwards Shawn Kemp and Rasheed Wallace (five
mentions each) and a perennial favorite, 76ers forward Derrick
Coleman (four). A six-time All-Star, Kemp was averaging only 13.1
minutes at the break and is a shadow--albeit a vast one--of his
former self. "A good player is hidden in there somewhere," says
one Western Conference G.M. "In 1996 he was considered one of the
two best players in the league," says one Eastern Conference
exec. "Now look at him." The tempestuous Wallace missed making
the All-Star team after being selected the past two seasons. His
response? "They freed me for the weekend to party." Says a
Western Conference G.M., "That dingbat should be one of the great
players. The elevator's not stopping on every floor."




it’s funny how Shaq centric some of it is. I haven’t posted all of them. One of the questions was if Shaq gets injured, who would dethrone the Lakers for the championship. Shaq is so clearly considered the best player in the league in this thing.

[Reggie43]

Oftentimes the smallest guy on the court setting picks against bigmen. Just one of the many intangibles Stockton brings on the court that most fans fail to appreciate. He had great stats but he was actually much better than what his numbers suggest.

[Kblaze8855]

Interesting to me they had Kerr as a coach already in 1997.

[eliteballer]

Duckworth had talent..not sure why anyone's hating.

[Reggie43]

Old Jordan having a quicker first step than Allen Iverson at his athletic peak. Probably just looks quicker because he was more effective and skilled at it

[Norcaliblunt]

All these polls prove is that people think too much.

These polls might as well be modern day message board polls. Lmao.

They have that level of relevancy.