What is with these NBA players nowadays?

[Kblaze8855]

Individual defensive effort has improved tremendously from the 80s and early 90s but they play in a league that has openly admitted they set out to open it up. The defensive effort is possibly at its peak in ways but they play with rules designed to put them at a disadvantage.

Let these athletes with this effort and ability to prep play 90s/early 2000s ball it would be a golden era of defense which is what it was right before they changed the game.

They had playoff games 39-52 in the fourth quarter in 03 and 04. They took several steps to do something about it.

So the defense was neutered even as scouting, effort, and athletic ability stayed the same or improved as the league kinda went to playing 4 wings and a big and mostly got rid of the slow bruisers.

The defensive personnel on a team like the Celtics isn’t that far off the 04 Pistons and they are better athletes but they simply aren’t allowed to play like that. Add to it 8 people on the floor who can shoot at most times and sometimes 10 it hurts them even more.

Defensive players are as good or better than ever….but they play in shackles for a league that doesn’t want them to succeed instead of just letting teams play to win the way they want. Too many teams chose to win ugly and the league didn’t like it.

They made it so easy to drive or get open off ball with freedom of movement rules, the “zero” step eliminating traveling, and stricter hand check enforcement that playing “ugly” just gets the other team a parade to the ft line as you lose. So everyone prettied up the play style, sped up, and bought into it.

The ability to play D is there. And the willingness for the most part. But the league doesn’t want the defense to be as good as it would be with todays resources, effort, and athletes so they manufactured a more visually appealing game for casual fans and children.

Long story short…they can play great D. The league won’t let them.

[Baller789]

Never suggested anything like that. But nobody seemed to have whined about former star players averaging similar numbers anyway during the league's simple and jurassic days bt.

Why would they whine? Most posters here weren't even sperm cells during that era. And a lot of posters don't even give credit/ undervalue past greats.

[Baller789]

Why woud the defense just magicay get worse?

Payers get better. Stronger, faster, start practicing earier, more rigorousy, more strategicay, etc.

Humanity evoves.

The sport aways gets better.

And since sports are score based and favor the offense / offensive payer, thats where the superiority wi be. With the payer who has the ba in his hand.

So defense doesn't evolve at the same rate as offense?