Dwight put the Warriors in the torture rack 12 years ago today.

[Kblaze8855]

45/23/4steals/2 blocks on 12/21 with 22 of 39(….) free throws.


You couldn’t have traded the entire Warriors team for Dwight at that point. The Splash brothers weren’t splashing yet. Steph missed that game(ankles?) and Klay was off the bench.

All went to shit like 3 months later and we as a people started acting like he wasn’t shit to begin with.

That Laker year remains one of the wildest. He was dealing with back issues or whatever but they still should have been a lot better even with all that. And Pau was still nice as hell on the Bulls.

They probably should have run it back.

[FKAri]

Orlando went 11/23 from deep that game and made more 3's than the Warriors. That year the 4 starters around Dwight averaged 39,35,38,37 from 3 on 21 attempts a game. And the 6th man was JJ Reddick shooting almost 43%. They were 1st in 3FGA in the league as a team. This is 2012. They were way ahead of the curve. Dwight had more room to operate than he would ever again. And when those shooters got hot, Dwight had the paint all to himself.

Tell me of a physically dominant center in league history who would not get an offensive boost in this scenario? Dwight was not going to replicate his peak Orlando offensive impact on any other team. Nor were those shooters going to get that open ever again. It's just great synergy. Though, wherever he went he would've been that same beast defensively.

[ImKobe]

Everyone in that starting 5 in the 2013 season got injured at some points in the season. Doesn't help that Nash had a serious injury in the 2nd game and they had both Nash and Blake out at one point, and like you said Dwight was playing hurt all year (shoulder injury, recovering from his back surgery) + Gasol had a serious leg injury and was misused in the D'antoni system as a spot-up shooter as well.

Once they got a bit healthy they had a top 5 record post-ASB, but the start was brutal. With all the injuries it was Kobe + Dwight and G-league players at some points in the season. KB through 32 games averaged 31/5/5/2 on 59.27%TS and they had a 15 - 17 record in those games despite that, because the help just wasn't there.

Nash, Steve Blake & Gasol all missed 30+ games that season. Artest needed to have his meniscus removed. KB injured his ankle before the achilles. That was a cursed season in every way possible. Just as soon as they got healthy & good at the right time you had the achilles injury and that led to 6 years of tanking.

[HylianNightmare]

The era of it being so much fun in orlando

[Im Still Ballin]

Orlando went 11/23 from deep that game and made more 3's than the Warriors. That year the 4 starters around Dwight averaged 39,35,38,37 from 3 on 21 attempts a game. And the 6th man was JJ Reddick shooting almost 43%. They were 1st in 3FGA in the league as a team. This is 2012. They were way ahead of the curve. Dwight had more room to operate than he would ever again. And when those shooters got hot, Dwight had the paint all to himself.

Tell me of a physically dominant center in league history who would not get an offensive boost in this scenario? Dwight was not going to replicate his peak Orlando offensive impact on any other team. Nor were those shooters going to get that open ever again. It's just great synergy. Though, wherever he went he would've been that same beast defensively.

I disagree. I think it's reductive to reduce Dwight's success to the "system," Van Gundy, or whatever you want to call it.

Dwight was already an all-star and putting up 18/12 on 60% FG in 2006-07 before Van Gundy and Rashard Lewis even arrived in Orlando. Playing alongside Tony Battie in the frontcourt. They only had two three-point shooters in the starting lineup: Hedo at 38.8% 3PT and Jameer at 33.5% 3PT.

Orlando was not a good three-point shooting team that season. 28th in attempts, 15th in percentage, and 28th in attempt rate. And yet Dwight still put up his typical prime numbers and actually recorded 254 dunks - the second-most of his career behind only 2007-08 in which he had 269 dunks. And his % of FGA that were dunks was actually higher in 2006-07.

Prime Orlando Dwight was getting to the rim whether he was playing with four three-point shooters or not. He'd get his numbers; the shooters improve the team's overall offense.

[Im Still Ballin]

Just to clarify FKAri: Are you implying that Dwight was only putting up big scoring games like in the OP because of all the space from the three-point shooting? Because Dwight was dunking/getting shots at the rim just as much as a PF and playing C alongside Tony Battie. Playing on teams ranked 30th and 28th in 3PAr; starting lineups with only two three-point shooters.

Dwight dunked the ball more in 2005-06 playing the PF position with only two three-point shooters than he did in 2009, 2010, and 2012. Orlando took a total of like 9 threes per game that year.

Here's a monster game from Dwight pre Van Gundy/Rashard Lewis/surrounded by four three-point shooters:

[FKAri]

It's not black and white. I never said he was a scrub. He was a tremendous rim runner, great pick/roll scorer, and decent post scorer. He was always going to score. I just think he was in an optimal situation.

[tpols]

So he missed 17 FTs and 9 shots. 45 points on 40 possessions is what defenses want from a star. AD did the same line on way less opportunities and nobody even talked about it.

[Kblaze8855]

So he missed 17 FTs and 9 shots. 45 points on 40 possessions is what defenses want from a star.

Do they want 17 fouls on their three bigs including fouling out the starting center and the All-Star power forward?

just the act of having to commit that many fouls, while the guy is scoring on top of, it will generally ruin you.

[eliteballer]

DwiHGHt.

[Carbine]

So he missed 17 FTs and 9 shots. 45 points on 40 possessions is what defenses want from a star. AD did the same line on way less opportunities and nobody even talked about it.

He scored 45 doing 59 TS..... That's not what defenses want to happen. FFS