I've been looking at the league right now, and I noticed there are not as many great players as there were back in the earlier 2000s.
Early 2000s:
Tim Duncan
Shaquille Oneal
Kobe Bryant
Kevin Garnett
Right Now:
Lebron James
Dwayne Wade.. but that's kind of iffy. His peak/prime wasn't as good as most of those guys listed above.
Who else? I hardly think rose or howard count.. Durant's getting there but he's defintely not as good as those guys were. Do you guys feel this league is kind of watered down right now?
LeBron, Wade, Kobe, Shaq, Garnett, Duncan, Dirk, and I think Durant will become legendary. Im sure there are more but I am too lazy to think right now.
Blake Griffin also has the potential to be a legend. Has the work ethic, skills, and had a hell of a rookie season. Needs to work on his defense and he's all setup.
I dont really know about Wade being legendary. He had a legendary free throw parade in 06 but thats it. If it wasnt for the new Superteam he would be irrelevant and would be forgotten by new generation fans in about 5 years.
LeBron, Wade, Kobe, Shaq, Garnett, Duncan, Dirk, and I think Durant will become legendary. Im sure there are more but I am too lazy to think right now.
I dont think wade will ever become a legend, but if he really starts dominating with the heat he may become one. It's doubtful though because lebron's been running the show in miami.
And all of the other guys you listed are well past their primes except Durant. He has the potential, but we'll have to wait and see. He certainly isn't there yet.
It's weird because Lebron James is the only player in the entire league in his prime that I can definitively say is a basketball legend.
It's like we're caught in the middle of all the past players aging and all of the new players still developing.
I dont consider prime dirk legendary. At least not as good as garnett, shaq, kobe, or duncan. He was certainly never treated that way when I watched basketball in the early to mid 2000s. He was just a notch below. This is the most hype I've ever seen him get this year.
Depends. Legend as in...hall of famer if their entire career went the way this year did? Or legend like..Dave bing and Bob Lanier are legends?
If this season repeated itself for an entire career:
Kobe
Lebron
Wade
Howard
Dirk
Durant
Rose
Westbrook
Paul
Deron(id need to look into how hwalthy he was on the Nets I guess)
Nash
Melo
Amare
Blake
All of the mare hall of famers. And more than that I just dont care to keep going so lets not have anyone outraged I didnt mention...whoever.
If its just legendary like a lot of really good stars are legends given time...you gotta addquite a few guys.
I'm talking about players in their prime that are legends to the extent duncan, garnett, shaq, and kobe were back in the day. I dont think Dwight Howard was as good a big man as those three.. Amare wasn't either. And nash, melo, and paul weren't as dominant on the perimeter as kobe. Plus they seem to be past thier prime.
And the other guys you listed, deron, rose, westbrook, durant etc. aren't even in their primes yet. They're not legends right now.
Now? Or on my back then list? Kidd was a great, great point guard, but I don't think he was quite as good as those guys I mentioned. And I'm a nets fan. If he had a good pull up jumper though, he could have been one of the best two way players ever.
Legendary Players in the League Right Now
