NBA players were more skilled back in the day, and knick fans are funny

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nobody misses the fights,

trash talking? I miss the rare players who could back it up Jordan, Bird

they were ahead of their time I guess

I miss the old NBA too, but it's on to the next one bro.

Let Your Game Speak speak for youre self...as a matter of fact you cant even speak because youre too young to even completely understand what was going on at that time...this is more for the older people..you were only 4 or 5 at the time so you cant talk

I miss the short shorts. And the NBC Showtime Theme song...

I miss the long, but interesting halftime shows.

That theme song was it! I used to get hyped when it came on before games, etc lol. I used to play that them song in my head before AAU games lol.

I do miss the old NBA! Damn... Trash talking and getting no tech... Handchecking, hard fouls and no flagrants... Dudes laying it on the line for the love of the game.

Got to love what we have now though. It is what it is!

i also miss the trash talking..i know there are some now but the refs dont let it go on for the whole game like back then... now that i think about it some of the people on here who have got into debates about jordanand some of the older player comparisons were only 2-5 years old when he was really dominating the leauge. and some of them were talking like they truley remember jordan..lol

things i miss from the 90's:

There wasn't as much nba on tv and no league pass, so the Sunday afternoon game of the week felt like a huge deal.
Reggie miller in the playoffs was always fun to watch.
the bulls with jordan

But overall the game is better. There are more flat out talented players in the league. You used to have guys that were purely physical bigs with no skill or gaurds who could handle the ball but couldnt shoot or could shoot but couldnt handle the ball. Thats why teams back in the day would literally ride their superstars non stop and there was not as much ball movement. Bigs like Barkley, Olajuwon, Shaq and others would just dominate the ball and back guys down and the whole shot clock would see little ball movement. Now it seems every guy on the court can hurt you and we see guys like Darren Collison, Marcus Thornton, Adray Blatche, Rudy Fernandez and many others who can step in and play as soon as they get the chance.

I was only 5 when Miller did that, but Basketball was and is my first love. That being said I miss the old Knicks-Heat rivalries. I will never forget when Jeff Van Gundy was holding onto Alonzo Morning's leg under a pile. For the only good fouls are hard fouls. If I am playing and I am going to foul, I am going to foul you hard, so you don't get a shot off, and that's how it should be done. I don't think current NBA players understand how trash talking is an art, it is very hard to be successful at it which is why very few are.

llperez22..lol..you still have guards who cant shoot..actually back in the day more guards could shoot then now. now more guards can drive then they can shoot. and the bigs back int he day were better and more fundamanetally sound. the bigs today are more athletic but lack solid post skills and are just big...you got it backwards

Watching this, I long for the days when the Knicks are playoff contenders again. MSG will be rocking again.

Shooting was way better in the 80's and 90's. The jumpshot is a lost art compared to back then. Players rely on their athleticism more today. I do agree that the talent level is much higher today than back then.

quincey, i didn't say anything about the gaurds being better shooters today, but since you brought it up, i do think that overall the game has better shooters today. As for the bigs, i think people are only remembering the top guys and the stars when they say the bigs were better back thenm which i would agree with. But overall, the talent from bigs today is much better from top to bottom. Im watching the new orleans vs phoenix game right now and im watching amare spin on guys. David west and channing frye knock down shots. Even Darius songaila is facing up ad hitting on guys. Back in the day, you had way more bruisers that pretty much just rebounded and defended that were filing roster spots in the nba.

Just look at the 1994 finals between new york and houston. pf's were oakley vs otis thorpe. Oakley had a decent jumper, but otherwise both guys were just physical bangers, and they were all stars back then. Robert horry vs charles Smith at sf who neither guy could dribble for their life, but they could shoot and defend and rebound. Gaurds were solid shooters in vernon maxwell vs starks, gunners, but little else. Those teams just dumped it in to their bigs and played physical. And those are perfect examples how the league was during that time.

My argument was that guys are more well rounded and skilled now a days and rosters are deeper with guys that can come in and take advantage of playing time. I guess we disagree.

now that i reread what you said you are wayyyyy wrong..how old are you?..there were plenty of guys who did work when given a chance. the bigs these days suck compared to back then and the guards arent as good either...how many guys today are sure hall of famers...kobe,wade,dirk,lebron,cp3. rookies came int he leauge and did what collins is doing now..you either forgot or youre too young to remember guys were more ready when they got to the nba. they didnt have to sit for 5 years before they could step in and do work. guards today are much worst at shooting and fundamantals. the reason why they cant play more half court is because the big men of today arent as good so they have to run more. i can imagin the guards of today playign with the no hand checking rule.....whewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww...some of the scoring would be brutal

trust me, i watched those games. And we defenitely disagree on this subject then.

I agree with DanEboy about the jump shot being a lost art, it is why kobe is such a great player. Guys now just want to take it to the tin and slam it or take a 3, players today while more athletic lack the discipline to be good players, maybe even great.

you pick one game between those 2 teams for youre arguement?

rick smits
sam perkins
sabanos
brad daurgthy
horce grant
charles oakley with his mid range
alonzo
larry johnson
richard dumas
james worthy

and guards who are better overall?

ron harper
clyde drexler
thunder dan
gary payton
terrell brandon
allen houston
reggie miller
john starks
jeff horney
micheal adams
joe dumars
kevin johnson

we are talking about guys who could shoot and defend...mid range and three.. these days half the guys dont have mid range games. they can shoot deep but wheres the mid range or drive?..its not even a real topic because its not close....name how many guys are most likely to become hall of famers? how many are gonna end up top 10 ever?..how many center can knock down the mid range and bang? how many can play defense?..the guess you named frye?..would get killed, sangola wouldnt even make the team. imagin some of the guys today playing in the nba where you can hand check and getting hard fouls

I think one of the biggest differences is the lack of a mid range shot in today's game. Guys rely too much on the 3 ball. And the PF and C position has become a lot more finesse then back in the day.

Really, what is a post without atleast one arguement with Quincey? We will never know because he will never let that happen.

Jamal Mashburn
ceballos
sprewell
dana borros
detlef
strickland
jeff malone
sea elliot
vin baker
dominique
rod strickland
the big dog
grant hill
nick vanaxel

mike if you dont like it dont read or respond..its that simple..i mean really you complain about stuff i write yet there you go everytime coming in and complaining about it.

Quincey, don't forget Mitch Richmond, Nick Anderson, and Hersey Hawkins

No, I like that you HAVE to argue about EVERY SINGLE post, because atleast it brings some excitement to nbadraft,.net

we can match player for player by stats or shooting or post game or blocking or rebounding and im pretty sure i can pick 2 for everyone you pick. you can say lebron kobe maybe wade and melo as the top guys but the top guys back then got them beat. middle of the pack guys...it really becomes a blow out...post guys it becomes unfair

lots of great players, agreed. But that doesn't change my opinion at all. More skill today top to bottom.

lol..thanks mike....and dan..i dont think he realizes how good the players were back then...you have hortford joe johnson and rondo as some of the top gusy at there position...do you know how bad alonzo, gary payton and clyde drexler would abuse them!!

I agree with both of you guys. The overall talent level, as far as guys being able to play mutliple positions, is probably better today but the fundamentals, as far as defense and shooting, was better back then.

hey list youre skills players top to bottom then..you can have youre opinion but i will prove how much better they were now.....
kwame brown would get killed by billcarwright
kendrick perkins would get hammered by brad d
kevin johnson east jamer nelson for lunch scoring 25 on him and then dishing 10 ast to go with it
dwight howard..the best big in the game today the dream making him look like the candy man
lebron would do his thing.. but scottie would go right back at him

dan you are right as far as guys being able to play more then one postion..which is why the big men are alot less skilled

Clyde Drexler was one of my favorites of all time. Give me negatives if you want but I see a lot of him in Tyrekes' game.

I would love to see Scottie in his prime defend Kobe or LeBron.

couldn't shoot that well, or dribble, or use his left.

i actually forgot about some of these guys who could drop 20 -30 on a guy with shooting or driving

forgot about the derrick colemans shawn kemp steve smith glen rice, chris mullin danny manning, tim hardawy reggie lewis

doug west
hersey
terry porter
ricky peirce
never nervous
drazen petrovic
roney sikley
kendall gill
kenny anderson
dale ellis
blue edwards
larry nance

man and these arent even the top guys like stockton malone, bird,parish rodman the dream david robinson, jordan pippen,barkley...etc..whewwww

Mike, Clyde dribbled with his head down but he had amazing court vision and was lethal on fastbreaks. And Tyreke doesn't have a great jumpshot either which is one of the reasons why he reminds me of him.

clyde couldnt shoot the 3 but from mid range he was hitting 45 percent and over all 47 for his career..and he could handle the ball.. he wasnt flashy but you werent gonna take it from him and he was gonna get past you... one of the best defensive guard ever( jordan) was getting scored on and drove past by clyde plus hitting mid range jumpers on him.. there are no jordan defenders in the game today...and this was with hand checking

yeah top to bottom the leauge is far less talented from a skills stand point. id argue about the better athletes comments

jordan
kevin johnson
larry nance
domonique
clyde
tom chambers
jr rider
spud
just to name a few

you want big small fowards?

scottie pippen
detlef
derrick mckey
cliff robinson
horry
walt williams
sean elliot
mashburn
jerome kersey
chuck persons
rick fox
david beniot
chuky brown

I can see the Clyde , Evans comparison alittle, I see what you mean. But seriously Drexler back then was an elite wing player and he couldnt even shoot the 3 name one elite wing now who cant shoot a 3

quincey, you seriously got me laughing over here. I remember everyone of those guys and countless more so you can quit trying to name drop random people like Blue Edwards like that proves somehting. And Bill Cartwright would school Kwame?? You mean to tell me that an all-star who started for multiple championship teams could outplay Kwame Bust Brown, well that changes everything, lol. I might as well fire back that Pau Gasol could outplay Sam Bowie.

Mike, are saying that because Drexler couldn't shoot the 3 he wouldn't be elite in today's game? That would be a ridiculous statement. Let me jog your memory about one of the best who ever played the position.

Nope, Im just implying that the skill level today is far more advanced. Heck, Dr. Friggin J couldnt even shoot a 15 footer and he was elite in the 80's, The skill level in the NBA will only keep growing over time.

all star?...you said name basic players..and ply dropped 15-16 a game in a season

you the one who said top to bottom so i thought id name bottom players....no if you wanna go toe to toe for top players???

the roster on the dream team vs the roster on this past olympics?..yeah id laugh too if i said top to bottom that the players are better and this isnt even counting numbers wise..all those players i named were putting up at least 16 a game

mike..elite guards shooting 3's...kobe is a career 34percent 3poitn shooter...clyde is 32

dwade 28....

an elite wing player and he "couldnt even shoot the 3" name one elite wing now who cant shoot a 3

ever heard of dwyane wade, iguodala, ellis

there are other things beside the 3 pointer that you can do to help win the game.

Plus half the guys in the NBA that shoot 3s now cant play defense! they give up more points than they as many 3s as they make

Dont twist it. Quincey you know the deal....Clyde shot an occasional open three while Kobe and Wade shoot them with a hand in their face and a much higher number of them

Sheesh, you guys take everything soo literally..Iggy, Kobe, Wade, Ellis are all better shooters than elite wing players like Drexler and Erving

The 3 wasn't part of his game, he didn't need it. Why settle for a 3 from 23ft when you can get to the rim at will. I wish LeBron would let his 3 rest sometimes and just attack the rim more. Who is gonna stop him?

you said elites that shoots threes. and obvious wade doesnt need to bee shooting as many threes as he does since hes not hitting them right?..just because you shoot alot of threes doesnt mean youre a three point shooter

you're wrong on this point mike no matter how you look at it..percentages dont lie.. its not liek clyde only shoot 5 threes a season. wade takes less threes then clyde was taking

carmelo anthony shoots .308 for his career and he's a top 5 SF of all time

drexler shot .318 for his career from 3, by the time he retired he was a reliable 3 point shooter