[projectpat310Participant]

Below are four generations of NBA All-Stars. Obviously, the Futures team is unproven, making it hard to gauge how good they’re really going to be. However, based on your OPINION, who is the best team IF all the players were in their PRIME and why?

For the 2000’s team it was a coin flip between Ray Allen and Vince Carter. Vince in his prime was unstoppable (like McGrady). But Ray Allen was more consistent and his prime lasted much longer. Its up to you to choose who you’d rather have if you choose that team. For the Futures team, I couldn’t decide between John Wall and Tyreke Evans. Evans was a beast last year, but has really been mediocre this year. Wall has shown flashes of brilliance. Once again, your call.

 

1990’s

C: Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson, Patrick Ewing

PF: Karl Malone, Charles Barkley

SF: Scottie Pippen, Grant Hill

SG: Michael Jordan, Clyde Drexler, Reggie Miller

PG: John Stockton, Gary Payton

 

2000’s

C: Shaquille O’Neal, Yao Ming

PF: Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki

SF: Paul Pierce, Tracy McGrady

SG: Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, Vince Carter/Ray Allen

PG: Steve Nash, Jason Kidd

 

Mid 2000’s – Mid 2010’s

C: Dwight Howard, Pau Gasol

PF: Amare Stoudemire, Chris Bosh, Carlos Boozer

SF: Lebron James, Carmelo Anthony

SG: Dwayne Wade, Joe Johnson, Monta Ellis

PG: Chris Paul, Deron Williams

 

FUTURE

C: Kevin Love, Andrew Bynum, Brook Lopez

PF: Blake Griffin, Al Horford

SF: Kevin Durant

SG: Steph Curry, Eric Gordon

PG: Derrick Rose, Russell Westbrook, Rajon Rondo, John Wall/Tyreke Evans

 

My choice is the 1990’s squad. Obviously, Jordan makes them elite, but other then him, the center play would dominate any other generation. Hakeem is the greatest center of all time in my opinion. They have 2 of the top 5 PF of all time. Stockton made better decisions with the ball than any of the other PGs listed (High IQ). Payton was the best defender of the PG’s (although Rondo and Westbrook can catch up if they continue their play). Pippen is the best defender of the SF’s and quite frankly I think he could guard Lebron one-on-one. Grant Hill in his prime was UNSTOPPABLE. People tend to forget how good he was. I just feel like the 1990’s squad would be very physically dominant inside and on the perimeter.

[Michael.S.Participant]

Nobody can guard LeBron, but I think the 2000 team is the best….and the mid 2000 team is super close just because of their first five.

[DanEboyParticipant]

C’mon Lemon…..the 90’s …..not even close.

Pippen could guard LeBron. Gotta have Magic on that team though.

[Tongue-Out-Like-23Participant]

Defensively, the 90s team would hold down any of the other teams.

[projectpat310Participant]

I dont consider Magic a 90’s generation player. He was dominant in the 80’s. He retired before the 1991 season.

[TyrekeJonesParticipant]

I am liking the 2000s squad but then again  I would take the 90s squad, too many great players too pass up, especially given their big guys (Robinson, Barkley, Malone, Ewing and Hakeem?!) and the versatility of Grant Hill and Pippen is highly valued, you have Jordan being the greatest player of all time with one of the best shooters of all time in Miller, Drexler is no slouch himself as a SG and for PG you have Stockton, the all time assist leader and hard nosed defender and Gary Payton who can score with the best while shutting an offensive player down. Gimme the 90s team hands down, good luck trying to score against a lineup of Payton, Jordan, Pippen, Malone and Hakeem.

[justincParticipant]

2000s just cuz tmac in his prime is on that team.

[DanEboyParticipant]

Good call on Magic…mass amounts of drugs and lab testing have rendered my long term memory useless.

Still, no one is messing with that 90’s team.

[esperanzafleet69Participant]

2000’s-2010 nba… highest skill level in any sport as a whole you will likely see in your entire life…

[M-DYMESParticipant]

Andrew Bynum? 4 real?  And not to get nit picky bout positions, but Horford is by leaps and bounds more of center than K-Love.  K-Love is the PF.  Horford is closer to a center. 

[omar dayzeParticipant]

 would you guys consider Dominique a 90’s player? if so then give him Reggie’s spot (unless were being strict on positions) and its another player that is nearly unguardable 

[Toronto16Participant]

My rankings go:

1. 1990’s

2. 2000’s

3. Mid 2000’s – 2010’s

4. Future

 

What does this mean?   The generations get some new great players, but it gets crappier as time goes on

[Quincey Hodges]

1990’s EASILY. Those centers would abuse any era( The Dream owned Shaq)

Jordan would kill of course, Pippen would lock down and score

Malone and Barkley!!!  good lord. This team could do it at EVERY position on Offense and Defense

[ItsVictorOladipoParticipant]

Well by that listing I gotta go with the 90’s but it’s kind of unfair. The 90’s gets one team while the 2000’s gets split up into two teams…If we truly wanted to be fair about it there would be some overlapping between the players of the mid 2000’s-2010 and the 2000’s. Not to mention players getting drafted within the next three years will prob end up going in the 2010’s category making that team seem much better 15 years from now…

If the 2000’s were grouped together like this they would stand up far better to the 90s squad;

C: Shaquille O’Neal, Dwight Howard

PF: Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki

SF: Lebron James, Paul Pierce

SG Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Allen Iverson

PG Jason Kidd, Steve Nash

 

I know that it’s quite common to divide players up by generations based on decades but many players from Rick Barry to John Havlicek, George Gervin, Julius Erving, Hakeem, Wilkins, Shaq and now presumedly LBJ, Wade and Howard dominated the last half of one decade as well as the first half of the next decade making it hard to place them into one specific decade.

The 1980’s were also pretty sick:

C Moses Malone, Kareem Abdul Jabbar (would prob go in the 70s as well), Robert Parrish

PF Kevin McHale, Buck Williams

SF Larry Bird, Alex English, Dominique Wilkins

SG Michael Jordan/George Gervin (Gervin for the first half, MJ for the second), Adrian Dantley

PF Magic Johnson, Isaiah Thomas

 

 

 

[DanEboyParticipant]

Agreed, combine the 2000’s team and that would be one heck of a match up against the 90’s team.

[IndianaBasketballParticipant]

I’d go with the 1990’s squad.

The future squad wouldn’t win one game vs those other teams.

[apb540Participant]

I will take the 90’s squad, with the early 2000’s a close second.  If those teams played it would easily be the best game ever. 

[Mr. 19134Participant]

 I am so tired of people putting Wade before Iverson.  Iverson transcended the league, Wade rode the cotails of Shaq to a championship and hasn’t even came close since then.  When was the last time before Lebron joined the team, that anybody feared the Wade lead Heat to win anything?

And this is not even a question the 90’s by a wide margin, they big men actually played BIG and above all else The Dream, Pippen, Jordan, and Payton are the best defenders on that list.  They still played defense in the 90’s/

[apb540Participant]

Now I am a HUGE Iverson fan, but Dwayne Wade has more than proved that he is going to finish his career up near the AI elite type of level.  I must say thou that if AI would of had Shaq for just one year in his career, he would of definitely won a championship.

[IndianaBasketballParticipant]

That 2000’s team would give the 1990’s team a great game… I mean, they match up well.

The Shaq of the 2000’s isn’t the young center that got swept by the Rockets in 1995. I think that 2000 Shaq would arguably be the most dominant player in that game. A prime frontcourt of Shaq and Duncan would be tough to deal with.

[mgreener_34Participant]

 The big difference maker for me is that after the 1990’s and Shaq, there isn’t much of a inside scoring presence on any of the mid 2000-future teams. 

[Quincey Hodges]

How did wade ride the coat tails of shaq when Wade was the main reason they won?..He lead them in the regular season and was finals MVP. Shaq missed damn near half the season that year

[Maysek22Participant]

 The generational argument is the worst. For example, most people on here think that larry bird would be too slow to be a great player today, and yet those same peeps would likely say that scottie pippin/dennis rodman could guard most sf/pf today to great effect.  and yet neither of those 2 guys could guard legend in his prime.  like rodman saying legend would be just another baller if he was black, right before larry put 30/10/12 in rodmans eye.  meh, basically people born in the 70’s will say 80s guys could compete, born in 80’s will say that 90’s guys could compete, and born in 90’s will say that everyone playing before 2000 is too slow, not athletic enough, cant jump, no quicks etc… 

[oddnigggaParticipant]

Obviously they’re different but they do have somewhat similar athletic ability, but there’s no denying bird is or was better than dirk. If dirk can ball out, albeit the 3 inch difference, Larry would probably be a productive player. He had a much better all around game than dirk as well

[Quincey Hodges]

I never understood why some people would say Bird couldn’t play today. There were better defenders back then and they could foul more without it being a foul. With Todays rules Bird would be dirk but better

[ItsVictorOladipoParticipant]

LOL, I honestly don’t get why people think Bird couldn’t dominate todays game. In his last season he averaged 20.2 PPG, 9.6 RPG and 6.8 APG while shooting 47% from the field, over 40% from three point range and over 92% from the free throw line. At the age of 35! This was 1991-1992 and defenders like Scottie Pippin, Dennis Rodman, Derrick McKey, Horace Grant and Charles Oakley were in their primes. The athletes really haven’t improved so much in the last 18 years that a player like Bird would be irrelevant.

I think a lot of fans these days don’t realize that Lebron’s unreal stats over the last few years are actually quite similiar to Bird’s numbers in his prime; 29.9 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 6.1 APG in 1988, 28.1 ppg, 9.2 RPG and 7.6 APG in ’87, 28.7 PPG, 10.5 RPG and 6.6 APG in ’85. Sometimes people compare Nowitzki to Bird but Bird while being able to score in many ways like Dirk was a slightly better rebounder, a much better defender and the greatest passing forward in NBA history until LBJ.

[omphalosParticipant]

No one can guard Lebron? In the history of the game? smh Lemon. Lebron has a relatively weak dribble, Pippen would have exposed that. 90s hands-down, though the Kobe generation is pretty dominant too.

[IndianaBasketballParticipant]

You have to excuse Lemon… He’s young and has little to no respect for the players of the 90’s.

[GrandmamaParticipant]

90’s….end of story

[GrandmamaParticipant]

Why is Grant Hill 90’s and Shaq 2000’s when Shaq entered the league before Hill?

[omphalosParticipant]

Probably because Shaq was best in the 2000s and Hill in the 90s.

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