ESPN greatest players bracket

[bpo57]

I'm sorry but that's a joke Kareem is the greatest college bball player ever.

Three NCAA titles and would have won a 4th if he were not ineligible (freshmen not eligible back then). The NCAA (extended down through HS) changed the dunk rule because of him. A few players transcend eras. If he showed up in his prime today there is nobody in the NBA that could come close to stopping him.

 

[Doc5120]

You can tell by the seedings alone that they did not intend it to be a tournament of if they played one-on-one. As I pointed out above, there is no way Breanna Stewart would ever be considered better than all but three players in a tournament of one-on-one with the people on that list. Realistically, no girl would be in the field. In any tournament intended to be viewed simply as a one-on-one competition Michael Jordan is a one seed and neither JJ Redick nor Bobby Hurley are in the field.

What you want this to be would be a fun exercise and would replace a bunch of players in this bracket with different guys.

Reddick was in the field as an 11. Hurley was not in the field, and that is criminal.
EDIT: Hurley was IN the field.

 

[bpo57]

Reddick was in the field as an 11. Hurley was not in the field, and that is criminal.

No doubt Hurley belongs in that field.

Should have been a fairly simple rationale for putting that field together. What did u accomplish in your college career (with some emphasis on what u did in March)? NBA performance - which ESPN is so obsessed with - should be irrelevant.

 

[HOFCeluck]

It’s almost like they did this on purpose to drive controversy and page views.

 

[Doc5120]

No doubt Hurley belongs in that field.

Should have been a fairly simple rationale for putting that field together. What did u accomplish in your college career (with some emphasis on what u did in March)? NBA performance - which ESPN is so obsessed with - should be irrelevant.

Agree 1,000%. It should be entirely college based.

 

[sufandu]

Reddick was in the field as an 11. Hurley was not in the field, and that is criminal.

Hurley was an 8 seed in the east.

 

[Eric15]

If he showed up in his prime today there is nobody in the NBA that could come close to stopping him.

I consider Kareem the 3rd best player of all-time after MJ and Lebron, but I'm not sure I agree that nobody "could come close to stopping him" today. Kareem was in his prime 45 years ago. The speed and strength of NBA big men is just so much different than it was in the mid-70s. I think it would more significantly more difficult for him to score on people like Dwight Howard (in his prime), Joel Embiid, Karl Anthony-Towns, Rudy Gobert, etc. than the centers he faced in the 70s.

 

[721Comstock]

I consider Kareem the 3rd best player of all-time after MJ and Lebron, but I'm not sure I agree that nobody "could come close to stopping him" today. Kareem was in his prime 45 years ago. The speed and strength of NBA big men is just so much different than it was in the mid-70s. I think it would more significantly more difficult for him to score on people like Dwight Howard (in his prime), Joel Embiid, Karl Anthony-Towns, Rudy Gobert, etc. than the centers he faced in the 70s.

Those guys would somehow be able to block his Sky Hook?

With what - a tennis racket?

 

[Doc5120]

Hurley was an 8 seed in the east.

I completely overlooked him! Thanks for pointing that out.

 

[bpo57]

I consider Kareem the 3rd best player of all-time after MJ and Lebron, but I'm not sure I agree that nobody "could come close to stopping him" today. Kareem was in his prime 45 years ago. The speed and strength of NBA big men is just so much different than it was in the mid-70s. I think it would more significantly more difficult for him to score on people like Dwight Howard (in his prime), Joel Embiid, Karl Anthony-Towns, Rudy Gobert, etc. than the centers he faced in the 70s.

721 nailed it above. Good luck stopping that sky hook.

The guys you referenced aren't or never would be in KAJ's league when he was in his prime. He was taller, longer and more athletic than those guys you mentioned. Meanwhile in the 70s he faced Wilt,, Walton, Nate Thurmomd, Willis Reed, Artis Gilmore, Bob Lanier. The list of high quality bigs back then was off the charts. I sense you're young enough given that you seem to have no awareness of how good those guys were back then. Every guy I mentioned is in the HoF and amongst the top 50 NBA players of all time (when they compiled that list).

I shudder to think of what KAJ would do to Embiid. KAT is persistently ridiculed for being lazy and not a good defensive player. Probably would be a good idea for u to watch some youtube videos of KAJ knocking down 15 foot hook shots with ease but yet also facing up to the basket with a solid jumper. There are no bigs like him in today's game.

 

[Eric15]

721 nailed it above. Good luck stopping that sky hook.

The guys you referenced aren't or never would be in KAJ's league when he was in his prime. He was taller, longer and more athletic than those guys you mentioned. Meanwhile in the 70s he faced Wilt,, Walton, Nate Thurmomd, Willis Reed, Artis Gilmore, Bob Lanier. The list of high quality bigs back then was off the charts. I sense you're young enough given that you seem to have no awareness of how good those guys were back then. Every guy I mentioned is in the HoF and amongst the top 50 NBA players of all time (when they compiled that list).

I shudder to think of what KAJ would do to Embiid. KAT is persistently ridiculed for being lazy and not a good defensive player. Probably would be a good idea for u to watch some youtube videos of KAJ knocking down 15 foot hook shots with ease but yet also facing up to the basket with a solid jumper. There are no bigs like him in today's game.

To be clear, I said Kareem was the 3rd best player in the history of the sport. I'm well aware of his greatness as well as the greatness of the other players you listed. All those guys are legends and always will be.

I just don't think Kareem would dominate Giannis or Anthony Davis, for instance, like you suggested. I think those guys are simply too athletic. It's not a knock on Kareem. Athletes evolve over the course of a half century.

 

[cuseinseattle]

721 nailed it above. Good luck stopping that sky hook.

The guys you referenced aren't or never would be in KAJ's league when he was in his prime. He was taller, longer and more athletic than those guys you mentioned. Meanwhile in the 70s he faced Wilt,, Walton, Nate Thurmomd, Willis Reed, Artis Gilmore, Bob Lanier. The list of high quality bigs back then was off the charts. I sense you're young enough given that you seem to have no awareness of how good those guys were back then. Every guy I mentioned is in the HoF and amongst the top 50 NBA players of all time (when they compiled that list).

I shudder to think of what KAJ would do to Embiid. KAT is persistently ridiculed for being lazy and not a good defensive player. Probably would be a good idea for u to watch some youtube videos of KAJ knocking down 15 foot hook shots with ease but yet also facing up to the basket with a solid jumper. There are no bigs like him in today's game.

He was also a great co-pilot

 

[bpo57]

To be clear, I said Kareem was the 3rd best player in the history of the sport. I'm well aware of his greatness as well as the greatness of the other players you listed. All those guys are legends and always will be.

I just don't think Kareem would dominate Giannis or Anthony Davis, for instance, like you suggested. I think those guys are simply too athletic. It's not a knock on Kareem. Athletes evolve over the course of a half century.

Of course they evolve but some players transcend eras. KAJ was one. Your logic is hard to follow. KAJ was the third greatest player of all time but somehow he wouldn't dominate Gobert, KAT and Embiid?

 

[bpo57]

He was also a great co-pilot

And he fought Bruce Lee.

 

[Eric15]

KAJ was the third greatest player of all time but somehow he wouldn't dominate Gobert, KAT and Embiid?

Correct. Greatness is in proportion to your era. Jesse Owens for example will always be one of the greatest Olympians ever but he wouldn’t dominate the Olympics today.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

If Walton or Alcindor don't win, it's a sham.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

Correct. Greatness is in proportion to your era. Jesse Owens for example will always be one of the greatest Olympians ever but he wouldn’t dominate the Olympics today.

He might, with today's training. Never know.

 

[sufandu]

He might, with today's training. Never know.

He ran on a different surface too. I wonder how that would his times.

 

[Capt. Tuttle]

Correct. Greatness is in proportion to your era. Jesse Owens for example will always be one of the greatest Olympians ever but he wouldn’t dominate the Olympics today.

None of those guys would be able to stop Kareem from scoring. With the 3 pointer, it would be tough to double on him to make him give it up.

 

[bpo57]

Correct. Greatness is in proportion to your era. Jesse Owens for example will always be one of the greatest Olympians ever but he wouldn’t dominate the Olympics today.

Then again there are Tommie Smith, Lee Evans and Bob Beamon.

 

[bpo57]

Correct. Greatness is in proportion to your era. Jesse Owens for example will always be one of the greatest Olympians ever but he wouldn’t dominate the Olympics today.

Maybe I feel differently because I've watched them all play.

 

[Briancuse]

If Walton or Alcindor don't win, it's a sham.

1.kareem
2. Walton
3. Oscar

 

[Hoo's That]

Those guys would somehow be able to block his Sky Hook?

With what - a tennis racket?

Funny you should mention that. I remember a newspaper picture from back in the day of a team practicing to play UCLA and the center had a tennis racket in each hand to simulate going up against Kareem.

 

[orange79]

Funny you should mention that. I remember a newspaper picture from back in the day of a team practicing to play UCLA and the center had a tennis racket in each hand to simulate going up against Kareem.

I remember this too.

I thought to myself, "How stupid is..." then I thought, "Good idea."

 

[Briancuse]

Funny you should mention that. I remember a newspaper picture from back in the day of a team practicing to play UCLA and the center had a tennis racket in each hand to simulate going up against Kareem.

I believe Michigan preparing to play against us in the 2013 final four practiced with brooms to simulate shooting against the zone.