NBA Historical Draft – 1985-2013

One of the easiest ways to engage a basketball fan in a spirited argument that may or may not eventually end in fisticuffs is to participate against him/her in a historical NBA draft.

I’ve had many “discussions” with “friends” trying to decide on the best 5 players of all time. As I read through Matt Kline‘s Face of the Franchise series, it seemed like such a good old-fashioned bar argument of a column that I wanted to write one of my own. With that in mind, I recruited an old friend of mine who has very recently become a first time father. I get someone to fight with, he gets to not think about feces and milk for a while, you get to see just how dumb 2 guys can be and tell us all about it in the comments section. Please give a cold, shivering welcome to a founding member of the masslive.com Fantasy 413, Dan Reynolds.

The rules for the NBA Historical Draft are as follows:

1.       It starts in 1985.  Because I think it’s garbage to draft players based solely on what others have written about them, and because historical NBA footage is mostly available to real NBA writers only, we’re going with what we’ve seen.  If you draft Bill Walton, you’re not getting 1978 Walton.  You’re getting the guy who played 6^th man for the greatest team in history (1986 Celtics). I was born in ’77, Dan was born a few years earlier, so we can base decisions on guys we saw play the game.

2.       All other players you get at their peak.  You don’t have to choose which Jordan you get – if you take him, you get his best version night in and out.

3.       Attitudes don’t matter.  If you want to draft Allen Iverson, you don’t have to be afraid that he’s going to sulk coming off the bench.

4.       Styles of play matter.  If you want to assemble guys that will beat the hell out of small guards, go nuts.  If you want to assemble Loyola Marymount’s run/gun offense, have fun.  But make sure your players compliment that style.

Your team has to win the game against my team. That’s the question voters will be asked when deciding who wins.

5.       Dan won the first pick, I have back to back picks at #s 2 and 3, then again at 9 and 10, and Dan has back to backs at 11 and 12. I don’t know – some internet site told us that was the most fair way to do a 2 man draft.

We’ll do this over a few parts this summer. I’ll try and keep each column around 1000 words. We’ll go through the first 8 picks today.

Dan won the coin toss and the right to pick first:

1. SG – Michael Jordan - No single player did as much for what we now call the modern NBA game as Jordan. He remains the standard for which every player is measured. The greatest player of his or any other generation.

Easy enough first pick, I think. By the way, Dan’s words will be in purple (he’s a freaking Lakers fan). You probably would’ve picked that up eventually, but I figured I’d speed that process up.

I’ve got back to back picks:

2. SF – Larry Bird – The best part of back to backs here is that I can pretend Larry would have been the #2 overall pick. On any team with this much talent, you’re going to need guys who live to share the ball. Bird is the greatest passing forward of all time. There is only one person more perfect for a team like this:

3. PG – Magic Johnson - The reason the Dream Team was so successful was Magic’s attitude and style of play. The reason the Showtime Lakers were so successful was Magic’s attitude and style of play. The ultimate point guard and the ultimate team leader.

4. C – Shaquille O’Neal - The Big Aristotle, Shaq-Fu, Diesel. Nuff said. A giant among men, the unstoppable force. Shaq inside and MJ on the perimeter; this could be over before we even get to the next round.

5. SF – LeBron James - Just for the fun of it, let’s keep drafting.

While I realize that Shaq’s going to be tough to defend inside, I think there’s a guy or two left out there that just might take on that challenge.

So yeah, LeBron’s my pick.  He’s the 2^nd most talented player in our pool of players, and I got him with the 5th pick. And not to get too stat-geeky, but PER is a very good judge of a player’s offensive prowess. I think there will be many, many better stats coming in the next few years, especially ones that incorporate off-ball work and defense, but for now it’s PER.

The top 10 PER seasons of all time have been had by 3 players – Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan, and LeBron James.  Jordan has #s 3, 5, 8, and 9.  James has #s 4, 7, and 10 (he also has #11). Now that there’s no question that he can step up to the stage and win the biggest of games, we’re looking at someone on track to be the 2^nd best player in history (took me 20 minutes to write that sentence when you factor in the breaks for dry-heaving).

I’ve got James leading the 2^nd unit right now, but I could always slot him at SF and move Bird to PF depending on how the draft shakes out.  Back to you for #6.

6. C – Hakeem Olajuwon - I think this is turning into a game of chess and you may have brought your drama-queen out a tad too early. I was truly torn between this pick and another, but I’ve decided to hand you a nightmare of Nigerian proportions. Enter Hakeem.

 Rebounding, defense and the ability to score at will. I see your PER and stomp all over it with my pair of 7 footers.

7. PF – Tim Duncan - Wow, passing up a chance to draft the greatest Power Forward of all time, just to draft a Center you already have?  Colossal failure.

Give me Timmy Duncan.  Not only will I be able to match your twin towers by playing my Center next to Duncan, but I’m Greatest Of All Time at 3 of the 5 starting positions.

8. SG – Kobe Bryant -  Yes, I know I still have no PG  but there’s still A LOT of talent available. 

So now I’ll throw Jordan and Jordan Lite at you for 48 minutes. Plus he’s the closest thing, comparatively speaking, to #23. And yes I’m referring to Bryant as a thing because he’s a cold, calculating snake – but no one will ever question his unquenchable desire to win. And win he will vs. the zero defense in the middle you’re throwing at me. Best grab The Admiral with one of your back-to-backs.

Eight picks in, and we both think we’ve wrapped up the title. Here’s a snapshot of how our lineups look thus far. Please feel free to weigh in, and be as mean as possible. Especially to Dan – he’s still basking in that first child glow.

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