I really should, I feel like I lose brain cells being on here sometimes. 15 odd years of reading this place, old habits die hard.
Bill Russell probably could guard 1-5 too if necessary, one of the most mobile anchors that we've had in this game. He moved around on different people a lot, unlike most big men of the time. His impact today I'm sure would be far above Green's or anyone else's. A-Davis could be like him, one day -- same physical gifts.
Green got owned by Whiteside. Whiteside talked trashed to Green for a year and then trashed him tonight on the court. Whiteside > Green
Ok the Jent comment was cheap. But all this Green love smacks of the old "Scottie Pippen = greatest small forward of all time" talk. Both Green and Pippen have had teammates who, you know, helped them a little bit. Russell has 5 MVPs and 11 championships. You find this irrelevant?
Lol, pretty sure Whiteside only scored 1 basket while Green was covering him. The other 7 baskets he scored were against the Warriors' centers. And if you compare the stats: Whiteside = 21 pts, 13 rebs, 2 blks, +2 Green = 10 pts, 3 asts (7 pts), 11 rebs, 1 blk, +7
Russell had teammates who, you know, helped him a bit. Same for Magic, Bird, etc. Not really much of a point. Pippen wasn't the greatest small forward of all-time (and virtually no one claimed that he was, even during his prime) but, once defense was factored in, he was in the argument for second- or third-best (now third- or fourth-best due to LeBron James). As for where Green will end up historically, who knows. But I agree that Pippen and Green make for a good comparison...players who are historically dominant defensively but not alpha scorers tend to be called overrated because scoring is more obvious than defense. Unless that player wins 11 championships.
Apples to oranges. Green's help was the MVP and maybe greatest shooter in league history. Pippen's help was the undisputed GOAT. Russell had good teammates, but he was the clear alpha dog.
Yeah, but we're evaluating the players themselves...it really doesn't matter how they ranked on their team. If Russell had played with Jordan, Russell wouldn't have been the "alpha dog." Wouldn't have changed how good he was.
Right.... John Havlicek - Hall of Famer Bob Cousy - Hall of Famer Sam Jones - Hall of Famer Tom Heinsohn - Hall of Famer
I guess there is no point in discussing. It boggles my mind how little respect you can give to a 5-time MVP.
It's was a different game in a different era. The league had 8 teams.... As far as talent level goes, those Red Auerbach teams were head and shoulders above every single team NBA. Russell played with 16 HOFers. Look here. http://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/psl_finder.cgi?request=1&match=total&type=totals&per_minute_base=36&per_poss_base=100&lg_id=NBA&is_playoffs=N&year_min=1957&year_max=1969&franch_id=BOS&season_start=1&season_end=-1&age_min=0&age_max=99&height_min=0&height_max=99&shoot_hand=&birth_country_is=Y&birth_country=&birth_state=&college_id=&draft_year=&is_active=&debut_yr_nba_start=&debut_yr_nba_end=&debut_yr_aba_start=&debut_yr_aba_end=&is_hof=Y&is_as=&as_comp=gt&as_val=&award=&pos_is_g=Y&pos_is_gf=Y&pos_is_f=Y&pos_is_fg=Y&pos_is_fc=Y&pos_is_c=Y&pos_is_cf=Y&qual=&c1stat=&c1comp=gt&c1val=&c2stat=&c2comp=gt&c2val=&c3stat=&c3comp=gt&c3val=&c4stat=&c4comp=gt&c4val=&c5stat=&c5comp=gt&c6mult=1.0&c6stat=&order_by=ws But yes, it is disrespectful at this point to say Green is anywhere near as good as Bill Russell, but to say Russell merely had good teammates is a little misleading. He had amazing teammates.
A championship today is harder to get than a championship then. IF it were possible in today's league to have 16 HOFers on one team through a decade, sure they'd be equal, but it's really not. You give me an average of 4 HOF'ers every year for 15 years, I think that team would easily win 10 chips.
I agree with you... I love the way Green plays the game and his approach to the game... But there is no way you can compare him to Russell at this stage of his career. T_Man
I find it irrelevant because Russell played in the 60's when most players were irrelevant. His accolades are inflated because he was a pioneer, the first to emphasize defense. Plus, he had 5 or so HOF teammates. Green hasn't reached that level of dominance, against much, much better competition, and with his frame, people don't see him as a dominant player. But take a step back and look at his on court effect. Note how a team with the greatest reg season record so far runs through him. It's the Russell factor, much more than the Pippen or Leonard comparisons based on size . You've got Nancy's like Curry and Thompson hitting 3's in so much open space it's flown over everyone's head. Put Curry on New York and they still might not make the playoffs. You think that would be acceptable with any team LeBron played for?
