Battier was drafted 2001. He and Artest were our tag team on guys like Kobe and Lebron. I think he'd be fine in today's NBA. Defense on Kobe: Defense against the Thunder and Durant:
Battier was a great Rocket. That being said, he was paid for the "no stats" contributions he made to the team. LMM is on a min contract. It's apples to oranges. Like others have said PJ Tucker is a fairer comparison to make. The difference is Tucker while being not as team defense savvy has physical traits to hang with centers in addition to the SF/PF/big SG group. Strangely enough I think his lateral quickness is also better than Battier's. Battier's face guarding probably was extremely effective on that good to borderline all-star contingent, but against a guy like Kobe it was completely ineffective.
Not gonna lie the signature Shane Battier reverse layup not even close brick was pretty disgusting to watch. But he was a great defender, and the fact that he was a great defender even with his subpar physical attributes was a miracle in itself. Also his face guarding was hilarious to watch especially when he accidentally smacked someone in the face while doing it lol.
Battiers whole thing about learning where to place his hand is overrated. He surprised Kobe by going after his eyes instead of the ball and Kobe quickly adjusted to it and started killing him, always bothered me because from there he should of mixed it up with going after the ball and face randomly to trick him again.
Again where are the Battiers now? If guys like him were "fine" guarding Durant how come Battiers nowadays aren't drafted in college?
It's pretty silly to say guys are so athletic now and they weren't before. Look up recency bias. There are plenty of three and D players in the league, but I won't waste time listing them because we'll get off on an endless tangent.
Where were the Battiers before Battier? Even the earliest elite perimeter defenders I can remember (Jordan, Moncrief, Pippen, Payton) were top tier athletes. Battier was an anomaly even in his own time. But his playing days weren't that long ago and if he was the primary defender on prime Kobe, Miami Heat Lebron, and scoring champion Durant then he could certainly get it done today. That's like asking where the modern day Steve Nash is, an unathletic point guard leading the most potent offenses. Nash was slow even for his own time, but he would fit right into today's "quicker" NBA.
I'm not saying 3ND players don't exist anymore, I'm saying unathletic but smart players like Battier don't exist anymore. Battier became as good as he due to his years of experience. But now a potential Battier wouldn't even get drafted because there are potential Lucs and Kawhi's out there who are just longer and more athletic. Also its not silly at all, globalization of the NBA has exploded after Battier's era. Guys like Roberson are now in the NBA whereas during Battier's time there weren't as many freak athletes in the wing position.
The modern steve nash is curry. Curry might even be seen as a better version since he is a much deadlier shooter. As for Battiers before Battier? What do you call Bruce Bowen? So are you actually saying Battier was the most unique player in NBA history? There are people who play like Jordan, Hakeem, KD etc but there is only one Shane Battier? GTFO if Battier was this good the YaoMac Rox would've reached the 2nd round. P.S. Battier was in his prime the same time as Tmac and Yao Ming. Both those guys are retired and even Battier is retired. You are saying Lebron and KD were in their prime when Battier was still in his prime but now Battier is retired but KD and Lebron are still in their prime. Are KD ahd Lebron's prime 20 years?
Battier (and Artest) held LeBron to 0 assist in a game. I think that's the only game that Lebron didn't have an assist.
I personally think their about the same. Battier just had a better rep from having such a great college career. Moutes agent sucks too, in this era no reason a legit 3&D wing should be signing for the min.
Shane Battier is one of the most overrated Rockets players. Whenever ppl couldn't convince me otherwise, they would pull out the magical "intangibles" word.
Battier was also known to watch more films than the coaches do. He had this work ethic that was comparable to the greats. Imho, this should also be a factor when doing comparisons.
