I always thought KG was underrated. The fact that the Celtics went from a cellar team to one of the greatest in NBA history when they brought him in kind of validates that, in my view.
I agree with KG being a bit underrated because his stats scoring wise don't always jump out at you but it is because he's unselfish. But that Boston team that was in the cellar before he got there was due mainly to Pierce being hurt most of that year and that isn't good when your best player is hurt and your whole team is made up of young players who haven't been in the league for more than 2 years. The year KG came in they also got Ray Ray and Posey. I actually think that had Pierce not been hurt the previous year that Boston could of snuck into the playoffs as an 8th seed or atleast been in contention for the 8th spot in the last month of the season because the East was horrible that year.
I don't want to derail this thread. Let's just say I haven't forgotten his 12 underwhelming and albatross-like seasons in Minnesota the way most of you have.
He put up some absolutely sick numbers in Minny and dispelled the "he isn't a winner" talk by coming to Boston and completely changing the personality of that team. You can dislike his on court demeanor and you can say he doesn't like to be "the man" in the clutch but you can't say he isn't one of the 5-6 best players in the league over the last 10 years because the stats would disprove you.
Overrated: Allen Iverson - Great Player but doesn't seem equal winning seasons (Philly sucked b4 they traded him, then made the playoffs the same year after they traded him) Underrated: Paul Millsap (until now), Jason Terry (this season), Ben Gordon, Marquis Daniels, Chris Duhon, Rodney Stuckey, Beno Udrih, Aaron Brooks
I agree with Iverson being overrated. He is the biggest cancer of all-time. He's a player that did not have talent with him in 76ers outside of 2001. But even when playing with the Nuggets he still failed horribly.
Okay, I kind of lied. Even though I don't want to derail this thread I dare anybody to challenge me in a KG argument. What you just stated is the simple, ignorant conventional thinking of the KG apologists. The people that overlook the simple facts that KG was making $20-28M/year when the NBA salary cap was in the $40M range. You are the people that crack me up when you make the "He had no help, right?" argument. The people that overlook all that then when he chokes in the 4th quarter or loses in the 1st round yet again you search your conscience to make more excuses for him. That argument is so blatantly flawed I don't even know where to start. Bird Rights aside, he was an albatross in every sense of the word. The best chance the T-Wolves ever had to surround him with talent was through the draft. Right...you are guaranteed a draft pick unless you trade it away and ultimately you have his Bird Rights if he ends up good. Funny, how Wally Szczerbiak and guys like Cassell, Sprewell through cheap contracts were the best talents McHale was ever able to surround KG with. Hell, the Joe Smith example was blatant evidence of the problems this creates. He made it out of the first round ONCE in 12 seasons yet people semi-seriously make the argument that he's on Duncan's level. "What if you swap KG with Duncan. Would they still win all those championships?". This argument is insulting to me as a basketball fan. It's so funny watching the demeanor KG, Pierce and Allen conduct themselves with. They have this "I'm so hungry and I HATE losing" type of attitude that cracks me up. These three players were entirely incapable of carrying a team by themselves before they were ingeniously grouped together on an EASTERN Conference team. It was absolutely brilliant -- who is your biggest threat: Cleveland?! KG is a notorious loser that was ideologically paired with two other incompetent stars EXACTLY like him in the Eastern Conference that ultimately formed a championship team. I'm not hating -- the idea was brilliant and successful. I just can't stand people pretending like KG is anything but an overrated, lucky POS that was grouped together in a winning situation.
Can't agree more. I wonder if the Celtics didn't pull the KG trade... do they win a title with Al Jefferson in his place?
Most overrated: Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum, Amare Stoudemire, Greg Oden, Deron Williams, Carlos Boozer, Peja Stojakovic, Carmelo Anthony, Corey Maggette, Rashard Lewis, Allen Iverson, Shawn Marion, Vince Carter, Michael Redd, Jermaine O'Neal, Jose Calderon, Elton Brand, Gilbort Arenas
Overrated: Paul Pierce, Bynum Underrated: Harris(prior to this year), Antawn Jamison, Danny Granger, Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Battier (by the bbs prior to his injury: numerous threads calling to trade him)
Reading this thread, it's funny how many of the overrated players would have been listed as underrated a few seasons ago. I'm wondering what people will think of the currently underrated players in a few years.
I imagine people are referring to Dwight Howard as being overrated because of the fact that many people are already referring to him as the best center in the NBA, which as we all is incorrect =) He's still one hell of a player but Yao just happens to be better at the moment lol.
Why did you write so much when you could have just said 'I'm a KG hater' and it would have been exactly the same? It is the team's job (ownership/GM) to build a good team. If you decide to pay one player $20-28 mil then you better have some ideas on getting good cheap talent. I don't know how else a player can prove he's not a loser than by going to a different organization and leading them to championship.
