Don't know if this has been posted but an article by Chad Ford on the NBA's most overrated and underrated.... Too much is expected from James By Chad Ford NBA Insider Send an Email to Chad Ford Friday, October 3 Updated: October 3 8:31 AM ET We've been stuck at 13 all week. Thirteen players on the verge of breaking out. Thirteen players in a make-or-break season. Thirteen players in the twilight of their careers. Thirteen players trying to come back. Call this one Friday the 13th. For mysterious reasons that have to do with the quirks that come with media hype or lack thereof, there are a number of players out there living with reps they don't deserve. Is LeBron James the next Michael Jordan? Please. Insider breaks down the NBA's most overrated and underrated players by position in the last of 13 series. Rookie Overrated? Lebron James, G/F, Cavs -- Even if James averages 20 ppg, 6 rpg and 6 apg, there will be someone out there disappointed. This isn't a knock on his talent or work ethic. Both are stellar. But the expectations are just out of control. There's only one Michael Jordan. And as a string of posers will (Vince Carter, Jerry Stackhouse, Grant Hill) will tell you -- it's no fun playing in his shadow. Underrated? Dwyane Wade, G, Heat -- You hear a lot about Carmelo Anthony and James as rookie of the year candidates, but don't count out Wade. He'll play a big role on the Heat this year. His length and athleticism in the backcourt will turn a lot of heads, especially if the Heat start winning some basketball games. Point Guard Overrated? Steve Francis, Rockets -- Rudy Tomjanovich let Francis do whatever he wanted and he's put up terrific numbers in Houston the past few years. That's about to change. New head coach Jeff Van Gundy wants to turn the Rockets into an inside, out team, which means that Francis isn't going to try to take his man off the dribble every time down the court. My guess is his numbers will slip and there will be some serious pouting on the bench. Underrated? Tony Parker, Spurs -- He's 21 years old, already has a championship ring and takes an extraordinary amount of abuse. I'm not sure that Parker is a Top 5 point guard in the league, but he does what coach Gregg Popovich asks him to do and it works. My guess is that if he were to move to a team that ran the floor more, he'd put up sensational numbers. If he's improved this much in his first two years in the league, what's he going to look like when he's 25? Shooting Guard Overrated? Latrell Sprewell, T-Wolves -- Spree is an obsession. His numbers the past few years and the Knicks' pitiful record suggest that he peaked about three years ago. Everyone is talking about how the Wolves are now one of the three most dangerous teams in the West. But considering that four of their five starters (Spree, Sam Cassell, Wally Szczerbiak and Michael Olowokandi) could've made the overrated list -- it's tough to untangle the hype from the reality. Spree's absence at media day should give Flip Saunders a nice taste of what he's in for this year. Underrated? Ray Allen, Sonics -- He's always been overshadowed by a teammate or a coach in Milwaukee. Allen really shined the last 30 games of the season in Seattle. We learned that he's a better passer and better defender than we ever thought and he proved that he can be a leader. If he can stay healthy, expect a huge year from Allen this season. Small Forward Overrated? Jalen Rose, Bulls -- The days of Rose jacking up 20 to 25 shots a game are over. This year coach Bill Cartwright is going to give the ball to his young players and ask them to lead. For all of Rose's offensive fire power, he couldn't lead the Bulls to the locker room. Underrated? Al Harrington, Pacers -- He's been up and down and stunk in the playoffs -- but Harrington is a lot better than people give him credit for. If the Pacers' rotation becomes set, and coach Rick Carlisle doesn't play favorites and sits him in favor of Austin Croshere, Harrington is a guy who can drop 20 points and grab 10 boards on any given night. Power Forward Overrated? Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Hawks -- His numbers are great but his lack of playoff appearances is alarming. Rahim is the guy who seems destined to always put up good numbers on a bad team. The problem is a lack of leadership. He's been on several teams with a chance at being decent, but has never taken over the way his talent suggests he should. Underrated? Elton Brand, Clippers -- I know this is hypocritical. Brand's a playoff virgin as well and puts up great numbers on bad teams. The difference? Brand's teams have never had a shot at being good. Despite that, he comes to play every night, never complains and remains one of the few sure things in this league. If he ever were to make it to a good team, he'd put up the same numbers and would be looking at a championship. Center Overrated? Just about everyone in the league -- Let me make a bold plea to David Stern. After Shaq retires, can we just go ahead and abolish the center position? He should make it illegal for anyone to draft a player 6-11 or taller who doesn't know how to score, rebound or block shots. That would rid us of about 75 percent of the stiffs in the league. Underrated? Rasho Nesterovic, Spurs -- He quietly improved his game each year in Minnesota. Playing next to Tim Duncan should really open things up for Nesterovic in the high post. He's looking at a career year in San Antonio this season. No. 13 Juwan Howard, F, Magic -- Howard went from being the most overrated player in the NBA to the most underrated in the course of two years. Take away his enormous contract for a second and Howard has steadily produced (for bad teams) his entire career. In Orlando, he'll be the No. 2 option behind Tracy McGrady. Will he finally get to show what he can do in the playoffs?
I agree with SF being overrated as a POINT guard, but Ford's reasoning is weak. He's overrated because he might not put up numbers as good as previous years? And TP underrated? Please, most people can't get off his jock.
Ford is right that francis is overrated as a PG..because he is not that good of a distributor. Francis is ,however, a pretty good 2 guard, though undersized. If Francis were 6'6", everybody would be caling him the next drexler.
either that or he's actually joel meyers b/c that's about the only person who could call parker underrated.
He may be overrated as a POINT GUARD, but as a pure talent, no way is he overrated. He does have a point about Francis having free reign in Rudy's offense, but how can you judge how he is going to play in JVG's offense when training camp hasn't even started? Just assuming he's going to pout is silly.
Ford's rationale for Francis' being overrated: Francis puts up good numbers and Jeff Van Gundy is going to change the offense. I see, that makes a lot of sense.
Chad Ford is a nobody. He does what 1/2 of the people do on here, throw out ridiculous trades that aren't going to happen. The only difference he gets paid to do it.
\ It's not going to be a Steve oriented offense anymore. Instead of him dominating the ball, it will be inside-out, and Steve will have to score in different ways to achieve those numbers. Doesn't mean he can't do it though.
I think it's nearly inevitable that Francis's #'s will decline. It looks like the Rockets will be more varied offensively next year. Francis is going to take fewer shots. That has nothing to do with how good he is, of course. I guess it's possible that we'll score a bit next year - even though JVG has a defensive focus - but probably not enough for Francis to maintain his current scoring, Yao score more, and accomodate new faces like Jim Jackson. Hopefully, though, the assists will go up... ...and incidentally, Francis hasn't been overrated in a couple of years. Most people in the media just don't think that much of him. What's the consensus on Francis? Probably the 4th to 7th best PG in the league, or so... I have trouble believing he's much above or below that... on target, I think.
didn't ford just rank him the 3rd best pg behind kidd and marbury but ahead of payton. anyways the consensus is usually the top four is those guys.
Then I question your B-Ball knowledge. For anyone to say he is overrated, doesn't know what they are talking about. Mike Bibby is freaking overrated. 21ppg 6 and 6 add it up
And I thought that title belonged to Bibby. Seriously though, did that Ford just diss every center in the league while elevating Nesterovic???!!!
Guys, this is about being the most OVERRATED, not least talented or even most underachieving. Overrated=Difference between perceived value and actual value. By that, Francis is indeed one of the most overrated PG in the league. He was voted allstar two years in a roll. But was he an allstar caliber contributor to his team? Probably not. But Tony Parker underrated? No way! And I don't think Ray Allen is underrated either. I think the most overrated PF is Antoine Walker.
I never had respect for Chad's OPINIONS, but he has taken it to another level. He is a paid r****d...i'm jealous
