Tony Parker was 15.5 and 5 Ginobili's stats may not reflect a big impact player but he was no ordinary rookie(25 years old). He was already a star overseas and was clutch before putting on a Spurs uniform. But, i get what you're trying to say.
Yes, Dirk was an athletic freak. To have his coordination and shooting ability at 7 ft tall? Absolutely. I don't think Paul George would take us anywhere either, but luckily, it looks like he'll end up in LA.
15.5 and 5 aren't "star" numbers. At the time, weren't the Spurs trying to package Parker in a trade to get Kidd? Being a star overseas doesn't always translate to being a star in the NBA. Let's not forget that Spanoulis was also a star overseas.
You do know he passed to Gordon with only 20 seconds left in OT, down 2 to make the possibly game-winning 3, right? Harden trusted his teammates, Andersons 3 in OT to give us the lead before Danny Green became the GOAT was a hockey assist pass starting from Harden. People are just finding reasons to tear him down. If you go to /r/NBA right now, you'll feel right at home. I'm aware Harden blew it tonight, but there's way too much hate for him here and on reddit, I feel like I need to be the voice of reason. Harden overall had a good game.
Well..let's not exaggerate it. He's 7 foot IN SHOES. Not that athletic for a guy that's not even a TRUE 7 footer when barefoot. He was very athletic in his younger days...but to call him an athletic FREAK at 32 is ridiculous. Paul George and Harden alone wouldn't take us anywhere, no. It's kind of all a pipe dream anyway. There's no dream scenario we can think of that can beat a 4 star Warriors team. It's just not possible unless every FA star says F the money and signs for cheap contracts to play together for a chance....but why do that in Houston over the bright lights in NY or Miami or LA?
I appreciate everything you're saying... and I agree we should be thankful to have a player of his caliber on our team.. I just don't believe the organization should sell their soul to a single player... Does Kawhi run the Spurs? Does Curry or KD call the shots in GS?
Yeah, i remember, and that just means he was good enough to be the main piece in acquiring an MVP runner up the previous season. You think Bev or Gordon can be that?
And how often do players play without shoes? Also, there are different kinds of "athletic freaks". Dirk was absolutely an athletic freak at 32 years old. How many players have his combination of height and coordination?
I think the frustration is real but realistically one player will never win a chip by himself. Not MJ not Bird not Hakeem. So fans need to have perspective. Now letting out steam is normal after a tough loss but it pains me that some poster are so quick to judge a player in black and white terms.
That height and coordination? Pretty much every all star center ever? If you want to call Shaq an athletic FREAK...that makes sense..but Dirk man? You can't convince me so let's just drop it..
Wasn't the unprotected lottery pick the main asset? So..basically a chance at Anthony Davis? And they won that chance.
Every all-star center ever? How many all-star centers have shot almost 40% from the 3pt line for their career? 88% from the FT line? How many have "unstoppable shots" like Dirk's fadeaway? Like I said, there are different kinds of "athletic freaks". Dirk definitely fits the bill.
Shooting ability does not make anyone an athletic "freak" Let's just start calling Larry Bird an "athletic freak" since he was 6'10 and could stroke it as good as anyone with an unblockable release point and averaged more rebounds and same amount of blocks as the athletic freak that is LeBron. There's also the incredible hand-eye coordination that made him a great defender.
The taller a player is, the more uncoordinated he tends to be...especially when you're talking about 7 footers. So when a guy like Dirk comes along and shoots lights out from the 3pt line as well as the free throw line, that's absolutely an "athletic freak". It's the same logic why Yao was an athletic freak. Look what he could do compared to Muresan, Bradley, and Bol.
Oh wow. That's right. ****. So it could have been CP3 with Anthony Davis same way it could have been T-Mac with Dwight. Garbage franchises stay garbage for a reason.
Then Larry Bird still applies. He was just under 6'10 with a barefoot measurement..probably an inch..maybe an inch and a half shorter than Dirk. So Larry Bird is an athletic freak. I like it. Lets go with that.
