cp3 absolutely belongs on that list. hes been consistently leading his teams to winning seasons and making guys around him better for years. if you're only knock that he's never made it pass the 2nd round then so what. james harden made it pass the 2nd round once on his own team and we all know what happened to get to that point. before that it was 1st and 2nd round exits and disappoint season within. not nearly enough to separate him if you're using that logic the last two seasons of AD is no superstar
I don't really try to understand the cap stuff but would it be possible to sign both Melo and Millsap?
Playoffs is when you lay it all out on the line without rest. The point is, each season his minutes had to be diminished further to keep him fresh at the end of the season. That is a sign of physical decline. Not concerning for me due to us having Harden, but clearly not prime CP3.
Hey if you have followed CP3 enough the past couple of seasons to make the determination that he is still elite now that he's a Rocket, I won't argue with you. I hope you're right. I've always associated 32+ to be declining or on the cusp of it. Of course every player is different. But yeah i certainly would be ecstatic if we had the ELITE CP3 for this upcoming season and possibly beyond.
Same can be said for Kawhi, Curry and Durant as far as allstar teammates. That's not their fault, point is they have the ability to carry a team if needed. As far as advancing in the playoffs, CP3 is not blameless, but there's also luck, matchups, and his teammates/coaches. I said a superstar should be able to elevate his team to be at least decent, and I believe CP3 can do that on any team. New Orleans can't even make the playoffs.
My knock was less about never passing the 2nd round and more about always having 1 or 2 all stars to help him. Harden, Lebron, Westbrook, all did it being the only all star. Paul had Deandre, Blake, West, Chandler, Peja (?) during his playoff seasons.
Yes but, today, you would rather have Giannis than Westbrook, so imo Giannis should be there. He took a mediocre team (without its 2nd best player) to the 2nd round. Put up Lebron-like numbers. If he were a Knick or Laker, we'd be saying Lebron's time is over.
I agree Klay is their 4th best player, but he's not overrated. To have a perennial all-star at that spot is ridiculous and that's why we definitely need more moves. We need to get Paul George and then get one more really good player.
Not totally accurate. In 2010, Durant was the only OKC all star and led the team to a record of 50-32. Kawhi was the only all star this past season and they reached the conference finals.
That extra really good player would be EGO in my opinion. If Rockets could add George to the roster while keeping EGO somehow, there you have it. EGO is also underrated and a borderline all star which renders him VERY GOOD
people really are overly impressed with what cp3 has had in his career. the best hes ever had was blake and even he is pretty flawed. both he and deandre jordan have alot to thank cp3 for as far as their careers. peja was a shell of himself by the time he got to new orleans, chandler was no star, david west was solid, deandre an all star is an absolute joke
So Kawhi plays the same regular season minutes as CP3. Is he in decline as well? Some times it's just coaches being cautious. There's no denying that CP3 is getting older, and for precautionary purposes you should try to limit his minutes to extend his career. But when he is on the court playing he has shown no signs of decline. Also physical decline is different than decline as a basketball player. I don't know anyone who is at their physical peak at 32 years old, so in that sense I guess everyone is in decline after 23 or 24. But basketball players can get better in other areas and become overall better players as they age, for instance - shooting. CP3 just shot his career best % from 3 at a career highest in 3pt attempts last year. At some point physical decline will overtake skill, but clearly he has not reached that point yet.
uhh LA is still an all star caliber player. just bc he didn't make it this year doesn't mean his impact on the game isn't significant
right now i'd go with westbrook. if giannis gets a solid or respectable jumpshot which i think he eventually will, that'll likely quickly change my view
Everyone knows Pops over-rests his players whereas CP3 was being rested out of necessity. Physical decline is a huge part of basketball decline. The question is how much your skill can compensate. CP3 might have better shooting and passing metrics, but Harden is by far the superior player in the only area that really matters, generating points. The name of the game is points and Harden is the best in the league at that.
"All star" is a product of fan voting, not player quality. Durant, Kawhi and Curry all had quality teammates throughout their career, and that doesn't make them any less of a superstar.
David West was solid post-CP3 for two or three years. Can't attribute it all to Paul. Deandre was all NBA 1st team last year and 3rd team this year. Peja was still pretty good, when healthy. He averaged double figures for New Orleans and even a season at 17 ppg. This isn't shedding any doubt on chris Paul's talent and skill level. Was the best PG (and still might be) for a very long time. This is more about your points about his track record of leading a team by himself to be really good or great.
I've heard people say CP3 doesnt rely on athleticism and they're right to an extent. However isn't speed/quickness an element of athleticism? When I think of point guards that have been steadily good/great as they aged without athleticism I think of Kidd and Stockton. Guys like Nash and CP3 utilize quickness and speed to a decent degree in their games. So I would surmise they would "decline" more apparently and earlier than Kidd/Stockton. Make sense?
Depends on how you define superstar. I'm basing it on the definition that was laid out in this thread. I personally think they all are including Anthony Davis and John Wall is borderline.
