We’re deep into the NBA playoffs. With the remaining coaches and players especially, most of us have a lot of respect for those whom are involved in this ongoing event. The guys involved are there for one reason: they are good at what they do. Different role-filling abilities, different intellectual capacities, different physical gifts are had between these men. But they are masterful at their craft. Some may be plainly obvious specialists, some are awkwardly awesome, and some possess an ultra-specific talent that goes largely unnoticed. Whatever the case, the time has come for us to properly identify the NBA’s true masters and what it is that they do so well.

Here are the eligible 2012-13 playoff performers and their corresponding Master Levels which have been reached:

Master Level reached #1: Spin well for a fat person

Marc Gasol. Who thought it possible that a near-300-pound woolly mammoth could move its feet as nimbly as Pele himself. When aggressive in the post, this man embodies an extra fast-moving giant vortex of Spanish descent, and it boggles my mind each time I see it.

Master Level reached #2: Hide jitters that are had while shooting layups

Gerald Wallace. Crash is clearly on the verge of pooping his pants when he sees an open court on a breakaway, but we only know that because he’s an ultra-athletic, skilled 6’8″ man that has been playing basketball for years, and yet he misses every gimme. We recognize these botched lay-ins. But he hides his jitters with precision, and that’s what’s really important here.

Master Level reached #3: Never stop smiling

Carmelo Anthony. Gets blocked? Grins are had. Swishes third three in a row? Happy face. Tosses a bad pass into the seats? Chuckle time. Life’s just funny as hell to Melo, and I love that.

Master Level reached #4: Conserve energy for unnecessary amount of shuffling

Nick Collison. Shuffling is the best move in the NBA. Defensively, it allows you to move side to side with optimal smoothness and efficiency to stay in front of your man. It’s the unofficial best move on offense, too, but players just don’t have enough energy to do it on both ends. Nick Collison, though, has somehow figured out a way around this. He will even activate “shuffle mode” when he is the unguarded recipient of an inbounds pass.

Master Level reached #5: Play with an exceptional amount of calmness, coolness

Joe Johnson. His dribbles are powerful yet controlled; his post-ups are slow and deliberate but often too strong and skillful to deal with; his jumpshots are often predictable, but his timing and poise allows for conversions. Joe Johnson may not be the best player out there, or even worthy of his huge contract, but this man plays with such a steady, cool demeanor that it’s hard for me to look away.

Master Level reached #6: Take copious amounts of unneeded fadeaway shots

Carlos Boozer. Sure, his fadeaways aren’t that efficient. But they look nifty, especially when no one is around to contest them the first place. And they can’t be easily blocked, so, Boozer is the winner and stuff.

Master Level reached #7: Disguise self as Memphis head coach Lionel Hollins

Dr. Zoidberg. He has had most fooled. Here’s Zoid in his original form, and here he is him at a recent press conference.

Master Level reached #8: Display grief mid-game

Blake Griffin. Expressing your emotions is a good thing. It lets others know where you stand, it allows for easier communication, and bottling things in is always a bad idea. All of this is kept in mind with Blake once the referee blows the whistle; each of the 76 times per game we hear a tweet, Blake can be seen with his hands on his head (sheer disbelief), his head in his hands (the world is collapsing), or his hands in pray-mode while he has a look of extreme grief (why God, why?).

Master Level reached #9: Despite being giant, handle the ball better than a Globetrotter

Jamal Crawford. Not on par with guards like Chris Paul, and to a less degree Kyrie Irving, but Jamal is the best at dancing with the ball. I think many of us forget that that’s a 6’6″ man out there moving like that.

Master Level reached #10: Improve passing out of necessity

Kendrick Perkins. Sure, Perkins may currently be ten times worse than he was in Boston, but he’s still managed to make great strides in his passing ability. Oklahoma City uses him as a reliable swingman and finder of cutters in several of their sets. Unlike some other basketball skills, passing ability isn’t easy to improve, especially to large degrees. Kudos to The Genie.

Master Level reached #11: Get away with having shortest neck ever for a person with incredible lankiness, E.T. fingers, seemingly two-foot-long calves

Kevin Durant. This isn’t a bad thing. I think his short neck assists in keeping his head level and balanced – vital to shooting accuracy.

Master Level reached #12: Employ really good pigeon-toed people

San Antonio Spurs. Kawhi Leonard, Danny Green, Tim Duncan. 

Master Level reached #13: Actually think in head that not coaching is coaching

Tie: Vinny Del Negro, Scott Brooks. Hey, not coaching is easy. Bad coaching is easy. But at the same time to actually think in your head that you’re doing something effectively, that’s worthy of acknowledgement.

Master Level reached #14: Employ three players who are indistinguishable on a TV screen

Los Angeles Lakers. Jodie Bryant, Kobe Jamison, and Antawn Meeks. Too many bald heads, thin legs, similar upper bodies, and perimeter-oriented play styles.

Master Level reached #15: Execute fastest, most humiliating chairpull of all-time

Tony Allen. Who knows how long this man had been working at this, but he finally pulled it off, and boy was it a masterpiece (see below). Executing a typical “chairpull” – moving out of the way when the offensive player tries to bump you and causing them to fall – is a difficult task enough. Doing it like Tony did to Kevin Durant was just incredible, as there were no prior bumps, it was on the perimeter as opposed to the post, he had zero time to prepare, he executed the maneuver with lightning speed, and the timing in the game was absolutely crucial.

Master Level reached #16: Be deathly close to leaving foot on pumpfakes and never get called for a travel

Tayshaun Prince. Like a ballerina.

Master Level reached #17: Be a human version of a Poison Dart Frog

Isaiah Thomas. I have nothing else to say about this.

Master Level reached #18: Sharply raise corner of upper lip, become unreasonably angry and sour during select moments

Russell Westbrook. Exhibit A.

Master Level reached #19: Fool everyone into thinking you’re a top defensive player

Serge Ibaka. What a job this man has done at this. Is it possible that over the playoffs in the last couple years, he has been manhandled by the likes of Dirk Nowitzki, Zach Randolph, Marc Gasol? That he’s not actually good at man defense? That he bites on far too many pump fakes? Has average defensive IQ, even? Yes to them all, and throw him more DPoY votes!

Master Level reached #20: Perfect the art of the backward-leaning, off-balance 8-12 foot jumper after slashing to hoop

Manu Ginobili. One of only to ever truly master a craft that no one else will even attempt.

Is Lebron James’ defense starting to become overrated?

Chris Palmer from ESPN recently wrote a piece suggesting that Lebron be awarded Defensive Player of the Year. In the past couple of years, Bron has been consistently mentioned amongst the top players of the league on defense – and deservedly so – but he’s now shooting up to top five, top three, and sometimes number one in that regard.

It’s too much.

Lebron James on defense is spectacular with his lateral movement, his athleticism, and in his ability to rotate with great quickness. Lebron James is great at ball denial and occupying the passing lanes, and at guarding players in the post – at least versus players that are within his size range.

Lebron James is a great help defender with a high defensive IQ, and while he doesn’t read the offense like some of the greatest defenders can, he’s very good in that regard; many of his coaches and teammates have spoken about this trait of his.

Lebron James is decent at getting through screens, and is decent at guarding isolations.

And, Lebron James is average at best at guarding spot-up shots and contesting when players hoist up jumpers.^[60]

All of these things constitute who Lebron James is as a defensive player. He’s a very good one, and the best player in the league by a mile, but we need not get ahead of ourselves. Let’s review some statistics:

In his article, Chris Palmer often pointed to Lebron’s stats on Synergy Sports and how they stood out. I think he might be surprised to learn that Dwyane Wade – playing within the exact same defensive system, starting lineup, and everything – is posting significantly better numbers in major categories. On isolations, Lebron allows 0.81 points per possession (PPP), Wade 0.78. When guarding the ball handler, Lebron allows 0.72 PPP while Wade allows only 0.56. During spot-ups, Lebron allows 1.00 PPP and Wade gives up a mere 0.88. Off screens, Lebron 0.97 PPP, and Wade with 0.76. You get the idea.

And there’s also the defensive part of Regularized Adjusted Plus Minus. This year, on defense alone, Lebron made him team better by an approximated 1.8 points per 100 possessions. Is this really comparable to the league’s defensive stoppers? Big men like Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan doubled his score; others like Marc Gasol and Dwight Howard were far ahead. Perimeters players like Paul George (3.5), Tony Allen (3.8), Thabo Sefolosha (2.9), Andre Iguodala (2.7), and Gerald Wallace (3.0) posted far better defensive ratings.

We can also look to 82games.com’s Counterpart Opponent 48-Minute Production. Lebron holds opposing small forwards to a nice rating of 12.6 PER, and power forwards to 17.6 PER. But how does this compare to Tony Allen, who holds shooting guards to 12.6 PER and small forwards to 15.6 PER? How about to George, who holds SGs to 12.9 and SFs to 10.9? How about to Sefolosha who holds SGs to 13.1 PER, and SFs to 12.1 PER? How about Garnett who holds PFs to 15.4, and centers to 15.8 PER?

There are some specific examples to consider. The 2010-11 playoffs showcased Lebron’s abilities to really hone in and shut down a smaller, quicker guard in Derrick Rose. But in the postseason, we’ve also seen him struggle to defend the long-range shooting of players like Jason Terry (’11) and a longer Durant (’12).

Make no mistake: Lebron James is the best player in the league by a long shot, and one of the best players ever to pick up a basketball. He’s also one of the most versatile defenders in the league. But let’s relax on the defensive player of the year comments. While he’s a great on that end, James has a ways to go before he can contend with the defensive abilities of high-IQ hyperactive ball-hawks like Bradley, Sefolosha, Garnett, Duncan, and other great defenders.

What if the 2012-13 Minnesota Timberwolves had been fully healthy?^[73]

They could have been a top five or six team in the NBA. We just didn’t realize it.

You’re now going over the fact that this year’s T-Wolves missed the playoffs by quite a bit, and might be thinking this is far too bold a statement. But I want you to consider that both Minnesota’s current record, and the record they’ll finish with this season, mean close to nothing. Simply put: a grossly unfair amount of injuries has struck this team, and its potential has been completely unrealized.

Generally speaking, teams don’t have good records when 60% of their starting lineup is comprised by second and third string players, and that’s what we’re seeing with the Wolves right now. Only one player on their roster has played in every game. Of their three best players – Rubio, Love, and Kirilenko – one or more has started in only 49% of the games this season. They’ve been missing out on one or both of their top two players for the majority of the year – one of which is a top five player in the league – to set the tone and carry the team. They’ve had a complete lack of consistency within the lineup as well; we’ve seen small-forward sized Derrick Williams playing center and the electing of Luke Ridnour to guard guys like Kobe Bryant and Joe Johnson.

Now, if we look back to last year’s 2011-12’s lockout season, Minnesota didn’t fare particularly well either (26-40 record). They had some injuries, but nothing out of the ordinary. But after March 28^th, after Rubio had been injured and the season was winding down, the Wolves lost 14 of their last 15 games. They tanked. Ultimately, their final record became a poor indicator of the team’s ability; the ’12 Wolves, a plus .500 team at the all-star break, had proved to be a team with good promise.

We must also consider that last year’s roster remained quite far from the team that would have been this year. Key players in the 2012-13 rotation in Kirilenko, Shved, Budinger, and Roy weren’t signed with Minnesota. The Wolves’ integral pieces, being young, have all come back better (Williams has improved significantly) and demonstrated better chemistry. And much to the benefit of this organization, Michael Beasley would no longer be plaguing this team with his lackadaisical defense, inefficient volume scoring, and pass-allergic tendencies.

Let’s review the main reasons why this team could have been great this year:

1) Kevin’s presence provides for happy times

Kevin Love and his stretch-four-yet-somehow-still-the-league’s-best-rebounding self is a top five player in the NBA, and possibly embodies as big of a difference maker as any other player in the NBA right now (with their respective team). He’ll end this season with only a small portion of it being played, most of which he spent at less than 100%. He and Rubio have played a mere 28 minutes together this season. For insight into this guy’s worth, look no further than Regularized Adjusted Plus Minus’ (RAPM) ratings, which put Kevin Love at 5^th in the league last year. You may also consider that earlier in 2012, Minnesota’s color commentator noted that Kevin Love’s teams over his career had gone an astonishing 3-27 during times of Kevin’s absence. We also have this, which shines light on Love’s massive number of wins produced and apparent value to his team. In other words, this guy can play basketball, and Minnesota is far from its normal self without him.

2) The ’13 Timberwolves have a super well-balanced, deep roster

Hypothetical ’12-13 rotation: Rubio, Barea, and Ridnour; Budinger, Roy, and Shved; Kirilenko and Cunningham; Love and Williams; Pekovic and Stiemsma.

Talent wise, we know about the star-like qualities of Love and to a lesser extent, Rubio. And if previous phenom Brandon Roy had resembled even a shadow of his older self (which Minnesota was clearly hoping for signing him for $10.4 million), this team would have an enormous amount of star power.

Regardless of the presence or absence of their stars, when you turn on a game of Minnesota’s, you’ll notice things flow (surprisingly) nicely. This is because they have all the necessary components for a great basketball club, meaning they don’t have to scramble or overcompensate (Ridnour being picked on defensively acts as an exception). This squad is comprised of passers, scorers, slashers, shooters, rebounders, and defenders; ballhandlers, dynamic pick-and-roll players, post scorers, and all-star ability.^[74] There is a general unselfishness. No over-reliance on inexperienced players. No team cancers (ahem, Beasley). No painfully old guys. No detrimentally redundant playstyles. Shved, Cunningham, and Stiemsma are the only players interpretable as being “below average”, but bring valuable qualities to the team around them ･ namely playmaking from Shved and energy/defense from Cunningham and Stiemsma. Overall, this team has a lot going for it and not much going against it.

To put into perspective, take contending teams like Oklahoma City, San Antonio, Miami, Chicago, Memphis, and the Clippers. The majority of these teams see glaring issues such as an inefficient offense (CHI/MEM), lack of inside play/rebounding (MIA), a thin bench (CHI/MIA), old age (SAS), and questionable player dynamics (OKC). However, with Minnesota, we see none of these issues. This is a squad with all the tools of a successful team.

3) The Timberwolves have one of the best coaches of all-time with a beautiful offensive philosophy

Rick Adelman is one of the most winningest NBA coaches ever. His teams have finished within the top five in scoring an amazing 12 times over his coaching career – a testament to his ability to run variations of the Princeton offense in ways that cater to the abilities of his players. Unfortunately for this current Minnesota team, many of its best players have been stuck to the bench in observation-mode while his sexy offense is carried out by others.

4) This team can play defense

Lucky for Minny, in this case, placing an offensive guru at the helm doesn’t come at a cost – Adelman’s teams have always tended to show good discipline on the defensive end. The current T-Wolves are currently 12th in the NBA in defense, despite everything they’ve gone through. Could the Wolves have been better defensively, given better health? Take a look at Minnesota’s top defensive five man units this year (courtesy of 82games.com):

1. Barea, Shved, Budinger, Cunningham, Stiesmsma (0.79 points against/possession)

2. Barea, Shved, Gelabele, Cunningham, Stiesmsma (0.92)

3. Ridnour, Lee, Kirilenko, Williams, Stiesmsma (0.93)

4. Rubio, Ridnour, Gelabale, Williams, Pekovic (0.96)

5. Rubio, Ridnour, Kirilenko, Williams, Pekovic (0.96)

6. Barea, Shved, Cunningham, Kirilenko, Love (0.96)

7. Ridnour, Lee, Kirilenko, Love, Pekovic (0.98)

That’s right: six out of seven of their best defensive lineups contained at least one player (sometimes three) who spent extended time riding the bench this year. Despite possessing an above average defense, this team’s defensive potential was clearly unrealized this season.

So hey, this year didn’t pan out. But bet your heiny that with a little injury luck next year, this squad will be not only a playoff lock, but one of the NBA’s best. We can anticipate enjoying watching the West’s younger teams in Houston, Minnesota, and Oklahoma City grow further and be dominating forces for years to come.

What constitutes a good passer in the NBA?

A good passer is a person who places his teammates at a level of importance that they deserve. He is one who does not overvalue his own shot. One who keeps his head up and his eyes open and recognizes his teammates at the proper times. One who not only recognizes his teammates, but creates for them by manipulating the defense. He is one who can deliver the ball at different speeds, from several distances, and can do so in a variety of ways.

Relatively straightforward. Yet, however accurate this “criteria” may or may not be, it remains subjective and unmeasurable as a whole.  What we do have, though, is the quantifiable passing metric: “assists”: a connection that is made before a basket is converted, via two players and a pass, and the passer accredited with an assist.  Many assume this metric to be the best (numerical) indicator of passing ability.

But do high assist totals really indicate great passing ability?

I’d like to discuss how, with some players, “empty stats” tend to be recorded, and in the long run, are misinterpreted in terms of their value. Russell Westbrook of the Oklahoma City Thunder and his 2012-13 stats – primarily his passing ones – provide us with a prime example. Despite his increase to 8.7 assists per game this year, Westbrook remains as a very mediocre passer:

1. Westbrook’s assists are coming while he is surrounded by offensive capability

• The Thunder are currently the #1 offensive team in the league, with an offensive rating of 113.3
• The team shoots a very high field goal percentage of 47.8%, which is currently 4^th in the league
• The Thunder have three talented offensive players next to Westbrook (Durant, Martin, Ibaka) with key role players that also shoot a high percentage (Collison at 63.1%, Sefolosha at 47% FG)
• The Thunder manage to put up 112.1 points per 100 possessions and maintain an effective field goal percentage of 53.0% without Russell playing (52.3% with him playing)

2. Westbrook is playing beside Durant, Martin, and Ibaka who play almost exclusively within their team’s offense (allowing for many easy assists)

• Durant engages in isolation plays only 19.5% of the time, compared to other top scorers in Melo at 31.4%, Kobe at 25.6%, Harden at 26.4%, and Lebron at 24.9%
• Durant is assisted on 58.7% of his field goals, which is considerably higher than any of the top scorers in the league other than Paul Pierce (62.1%)
• Ibaka is assisted on a staggering 75.3% of his field goals – 2^nd highest amongst power forwards who score at least 14 PPG and 5^th highest amongst all power forwards who play 20 MPG
• Martin is assisted on 69% of his field goals – highest of any SG who scores 16 PPG, and 20^th highest of all SGs who play 20 MPG

3. Westbrook is ball-dominant, and ball-dominance invariably leads to higher assist totals

• Russell is 4^th in the league in assists per game
• Russell is 34^th in the league in assist to turnover ratio
• Russell is 46^th in the league in assist rate (rate of assists per possession used)
• Russell is 3^rd in the league in usage rate (turnovers + FGA + FTA)

The data shows that while Westbrook is almost at the top of the league in assists, he’s using an exceptional amount of possessions for himself (3^rd most in the league – a full 2% more of OKC’s possessions than his teammate Durant). It’s okay to use possessions for yourself if you’re good, which Russell is, but we can see that with everything considered, he’s one of the most ball-dominant players in the league.

• Almost all ball-dominant high-usage point guards have seen high assist totals regardless of passing ability: Allen Iverson (7.9 AST/G), Derrick Rose (7.9), Stephon Marbury (8.9), Gary Payton (9.0), Steve Francis (7.0), Calvin Murphy (7.4), Nick Van Exel (9.0), Baron Davis (8.9), Sam Cassell (9.0), Tim Hardaway (10.6)

4. The Thunder are not a very good passing team

• The Thunder are 15^th in the league right now in terms of overall assists, or just about average. There were one of the worst last year, though, so this may change over time
• Average to below-average team passing means that ball-dominant players will see even more return in terms of assist totals

5. Westbrook’s assists are not doing anything great for his team’s offense

Here are Russell Westbrook’s on court/off court numbers (team):

Now compare Russ’ numbers to those of an underrated passer and point guard, Steph Curry:

As we can see, when Westbrook leaves the court, his team actually accumulates more assists, and even converts shots at a more efficient rate. His team sees a slight offensive decline overall, but this seems to be from the scoring he provides (rather than passing). This all despite the fact that his replacement clearly falls short of being a great playmaker (Maynor: 6.6 assists/36 minutes).

A player like Curry, who is less ball-dominant, doesn’t record as many assists. But when he sits, his team doesn’t pass nearly as well, shoot nearly as well, or score as efficiently overall. This suggests that not only are all aspects of his game more heavily relied upon, despite his 6.5 or assists per game, Curry’s passing is more meaningful to his team’s offense. While Westbrook connects with teammates, Curry creates for teammates.

Here are two more ball-dominant point guards, Rajon Rondo:

and Chris Paul:

And once again, Paul’s and Rondo’s teams fare much worse than Westbrook’s when they leave the court.

We have one thing left to consider, and that’s that there is a bit of an argument in Russell’s favor. Part of what makes the Thunder an elite offensive team is the fact that they get to the line so frequently, and with this, some chances for assists are eliminated. I went ahead and calculated how this could affect Westbrook individual averages:

Thunder FTA/FGA average: .349

Thunder Total FTA/FGA: 824/2358

League FTA/FGA average: .273

League Total FTA/FGA: 683/2499

Russell’s Assist-Per-FGA average: .1103

Russell’s Projected AST/G if Thunder shot average amount of FGA: 9.19

A noticeable increase. But – given what the other stats suggest, this does not change much in terms how we interpret his passing value: his team passes and shoots better with him off the court; Westbrook is still surrounded by offensively-able players who play within the offense to a ridiculous degree – running off screens, popping out for jumpers, and making plenty of cuts; Westbrook is still one of the most ball-dominant point guards in history, and such players always incur high assist totals; most importantly of all, perhaps, is the fact that Westbrook’s passing does not exactly shine when given the eye test – he does alright at finding the open man, but does not have spectacular vision nor hook up with an improbable receiver very often. He often connects with his passes instead of creates. His quick passes have a tendency to fly out of bounds, and he simply cannot compete with the pinpoint passing of Rondo, Paul, or Nash.

Russell Westbrook acts as these things: A top-ten all-time NBA athlete, a world-class defender at the point guard position, a great slasher, a fellow with nice shooting mechanics, a good post up player, an overly-enthusiastic celebrator, a great scorer, and overall, a top fifteen player in the league.

But what he does not embody is a great passer, and his assist averages are not going to change that. And hopefully, now, we can begin to reconsider the passing abilities of many different players outside of what their assist averages may suggest.

Statistics from 82games.com, Basketball-Reference.com, and HoopData.com.

1) Height/Weight

2) Quickness

3) Fastness

4) Leaping Ability

5) Body Strength

6) Durability/Endurance

7) Body Control/Coordination

These are KOTC’s Seven Components of Athleticism. Over history, who has possessed the greatest amount?

1) Michael Jordan – Allegedly recorded a 49-inch vertical leap during a physical fitness test conducted at the University of North Carolina. Historically, his vertical leap has been properly rated (see: Air Jordan). His incredible first step, overall fastness and quickness may have been somewhat appropriately rated as well. But his physical strength never was. Michael absolutely punished players in the post; even for players with some pounds on him, it was nearly impossible to stop him down low. Many of his rebounds were made possible by his ability to shove aside the opposition. Michael was listed at a mere 190 pounds in his younger NBA years, but appearances can be very deceiving.

2) Lebron James – Extremely fast, extremely strong, well-coordinated, has great body control, and supernatural leaping ability. The only thing that Michael Jordan had on Lebron by a large margin was quickness. Lebron is a once-in-a-lifetime type athlete where you just marvel at his physical gifts every time he makes a strong move. I’ll just leave this here.

3) Shaquille O’Neal – His size and brute strength is what made him so unique. During his younger years especially, Shaq was unbelievably agile for his size. He also possessed a vertical leap of around 35 inches. For what it’s worth, a little known fact is that Shaquille holds the all-time record for blocked shots in an NBA game (15).

4) Wilt Chamberlain – An absolute legend. Bear in mind this is a list constructed with the purpose of identifying athletic ability alone – in other words, Wilt gets no special treatment for being who he was in an earlier (and generally, physically inferior) era. He was just that special. Remember the best sprinter in your entire High School? Wilt was faster than him. Remember the strongest shotputter? Wilt threw further than him. Remember the best long distance runner? Wilt beat his time. And the best high jumper? A 6’6” clearance by Wilt says … you get the point. He was an outstanding all-around athlete. While I refuse to believe he jumped 22 feet from a standstill position, this was truly a man among boys.  As was true for Jordan, Wilt was extremely strong for his size; however, the only thing that is holding him back is that to be the weightlifting king he was, he had to pack on a few pounds. Did I mention that Wilt averaged over 48 minutes per game one season?

5) David Robinson – Only a specimen could average four and a half blocks a game and rebound well over ten. More than anyone else on this list, David gets a boost due to his size. Being that fast, that agile, and that strong with that kind of long, muscular body is just incredible.

6) Dwight Howard – You wouldn’t guess it by watching this but Dwight wasn’t always fresh out of back surgery and looking stiff in his taut pantalones. Dwight possesses a forty inch vertical leap despite being a near seven footer. Show me how many other men like that exist. Fast for his size, incredibly strong, durable, and a great leaper, Dwight lands the six spot.

7) Derrick Rose – His legs look like wheels when he runs. He seems to generate an exceptional amount of force when he jumps and turns – a very quick, explosive, strong athlete in general. Rose’s body control is probably top-five all-time, too, which allows him to finish by the rim with such consistency.

8) Shawn Kemp – An absolutely electric power forward/big man. Other than perhaps Blake Griffin, for a power forward, Kemp likely possessed the greatest jumping abilities ever. Match this with great speed, quickness, and power for a rank of #8 all-time. The truth is, we can call many people fast or strong or high leapers. But the way Kemp put these all together along with his size was something special.

9) Russell Westbrook – It’s difficult to rank Rose above Westbrook, and vice versa – they are both incredible athletes but in slightly different ways. Rose is quicker, but Westbrook maintains a fast pace for incomparable amounts of time. As Rose is, Westbrook is very strong and possesses an otherworldly vertical leap. Amazing fact about his durability: Westbrook has never missed a game during his high school, college, and pro career. He can also do this.

10) Nate Robinson – Put up the best Combine numbers I have ever seen. We all know about Nate’s leaping ability (see: 3 Slam Dunk Championships). But Nate also possesses an absurd amount of quickness, and much more strength than he’s given credit for. Count how many times Nate’s taller opponents successfully post him up – you may be surprised.

11) Allen Iverson – While Iverson was unbelievably agile, we must acknowledge the fact that there have been many with similar quickness. What puts him at this spot on an all-time list is because he was so coordinated and efficient in the way he used his body. AI wasn’t very big, and wasn’t very strong (toughness is a different question). He did have incredible endurance, quickness, and coordination, though.

12) Julius Erving – His body control and leaping ability alone put him in the elite of the elite. He was a blur on the fast break, too. I tried to not award him any extra points for being a pioneer for basketball, in the sense that he essentially invented flashy dunks and a high-flying style that was soon adored.

13) Dominique Wilkins – He could absolutely soar. He possessed innate power. One of the best ever in terms of body control. Nique’s an easy pick for a top 20 list.

14) Dwyane Wade – I used to say that if players were banned from moving horizontally on the basketball court, Dwyane Wade would suck. Wade is always winding, weaving, turning. And bumping. This man looks for contact, steps around and through you, and possesses a very quick, sizable vertical leap that has enabled him to rebound bigger than his size and block much bigger than his size. Speed, strength, unparalleled body control, and a great leap puts Wade at 14 on my list. The only thing working against him, really, is durability and size.

15) Vince Carter – The best NBA dunker of all-time. This matters because in order to be deemed such (especially by a large percentage of the NBA-viewing population), you need to be proficient in several areas. It just so happens that Vince is a great leaper (approximate forty inches), has outstanding body control, nice size, and possesses great strength. His speed and quickness, while elite, are rivaled by many – though the biggest thing working against this gifted man is his struggle to remain healthy (durability).

16) Clyde Drexler – An all-around great athlete. He was never the best in any regard – leaping, sprinting, body control, or strength – but overall, he has always been more than solid. His leaping ability and “smoothness” were likely his most notable traits – you don’t receive the nickname “Clyde the Glide” without reason.

17) Scottie Pippen – Much like Kobe Bryant and Clyde Drexler, Scottie Pippen was never the best at anything in terms of athleticism. He was terrific all-around, though, and well above-average in everything other than quickness. His long, bouncy, strong body puts him at a solid 17^th all-time.

18) Blake Griffin – Leaping ability alone gets him on this list; Blake Griffin got the second highest I’ve ever seen anyone get in an NBA game. Not the quickest, not the fastest, not the best body control. But he does have great strength, size, and out of this world leaping ability. His past doctors may deserve some credit for this; in looking at Combine numbers, you’ll see that Blake Griffin and Kevin Love both posted maximum vertical leaps of 35 inches. Hard to believe, isn’t it? Much to his benefit, doctors may have later cured tendonitis within his knee while carrying out another procedure and forever boosted that leap of his.

19) Charles Barkley – Barkley was a much better player than many players on this list, but part of that was because of the way he harnessed the athleticism better than they did. If we’re purely looking at his physical tools, Charles was pretty far from typical. He was heavyset in both his younger and older years, yet remained very fast throughout. In his prime he was very fast, relatively quick, extremely strong, and had uncanny jumping abilities. Charles had a nice vertical, but it wasn’t otherworldly. His ability to rise up for second and third jumps in split seconds was, though. This man was very quick on his feet, and his strength combined with this made him an absolute force.

20) Karl Malone – Top five all-time in terms of durability. Top ten in strength. Very fast and difficult to stop in the open court. Coordinated. Quick off of his feet.

Honorable Mentions: Kobe Bryant, Steve Francis, Spudd Webb, Hakeem Olajuwon, Harold Miner, Gerald Green.

Shooting a basketball. The skill. The art. It’s the one crucial factor to playing the game of basketball. It’s enjoyable to watch and it’s difficult to master.

I’ve come to believe that it’s also a very peculiar thing. Starting by reviewing its basic definition, let’s go through why this may be so.

What is shooting, exactly?

Shooting is the act of attempting to put the ball in an unmoving hole – a hole with a diameter of 18 inches that sits 10 feet above the ground.

How many types of shooting are there?

1) Set shooting (standstill) 2) jump shooting (moving) and 3) finishing (shooting close to the rim, often involving contact). We’re mostly concerned with number one, because it depends more on mechanics than athleticism/physical abilities.

Who makes for a good shooter?

Here’s where I begin to have questions of my own. I can tell you who are good shooters. To name some (active) knockdown shooters: Dirk Nowitzki, Steve Nash, Stephen Curry, Derek Fisher, Ray Allen, Mike Miller, Kevin Durant, and Steve Novak. Do they share the same attributes/qualities? Sometimes. Many of them are tall, some of them are short – nothing there. Most of them are well-coordinated, or “smooth” in the way they move or function – but not all of them. Most of them have good shooting form (power via legs, elbow in, release high, one hand propels the ball while the other stabilizes it, follow through). The clearest consistency, however, is that we can find is likely that most good shooters appear to be consistent with their form.

But these are far from universal truths, and herein lays the complexity, the idiosyncrasies, of shooting.

Over the years, we have seen great shooters with mediocre coordination (Peja Stojakovic, Derek Fisher). There are great shooters with poor shooting form (Shawn Marion, Wally Sczerbiak). Contrarily, there are both well-coordinated players and players with good form (or a combination) who remain as poor shooters.

When you look at the more specific aspects of shooting and think about what makes a good shooter “good”, more questions arise. Take, for instance, a shooter’s effectivity from different ranges. What makes someone more effective from one range than another? Since one’s coordination isn’t going to change depending on the nature of the shot, we can put that aside. It must be strength then, right? You need to be strong in your arms and legs to shoot from a long distance as well.

But if using this logic, we point to the league’s big men. Then why aren’t Marc Gasol and Dexter Pittman hitting threes with ease? Maybe it’s because big men are cumbersome; they lack a crucial amount of coordination to be a good shooter from all distances. Maybe you need to be coordinated to have good shooting form, but also must able to maintain your good form by having strength. Okay, maybe we’ve got it figured out. You need consistency. You need coordination. You need strength in your arms and legs.

But wait: Future Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade – an elite slasher and scorer – is clearly all of those things, and not a good shooter from distance. Nor was a bigger player like Chris Webber. On the other hand, look at Kevin Durant. He’s put on some muscle since he’s been in the league, but a few years ago, he couldn’t even bench press 185 pounds once. I think it’s safe to say he’s not exceptionally strong. And yet, he launches threes from yards beyond the arc and drains them easily. Kevin Garnett embodies a player with great form, desirable strength, and great consistency. Despite this, he remains as a knockdown shooter from 22 feet and in, and never dares to bomb from three land. Why is it that Garnett has great touch from closer in, but Durant has it from anywhere on the floor?

And we can complicate things even more. Watching Rajon Rondo in games over the last few years, you’ll notice that his defender sags off of him to an insulting degree. The opposition has no worry that he will make a wide-open 15 foot jumper, and he has no faith in himself to knock it down, either. He refuses to shoot when wide open. But why is this? Rondo is an ultra-talented, great ballhandling, great passing point guard – these things clearly require great coordination. He’s athletic, and he’s strong. His form is consistent. It seems as if there is no reason why he shouldn’t be able to shoot from ten feet outward.

Watch him shoot in practice, though, and you’ll become even more bewildered. Rondo shoots better than you and I and any of your buddies. He hits a great percentage of shots and drains eight in a row quite easily.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5p8DcZJ_G3Q

Okay, so if he’s wide open in practice, and he’s wide open in games, confidence on the big stage must be the issue. But wait, that doesn’t make sense. Rondo, a verbal, in-your-face fellow, remains as one of the most confident players in the league – he will charge into the sea of trees by the rim without hesitation, he will make mind-boggling passes on a whim, he will bark orders at his elders, and he will venture into his opponents’ huddles. Considering these things, confidence just doesn’t seem to be the problem. Once again, we’re left with a big fat question mark.

Shooting: consistency appears to be relatively constant between good shooters. But nothing else is for certain. Perhaps having nice form may increase your chances of being a good shooter. But the fact remains that you can be tall, short, well-coordinated or not, strong, or not so strong. You can thrive with a funky release or shoot with picture-perfect form. You can be a confident all-around guy or a timid mouse. You can be good from one range and inefficient from another.

None of these guarantee anything about shooting at a high level.

A peculiar art, indeed.

Following the completion of the 2012 London Olympics, I took a moment to think about the upcoming 2012-13 season. Every big fan does this. We love to think about the direction and development of our favorite franchises, the league’s most exciting players, and the dynamics that new player combinations might bring. While engaging in such thoughts, I came to realize that I believe the league is reaching a great point.

This is not as a result of the NBA’s growth on a global level, its abundance of superstars, nor its rule changes, but due to its cyclic nature. In this cycle, there’s a continuous flow of older players filtering out, new talent trickling in, and new coaching schemes being implemented.  But that new talent? That’s what’s really driving the league to good places.

These youngsters – they’re truly something special. Sure, many are humble and all that. But as basketball players, they’re sizable. Not only are there numerous good defenders, there are several great ones (how long has it been since we could say that)? And how about the ultra-talented, true big men? As per usual, we are also blessed with a nice mixture of playmakers, rebounders, and scorers.

I decided to take a look at these delightful young’uns – more specifically, the top 33 guys aged 24 and under – and break down what abilities and potential they have showcased thus far in the NBA.^[+] Of course, this wouldn’t be Keeper of the Court content if it didn’t include some sort of ranking system, so, they’re all ranked by their projected value in the next three to five years. 

Point Guards

Avery Bradley – 21 years old

Avery Bradley is a super-athletic defensive-minded two guard capable of shutting down two and sometimes three positions. Offensively, he doesn’t have as much upside as the others, but he still has good tools. He’s a good cutter and displays good shooting form that should eventually help him develop a consistent jumpshot from the depths of the hardwood. An improvement in passing would be nice to see. Potential: 27

Kyrie Irving / Ricky Rubio – 20 years / 21 years old

Rubio and Irving come together because they 1) have already been analyzed so much and 2) both put up equally dominant Rookie seasons, but in different ways. Rubio is a better passer and defender than Irving. Irving has superior shooting and scoring abilities in addition to great athleticism, which should help manifest him into a respectable defensive player over the years. Both of these players have very high basketball IQs and undoubtedly represent the future of the point guard position. Potential: 3

John Wall / Derrick Rose – 21 / 23 years old

Wall may not seem fit to be lumped together with Rose at this point, but potential wise, it’s a different story. This is a guy who’s got the short end of the stick – he was plopped onto an uninspired, undeveloped group of low-IQ individuals (the Washington Wizards). Rose wasn’t. Skill wise, Wall possesses great defensive instincts and passing abilities that Rose doesn’t have. I presume that post-injury Rose will still maintain dynamic scoring abilities that and a work ethic that Wall won’t have. Overall, these two gentleman remain as top five athletes (pulling for ya, Rose), and both being above average passers, shooters, and slashers. Their basketball IQ must develop more (Wall needs to stop pulling up in transition with 18 seconds on the shotclock and no one around to rebound, and they both need to be more careful with whom they’re passing to and when), but I presume they will. Potential: 5

Ty Lawson – 24 years old

Great fast break player? Absolutely. Good at driving left and getting into the lane? Definitely. Good jumpshooter? Sure. Able passer? His A:R ratio suggests so. Good defensively? Despite his size, quite reliable. Reliant on athleticism, putting a question mark on the potential of his late career? Also yes. In the right setting, Lawson can be a clear danger to other teams; the catalyst of his team’s relentless nature, but, he can also be rather mediocre if in the wrong setting. Potential: 20 (A)

Russell Westbrook – 23 years old

One of the most athletic, explosive players the league has ever seen. Westbrook offers more things suited for a shooting guard than a point guard – specifically dynamic scoring ability – but this man has developed into a very well-rounded weapon for the Thunder. As a defender, although he sometimes gambles too much, Westbrook applies great ball pressure on the ball handler. Offensively he acts as a serviceable three-point shooter, a great off-the-dribble shooter, and as a get-to-the-rim-whenever-I-damn-please threat. Though not great for a point guard, he’s an above average passer. His basketball IQ is what hurts him the most. Potential: 4

Brandon Jennings – 23 years old

More of a true point guard than most may realize. Jennings possesses every tool you’d want from a point guard other than height – a quick first step, an outside shot, a tendency to protect the ball, nice vision, good shooting mechanics, lateral quickness/great athleticism, and defensive ability. What he needs to work on is his efficiency and his commitment to defense, but, here’s a man with a great future. Potential: 12

Tyreke Evans – 22 years old

Evans is an interesting case. He was the only player other than Michael Jordan and Lebron James to put up a 20-5-5 statline during his rookie year. However, during that first year of his, his environment was ideal – he was allowed to be as ball-dominant as he wanted, and no one minded him taking shots first and facilitating second. However, with the addition of players such as Jimmer Freddette, Isaiah Thomas, the growth of Cousins – and his foot injury, of course – things haven’t gone so smoothly since. Evans doesn’t embody a player of any consistency thus far, but he does remain as an exceptional ballhandler in a big, strong body with a knack for getting to the hoop. He’s a decent passer, and has great lateral movement on defense with decent fundamentals and a nice knack for nabbing steals. Potential: 15

Jeremy Lin – 23 years old

The great: Founder of Linsanity. The good: Awesome at operating in the pick-and-roll, and possesses a very good eye for his teammates’ positioning. He’s deceptively quick (fastest in Knick tryout history), and has great ball handling, contrary to what his TO averages suggest. He possesses a good jumpshot with decent range. He grabs steals at a high rate. The bad: Lin is turnover prone, both in lack of awareness of the defense’s positioning and in carelessness with the ball. He also needs to get a better grasp of defensive fundamentals. Potential: 18 (B)

Stephen Curry – 24 years old

When conducting an all-time draft with friends, I drafted Curry to be in my starting five. Ask me if I have confidence in the guy. But I’ll have you know that he wasn’t there for his lateral movement on defense, or his true point guard skills. I did have him there for his otherwordly shooting (career 44.1% 3 point shooter), his ability to possess the ball and create when asked, and his crafty/hesitation-ridden offense that allows him to score at a nice clip. I hope his Fischer Price ankle gives him a break in the future, because this last season was hard to sit through. Potential: 19

Shooting Guards

James Harden – 22 years old

James Harden is bad at missing. His Finals performance left me a bit dumbfounded, simply because his usually great efficiency (66% TS in 2011-12) – and the fact that his misses all seemed to be about a half-inch off at most – support this idea of mine that he’s just an assassin. All in all, Harden’s  a peculiar fellow – the beard, the incredibly long arms that hide themselves, the intriguing demeanor. His game follows suit – he’s not who’d you’d expect to be an awesome ball player, but he’s great at both creating and finishing with contact, great at shooting, good at passing, and good at defense. Harden may not be cut out for being a great number one option, but he has the chance to go down as one of the elite perimeter players of his era. Potential: 10

Eric Gordon – 23 years old

Let’s take a brief moment to review this guy’s physical attributes: Draftexpress.com has Gordon listed at 6’2” with a 6’9” reach and weighing 222 pounds (wrecking ball). He bench presses 185 at least 15 times and boasts a 40-inch vertical. He runs the ¾ court sprint at a speed faster than Westbrook, Rose, and Lawson. He has the second fastest agility lane time I’ve ever seen during my time reviewing measurements. Now, when you see him on the court, his athleticism doesn’t stand out as much as you’d think. However, it’s clear we’re undderating him as an athlete. But ever since the Chris Paul trade? Overrating him as a player. He’s a good scorer, finisher, and has extended range on his jumpshot. A nice bonus is his unrelenting defense. However, we need to have problems with the fact that he’s a below-average rebounder and passer, both of which you need to be decent at to become an elite shooting guard in this league. Potential: 18 (B)

Evan Turner – 23 years old

May end up being the best rebounding shooting guard of his era. Puts forth much defensive effort and possesses great fundamentals on that end. Decent playmaker. Not the most athletic, and Collins doesn’t trust the idea of letting him dominate the ball yet, but if he can develop some range on his jumper, Turner can end up being a great all-around guard. Potential: 20 (B)

Marshon Brooks – 23 years old

The good: Confidence, smoothness, scoring ability, length, and defense activity. Good rebounder when inspired. The bad: Probably won’t become an elite all-around player, as he puts more effort into the only elite part of his game which is scoring the basketball; hasn’t displayed much ability to find and create for his teammates. Semi-reliant on the left-to right spin, which defenders may adjust to. Potential: 22

Small Forwards

Paul George – 22 years old

George played shooting guard in his earliest of days, but his unique body-sprouting ability suddenly pushed him up to a healthy 6’10”(Shaq had the modified horizontal version of this). George embodies a player with good all-around potential. He’s already a great defender, given his lateral quickness and long arms. He’s very athletic and a serious threat in transition, and also acts a steady 3-point threat. He’s never going to be very ball-dominant or a great ball-handler, but his passing seems to have made progress since his first season.  Potential: 17

Kevin Durant – 23 years old

Will go down as both an all-time scorer and an all-time shooter. Completely dismantled team after team in the 2012 Olympics with catch-and-shoot­ing ­alone. Incredible scorer and one of the league’s best athletes. He has great length which allows for good rebounding ability and a nice defensive presence. Not the best passer (expect improvement here) or one-one-one defender, quite turnover prone, and not 7’0” – or even close, like everyone keeps saying – but Kevin Durant is truly one of the league’s most elite despite his supreme youthfulness. Potential: 1

Kawhi Leonard – 21 years old

I don’t hesitate to call Kawhi my favorite player on this list. He was one of the highest IQ players (not to mention, one of the best) on the San Antonio Spurs last season – a highly-monitored, super-intelligent team-oriented basketball club. He was also born in 1991. Yes, now you’re starting to realize how awesome this guy is. He has hands the size of bird-eating tarantulas. While athletic, he’s nowhere near the most athletic at his position nor amongst other youngsters (32 inch vertical), yet he gets to the rim and grabs rebounds with the best of them. Kawhi embodies a player with a great all-around game, with defense coming first, passing coming second, and situational scoring coming third. He’s not going to take over games with scoring, but he’s going to greatly impact the game in many ways. Potential: 8

Chandler Parsons – 23 years old

I like to think of Chandler Parsons as a poor man’s Larry Bird in the making. He’s not extremely athletic, but he has great size (a near 6’10 SF), possesses a high basketball IQ, superior coordination, good rebounding instincts, and nice playmaking abilities.  Though he’s efficient, he’ll never quite the scorer one would hope for; however, his defense is already above average. Lastly, Parson’s shot needs improvement – he currently isn’t much of a threat from outside. Rank Potential: 23

Gordan Hayward – 22 years old

This nice boy is already a solid shooter, a smart playmaker, unselfish, and a decent defender. He’s not the most athletic, but has good size and determination to make up for his shortcomings (thinking defensively, here). More rebounding is desired at this point. Potential: 16

Nicholas Batum – 23 years old

I tend to forget about Batum, and part of it is likely due to his playstyle. He’ll play within the offense, periodically running off screens and spotting up from 3 land (converts here at a very high rate). Batum has a bit to work on if he’s to become a decent rebounder (timing and motivation), and his complete lack of a back-to-the-basket game also leaves something to be desired. But with his defensive ability, unselfish nature, great athleticism, high IQ, and stellar shooting, he makes the list. Potential: 26 (B)

Danilo Gallinari – 24 years old

I remember…

Gallinari is just extremely solid. He’ll never be the best at anything but he possesses absolutely everything you want from your perimeter player – great size, nice scoring, great mechanics, stellar fundamentals on both ends, good passing, even (many would point to his early assist numbers but he just wasn’t asked to create much in Denver and took on the primary role of a scorer). He has the tendency to get outmuscled on the defensive end and on the glass, but these things do not equate to large holes. Potential: 13

Power Forwards

Blake Griffin – 23 years old

Incredible athleticism. Great rebounding instincts and drive. Great transition player. Mediocre post player. Streaky, unreliable jumpshot. Poor defensive player (which should change). Hard worker. I’m afraid if I say more, bad things will happen. Potential: 9

Kevin Love – 23 years old

No one could have predicted that Love would be the player that he is by now. Love is already a great second option on any team, the best true rebounder in this league, a high IQ player, and a great shooter. How many times has the league’s best rebounder won the three point competition? Love needs to improve his defense; he doesn’t have great lateral movement or ball-stopping ability, although, he is starting to probe with his hands a little bit more. If he develops further develops this alongside a more solid post game, he has a chance to become a top 3 player in the league. Sidenote: Against the Kings early on in the 2011-12 season, Minnesota’s commentator pointed out that the Timberwolves were 3-27 during games wihout Kevin Love. Now that’s value. Potential: 2

Kenneth Faried – 22 years old

I like to think of Faried as a smaller version of Varejao with more athleticism. Faried will grab all the loose balls, set screens, cut sharply, and rebound ferociously. He understands how to stick to his game and score opportunistically. His two weak points: 1) he hasn’t developed a jumpshot yet and 2) though he gets some steals and blocks, at this point, his defensive positioning and instincts leave much to be desired. Potential: 18

Serge Ibaka – 22 years old

Not on my watch. How many times would we have to hear that if Mark Jackson still covered Thunder games over the next 5 years? With great athleticism in a big body and a knack for timing jumps well, Ibaka will likely retire as one of the best shotblockers the game has ever seen. He will also likely retire as the worst shooter ever to hit 10 jumpers in a row in a pivotal ECF game. Ibaka possesses a decent jumpshot for a big man, but with essentially no go-to move in the post, he’s quite average offensively. Though overrated defensively (his man-to-man defense is only average, and he falls for pump fakes every time) his great shotblocking and desirable rebounding tags him for a rarity in today’s league. Potential: 21

Derrick Williams – 21 years old

The good: Derrick Williams seems to know his strengths – of which, are, post-ups, cuts, and rolling off of picks. He displays solid fundamentals on both ends. The bad: Williams tries to do too much at times. His jumpshot isn’t great. His limited size moved him down from a solid four in college to a three/four in the NBA, and he’s yet to exhibit the ability to guard the quicker perimeter players. Potential: 19

Derrick Favors – 21 years old

With Favors, one word comes to mind: solid. He’s got a strong body. Great rebounder. Fundamentally sound on both ends. Good shooting touch. Favors isn’t completely comfortable yet, especially when relied upon to create, but he has all the tools to be a great player down the line. Potential: 14

Centers

DeMarcus Cousins – 22 years old

The good: Nice shooting touch, especially for a man of his size. Very strong. Desirable rebounding instincts. Great length. Able to both drive and post-up as well as shoot the jumper. The bad: Tendency to get frustrated and foul. Inefficient scorer at this point. Not a great defender. Horrible attitude, which in two short years, has already creating problems amongst teammates and coaching staff. Potential: 11

Greg Monroe – 22 years old

Monroe has good footwork and size with a soft touch for a big man. A huge bonus is his passing ability, too. What I want to see from him is better effort on defense and more rim protection, and despite his nice numbers, I want to see him go after the boards more (he has a tendency to not pursue). Here’s an up-and-coming center that will have several clubs drooling at the mouth very soon. Potential: 6

Andrew Bynum – 24 years old

You’re thinking it’s weird that Bynum is on the list and that’s he’s been in the league so many years. He’s only 24, and yet, we know all about his nice offensive arsenal, great length, good rebounding, nice fundamentals, defensive ability … and his childish antics. You’d hope for better passing ability and comfort in ball-handling, but still, Bynum has the tools to become the best center in the league. That is if his attitude and thus-far uncooperative body allow him to become so. Potential: 7

Javale McGee – 24 years old

Limited IQ elderly ninja-prancers make these lists? Yes, yes they do. Despite his odd affinity for back hunching and tiptoeing around with his giant frame, McGee possesses physical tools that few people in the world do. He’s very tall with an extremely long reach, a high vertical jump, and good agility. He’s also displayed the ability to perform jump hooks, rebound and block shots at an alarming rate, and put together some nice moves in the post. What he doesn’t have is the basketball IQ, reliable post defense, or any sort of consistency yet. Potential: 24

Enes Kanter – 20 years old

This is my most risky pick; this is based on projection and a bit of hope more than it is based on what output we’ve seen at an NBA level. He gets my pick because, as a big man, he’s got all the great physical traits alongside a nice feel for the game. What works against him is 1) his passing and 2) his post defense and rim protection, although he does have nice lateral movement and activity. His offensive rebounding, nice shooting touch,  and desire to impact the game may swayed me.  Potential: 28

Review

1. Kevin Durant

2. Kevin Love

3. Kyrie Irving / Ricky Rubio

4. Russell Westbrook

5. John Wall / Derrick Rose

6. Greg Monroe

7. Andrew Bynum

8. Kawhi Leonard

9. Blake Griffin

10. James Harden

11. DeMarcus Cousins

12. Brandon Jennings

13. Danilo Gallinari

14. Derrick Favors

15. Tyreke Evans

16. Gordon Hayward

17. Paul George

18. Eric Gordon (A)

18. Jeremy Lin (B)

19. Stephen Curry

20. Ty Lawson (A)

20. Evan Turner (B)

21. Serge Ibaka

22. Marshon Brooks

23. Chandler Parsons

24. Javale McGee

25. Derrick Williams

26. Kenneth Faried (A)

26. Nicolas Batum (B)

27. Avery Bradley

28. Enes Kanter

Just missed the cut: Michael Beasley, Isaiah Thomas, J.J. Hickson, Iman Shumpert, Thaddeus Young, and Klay Thompson.

I became inspired to write this article when I heard it for the 109th time: defensive rebounds are a huge part of defense. At that exact moment, I was in the midst of discussing the overall abilities of Paul Millsap and Blake Griffin with a friend of mine. We had just agreed that ultimately, Griffin is the better offensive player. I made a comment regarding Griffin’s abysmal defense, and then my friend went on to point out his defensive rebounding. Defensive rebounds are a huge part of defense. It was brought up in a way as if his defensive contributions outside of his defensive rebounding weren’t of great concern; apparently it was okay to take a great offensive player, and as long as he grabbed a few defensive rebounds per game, he could get to tying his shoes every time the opposition had the ball.

He’d still be a great player, man.

SMH. Facepalm. Captain Jack. Wait, what?

I decided to finally let statistics speak to the worth of defensive rebounding and investigate how much plain ‘ole man-to-man, help defense, and rim protection mean on their own.

The First Step

We must attempt out how much a defensive rebound means in terms of points. Points are precisely what we care about because that’s how games are won and lost.

Looking at 9 prominent statisticians and the values they assign to different NBA statistics, we get an average of 0.783 points per defensive rebound. These 9 individuals include: Martin Manley (Manley’s Credits), Joshua Trupin and Gerald Secor Couzens (Hoopstat Grade), Doug Steele (Steele Value), Bob Bellotti (Bellotti Points Created), David Claerbaut (Claerbaut Quality Points), The Mays Consulting Group (Mays Magic Metric), Joe Schaller (Schaller TPR), and John Hollinger (PER). Amongst these statisticians, there was a low assigned value of 0.35 points (Hollinger) and a high value of 1 point.

Now, when we think of a real-time basketball game, certainly not every defensive rebound is going to be worth the same amount of points. If four uncovered offensive players are sitting idly beside the hoop and a defensive player swoops in to snatch away a potentially easy scoring opportunity, this means more than grabbing a botched jumpshot miss that would have gone to any member of the defensive team. However, we can acknowledge that the value we are accepting and identifying, 0.783 points per defensive rebound, is an approximation. Over time, and especially over a season and a career, that approximation appears to be more and more accurate.

So with this information, we want to look at how many rebounds people pull down and how that translates to points in games. In 2011-12, Dwight Howard had the highest amount of defensive rebounds per 36 minutes (and by a large margin), being 10.2. So if you’re Mr. Dwighty Poo, your defensive rebounds get your team 7.98 points (10.2 x 0.783) over the course of 36 minutes when you’ve got an average defense surrounding you – just under four two-point baskets.

Putting Into Perspective

Now – what if you’re not the best defensive rebounder in the world? Thanks to Hoopdata.com, I was able to determine the average defensive rebounds per game, which comes out to be 2.9 defensive rebounds. Since the average player plays 22 minutes per game, we adjust for the per 36 minute average and come up with 4.48 defensive rebounds per 36 minutes. At 0.783 points per defensive rebound, that comes out to be 3.50 produced points in favor of the average player’s team. A little under two baskets.

So we know that the world’s best defensive rebounder is helping his teams defense to the tune of about four baskets, and the average player’s defensive rebounding is helping his defense to the tune of about a basket and three fourths. Interesting.

Now, what we want to know is how much defensive rebounding is contributing to defenses in a way that can be prepared amongst players. Defensive rebounds bring value, but that doesn’t mean that everyone doesn’t get them. Gauging the worth of those points is where we can begin to better understand the worth of rebounding.

We can tackle this by doing a simple comparison. Everyone gets rebounds, so we just want to find out how much more or less players are contributing via their defensive rebounding output. The average player snags 4.48 defensive rebounds per 36 minutes, or 3.5 points. Dwight grabs 10.2 rebounds, or 7.98 points.  Therefore, Dwight’s rebounding helps his team by an approximation of 4.48 points – or two and a half baskets – more than the average rebounder. A good rebounder – say, Pau Gasol – grabs 7.3 rebounds per 36 minutes, which comes out to 5.71 points. This means he helps his team by contributing an extra basket (2.21 points).

Hmm. Just a basket or two? This gives us a pretty good idea about “worth”, and now, defensive rebounding doesn’t seem incredibly meaningful to overall defense at this point.

We can confirm this by putting it in perspective: much like everyone grabs defensive rebounds, every player contributes something defensively. But defensive ability and effort affect the game to a great degree. If a player chooses to not rebound, his teammates can still grab the ball. It can make essentially no difference on the game. If one refuses to play defense at the NBA level, his team has absolutely no chance of competing (see: 2012 Olympics United States versus Nigeria).

Putting It All Together

Bowen has proven that you don’t need to rebound to be a good defender. Just proficient in Muy Thai

Rebounding completely aside, take a moment to review how much defense potentially affects the point totals of the other team. Man to man defense. Help defense. Rim protection. With defense itself, there’s no statistic to determine exactly how much an individual player contributes (or doesn’t contribute). But take an average player: if he eases up on one possession and lets his player go by him for the layup, he’s already negated all his contributions from defensive rebounding. In one defensive possession. Take a dominant defensive player – ideally, one who is a complete pest to the ballhandler, gets a number of steals and hounds the passing lanes, changes shots and protects the rim, rotates crisply and helps his teammates – and think about how much they might contribute in terms of “points” over the course of a basketball game. The effect that this has points wise is incalculable, but can all acknowledge one thing: it far surpasses one – or two and a half – converted baskets by the other team.

There’s no doubt that defensive rebounding can indeed drive a player or team to succeed. As an NBA player, having good defensive rebounders around you is always a plus. But when we’re talking about pure impact on defense, let’s not overstate things. You play good defense by playing good defense, not by securing a few missed shots over the course of a game.

First, Kobe: “It’d be a tough one, but I think we’d pull it out.”

Second, Charles: “Other than Kobe, LeBron (James) and Kevin Durant, I don’t think anybody else on that team makes our team.”

Third, Michael: “I absolutely laughed” (at the idea of this year’s team winning).

Lastly, Lebron: “What do want me to say? That we would lose?”

Let’s look into this.

’92 Dream Team:

Laettner (93) – 18.8 PTS / 9.0 REB / 2.8 AST / 1.3 STL / 1.1 BLK / 56.4 TS% / 17.3 PER
Robinson  – 22.2 PTS / 11.6 REB / 2.5 AST / 2.2 STL / 4.3 BLK / 59.7 TS% / 27.5 PER
Ewing – 23.5 PTS / 10.5 REB / 1.8 AST / 1.0 STL / 2.8 BLK  /  56.3 TS% / 22.8 PER
Bird – 19.7 PTS / 9.4 REB / 6.6 AST / 0.9 STL / 0.7 BLK / 54.7 TS% / 21.0 PER
Pippen – 19.6 PTS / 7.2 REB / 6.5 AST / 1.8 STL / 1.1 BLK / 55.5 TS%/ 21.5 PER
Jordan – 27.9 PTS / 5.9 REB / 5.7 AST / 2.1 STL / 0.9 BLK / 57.9 TS%/ 27.7 PER
Malone – 26.8 PTS / 10.7 REB / 2.8 AST / 1.3 STL / 0.6 BLK / 59.9 TS%/ 25.4 PER
Stockton – 15.6 PTS / 3.2 REB / 13.5 AST / 2.9 STL / 0.3 BLK / 59.0 TS%/ 22.8 PER
Mullin – 22.3 PTS / 4.8 REB / 3.1 AST / 1.9 STL / 0.7 BLK / 58.6 TS%/ 19.9 PER
Barkley – 21.6 PTS / 10.4 REB / 3.8 AST / 1.7 STL / 0.5 BLK / 61.2 TS%/ 24.5 PER
Magic (91) – 18.8 PTS / 6.8 REB / 12.1 AST / 1.3 STL / 0.2 BLK / 62.3 TS%/ 25.1 PER
Clyde – 24.9 PTS / 6.5 REB / 6.7 AST / 1.8 STL / 0.9 BLK / 56.0 TS%/ 23.6 PER

’92 PER 36 Average: 21.8 PTS / 8.0 REB / 5.7 AST / 1.7 STL / 1.2 BLK / 58.1 TS% / 23.3 PER

2012 Olympic Team:

Paul – 19.6 PTS / 3.5 REB / 9.0 AST / 2.5 STL / 0.1 BLK / 58.1 TS% / 27.0 PER
Lebron – 26.0 PTS / 7.6 REB / 6.0 AST / 1.8 STL / 0.8 BLK / 60.5 TS% / 30.7 PER
Kobe – 26.1 PTS / 5.0 REB / 4.3 AST / 1.1 STL / 0.3 BLK / 52.7 TS% / 21.9 PER
Love – 24.0 PTS / 12.3 REB / 1.9 AST / 0.8 STL / 0.5 BLK / 56.8 TS% / 25.4 PER
Chandler – 12.2 PTS / 10.7 REB / 1.0 AST / 1.0 STL / 1.6 BLK / 70.8 TS% / 18.7 PER
Iggy – 12.6 PTS / 6.2 REB / 5.5 AST / 1.7 STL / 0.5 BLK / 53.7 TS% / 17.6 PER
Melo – 23.9 PTS / 6.6 REB / 3.8 AST / 1.2 STL / 0.5 BLK / 52.5 TS% / 21.1 PER
Westbrook – 24.1 PTS / 4.6 REB / 5.6 AST / 1.7 STL / 0.3 BLK / 53.8 TS% / 22.9 PER
Durant – 26.2 PTS / 7.5 REB / 3.3 AST / 1.2 STL / 1.1 BLK / 61.0 TS% / 26.2 PER
Harden – 19.3 PTS / 4.7 REB / 4.2 AST / 1.1 STL / 0.3 BLK / 66.0 TS% / 21.1 PER
Griffin – 20.6 PTS / 10.8 REB / 3.2 AST / 0.8 STL / 0.7 BLK / 55.7 TS% / 23.4 PER
Williams – 20.8 PTS / 3.3 REB / 8.7 AST / 1.2 STL / 0.4 BLK / 52.7 TS% / 20.3 PER

’12 PER 36 Average: 21.3 PTS / 6.9 REB / 4.7 AST / 1.3 STL / 0.6 BLK / 57.9 TS% / 23.0 PER

’92 PER 36 Average: 21.8 PTS / 8.0 REB / 5.7 AST / 1.7 STL / 1.2 BLK / 58.1 TS% / 23.3 PER

Intangibles/Outside the Statsheet

Perimeter Defense: ’92 Dream Team

Two of the best defenders of all-time in Pippen and Jordan, and both in their primes. Lebron and Iggy are also incredible, but Kobe is old, and Melo’s consistency can’t be trusted.

Post Defense: ’92 Dream Team

Tyson Chandler is the only real post defender for ’12, and both his one-on-one and team defense is outshined by the likes of Ewing and Robinson. Barkley wasn’t a good defender, but Blake is worse, and Barkley can swap out for a great defender in Malone.

Perimeter Scoring: ’12 USA Olympic Team

Melo, Durant, Kobe, and Lebron comprise an incredibly talented scoring group that’s a difficult stop no matter who you are. But what puts ’12 over the edge here is the fact that their point guards have such great scoring ability. Westbrook/Paul have a pretty big scoring advantage when pitted against Stockton.

Post Play: ’92 Dream Team

This is pretty easy. Charles Barkley and Karl Malone wouldn’t be rivaled by Blake, and Robinson and Ewing would require Tyson to expend all his energy in containing them. There’s too much offensive talent and physicality at these positions for ’12 to handle.

Teamwork: ’92 Dream Team

The two best passers of all-time in Stockton and Magic. Neither team has great passing from their centers. Lebron and Bird can be called a wash, but ’92 has the passing advantage in almost every matchup.

Versatility: ’92 Dream Team

The Dream Team has the capability to put in a unit of Stockton-Jordan-Pippen-Malone-Ewing and be absolutely brutal defensively. They can run Magic-Jordan-Pippen-Barkley-Robinson as a pinpoint-passing fast break nightmare. A more methodical, sharpshooting unit of Stockton-Mullin-Pippen-Malone-Ewing could also be a nice possibility.

2012’s team has the capability to put in Westbrook-Durant-Lebron-Griffin-Chandler and be a great fast break team … but not as good. Perhaps Westbrook-Iggy-Durant-Lebron-Griffin could match ‘92, but then they’re giving up important size and scoring ability. It just comes down to 1992 having better versions of super-offensive and super-defensive teams, and they have fewer holes.

Achilles Heels:

2012 Team – Post defense, post scoring, and inexperience
Dream Team – Larry Bird’s back?

Experience (Age):

’92 Dream Team – 29.0 Years Old
’12 Olympic Team – 25.8 Years Old

Review

The ’92 Dream Team was better in every statistical category, despite the fact that Laettner hurt them (and let’s be realistic, he wouldn’t play one minute if these teams went head to head). This was also during a time when defenses were arguably harder to score on (more physicality allowed, the existence of handchecking). Basketball was at its highest point, and these players were the best of the best.

In areas unseen on the statsheet – from teamwork to experience to post defense – the ’12 Olympic team still doesn’t hold a candle to the Dream Team. I admire Kobe’s passion and confidence, and Lebron’s reaction to previous comments was understandable as well, but these guys aren’t fully aware of what they’d be up against. Only if this year’s team contained every one of the league’s best players – while healthy – would I give them a chance to contend with the best team *ever assembled* in sports.

This last offseason, Kobe Bryant and the Lakers lucked out. Again. Another high-level player is on the way, and once more, they seem to be quite relevant in the title chase.

It got me thinking. Just how fortunate have Laker fans and players been? You begin to realize that those directly involved in LA basketball have always had it made: sunny weather, celebrities, glorified lifestyles, a history of winning, a good reputation, and lastly … money. Most important to this conversation is that, exactly – they’ve historically had a big market and thus been able to outbid other teams for wanted players. As a result, they also have follow-up players who want to come play.

Kobe Bryant was blessed to have been plopped onto a talented Laker team as a youngster, and he never looked back. I’ve come to the conclusion that to call him “lucky” to be playing in Los Angeles his entire career would be an understatement.

Now – there are, of course, different types of luck. We could apply the “what if he never got hurt?” “what if they played that team instead?” and “what if the refs called that differently?” questions to just about any franchise/player over the years. But what interested me was to take a notable player – Kobe Bryant – and investigate teammate talent/surroundings and briefly compare him with others. Let’s take a look. 

Kobe’s Teammates’ Abilities

As Seen in All-Star Selections

While playing with Bryant:

Shaquille O’Neal, Pau Gasol, Eddie Jones, Andrew Bynum, Nick Van Exel, (Steve Nash).

At one point:

Glen Rice, Mitch Richmond, Ron Artest, Horace Grant, Karl Malone, Gary Payton, Caron Butler, A.C. Green, Cedric Ceballos, Theo Ratliff, Dennis Rodman, Vlade Divac, (Steve Nash).

Please note: Ceballos, Rodman, Richmond, and Divac did not play significant minutes (but we’re still not free to say that playing with those all-stars had no impact on Kobe or the team). Altogether, 18 teammates of Bryant’s have been All-Stars at least one point in their career. And he’s still going strong. How does this compare to other greats? Let’s take a look at a handful of players frequently involved in player comparisons to Kobe Bryant:

Tim Duncan: Elliot, Robinson, Ginobili, Parker, Porter, Robinson, Van Exel. Total: 7

Magic Johnson: Worthy, Green, Divac, Jabbar, McAdoo, Wilkes, Nixon, Haywood. Total: 8

*Note: Magic had a very talented core stick with him for many years.

Michael Jordan: Oakley, Pippen, Rodman, Gervin, Gilmore, Grant, Cartwright, Armstrong, Laettner (Wizards). Total: 8

Lebron James: Ilgauskas, Boozer, Szcerbiak, Shaq, Williams, Jamison, Bosh, Wade, (Allen). Total: 9

John Stockton: Eaton, Dantley, Drew, Tripucka, Malone, Hornacek, Malone, Jackson, Kirilenko. Total: 9

Larry Bird: Maravich, Archibald, McHale, Parish, Ainge, Johnson, Walton, Paxson, Gilmore, Reggie Lewis. Total: 10

Drexler: Natt, Vandeweghe, Johnson, Duckworth, Robinson, Porter, Williams, Thorpe, Hakeem, Charles, Willis. Total: 11

Hakeem Olajuwon: Sampson, Floyd, Carroll, Free, Thorpe, Cassell, Drexler, Willis, Pippen, Barkley, Davis. Total: 11

*Note: Olajuwon was the least fortunate player on this list – this doesn’t fully represent his misfortunes.

Dwyane Wade: Jones, Shaq, Odom, Payton, Mourning, Smith, Walker, Marion, O’Neal, Lebron, Bosh (Allen). Total: 12

Charles Barkley: Cheeks, Jones, Toney, Erving, Malone, Pippen, Olajuwon, Hawkins, Green, Majerle, Chambers, Johnson, Green, Manning, Drexler, Willis, Francis. Total: 17

*Note: While with Charles, few of these all-stars played at elite levels.

Moses Malone: Tomjonavich, Murphy, Johnson, Barry, Paultz, Hayes, Toney, Cheeks, Erving, Jones, Adams, King, Malone, Wilkins, Rivers, Theus, Moncrief, Ellis, Robertson, Barros, Robinson, Cummings. Total: 22

*Note: Abnormally long career.

If Howard for Bynum happens, Kobe goes down as *the luckiest* notable player ever

Moses had a lot of talent next to him over his long career. But clearly, aside from him and Barkley, Bryant has quite an edge on many of his “legacy peers”. Charles Barkley had many all-star teammates, but due to their playing style, age, and injuries, his all-star teammates were never really able to carry him – Erving, Toney, Olajuwon, Drexler all retired shortly after playing with Charles. With Kobe Bryant, it’s been a different story (see: Shaquille O’Neal (2000-2004), Pau Gasol (2008-2012), Lamar Odom (2005-2009), Andrew Bynum (2009~), Steve Nash (2012~). Speaking of which …

Core Talent and Stability

Notable Kobe-containing Laker Cores:

1) Derek Fisher, Kobe Bryant, Rick Fox, Robert Horry, Shaquille O’Neal

2) Derek Fisher, Kobe Bryant, Ron Artest, Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum. Sixth: Lamar Odom

3) Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant, Ron Artest, Pau Gasol, Andrew Bynum

Recap: Prime Shaq/top three player? Check. Prime Bynum/top fifteen player? Check. Prime Pau/top fifteen player? Check. Prime Odom/Sixth Man of the Year, check. Stability in having teammates and a coach last throughout the years, check. Top defenders, check. Key role players, check. One of the greatest point guards ever and the greatest shooter ever, check. Now we’re starting to see how great the situations Bryant has been part of over these years.

As Seen In Valuable Role Players

During many of Kobe’s Laker years, he had crucial help from role players. Robert Horry and Derek Fisher are universally regarded as some of the best shotmakers in the game’s history; their precision is evident in merely reviewing a handful of big playoff games these two sealed by themselves. The presence of both Gary Payton, Ron Artest, and Ariza – all great defenders – allowed for Kobe to both roam defensively and save valuable energy for offense.

The Lakers had stellar three point shooting seasons (over 38% 3P FG and 3.5 3PA/G) from players including: Sasha Vujacic, Vladimir Radmonovic, Robert Horry, Derek Fisher, Lamar Odom, Rick Fox, Eddie Jones, Chucky Atkins, and Nick Van Exel. Glen Rice’s stability as a scorer saved Bryant a lot of trouble and attention from their defense in his early years. Everybody gets help from role players, but with some greats, role players are all they get. Kobe Bryant has had both stars and capable role players at his side. In analyzing Kobe’s legacy – and in gauging Kobe’s individual worth – this is especially important to recognize.

LAL: “What’s Rebuilding?”

The worst Kobe ever saw the Lakers was during 2004-05 when they were seven games under .500 and missed the playoffs. This didn’t last long, as they made the playoffs the next year, and then Pau was gift-wrapped to LA a couple years later. The Lakers have essentially been able to avoid the process of rebuilding altogether. Not many franchises have had this luxury (BOS with Bird, LAL with Magic are two exceptions). 

Coach

For the vast majority of his career, Kobe had one of the best coaches of all-time – if not the best – running his team. Phil Jackson was a master of the triangle offense (which benefited Kobe tremendously) in addition to being a great defensive coach. This alone was fortunate for Kobe, but we aren’t even factoring in the fact that if under any other coach who wasn’t such a genius at managing egos, Kobe could have spontaneously combusted. With ease.

Level of Play Without Kobe

Kobe is an all-time great and obviously important to his team. But how have the Lakers fared without his presence?

In every game since the start of Kobe’s career, the Lakers have put up an outstanding 833-431 (65.90%) record, accompanied by stellar 108.89 offensive and 104.42 defensive ratings (the league average being 105.38 for both at the time). Strictly in games without Kobe, the Lakers still managed a 65-39 record, with offensive and defensive ratings of 107.4 and 106.0 respectively (Kobe actually took a fair amount of games off during periods when his team was weak, and thus, his absence hurt them more during those games). His importance is clear, but the Kobe-less Lakers put up very good numbers throughout his career which definitely speaks to their talent. 

Where Does Kobe Fit In?

With all of this, we must ask: Where exactly does Kobe Bryant fit in?

Placing him exactly is tough, as it depends on what you value and look for in players, and how much you value individual accolades and championships. But it is my belief that he belongs somewhere between 12 and 16 if emphasizing ‘legacy’ and somewhere between 23 and 27 if looking purely at what he brought to the table (relative to time period). In either case, if you’re recognizing the facts gone over above, there’s really no way that Kobe Bryant logically enters the top 10 discussion. However, he’s also unarguably the second or third best shooting guard ever – clearly an enormous accomplishment.

As for shooting guards battling for second place, you’d take Dwayne Wade over Kobe Bryant if given a crummy team and needed one of them to carry me to victory. You’d take Bryant on a team like the 2012-13 Lakers, seeing as the post area is occupied and Kobe does a little better job of perimeter scoring. Prime player-wise and teammate-wise? Wade. Legacy-wise and longevity-wise? Kobe. Overall, it’s a toss-up.

Kobe: a top two guard ever, one of the best competitors, one of the most talented players of all-time? Absolutely. And the luckiest notable player ever? It’s hard to say for sure when considering teammate stability of Magic, Bird, and Kareem. But he’s right up there, and easily the luckiest perimeter player of his era. By the time his career finishes, he can easily become the luckiest notable player of all-time.

Let’s not forget about how much pure luck can influence a player’s career and legacy. Kobe, always being hailed, is a walking reminder of this.