Greatest player - really

[BktBallRef]

Originally posted by fletch_irwin_m
If I had the number one pick I would take any of the following:
Wilt
Russel
Bird
Maravich
Oscar
Jordan (although I can't stand him@!)
Lambeer (just because he is my all time favorite player, just ahead of Adrian Dantley.)
Magic

Well, we're even, because Bill Lambier was nothing more than a thug.

[RecRef]

Originally posted by A Pennsylvania Coach
First you have to define "greatest player". That's at the heart of all these debates.

And what category do we put Maravich in?

I was a year behind Maravich at LSU plus I attended a number of New Orleans Jazz games when he was there. All that I can say is that the things he could do with a basketball were beyond description. If he would have had the teams behind him, like MJ did with the Bulls, there is no doubt in my mind that he would be considered the best there ever was.

[wizard]

Originally posted by BktBallRef

Well, we're even, because Bill Lambier was nothing more than a thug.

I don't even consider Lambeer ia basketball player. Now, Dantley was a different matter. He could play. And how did Digger never will it all? He had some players in South Bend.

[Mark Padgett]

Here's why it's George Mikan. I feel the only fair way to compare players of different eras is to look at how they rated against the other players of their day. The gap between Mikan and the 2nd best and other players of his era was much wider than the gap between any other "best" player (Michael included) and the 2nd best and other players of their era.

It was because of Mikan that the NBA put in the goaltending rule and widened the lane - not Wilt. His nickname was "Unstoppable". To make a comparison of how much better he was than anyone else who played then, you would have to compare Michael's talent to that of a reserve guard on a .500 ballclub. We all know there are better players than that that have played over the past decade.

Besides - the marquee at Madison Square Garden that read "Knicks vs. George Mikan Tonight" says it all.

[rockyroad]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by BktBallRef

Well, we're even, because Bill Lambier was nothing more than a thug.

Oh Tony, how could you say that??? A big, rather homely looking white guy, who couldn't jump,could barely run, and yet he was pivotal to Detroit's championship seasons! I loved Laimbeer!

Was he one of the best ever?? Of course not...but he was entertaining!!

[BktBallRef]

Originally posted by Mark Padgett
To make a comparison of how much better he was than anyone else who played then, you would have to compare Michael's talent to that of a reserve guard on a .500 ballclub. We all know there are better players than that that have played over the past decade.

If the players that he played against were not very good, why do you feel he he was so great? How can his greatness truly be measured?

IMHO, one of the most important aspects of how great a player a person is, is how did they compare to other great players that they played against. I don't know that being the greatest player of your time makes you the greatest ever if you never played other great players.

[som44]

Michael, in his prime, was one the only player who enticed me to watch the NBA. I think at lease in my life time he was the greatest

PS everyone seems to forget Jerrry West--not a bad ballplayer eiter

[ChuckElias]

Originally posted by BktBallRef

Well, we're even, because Bill Lambier was nothing more than a thug.

Another great "Cheers" moment. The Cheers gang has a basketball team and they're scheduled to play a rival bar's team. The other team wants to have Kevin McHale on its team, and the Cheers gang agrees b/c they have an X-ray of Kevin's foot, showing that it's broken. So they figure he can't really play, so let him be on the team. Well, Kevin shows up for the game and destroys the Cheers team. Later, back at Cheers, Kevin shows up and thanks the guys for being good sports. Sam shows Kevin the X-ray and asks how he could play on a broken foot. Kevin takes a good long look at the X-ray and says:

"It's not my foot. The small print says 'Gorilla'. [Laughing] Hey, maybe it's Lambier!"

Chuck

[oatmealqueen]

A little tidbit about Bill Laimbeer. (Long live the "Bad Boys"!!!)
He vacations and has relatives in my area of the state. (Same town as Dan Majerle is from) Those guys were something else from that Detroit Pistons era. Dennis Rodman was pretty normal for a while.
Any way, Laimbeer put on a softball tournament and golf outing each summer for muscular dystrophy, and made large donations from the proceeds. I got to participate and got to know him a little.
He "play acted" that "thug" thing pretty well. He was a very kind humanoid in real life.
He has a 6'2" daughter that plays for a highly respected high school in the Detroit area.
He was always my favorite "Bad Boy".

[canuckrefguy]

Originally posted by fletch_irwin_m
If I had the number one pick I would take any of the following:
Wilt
Russel
Bird
Maravich
Oscar
Jordan (although I can't stand him@!)
Lambeer (just because he is my all time favorite player, just ahead of Adrian Dantley.)
Magic

Laimbeer? I don't think so.

Jordan
Wilt
Russell
Bird
Oscar
Magic

[Woodee]

Originally posted by fletch_irwin_m
I heard Russell speak last year and he said that it is impossible to compare players of different era's. He talked about how he would have to stay in different hotels and eat in different restaurants then the white players. Imagine MJ having to do that? If you go with era's, it still isn't easy.
If I had the number one pick I would take any of the following:
Wilt
Russel
Bird
Maravich
Oscar
Jordan (although I can't stand him@!)
Lambeer (just because he is my all time favorite player, just ahead of Adrian Dantley.)
Magic

Can't stand Jordan!!
You are an undercover KNICK FAN!!!!!

I'm a big MJ fan, but watching him the past 2 years was like watching Ali vs Holmes. I'm happy its finally over.

[mick]

I shook hands with Bill Lambier in the Bradley Center parking lot.
...Very tall.

[BktBallRef]

Originally posted by mick
I shook hands with Bill Lambier in the Bradley Center parking lot.
...Very tall.

mick,
Very astute observation.

TH

[fletch_irwin_m]

Well, let's add this to the discussion:
WhatIF George Mikan had the access to the weight and training programs we have today? What if any of the players in the past had the same access to the tool of the trade now they didn't have then, athletic trainers, whirlpools, spas, chartered jets. How much better would they be?
BTW, for a ground bound white guy, remeber Lambeer won an NBA rebounding title! I will give Jordan the most OVER RATED player title. He is the opposite of Lambeer. Very personable in the spotlight but a louse of a person off the court. If you have lived in the chicago area, and I know there are some here, you found out a lot about the person, and it wasn't pretty. Although it was difficult to get alot of the dirt, what you got showed a different person from the Mars Blackmon commercials

[BktBallRef]

Originally posted by fletch_irwin_m
I will give Jordan the most OVER RATED player title.

Overrated? Now, even though I think Lambier was a thug, Ill give him that he was a strong rebounder and a pretty good outside shooter. At least you didn't deny that he was a thug. But Jordan, overrated? Yeah, right.