If every player was in their prime...

[Legacy]

Which team in the NBA would be the best? Kind of a confusing question, but could lead to an interesting discussion.

 

I was thinking of this during the Mavs/Spurs game. Thinking, wow, if Kidd and Marion were in their primes, this series would be intense.

 

So which team in the league would be the best if all their players were in their primes? I guess you can't count teams like the Thunder because most of their players haven't hit their primes yet, but just think of them and how they have played this season.

Edited April 26, 2010 by Legacy

[Cleveland's Finest]

Hate to be homer, but is it an option? Do I have a choice?

 

Shaq, LeBron, Jamison, Z (an all star in his prime), etc....all in their prime?

 

But for other answers I'd say Celtics, Spurs, Heat (JO in prime = Amare)

[ChosenOne]

Prime Shaq with Prime LeBron, everyone can just gtfo.

 

Second would be Celtics and third would be Dallas.

[Flash]

I'll say Celtics, Cavs, Spurs, Mavericks and maybe the Heat because a prime Wade, JO and Beasley's potential prime could be a 25 PPG player. Homer in me speaking lol.

[Legacy]

Celtics would be crazy. KG, Pierce, Allen, Finley, and Rasheed? Damn.

LeBron and Shaq as well. Kobe, and maybe Gasol?

[AboveLegit]

Rasheed, Pierce, Ray, Garnett, Rondo, Finley is an all star line up.

 

Hard to go against them. Remember, Finley was a 20PPG guy in his prime.

[Warren2ThaG]

Does Adam Morrison's college prime count? he was like Larry Bird

[YugoRocketsFan]

Cavaliers, Prime LeBron and Shaq alone is just nasty and beastly.

[ManOnTheMoon]

Cavs, Lakers, Celtics.

[kingfish]

Cavs obvies. But dont forget about Lakers, Kobe aint in his prime. 05-06 Kobe with this team would pwn.

 

Also Bynum aint in his prime yet but can we assume that Bynums prime = Shaqs prime? If so, Lakers.

[Check my Stats]

Number 8 Kobe on the Lakers would be sick, but LeBron and Shaq is the exact same as Shaq and Kobe and LeBron is probably better than Kobe was then.

[Sun Tzu]

Celtics - KG, Pierce, Allen, Rondo, Sheed... Ouch.

Cavs - LeBron, Shaq

 

Btw, Suns aren't too bad. Considering Grant Hill was going to be up with there with the likes of Kobe and others.

Edited April 26, 2010 by Sun Tzu

[Clutch]

orlando with a prime vince would be scary too

celtics for sure

and of course cavs

[NomarFachix]

Eddy Curry's prime was in high school. Looks like we lose.

[Real Deal]

1) Celtics (Garnett, Pierce, Allen, Sheed, Finley, Rondo)

 

2) Cavaliers (Shaq, LeBron, Jamison, Ilgauskas, Williams)

 

3) Lakers (Kobe, Gasol, Artest, Odom, Bynum, Fisher)

 

4) Mavericks (Dirk, Kidd, Terry, Marion, Butler)

 

4b) Spurs (Duncan, Parker, Ginobili, Jefferson, McDyess)

 

I actually think it's a tough call for the #2 and #3, honestly, because Artest was mean in his prime, and we all know how fierce Bryant was (hell, he was an MVP player this season, before injury), but I don't think anyone can topple a Boston team if they were all in their primes. Sheed was one of the best power forwards in the league when he wanted to be, Garnett is a top five power forward of all-time because of what he did in his prime, Allen is one of the greatest shooters ever, we know where Pierce ranks among the all-time Celtic players, and Finley was a mess for defenders in his prime.

[OldChili]

1) Celtics (Garnett, Pierce, Allen, Sheed, Finley, Rondo)

 

2) Cavaliers (Shaq, LeBron, Jamison, Ilgauskas, Williams)

 

3) Lakers (Kobe, Gasol, Artest, Odom, Bynum, Fisher)

 

4) Mavericks (Dirk, Kidd, Terry, Marion, Butler)

 

4b) Spurs (Duncan, Parker, Ginobili, Jefferson, McDyess)

 

I actually think it's a tough call for the #2 and #3, honestly, because Artest was mean in his prime, and we all know how fierce Bryant was (hell, he was an MVP player this season, before injury), but I don't think anyone can topple a Boston team if they were all in their primes. Sheed was one of the best power forwards in the league when he wanted to be, Garnett is a top five power forward of all-time because of what he did in his prime, Allen is one of the greatest shooters ever, we know where Pierce ranks among the all-time Celtic players, and Finley was a mess for defenders in his prime.

Good post, I would probably fit the Magic in there somewhere.

 

Nelson, Carter, Lewis, Howard, Williams

[Poe]

Yikes, that would make a heck of a scary league!

 

 

Looking over each team… Overall, I think it comes down to 6 teams. Here’s my order from least to greatest:

 

 

6. The San Antonio Spurs have already won a few championships with their core, and their starting five could have put them at the top. Unfortunately, their 6th best player ranks as a young sixth man that has yet to put up the numbers that would have otherwise ranked them higher.

 

Starting five in prime year:

Tony Parker - 23.4 PER (22.0 points, 6.9 assists, 3.1 rebounds)

Manu Ginobili - 24.3 PER (19.5 points, 4.5 assists, 4.8 rebounds)

Richard Jefferson - 18.9 PER (22.2 points, 7.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists)

Antonio McDyess - 22.0 PER (20.8 points, 12.1 rebounds, 1.5 blocks)

Tim Duncan - 27.0 PER (25.5 points, 12.7 rebounds, 2.5 blocks)

 

Sixth Man: George Hill - 14.7 PER (12.4 points, 2.9 assists, 0.9 steals)

 

 

5. The Los Angeles Lakers are definitely a great team with most of their players in their prime right now, but they drop lower due to Fisher's lack of talent in comparison to the point guards ahead of him, and keep in mind Bynum has yet to have a 20 ppg/10 rpg year even though he may be capable of it. Also the lack of a second superstar-level player that averages at least 25 points per game puts them a few spots lower.

Starting five in prime year:

Derek Fisher - 14.8 PER (13.3 points, 4.3 assists, 1.5 steals)

Kobe Bryant - 28.0 PER (35.4 points, 4.5 assists, 5.3 rebounds, 1.8 steals)

Ron Artest - 18.8 PER (20.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, 2.3 steals)

Pau Gasol - 24.1 PER (20.8 points, 9.8 rebounds, 2.1 blocks)

Andrew Bynum - 20.2 PER (15.0 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.4 blocks)

 

Sixth Man: Lamar Odom - 18.5 PER (17.1 points, 9.7 rebounds, 4.1 assists)

 

 

4. The Phoenix Suns could be a quiet consideration since people forget how good Grant Hill used to be, and his addition turns the legit duo of Nash and Amar'e that allowed the Suns to be in position to contend for years, to a legit trio that would certainly win it all against regular NBA teams. They could have possibly gone a few places higher on my list if it weren't for their obvious lack of talent at center.

 

Starting five in prime year:

Steve Nash - 23.8 PER (18.6 points, 11.6 assists, 3.5 rebounds)

Jason Richardson - 19.2 PER (23.2 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.1 assists)

Grant Hill - 24.5 PER (24.7 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.0 assists)

Amar’e Stoudemire - 27.6 PER (25.2 points, 9.1 rebounds, 2.1 blocks)

Robin Lopez - 17.6 PER (8.4 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.0 blocks)

 

Sixth Man: Leandro Barbosa -18.4 PER (18.1 points, 4.0 assists, 1.2 steals)

 

 

3. The Dallas Mavericks have a lot of smart and very solid all-around players in their line up. Every player is a scoring threat and a creator, including Haywood as a nice complimentary piece as a defensive specialist.

Starting five in prime year:

Jason Kidd - 22.5 PER (16.9 points, 10.8 assists, 6.8 Rebounds, 2.3 steals)

Caron Butler - 20.7 PER (20.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.9 assists, 2.2 steals)

Shawn Marion - 23.6 PER (21.8 points, 11.8 rebounds, 2.0 steals, 1.7 blocks)

Dirk Nowitzki - 28.1 PER (26.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, 1.0 blocks)

Brendan Haywood - 18.3 PER (10.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.7 blocks)

 

Sixth Man: Jason Terry - 19.3 PER (19.6 points, 3.4 assists, 1.3 steals)

 

 

2. The LeBron and Shaq superstar combo for the Cleveland Cavaliers is reminiscent to the Kobe and Shaq duo for the three-peat. They just barely come in second due to a slight lack in overall talent, but if they were to face the below Celtics squad in a 7 game ECF, that series would probably go either way.

 

Starting five in prime year:

Maurice Williams - 17.2 PER (17.8 points, 4.1 assists, 0.9 steals)

Anthony Parker - 14.5 PER (12.4 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.1 assists)

LeBron James - 31.7 PER (28.4 points, 7.6 rebounds, 7.2 assists)

Antawn Jamison - 20.3 PER (21.4 points, 10.2 rebounds, 1.3 steals)

Shaquille O'Neal - 30.6 PER (29.7 points, 13.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 3.0 blocks)

 

Sixth Man: Zydrunas Ilgauskas - 19.4 PER (17.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.9 blocks)

 

 

1. The Boston Celtics. Every single player here was an all star during his prime, and most of them led their teams into the playoffs respectively. Needless to say, they are number 1 on my list.

 

Starting five in prime year:

Rajon Rondo - 19.1 PER (13.7 points, 9.8 assists, 2.3 steals)

Ray Allen - 21.6 PER (26.4 points, 4.1 assists, 1.5 steals)

Paul Pierce - 23.6 PER (26.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.7 assists)

Rasheed Wallace - 20.9 PER (19.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.8 blocks)

Kevin Garnett - 29.4 PER (24.2 points, 13.9 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 2.2 blocks)

 

Sixth Man: Michael Finley - 19.2 PER (22.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.3 assists)

Edited April 26, 2010 by Poe

[ChosenOne]

Great work Poe, I would agree with that list I completly forgot about Sheed and how good he use to be.

[Poe]

BTW, my list is just using each players' best statistical year. I assumed future prime years didn't count (for players like Bynum, Rondo, Lopez, Hill, etc).

[Legacy]

Magic would be a top team too. Dwight, Vince, Rashard, and White Chocolate.

[alcstarheel]

Mavs and Spurs shouldn't be left out for sure.

 

Mavs with Kidd, Marion, Dirk and Spurs with RJ, Duncan, Parker, Ginobili, Parker, and McDyess.

 

This discussion really benefits the older teams of the league no doubt.

[Poe]

Magic would be a top team too. Dwight, Vince, Rashard, and White Chocolate.

 

I'm not so sure, but for the sake of discussion...

 

Jameer Nelson - 20.6 PER (16.7 points, 5.4 assists, 1.2 steals)

Vince Carter - 25.0 PER (27.6 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.5 steals)

Mickael Pietrus - 13.0 PER (11.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, 0.7 steals)

Rashard Lewis - 20.7 PER (22.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.1 steals)

Dwight Howard - 25.4 PER (20.6 points, 13.8 rebounds, 2.9 blocks)

 

Sixth Man: Jason Williams - 17.1 PER (14.8 points, 8.0 assists, 1.7 steals)

 

 

They have a serious lack of depth at SF, and Pietrus was the best choice out of any other SG, SF, or PF that I could have fitted in. Though VC and D12 are a deadly combination of offense and defense, they don't have the overall talent to really be mentioned IMO. And no, Carter + Howard does not equal LeBron + Shaq. If you add up the PER total, it doesn't come too close to the sixth place Spurs team. They are even outdone in every position except SG (by only a small amount), and sixth man.

 

Starting five in prime year:

Tony Parker - 23.4 PER (22.0 points, 6.9 assists, 3.1 rebounds)

Manu Ginobili - 24.3 PER (19.5 points, 4.5 assists, 4.8 rebounds)

Richard Jefferson - 18.9 PER (22.2 points, 7.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists)

Antonio McDyess - 22.0 PER (20.8 points, 12.1 rebounds, 1.5 blocks)

Tim Duncan - 27.0 PER (25.5 points, 12.7 rebounds, 2.5 blocks)

 

Sixth Man: George Hill - 14.7 PER (12.4 points, 2.9 assists, 0.9 steals)

 

 

And if I'm going to add a team just because of a big time duo, I might as well be a homer and add the Heat team, which is also outdone in everything except SG and sixth man comparing to the above Spurs team.

 

Carlos Arroyo - 16.8 PER (12.6 points, 5.0 assists, 0.9 steals)

Dwyane Wade - 30.4 PER (30.2 points, 7.5 assists, 2.2 steals, 1.3 blocks)

Quentin Richardson - 15.1 PER (17.2 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.0 steals)

Jermaine O'Neal - 22.9 PER (24.3 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.0 blocks)

Jamaal Magloire - 16.5 PER (13.6 points, 10.3 rebounds, 1.2 blocks)

 

Michael Beasley - 16.1 PER (14.8 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.0 steals)

 

 

Not trying to say your idea is dumb or anything lol, it does bring an interesting discussion. I'm just saying that I'm looking at overall talent, and neither of these teams add up enough.

Edited April 27, 2010 by Poe