Dallas Mavericks

GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) &mdash; Oscar Tshiebwe kept battling for position, pushing his way to daylight and grabbing seemingly every loose rebound with a rugged relentlessness.
No one was going to stop him, either.
When it was over, the two-time Associated Press All-American had turned in the best rebounding performance in the NCAA Tournament in nearly a half-century &mdash; and Kentucky was free to move past last year&rsquo;s one-and-done showing.
Tshiebwe pulled down 25 rebounds and Antonio Reeves scored 22 points, helping the Wildcats beat Providence 61-53 in Friday night&rsquo;s first round.
Tshiebwe&rsquo;s rebounding output represented the most in any tournament game since 1977. Eleven of his rebounds came on the offensive glass &mdash; a big factor in the sixth-seeded Wildcats (22-11) staying in control as both offenses grinded to a halt after halftime.
&ldquo;I told (my teammates), I said, &lsquo;This year we come in and fight, last year doesn&rsquo;t matter anymore,&rsquo;&rdquo; said Tshiebwe, who entered as the nation&rsquo;s leading rebounder at 13.1 per game.
The &ldquo;last year,&rdquo; of course, was the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/march-madness-saint-peters-upsets-kentucky-b0fdd8fbd0ea432a9b6150f0cd8e6b22" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shocking first-round exit against 15th-seeded Saint Peter&rsquo;s</a> that had hung over the program all season. Now the Wildcats are moving on to face the Montana State-Kansas State winner Sunday in the East Region.
&ldquo;Yeah, it was a big relief obviously,&rdquo; forward Jacob Toppin said.
When the horn sounded, guard Cason Wallace let out a scream before giving a chest bump to Reaves. And Tshiebwe soon emerged from a postgame TV interview by gleefully skipping his way off toward the locker room.
His rebounding total was the most in the tournament since Michigan&rsquo;s Phil Hubbard had 26 boards against Detroit Mercy in 1977.
Behind Tshiebwe, Kentucky finished with a 48-31 rebounding advantage, controlling the offensive glass (plus-10) and dominating in second-chance points for an 18-2 edge.
That was vital considering shots weren&rsquo;t falling; Kentucky shot 36.5% overall but just 7 of 28 (25%) after halftime.
Reeves hit five 3-pointers to lead the offense, while Toppin had his own big game with 18 points. Tshiebwe managed eight points, but he was still an indomitable force that the 11th-seeded Friars (21-12) just couldn&rsquo;t manage.
&ldquo;Sometimes you just have an &lsquo;it,&rsquo; a la Dennis Rodman, Ben Wallace,&rdquo; Providence coach Ed Cooley said. &ldquo;Those guys just have an &lsquo;it&rsquo; for it. Some guys have an &lsquo;it&rsquo; to score. Some people have an &lsquo;it&rsquo; to pass. He has an incredible &lsquo;it,&rsquo; an elite &lsquo;it&rsquo; to rebound.&rdquo;
Ed Croswell scored 16 points for Providence, which shot just 36.2% while making 5 of 24 3-pointers. The Friars matched the Wildcats&rsquo; second-half troubles, making just 8 of 27 shots (29.6%).
&ldquo;You can say you wish you could win this game and all that,&rdquo; Friars guard Jared Bynum said, &ldquo;but you have to embrace the moment at the end of it.&rdquo;
BIG PICTURE
Providence: The Friars have been to the NCAAs seven times in the past nine seasons under Cooley, including last year&rsquo;s Sweet 16 before falling to eventual champion Kansas. But they entered this game just 3-6 in NCAA games under Cooley.
Kentucky: The Wildcats got off to a successful though grinding start to March Madness &mdash; and that was good enough for coach John Calipari.
&ldquo;If in this tournament, winning is a relief, what the heck are you doing here?&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;This is joy.&rdquo;
KEY STRETCH
Tshiebwe came through in a tight game, starting with &mdash; what else? &mdash; his rebounding.
With Kentucky leading 50-46, he leapt to dunk home Wallace&rsquo;s missed drive. Minutes later, he came up with a steal, then an offensive rebound off his own miss before feeding Chris Livingston on the other side of the paint for the layup and a 54-46 lead with 2:43 left.
BUMPY REUNION
<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/march-madness-transfers-blake-hinson-bryce-hopkins-5bafaa08f771c7cb8e389f9fbe750213" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The game marked a reunion</a>&nbsp;between Providence star Bryce Hopkins and the Kentucky program he left behind. Hopkins came in averaging 16.1 points, but finished with just seven on 2-for-9 shooting in a tough night while being chased primarily by Toppin.
Hopkins fought back tears as he made his way through the postgame handshake line with Calipari and former teammates.
FULL STOP
The game&rsquo;s oddest moment&nbsp;came at the foul line.
With 8:36 left before halftime, Providence&rsquo;s Clifton Moore launched a free throw that hit the rim on the left side and rolled all the way around the inside of the rim before popping out and sitting on the back of the goal.
And then, it just stopped and stayed there.
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What are the odds? 😂<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MarchMadness?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MarchMadness</a> <a href="https://t.co/XGCiyy9pVd">pic.twitter.com/XGCiyy9pVd</a>
&mdash; NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) <a href="https://twitter.com/MarchMadnessMBB/status/1636875109322612738?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 17, 2023</a></blockquote>

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The 6-foot-9 Toppin stood next to an official under the net looking up at the ball, his hands on his hips, before jumping to tap it loose.
It went down as a miss. Moore made the second.
LOOK-INS
<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/no-16-fairleigh-dickinson-stuns-no-1-seed-purdue-in-march-madness" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The upset by 16th-seeded Fairleigh Dickinson against No. 1 seed Purdue</a>&nbsp;in Columbus, Ohio, drew a captivated audience in Greensboro Coliseum for live look-ins being shown on the scoreboard.
During one timeout, with Fairleigh Dickinson up five in the final seconds, fans in Greensboro began chanting &ldquo;FDU! FDU!&rdquo; and booing whenever the game was taken off the scoreboard even when Providence-Kentucky had resumed on the court below.

Oscar Tshiebwe pulled down 25 rebounds, helping the Kentucky Wildcats beat Providence 61-53 in Friday night’s first round.

Tshiebwe’s 25 boards helps Kentucky top Providence in NCAA opener

A list of 12 of the top talents in modern NBA history to have never appeared in an All-Star Game.

The 12 best modern-history players to never make an NBA All-Star team

Joe Dumars might have been destined for this job.
He played with the Bad Boys, those Detroit Pistons teams that were physical, aggressive and intimidating. And even in those rough-and-tumble times, he wound up becoming the first recipient of the NBA&rsquo;s sportsmanship award &mdash; now called the Joe Dumars Trophy.
He&rsquo;s now tasked with ensuring that players don&rsquo;t act like his old teammates often did. Dumars became Executive Vice President and Head of Basketball Operations for the NBA in May, making him a major decider in all things related to player discipline for on-court actions.
His first big decisions related to player discipline came earlier this week, when the NBA <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/heat-forwards-caleb-martin-nikola-jovic-suspended-one-game" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suspended Miami Heat teammates Caleb Martin and Nikola Jovic</a> for their roles in a scuffle during a game against the Toronto Raptors.
&ldquo;You want to do something where you really feel like you&rsquo;re contributing,&rdquo; Dumars said. &ldquo;Basically, this is the only place I haven&rsquo;t contributed to in this game.&rdquo;
At 59, with two championships as a player, another as an executive and a lifetime within the game, he doesn&rsquo;t have to be working. He could be spending his days playing and watching tennis, the sport he started playing as a 10-year-old and has loved ever since.
Instead, he&rsquo;s moved to New York, with office views from a high-rise not far from Rockefeller Center and Radio City Music Hall, smack in the middle of Manhattan.
&ldquo;I tell people that we are stewards of the game,&rdquo; Dumars said. &ldquo;And people go, &lsquo;What does that mean?&rsquo; Well, we make sure that the trains are taking off on time. We make sure that the game stays clean. We make sure that there&rsquo;s any time there&rsquo;s any disruption or things that should not be, we are here to clean this up and make sure we are presenting a great product and presenting it the right way.&rdquo;
When an altercation happens like the one Saturday in Miami, the players involved are asked to consent to an interview with league officials, video is reviewed, and Dumars and other top executives decide the best course of action.
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Tensions are HIGH between the Raps and Heat! Caleb Martin and Christian Koloko get into it on the court. <a href="https://t.co/7bNwJf0sAI">pic.twitter.com/7bNwJf0sAI</a>
&mdash; TSN (@TSN_Sports) <a href="https://twitter.com/TSN_Sports/status/1583997790845161473?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 23, 2022</a></blockquote>

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It&rsquo;s reasonable to think this call by Dumars and his team was easy: Martin drove Toronto&rsquo;s Christian Koloko into some baseline seats &mdash; thankfully unoccupied at the time &mdash; and Jovic, even though he didn&rsquo;t really appear to do much to add fuel to the fire, clearly left the bench area and therefore broke one of the NBA&rsquo;s absolute no-no&rsquo;s.
Martin missed Monday&rsquo;s game against the Raptors and will lose roughly $45,000 in salary.
&ldquo;I definitely don&rsquo;t disagree with it,&rdquo; a contrite Martin, who reached out to Koloko to apologize and promised him that he&rsquo;d be picking up a future dinner check.
Jovic also had to sit out Monday, meaning the Heat rookie has now been suspended for more games (one) than he has played (zero).
What happened Saturday could have been much worse, since Martin, Koloko and about a dozen other people all wound up where fans were. Martin ended up next to a woman in the second row; her halftime acquisition of a large popcorn, somehow, was not spilled.
But things didn&rsquo;t escalate, Dumars acted swiftly, and case closed.
Not everything has been that easy for the league in recent weeks &mdash; Phoenix owner Robert Sarver will likely sell his NBA and WNBA franchises before his one-year suspension for boorish behavior ends, Boston coach Ime Udoka will miss this entire season because of an inappropriate workplace relationship, Golden State had to deal with Draymond Green punching teammate Jordan Poole in practice and video of that exchange leaking, and Detroit assistant general manager Rob Murphy was placed on leave following allegations of misconduct made by a female former team employee.
Sarver was suspended by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. The other incidents have been handled at the team level. On-court matters, those rise to Dumars&rsquo; desk high above Manhattan.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m super excited to work with him, and to learn from him, and to collaborate with him,&rdquo; said Monty McCutchen, the NBA vice president overseeing referee operations. &ldquo;The best collaborations are collaborations that both people, both groups, both departments benefit from. And in this short time, Joe has really proven to be a collaborator and to be a builder of relationships. I&rsquo;m excited about what that means for the future.&rdquo;
Dumars knows what it&rsquo;s like to be on the receiving end of the player-discipline side of stories. He might not have had the full &ldquo;Bad Boy&rdquo; reputation earned by Pistons teammates like Bill Laimbeer, Dennis Rodman, Rick Mahorn, Isiah Thomas and John Salley. But he certainly wasn&rsquo;t immune to scuffles; he was fined twice in December 1990 alone for dustups with twin brothers Harvey and Horace Grant, the second of those coming in a Christmas game. And as a Pistons executive, he was once fined $500,000 for leaking memos to a reporter.
He thinks having been on all sides of the NBA will only help him in this new gig.
&ldquo;If I didn&rsquo;t have the career I had, maybe my mentality would be different,&rdquo; Dumars said. &ldquo;But when you&rsquo;ve done stuff at the highest level in this in this business, that&rsquo;s kind of where you want to live.&rdquo;

In May, Dumars was named the Executive Vice President and Head of Basketball Operations for the NBA. He discusses his new role.

Joe Dumars was made for his new role at the NBA

MILAN (AP) &mdash; The stars showed up at EuroBasket on Tuesday in a big way.
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 41 points in 27 minutes for Greece, Luka Doncic had 36 points for Slovenia and two-time reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic scored 29 points for Serbia &mdash; three of the world&rsquo;s best players all leading their teams to big group-stage wins at the European championships.
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Ain&rsquo;t nothing but a little Luka Magic 🪄 36 PTS 10 REB 4 AST<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EuroBasket?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EuroBasket</a><a href="https://t.co/hIo3xZOABm">pic.twitter.com/hIo3xZOABm</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1567255650132004865?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

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There&rsquo;s one more group-stage game left for each to play, and then a trip to Berlin awaits since Greece, Slovenia and Serbia have all clinched spots in the 16-team knockout round that begins Saturday.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Nikola Jokic had himself a night at <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EuroBasket?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EuroBasket</a>. 🃏👀 29 PTS, 11 REB, 5 AST<a href="https://t.co/yqgLLMI2AS">pic.twitter.com/yqgLLMI2AS</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1567261660729032706?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Antetokounmpo&rsquo;s point total was the most in a EuroBasket game since Dirk Nowitzki had 43 for Germany in 2001. And when he heard that stat, all Antetokounmpo did was nod.
&ldquo;I try not to rate my performance,&rdquo; Antetokounmpo said. &ldquo;I just try to go out there and have fun as much as possible, try to focus as much as I can on what I can control, try to bring energy any way possible. ... But I&rsquo;ll say this: I think this is one of the years where I feel very, very excited to go out there on the court and play with my teammates.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Giannis went OFF today in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/EuroBasket?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#EuroBasket</a>. 41 PTS 9 REB 72% FGM On fire. 🔥<a href="https://t.co/XRF620yKBK">pic.twitter.com/XRF620yKBK</a>
&mdash; NBA (@NBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBA/status/1567208097826963458?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 6, 2022</a></blockquote>

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As Antetokounmpo did, Doncic also deflected credit after the game. Told that Germany&rsquo;s postgame reaction was &ldquo;Luka Doncic happened,&rdquo; Doncic replied by saying &ldquo;Slovenia happened.&rdquo;
&ldquo;The whole team was ready,&rdquo; Doncic said. &ldquo;Everybody who stepped on the court was fighting, whether they played one minute or 30. I&rsquo;m really proud of this team.&rdquo;
Doncic was asked after the game if he or Antetokounmpo was in a better position to break the EuroBasket single-game scoring record.
Doncic didn&rsquo;t hesitate with his answer: He picked Antetokounmpo.
&ldquo;I would bet on Giannis,&rdquo; Doncic said. &ldquo;Why? Because he&rsquo;s Giannis Antetokounmpo.&rdquo;
GROUP C
GREECE 99, UKRAINE 79
At Milan, Antetokounmpo simply overpowered Ukraine and ensured that Greece would finish atop its group.
Antetokounmpo &mdash; who got Monday off to rest &mdash; had his 41 points and nine rebounds in just 27 minutes to lead Greece (4-0).
He was 13 for 18 from the floor, 15 for 18 from the foul line.
&ldquo;It was very easy to prepare the team because it is absolutely clear what Greece does when Giannis is out there,&rdquo; Ukraine coach Ainars Bagatskis said. &ldquo;They play really aggressive basketball. And if you don&rsquo;t put against them the same aggressiveness, even higher aggressiveness, then you have big problems.&rdquo;
Nick Calathes and Tyler Dorsey had 13 apiece for Greece.
Issuf Sanon and Svi Mykhailiuk each scored 16 for Ukraine (3-1), while Alex Len and Illya Sydorov added 10 apiece. Ukraine led by seven at the half, before Greece won the third quarter 32-11.
ESTONIA 94, GREAT BRITAIN 62
Henri Drell scored 20 points, Siim-Sander Vene added 18 and Estonia had no trouble on the way to its first win of the tournament.
Maik-Kalev Kotsar scored 15, Kristjan Kitsing added 14 and Janari Joesaar finished with 11 for Estonia (1-3).
Myles Hesson scored 14 for Great Britain (0-4), with Carl Wheatie and Patrick Whelan each scoring 12.
ITALY 81, CROATIA 76
Simone Fontecchio and Nicolo Melli each scored 19 points to lead Italy (2-2).
Bojan Bogdanovic led Croatia (2-2) with 27 points, while Ivica Zubac scored 13 and Dario Saric added 10.
Both teams are headed to the knockout round.
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GROUP B
SLOVENIA 88, GERMANY 80
At Cologne, Germany, Doncic&rsquo;s 36 points came with him making 14 of 25 shots. He also had 10 rebounds for Slovenia (3-1).
Goran Dragic scored 18 points and Mike Tobey added 10 for Slovenia.
&ldquo;We showed what we are made of,&rdquo; Dragic said.
Dennis Schroder scored 19 points, Andreas Obst had 14 and Maodo Lo added 13 for Germany (3-1).
LITHUANIA 87, HUNGARY 64
Lithuanian basketball is known for a lot of things, including passionate fans.
They go everywhere to cheer for their national team. And Tuesday, they even cheered for France &mdash; for good reason.
Lithuania topped Hungary and that, combined with France&rsquo;s win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, means the last qualifying spot out of Group B is still unclaimed. It&rsquo;ll be decided Wednesday when Lithuania plays Bosnia and Herzegovina, the winner moving on to Berlin and a round-of-16 game, the loser heading home eliminated.
&ldquo;Lithuanian fans are the best,&rdquo; France guard Evan Fournier said.
If France had lost Tuesday, Lithuania would have been eliminated. Instead, those Lithuanian fans serenaded the French with cries of &ldquo;Merci!&rdquo; for keeping their national team&rsquo;s hopes alive.
&ldquo;It feels amazing,&rdquo; Lithuania forward Domatas Sabonis said. &ldquo;They travel to every championship to support us. It&rsquo;s sad we couldn&rsquo;t give them a win over the weekend, but we&rsquo;re glad we could give them one today and the goal is to give them another one tomorrow.&rdquo;
Jonas Valanciunas scored 21 points on 10-of-13 shooting and Sabonis added 19 for Lithuania (1-3).
Marius Grigonis had 15 points and Rokas Jokubaitis added 10 for Lithuania. Zoltan Perl scored 16 for Hungary (0-4), while David Vojvoda and Rosco Allen each finished with 10.
FRANCE 81, BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA 68
Thomas Heurtel&rsquo;s 3-pointer with 5:49 left put France ahead to stay and started a game-ending 22-7 run for the winners, who were already assured of a spot in the round of 16.
Guerschon Yabusele scored 15 for France (3-1), while Heurtel and Fournier each had 14 and Rudy Gobert posted an 11-point, 12-rebound performance.
Jusuf Nurkic, Miralem Halilovic and Dzanan Musa all had 14 for Bosnia and Herzegovina (2-2), while John Roberson had 13 and Edin Atic finished with 10.
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GROUP A
TURKEY 78, BELGIUM 63
At Tbilisi, Georgia, Alperen Sengun scored 24 points, Furkan Korkmaz had 16 and Turkey (3-1) remained tied atop Group A.
Ercan Osmani added 12 for Turkey.
Haris Bratanovic scored 15 for Belgium (2-2) and Hans Vanwijn scored 11.
SPAIN 82, MONTENEGRO 65
Spain (3-1) clinched its berth in the round of 16, with Dario Brizuela leading the way with 18 points.
Willy Hernangomez scored 14 for Spain, while Jaime Pradilla and Lorenzo Brown added 12 apiece.
Vladimir Mihailovic scored 18 for Montenegro (2-2), which got 11 from Marko Simonovic and 10 from Kendrick Perry.
BULGARIA 92, GEORGIA 80
Dee Bost had 33 points and 12 assists, Aleksandar Vezenkov finished with 28 points and 14 rebounds, and Bulgaria kept its hopes alive.
Pavlin Ivanov scored 17 for Bulgaria (1-3).
Goga Bitadze scored 21 for Georgia (1-3), while Thaddus McFadden had 19, Alexander Mamukelashvili scored 13, and Giorgi Shermadini and Duda Sanadze scored 10 apiece.
GROUP D
SERBIA 89, ISRAEL 78
At Prague, Jokic was 11 of 13 from the floor and also grabbed 11 rebounds for Serbia (4-0), while Vasilije Micic added 19.
Nikola Kalinic and Ognjen Jaramaz each scored 10 for Serbia.
Yam Madar scored 20 for Israel (2-2), while Deni Avdija had 14 and Roman Sorkin added 11.
POLAND 75, NETHERLANDS 69
Poland was down by 13 in the third quarter before closing the game on a 39-20 run to tune up for its knockout-stage appearance.
Michal Sokolowski scored 24 for Poland (3-1), which got 16 from Aleksander Balcerowski and 10 from Jakub Garbacz.
Charlon Kloof led the Netherlands (0-4) with 26, and Yannick Franke scored 13.
FINLAND 98, CZECH REPUBLIC 88
Lauri Markkanen continued his strong tournament with 34 points and 10 rebounds, and Finland clinched its berth in the round of 16.
Sasu Salin scored 23 and Petteri Koponen added 14 for Finland, with Elias Valtonen finishing with 11.
Vojtech Hruban scored 22 for the Czech Republic, with Jan Vesely adding 15 and Patrik Auda and Jaromir Bohacik scoring 13 apiece. The Czechs play Israel on Thursday and, according to FIBA, could reach the knockout stage with a win.
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WEDNESDAY&rsquo;S SCHEDULE
First-round play in Groups A and B concludes, with Groups C and D getting the day off before they finish their round-robins on Thursday. Friday is an off day and the knockout round in Berlin starts Saturday.
Group A: Turkey (3-1) vs. Spain (3-1), Bulgaria (1-3) vs. Belgium (2-2), Georgia (1-3) vs. Montenegro (2-2). The Turkey-Spain winner will win the group. Bulgaria and Georgia are in must-win scenarios.
Group B: Lithuania (1-3) vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina (2-2), France (3-1) vs. Slovenia (3-1), Hungary (0-4) vs. Germany (3-1). France, Slovenia (which wins the group with a victory) and Germany have already qualified, Hungary is eliminated and the Lithuania-Bosnia game is the one that matters most.

Antetokounmpo scored 41 points in 27 minutes for Greece, Doncic had 36 points for Slovenia and reigning MVP Nikola Jokic scored 29 points for Serbia.

Stars shine bright: Giannis, Luka, Jokic lead at EuroBasket

It&rsquo;s impossible to watch the NBA Playoffs and not be impressed with the talent level of the league&rsquo;s stars.
Chris Paul and Steph Curry have been doing it for a minute, but in recent years, we&rsquo;ve gotten to see some newer faces on the playoff stage show that they&rsquo;re not afraid of the big moments... Guys like Devin Booker, Jayson Tatum, Ja Morant and now, even Anthony Edwards.
But the more I watch those guys, the more I have to respect the guys whose job it is to stop them. It might be clich&eacute;, but defense really does win championships. At this point, there&rsquo;s only eight teams left in the playoffs, and it&rsquo;s no coincidence that guys like Matisse Thybulle, Draymond Green, Mikal Bridges and Bam Adebayo are still alive.
There can only be one Defensive Player of the Year, though, and this year, he happens to play in Boston.
Marcus Smart sure is deserving.
I obviously have a little bit of a soft spot for the Celtics, but over the years, as I&rsquo;ve watched Marcus, I always felt like he was exactly the kind of player I would want on my team. He has skills on both sides of the ball, but defensively, he&rsquo;s not willing to give even one inch to his opponent, and that&rsquo;s exactly why he&rsquo;s become such a favorite in Boston.
The very first conversation I had with Gary Payton once we became teammates in Miami, GP complimented me because, according to him, I wasn&rsquo;t afraid to get up in another dude&rsquo;s face. To be honest, I was a little surprised that he even knew who I was, but he always told me that real recognize real, and today, that comment has newfound meaning to me.
When I look back at my career, I give thanks for all that I was able to accomplish and for the fact that I was able to win at the highest level. It&rsquo;s hard for me to look back on it and say I have any regrets, but I can&rsquo;t lie... As someone who was regarded as a great 3-and D guy, it would have been nice to win the Defensive Player of the Year Award. If you&rsquo;re someone who takes pride in your ability to lock other guys up, that&rsquo;s sort of the pinnacle of the profession.
Even though we were only together in Miami for a short time, I learned a lot about defensive principles and technique from GP, and we took a special pride in defending our opponents and making things difficult for them.
So for me, it all comes full circle in a way; Marcus became the first guard since GP to win the Defensive Player of the Year Award.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
Gary Payton pulled up to surprise Marcus Smart winning DPOY 👏 <a href="https://t.co/FrGtxLWEsR">pic.twitter.com/FrGtxLWEsR</a>
&mdash; Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) <a href="https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1516195034361577472?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 18, 2022</a></blockquote>

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GP was named Defensive Player of the Year during the 1995-96 season. Since then, of the next 25 seasons the award was given out, it went to a center 19 times. The other six times, the award was won equally by small forwards and power forwards.
The fact that almost 30 years went by before a backcourt player won the award again is crazy. If anything, the award should go to guards more often than anyone else.
What we have seen over history is that, for the most part, centers get the credit for anchoring a team&rsquo;s defense. And in most cases, they do deserve the credit, because being the last line of defense is a huge responsibility. But centers usually have a size advantage and play closer to the rim. In many instances, their primary responsibilities are to block or change shots, and rebound, but they usually have more of an opportunity to make plays on the ball and attract attention since they usually play at the rim.
Having a good anchor is obviously an important part of any championship-level defense, but not even guys like Rudy Gobert or Dikembe Mutombo can patch every hole in bad defense.
When you have a five-man unit on the floor, they are really only as strong as the weakest link, and if the backcourt can&rsquo;t defend, the team is toast.
Think about it. In most cases, unless you&rsquo;re playing a triangle offense or something like that, an offensive attack begins with a point guard. If he&rsquo;s easily able to beat his man off the dribble, it compromises the entire defense. When it comes to playing straight up, man-to-man defense, guards have to be top notch in order to not be a liability for their team.
Today, the game is so spaced out; it&rsquo;s definitely become more difficult for centers, but perimeter players have to guard pick-and-rolls, chase over screens, keep assignments in front, contain the dribble in front of them and just overall have more of a responsibility.
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In the league today, things are that much tougher because pretty much every team plays pick-and-roll basketball. So again, the perimeter defenders not only have to play good on-ball defense, but they also have to know when to switch and know how to read coverages in certain situations. They have to close-out on shooters, recover and know their rotations. The job was hard when GP was doing it back in the 1990s, and it&rsquo;s only gotten more difficult in recent years.
To be honest, it feels a little weird arguing this point, because Draymond Green and OG Anunoby are two of my favorite guys to watch on the defensive end. I respect the hell out of Gobert and Adebayo, and I think that Dennis Rodman and Scottie Pippen are some of the best defenders ever. None of those guys are backcourt players. What they do have in common, though, is their versatility. And that&rsquo;s what made Marcus Smart deserving of winning the award this year.
Maybe the solution is for the league to separate the Defensive Players of the Year, and to give out the award to the best backcourt defender and the best frontcourt defender. That would probably take a little of the prestige away from the honor, but the truth of the matter is that bigs and guards have very different responsibilities to a team&rsquo;s defense &mdash; it&rsquo;s just really hard to compare those contributions directly.
But this year, at least, it&rsquo;s nice to see that Marcus ended the drought. It&rsquo;s been a long time coming. It&rsquo;s not every day that you find a guard who not only accepts every challenge that comes his way, but also exceling at it. Smart can effectively guard all five positions, which is not something you see every day.
With the Bucks standing between them and a chance to get to the conference finals, Boston has its work cut out for it in the Eastern semis. Giannis and the Bucks are trying to go back-to-back.
But one thing for sure, is that Boston is going to fight, and I know that Marcus Smart is going to be battling every possession he&rsquo;s out there. And even if he&rsquo;s not 100%, his fingerprints are going to be all over the game.
He deserves more than just credit for that. He deserves to be the Defensive Player of the Year, and honestly, it&rsquo;s long overdue.
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James Posey offers praise for Marcus Smart's tenaciousness and shares his thoughts on the DPOY award moving forward.

Guards like Marcus Smart should always be Defensive Player of the Year

This is why playoff depth matters.
We have a generally simplistic view of what makes a champion. In the NBA, people think that you need multiple stars, with one superstar as the head of the snake, in order to get into the dance. But in the annals of league history, champions haven&rsquo;t only been littered by the Michael Jordans or LeBron James&rsquo; of the world, because even they needed awesome role players and deep rosters to accompany them.
Hell, the 72-win Chicago Bulls in 1995-96 had a 1-through-7 (in terms of minutes per game in the playoffs) of Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, Luc Longley, Toni Kukoč, Ron Harper and Steve Kerr &mdash; all of whom logged at least 20 minutes per game in the postseason.
Think about this: We just saw the Brooklyn Nets &mdash; among the <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/the-202122-nets-are-arguably-the-most-disappointing-team-in-nba-history-" target="_blank" rel="noopener">betting favorites to win the title all-season long</a> &mdash; get <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-offseason-preview-2022-whats-next-for-the-brooklyn-nets" target="_blank" rel="noopener">swept in the first round</a> after playing themselves to the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference, despite being led by a 1-2 punch of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
Why were the Nets favorites all season long? Starrrrr powerrrrr.
Why did they fall flat? A combination of things: A lack of team chemistry, lack of depth, lack of culture, lack of defense, lack of size, lack of versatility and lack of great coaching. Many thought we were just supposed to overlook that because Brooklyn was top-heavy. Granted, the Boston Celtics could end up winning the East, but honestly, the Nets were never who many (of y&rsquo;all) thought they were.
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So why does depth matter in the postseason as rotations shorten? Because rotations don&rsquo;t need to shorten if you have enough depth to carry you along.
Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra <a href="https://youtu.be/qGXIQBcZdM8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">noted this</a> following the team's 97-94 win over the Atlanta Hawks in Game 5, ending the series 4-1 and outscoring Atlanta by 60 points overall across those five games.
&ldquo;Everybody that played had their fingerprints on this,&rdquo; Spoelstra <a href="https://youtu.be/qGXIQBcZdM8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. &ldquo;We clearly had some adversity in this game not having Kyle [Lowry] or Jimmy [Butler], and our group doesn&rsquo;t even blink. It&rsquo;s not even something we have to address. We just pivot, put in the game plan, and everybody just gets ready, tapes their ankles and gets out there and competes.&rdquo;
In the Heat's case, Lowry was out with a hamstring injury, and Butler didn&rsquo;t play in Game 5 on Tuesday night because of right knee inflammation. So who started? Victor Oladipo, who didn&rsquo;t play in Games 1-3 and primarily played in Game 4 because the offense had trouble getting going without Lowry. Vic started in place of Butler &mdash; alongside Gabe Vincent, Max Strus, PJ Tucker and Bam Adebayo &mdash; to close out the Hawks in a gentleman&rsquo;s sweep.
&ldquo;A year ago today, I was waiting for my next surgery,&rdquo; <a href="https://twitter.com/bytimreynolds/status/1519147785546784769?s=21&amp;t=_ZTSKfrbgGYEt-IpNWqubg">stated Oladipo</a>, who poured in 23 points, scoring at least 20 in the postseason for the first time since Aug. 24, 2020. &ldquo;I was sitting in a dark room by myself and just broke down, not because I quit, but because I was at the lowest point I could be at. Now, God has put me in this position today. I made the most of it.&rdquo;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
"I've overcome a lot, so whatever happens next, I'll be ready for it." Victor Oladipo speaks about his special night in the Heat' game-clinching win. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HEATCulture?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HEATCulture</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WhiteHot?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WhiteHot</a> ⚪🔥 <a href="https://t.co/e5Df9caL1s">pic.twitter.com/e5Df9caL1s</a>
&mdash; Bally Sports Sun: HEAT (@BallyHEAT) <a href="https://twitter.com/BallyHEAT/status/1519153057724088322?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 27, 2022</a></blockquote>

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Only Butler and Adebayo are averaging over 30 minutes per game this postseason for the Heat, and now 11 guys have seen real rotation minutes across multiple games.
And no other team has someone who can come in out of nowhere, start and do what Oladipo did Tuesday night: 23 points, 3 assists and 3 steals on 6 of 12 shooting (3 of 6 from three) and 4 of 4 on free throws to go along with a 121 Offensive Rating, 9.2 Box Plus-Minus and preventive defense.
Oladipo, <a href="https://www.nba.com/stats/players/advanced/?sort=NET_RATING&amp;dir=-1">per NBA.com&rsquo;s advanced stats</a>, has put together a plus-29.7 Net Rating in the two playoff games he&rsquo;s logged minutes in.
&ldquo;Again, I&rsquo;m still improving,&rdquo; <a href="https://twitter.com/tropicalblanket/status/1519148825931403265" target="_blank" rel="noopener">he said</a>. &ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t played enough basketball to be super comfortable yet but I&rsquo;m getting there... I have no doubt I can surpass that level I was at. Even better days than that to come. This is part of the journey of getting there.&rdquo;
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Specifically on his progress, Spoelstra spoke of his adulation for Oladipo.
&ldquo;I really admire him, I do," Spoelstra said. "For this journey, really, for the last three seasons, where he&rsquo;s been dealing with injuries and frustration, and then really working to make himself available for us without a guarantee to play. And then just giving to the team. That&rsquo;s why everybody roots for him, and he always comes in with a smile on his face, and lifts people up, and that&rsquo;s even when he was going through DNP&rsquo;s. But he worked, he prepared, and it&rsquo;s true, crazy things happen, and there&rsquo;s a karma to it.
"If you do the right things and stay patient, it might not be on your terms or your timeline, but then, when your opportunity is there, you&rsquo;re able to take advantage of it, and then you have everybody enjoying his success.&rdquo;
And, to those who bought into that Sk*p B*yless &ldquo;report&rdquo; about friction between Butler and Oladipo, Vic <a href="https://twitter.com/BradyHawk305/status/1519148969108152327" target="_blank" rel="noopener">acknowledged that</a>: &ldquo;Jimmy helped me tremendously in the fourth quarter.&rdquo;
Oladipo, <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/victor-oladipo-is-coming-heres-how-he-could-help-raise-miamis-ceiling" target="_blank" rel="noopener">as was written two months ago</a>, raises this team&rsquo;s ceiling. If Duncan Robinson isn&rsquo;t hitting threes, Oladipo can create dribble penetration for others to get open looks. If Caleb Martin is making too many defensive mistakes, Oladipo&rsquo;s there to be another versatile stopper who can keep up at the point of attack. And if the overall offense lacks a scoring punch, Oladipo&rsquo;s there to provide another threat &mdash; one who specializes in nothing, but can be effective in everything.
The Lowry-Oladipo-Butler-Tucker-Adebayo &ldquo;death&rdquo; lineup is coming at some point, and if Tyler Herro doesn&rsquo;t get it going soon, it&rsquo;s one that may finish playoff games more often than we think, assuming Oladipo has earned consistent minutes going forward.
I would never tell Spo how to coach, but in the right spots, more Oladipo the rest of this run seems helpful for a team with title aspirations.
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Bryan Fonseca writes on the importance of depth in the postseason and how Victor Oladipo's big Game 5 was a perfect example of it.

Victor Oladipo has re-entered the chat in Miami

One by one the names of the NBA's greatest players were called, bridging basketball's past and present.
And as each walked onto the floor, LeBron James found himself in further disbelief.
The posters on his bedroom wall as a kid came to life.
&ldquo;Allen Iverson and Jason Kidd, Gary Payton, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Oscar Robertson,&rdquo; James said, still trying to grasp the experience. &ldquo;To see those guys today and then be on stage with those guys &mdash; it&rsquo;s just crazy.&rdquo;
On Sunday night, the league celebrated its diamond anniversary with a sparkling tribute to honor 75 years on the hardwood floor.
During a moving halftime tribute at Sunday's All-Star Game, 45 members of the 75th Anniversary Team &mdash; including Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and James &mdash; stood elbow to elbow on a giant circular stage in the middle of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
This was a chance for the game's greatest to take a bow and be saluted for cutting the path for today's players.
For James, who made a fadeaway jumper &mdash; the kind Jordan made famous -- to send Team LeBron to a 163-160 win over Team Durant, the chance to be around players he idolized, was overwhelming.
&ldquo;Every time they would announce another name, I didn&rsquo;t even get an opportunity to like rejoice in the player that they had named,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It was, like, Gary Payton. I was, like, wow.! Then J Kidd showed up, and then A.I. (Allen Iverson) showed up, and then it was D. Wade, C.P. (Chris Paul), and Steph (Curry). I was just tripped out.&rdquo;
James wasn't the only one.
Each wearing blue blazers with a 75th logo on their chests, the best of the NBA's best were introduced to huge ovations, with the loudest cheers going to Jordan, the last player to walk onto the raised podium at center court.
The forwards were brought out first with Charles Barkley leading the way. Giannis Antetokounmpo, one of six current All-Stars on the 75th team, changed out of his Team LeBron uniform for the on-court tribute.
During the TV broadcast, Barkley said being amongst the NBA&rsquo;s elite hit him harder than he expected. Antetokounmpo, one of the two Europeans on the squad, also was awed by being part of the ceremony.
&ldquo;When you start playing basketball when you are young, you never imagine to be next to all these all-time greats,&rdquo; said Milwaukee's star. "Your name being called, going out there to shake their hands and just stand next to them, interact with them, it was amazing.
&ldquo;I kind of teared up on stage because I&rsquo;m not supposed to be here, man. Being among those guys is &mdash; man, it&rsquo;s crazy.&rdquo;
Julius &ldquo;Dr. J&rdquo; Erving bowed to the sellout crowd, and the always entertaining Dennis Rodman strutted down the wine-colored carpet wearing a basketball cap and hooded sweatshirt under his jacket.
James was the last of the forward group to be welcomed, and the former Cleveland star spun in a circle to return the love coming from every corner of the arena. This was his homecoming weekend, and it coinciding with the 75th anniversary made it even more special.
Once James took his spot on the star-studded stage, he tried to soak in the moment.
&ldquo;It would be like going to your favorite musician&rsquo;s concert in the greatest stadium, and you are literally on stage with them while they&rsquo;re performing, and the sense of &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t believe that I&rsquo;m here,'&rdquo; he said. That&rsquo;s the best way that I can put it.&rdquo;
"I can&rsquo;t believe I&rsquo;m sitting next to Bruce Springsteen while he is playing in a stadium in London with 160,000 people. Or I&rsquo;m in the Garden with Jay-Z. I&rsquo;m sitting here with Whitney Houston on stage in a coliseum with 90,000 people.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;s kind of what it felt like for me. I just couldn&rsquo;t believe it.&rdquo;
When it was the centers' turn to be welcomed, Shaquille O'Neal stuck out his tongue toward the camera and posed while Abdul-Jabbar, the league's career scoring leader, mimicked his signature &ldquo;sky hook&rdquo; before the 74-year-old took a seat at the stage's edge.
Iverson, who once scored 54 points in the building, led the guards out and was followed soon after by George &ldquo;Iceman&rdquo; Gervin, who made sure the crowd remembered his famed finger roll.
Before Jordan's entrance, Kobe Bryant's photo on the giant scoreboard touched off an emotional response and chants of &ldquo;Ko-be, Ko-be&rdquo; for the late Lakers superstar who died tragically in a 2020 helicopter crash with his young daughter, Gianna.
Even Curry, who got booed by Cleveland's crowd before scoring 50 points and winning MVP honors, got a nice hand.
Jordan's appearance was something of a surprise as the league kept a tight lid on any details of the celebration.
Following the game, James made sure to reconnect with Jordan, who inspired the young kid from Akron to chase greatness.
&ldquo;The way he wore his shoes, the way he wore his uniform, I mean, all the way down to some of the cars that he drove,&rdquo; James said.
The still living members of the 75th team who didn't attend were shown on video, with each saluting the fans with a wave.
This is the second time the league has honored its greats in Cleveland, after the 50th Anniversary Team was honored in 1997.

On Sunday night, the league celebrated its diamond anniversary with a sparkling tribute to honor 75 years on the hardwood floor.

NBA honors past, present with 75th tribute at All-Star Game

The&nbsp;<a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/isiah-thomas-on-mj-magic-and-bird-my-teams-beat-all-them/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-stringify-link="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/giannis-antetokounmpo-shares-why-he-doesnt-associate-or-practice-with-other-nba-players-in-the-offseason/" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">following article</a>&nbsp;first appeared on&nbsp;<a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="http://basketballnetwork.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="http://BasketballNetwork.net" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">BasketballNetwork.net</a>:
There is a good reason the 1980s are called the golden era of NBA basketball. There were so many great teams and players entrenched in historic rivalries that it&rsquo;s impossible to look past that time. From Larry Bird&rsquo;s Celtics and Magic Johnson's Lakers, to Isiah Thomas' Pistons and the rising Bulls with Michael Jordan, the NBA didn&rsquo;t lack star power.
While we often hear stories about MJ, Larry and Magic as arguably the best three players ever, one Hall-of-Famer that's typically (and surprisingly) left out of that tier is Thomas. Recently, Zeke made a point to remind everyone how he fared against the best players in the toughest era ever.
His Detroit Pistons are one of the best teams in NBA history, and their reputation preceded thems. The nickname &ldquo;Bad Boys&rdquo; was rightfully earned, as their rugged, physical and defensive-minded style of play frustrated opponents all over the league. Of course, the occasional cheap shot from bruisers like Bill Laimbeer, Rick Mahorn or Dennis Rodman didn&rsquo;t help either.
But you had to give it to them. Near the end of the &rsquo;80s, those Pistons teams entered their prime and dominated the NBA, bouncing out Jordan&rsquo;s Bulls numerous times, and even Bird&rsquo;s Celtics. After a dramatic seven-game series loss in the 1988 Finals to Magic&rsquo;s Lakers, the Pistons would come back with a vengeance, sweeping them the following year to win an NBA championship in 1989.
The year after that, in 1990, they dominated the Blazers to win their second one. If not for that dramatic loss to the Lakers that was majorly influenced by Thomas' ankle injury, the Pistons may have three-peated in 1991.
At the end of that year, Jordan and Pippen finally overcame the Pistons and became the king of the East, as Detroit slowly faded away.
The Bad Boys will be remembered in history as one of the most unique and fun teams in history, and everyone knew them for their defense and hacking style of play. But this team was much more than that. On the other side of the floor, they could light you up if needed; after all, Thomas was a part of the 1983 team that scored 186 points in a game.
Recently, Thomas spoke with Channing Frye and explained to people how good he and his Piston teams were by simply reminding him how he beat everyone&rsquo;s favorite players in the &rsquo;80s:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-theme="dark">
&ldquo;All them people that they say are the best to ever do it, my teams beat all them.&rdquo;<a href="https://twitter.com/IsiahThomas?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@IsiahThomas</a> talked about his &lsquo;Bad Boy&rsquo; Pistons teams with <a href="https://twitter.com/channingfrye?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@channingfrye</a> on an all-new &lsquo;Full-Bodied&rsquo; 👀 <a href="https://t.co/N0wzkgGfw6">https://t.co/N0wzkgGfw6</a> (<a href="https://twitter.com/Porsche?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@porsche</a>) <a href="https://t.co/BmEXw3E2cD">pic.twitter.com/BmEXw3E2cD</a>
&mdash; Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) <a href="https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1473755187571347456?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 22, 2021</a></blockquote>

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Zeke is right on point. Detroit's defense was its forte, but the Pistons wouldn&rsquo;t have been so good for years if they didn&rsquo;t have a talented, complete team.
When you talk about the 80&rsquo;s Pistons and Isiah Thomas, you have to take a deeper look at their legacy and give them respect.
Check out more articles from BasketballNetwork.net&nbsp;<a href="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.

On "Full Bodied" with Channing Frye, Pistons legend Isiah Thomas spoke highly of his teams that defeated legends.

Isiah Thomas on MJ, Magic and Bird: 'My teams beat all of them'

The&nbsp;<a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/scottie-pippen-says-the-one-player-he-wishes-he-couldve-played-with-in-his-career-was-kobe-bryant/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-stringify-link="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/giannis-antetokounmpo-shares-why-he-doesnt-associate-or-practice-with-other-nba-players-in-the-offseason/" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">following article</a>&nbsp;first appeared on&nbsp;<a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="http://basketballnetwork.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="http://BasketballNetwork.net" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">BasketballNetwork.net</a>:
Scottie Pippen played with numerous Hall-of-Fame players throughout his illustrious career, and in <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5sjvizM9nc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a recent interview with GQ Sports</a>, he shared that Kobe Bryant is the one player he wishes he could have been teammates with during his playing days.
In addition to playing with terrific players like Michael Jordan and Dennis Rodman on the Chicago Bulls, Pippen also played alongside Hakeem Olajuwon and Charles Barkley on the Houston Rockets. After that, he was on a very talented Portland Trail Blazers squad that almost made it to the NBA Finals in 2000.
However, when asked about the players he wishes he'd gotten to play with during his career, Pippen mentioned Kobe Bryant. In the later stages of Pippen's career, he had quite a few battles with Bryant in the Western Conference and he wishes they could've teamed up at some point.&nbsp;
&ldquo;The best teammate I ever played with is Michael Jordan, and there is no doubt about it, and I am going to say that all day every day," Pippen said.
"The one teammate I wish I could have played with that I didn&rsquo;t play with was Kobe Bryant.&rdquo;
Kobe was known for being incredibly studious about the game of basketball and he would often reach out to veteran players in order to learn as much as possible from them. Bryant admired Pippen's skill set and contacted the forward in order to pick his brain. To this day, Pippen is still regarded as one of the best perimeter defenders of all-time. Kobe often called Scottie to ask him for advice on how to defend certain players and discuss how to approach certain situations on defense.
&ldquo;Kobe really idolized the way I played the game, the way I defended," Pippen said. "He started to call me after I retired to ask questions about different situations. 'How would you guard certain people?' or, 'What kind of footwork [would you use]?' or, 'What do you do in this situation?' Just picking your brain to enhance his ability out on the basketball court. He was a great student of the game, and he would ask me questions about how I would guard Michael in these situations, and this and that. He was just trying to improve his craft.&rdquo;
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It&rsquo;s safe to say that Pippen and Bryant on the same team would have worked perfectly. Kobe was the closest thing to Jordan, so there's no question that his skill set would go hand in hand with Pippen&rsquo;s. Even in the latter stages of his career, Pippen was still solid on both ends of the floor, while Kobe was an absolute beast on offense and an underrated defender in his own right.
Obviously, we never got a chance to see them play alongside each other, but it would have been fun to see these two on the same team &mdash; especially on the Los Angeles Lakers, which would've given Pippen a chance to add to his six championships.
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Check out more articles from BasketballNetwork.net&nbsp;<a href="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
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Scottie Pippen told GQ Sports: "The one teammate I wish I could have played with and I didn’t play with was Kobe Bryant.”

Scottie Pippen says he wishes he could've played with Kobe Bryant

There are certain things you can count on every NBA season. One of them is a week-long debate in late January surrounding which players should and shouldn&rsquo;t have been named All-Stars.
We can&rsquo;t even agree on who the top-12 players in each conference are, so how on earth were we supposed to somehow figure out who the top 75 NBA players in history were?
Fact of the matter is that we never were.
On Thursday night, the NBA completed its three-day-long process by which it named the members of its 75th anniversary team. It&rsquo;d been 25 years since the league named its 50 greatest players in history in 1996, so &mdash; as has been tradition since the league named its 25 greatest players in 1971 &mdash; it was time to serve up some honors.
Heading into the season, it was unclear whether the league would simply add 25 more names to its top-50 list or effectively start from the beginning. Although there would have been significant overlap, starting anew would have given more players from previous generations a chance at cracking the list.
It wasn&rsquo;t meant to be, though.
As it turns out, the NBA 75 included all 50 of the NBA&rsquo;s Top 50 Players and 26 more (due to a tie).&nbsp;
Bob McAdoo and Dominique Wilkins were the only two nominated players who were snubbed from the top-50 list, with Dennis Rodman and Gary Payton making the cut this time. The other 22 are contemporaries, the great majority of which are no-brainers.
Of the 22 contemporary players named to the 75th anniversary team are 14 with whom the general public can&rsquo;t take issue: Ray Allen, Kobe Bryant, Stephen Curry, Tim Duncan, Kevin Durant, Kevin Garnett, James Harden, Allen Iverson, LeBron James, Jason Kidd, Steve Nash, Dirk Nowitzki, Chris Paul and Dwyane Wade.
To varying degrees, credible arguments could be advanced against the eight others: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Carmelo Anthony, Anthony Davis, Kawhi Leonard, Damian Lillard, Reggie Miller, Paul Pierce and Russell Westbrook. And for Giannis, Davis, Leonard and Lillard, the arguments against them are mostly with respect to their pitch count, which a voter could reasonably decide to go either way when determining whether that should be a factor or not.
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At the end of the day, we ended up with a list of players who can rightfully lay claim to being one of the top 75 in history.&nbsp;
As is always the case, there are some notable omissions, with Vince Carter and Dwight Howard being the two contemporary players who have the best argument as snubs. That&rsquo;s just the way the cookie crumbles. And that&rsquo;s kinda the point.
Whether it&rsquo;s All-Star selections or where a player is drafted in the All-Star draft, the conversation and controversy that surrounds these lists and distinctions is what has made the NBA a multibillion dollar industry. And that&rsquo;s not to say that there&rsquo;s any nefarious or malicious intent on the part of the NBA for bestowing these honors &mdash; the league named 25th, 35th and 50th anniversary teams before the 75th team &mdash; it&rsquo;s just a fact. Our opinions are formed mostly by what we see and a bit of what we hear. As a basketball community dispersed across the world, we have varying degrees of values and exposures that help us formulate our opinions.
It&rsquo;s important that we keep that in mind.
Somewhere in Barcelona, there&rsquo;s a 24-year-old basketball fan who&rsquo;s shocked that Pau Gasol didn&rsquo;t make the cut. RJ Barrett and Dillon Brooks are probably texting Vince Carter as we speak. Chris Bosh is probably looking at his career profile on Wikipedia and comparing it to Reggie Miller&rsquo;s and trying to make sense of it all&hellip; Klay Thompson came out and posted an IG story wondering why he didn't make it. It&rsquo;s the nature of the beast.
Where we can all find common ground and some understanding when it comes to these kinds of exercises is that the league itself doesn&rsquo;t unilaterally bestow any honor &mdash; it doesn&rsquo;t choose its own MVP or name its own All-Stars, so it certainly wouldn&rsquo;t take the liberty of keeping a responsibility with this magnitude to itself. As it always does, the league carefully selected a panel of 88 individuals to vote for their top 75 players and Ernst &amp; Young LLP &mdash; the independent accounting firm the league entrusts most of its matters to &mdash; tabulated the results.
Those entrusted with votes included former NBA and WNBA greats, select members of the media and team personnel. As a class, they can rightfully be entrusted to know the game of basketball, and at the end of the day, this was the most fair way to come to a conclusion, even if Tracy McGrady, Chris Webber or Grant Hill don&rsquo;t like it.
As the NBA begins the 75th season in its long history, the game has continued to thrive and has grown tremendously. Three of the league&rsquo;s teams have received <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nbas-projected-revenue-and-franchise-valuations-reach-alltime-highs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">valuations north of $5 billion</a> and the league is hoping to leverage our curiosity, attention and willingness to watch and debate into another television deal that may see its revenue <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nbas-projected-revenue-and-franchise-valuations-reach-alltime-highs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">triple once again</a>.
<div class="mceNonEditable"><spike>&nbsp;</spike></div>
If you go back and evaluate the tenure of the late, great David Stern, it will become obvious that his desire was to help the league expand and to grow the game of basketball. When he took over the league in 1984, it had 23 teams. By the time he stepped down as Commissioner in 2014, it had increased to 30, including expansion into Canada.
For Silver &mdash; whether his intention or not &mdash; the hallmark of his reign has been the expansion of the league&rsquo;s bottom line. Merely months after assuming his role, he came out in support of legalized sports gambling in the United States and shortly thereafter oversaw the league&rsquo;s negotiation on a TV deal that tripled the league&rsquo;s television revenue.
From minimizing the back-to-back games to reducing travel schedules and revising the All-Star game to implementing rule changes, Silver&rsquo;s tenure has seen the league focus on improving the quality of games and making them more fun to watch. We as fans win.
So does the league&rsquo;s bottom line.
In the end, to a large extent, pro sports will continue to be about debating. That didn&rsquo;t begin with the NBA&rsquo;s 75th anniversary team, and, obviously, it won&rsquo;t end with it, either. We&rsquo;ll continue to talk about it, and for sure, we&rsquo;ll continue to argue among ourselves. Just like the league intends.
It's no coincidence that Silver kicked off his annual start-of-season presser by saying, "In terms of our 75th anniversary, we look forward to celebrating the players and teams, both past and present, that have helped shape the league... Many of you I know have created your own lists, and several of them I&rsquo;ve been reading. There&rsquo;s no doubt that the various rankings will generate a season-long debate and conversation among fans and all of you."
Somewhere, Silver is smiling, even if Vince Carter isn&rsquo;t.

The NBA released it's 75th anniversary team and there were snubs, such as Dwight Howard and Vince Carter. But isn't that the point?

There were major snubs from NBA's 75th Anniversary Team, as expected

The NBA released the remaining 25 players of the league's 75th anniversary team Thursday night on TNT.
Here is the official release from the NBA, which lists all 75 players that made the team and the people that voted on the NBA's top 75 players of all-time team:
"A total of 158 NBA championships and 730 NBA All-Star selections. &nbsp;A combined 110 Kia NBA Most Valuable Player Awards and Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP Awards. &nbsp;More than 1.5 million points scored.
Those are just some of the collective accomplishments of the players who comprise the NBA 75th Anniversary Team, which was announced across TNT and ESPN from Oct. 19-21 as the league tipped off its landmark 75th Anniversary Season.
The NBA 75th Anniversary Team was selected by a blue-ribbon panel of current and former NBA players, coaches, general managers and team and league executives, WNBA legends and sportswriters and broadcasters. &nbsp;Voters were asked to select the 75 Greatest Players in NBA History without regard to position. &nbsp;Panelists did not rank their selections. &nbsp;Current and former players were not allowed to vote for themselves.
As a result of a tie in the voting, the 75th Anniversary Team features 76 players. &nbsp;Team highlights include:
&bull; Eleven active players have been named to the 75th Anniversary Team: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Carmelo Anthony, Stephen Curry, Anthony Davis, Kevin Durant, James Harden, LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, Damian Lillard, Chris Paul and Russell Westbrook.
&bull; All 50 members of the NBA 50th Anniversary Team, which was named in 1996, have been selected to the 75th Anniversary Team.
&bull; The 75th Anniversary Team includes four players who played in the first NBA All-Star Game in 1951 (Paul Arizin, Bob Cousy, George Mikan and Dolph Schayes), the first winner of the Kia NBA Most Valuable Player Award (Bob Pettit for the 1955-56 season) and the first winner of the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP Award (Jerry West for the 1969 NBA Finals).
&bull; Bill Russell joins Cousy, Mikan and Pettit as the only four players who have been named to all four NBA Anniversary Teams: the 25th Anniversary Team (10 players named), 35th Anniversary Team (11 players named), 50th Anniversary Team and 75th Anniversary Team. (The 25th Anniversary Team was the only one of the four teams that did not allow for the inclusion of active players at the time.)
&bull; Six international players from six countries and territories have been selected to the 75th Anniversary Team: Antetokounmpo (Greece), Tim Duncan (U.S. Virgin Islands), Patrick Ewing (Jamaica), Steve Nash (Canada), Dirk Nowitzki (Germany) and Hakeem Olajuwon (Nigeria).
&bull; The five NBA legends who are serving as ambassadors for the 75th Anniversary Season are part of the 75th Anniversary Team: Clyde Drexler, Magic Johnson, Nowitzki, Pettit and Oscar Robertson. Representing different eras of the league&rsquo;s history, the ambassadors will make appearances throughout the 2021-22 season and have a significant presence at NBA All-Star 2022 in Cleveland.
The NBA 75th Anniversary Team is listed below in alphabetical order, followed by the list of voters. &nbsp;The balloting was tabulated by the independent accounting firm Ernst &amp; Young LLP. &nbsp;For player profiles on each member of the 75th Anniversary Team, click here and visit NBA.com/75."
<table style="width: 95.7926%; height: 464px;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 27px;">
<td style="text-align: center; width: 149.879%; height: 27px;" colspan="4" width="691">NBA 75TH ANNIVERSARY TEAM</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Kareem Abdul-Jabbar</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Clyde Drexler</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Damian Lillard</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Scottie Pippen</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Ray Allen</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Tim Duncan</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Jerry Lucas</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Willis Reed</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Giannis Antetokounmpo</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Kevin Durant</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Karl Malone</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Oscar Robertson</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Carmelo Anthony</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Julius Erving</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Moses Malone</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">David Robinson</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Nate Archibald</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Patrick Ewing</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Pete Maravich</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Dennis Rodman</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Paul Arizin</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Walt Frazier</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Bob McAdoo</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Bill Russell</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Charles Barkley</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Kevin Garnett</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Kevin McHale</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Dolph Schayes</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Rick Barry</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">George Gervin</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">George Mikan</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Bill Sharman</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Elgin Baylor</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Hal Greer</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Reggie Miller</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">John Stockton</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Dave Bing</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">James Harden</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Earl Monroe</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Isiah Thomas</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Larry Bird</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">John Havlicek</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Steve Nash</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Nate Thurmond</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Kobe Bryant</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Elvin Hayes</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Dirk Nowitzki</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Wes Unseld</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Wilt Chamberlain</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Allen Iverson</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Hakeem Olajuwon</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Dwyane Wade</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Bob Cousy</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">LeBron James</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Shaquille O&rsquo;Neal</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Bill Walton</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Dave Cowens</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Magic Johnson</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Robert Parish</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Jerry West</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Billy Cunningham</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Sam Jones</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Chris Paul</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Russell Westbrook</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Stephen Curry</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Michael Jordan</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Gary Payton</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Lenny Wilkens</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Anthony Davis</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Jason Kidd</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Bob Pettit</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">Dominique Wilkins</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 23px;">
<td style="width: 27.0755%; height: 23px;" width="173">Dave DeBusschere</td>
<td style="width: 27.5653%; height: 23px;" width="173">Kawhi Leonard</td>
<td style="width: 19.6609%; height: 23px;" width="173">Paul Pierce</td>
<td style="width: 75.5776%; height: 23px;" width="173">James Worthy</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
&nbsp;
<table style="width: 97.1703%; height: 798px;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center; width: 170.677%;" colspan="4" width="719">NBA 75TH ANNIVERSARY TEAM VOTING PANEL</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Kareem Abdul-Jabbar</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Tim Duncan</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Jack McCallum</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">David Robinson</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Marv Albert</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">David DuPree</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Brian McIntyre</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Bill Russell</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">David Aldridge</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Wayne Embry</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Ann Meyers</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Bob Ryan</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Sam Amick</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Julius Erving</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Yoko Miyaji</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Bill Simmons</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Giannis Antetokounmpo</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Patrick Ewing</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Earl Monroe</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Sam Smith</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Steve Aschburner</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Walt Frazier</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Steve Nash</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Stephen A. Smith</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Charles Barkley</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">George Gervin</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Rachel Nichols</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Marc Spears</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Rick Barry</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Russ Granik</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Dirk Nowitzki</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Erik Spoelstra</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Howard Beck</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Becky Hammon</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Shaquille O&rsquo;Neal</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">John Stockton</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Dave Bing</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Elvin Hayes</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Robert Parish</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Hannah Storm</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Sue Bird</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Ernie Johnson</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Candace Parker</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Sheryl Swoopes</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Carol Blazejowski</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Magic Johnson</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Chris Paul</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Isiah Thomas</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Mike Breen</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Sam Jones</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Bob Pettit</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Rod Thorn</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Doris Burke</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Michael Jordan</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Scottie Pippen</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Rudy Tomjanovich</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Jerry Colangelo</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Steve Kerr</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Gregg Popovich</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Peter Vecsey</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Doug Collins</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Bob Lanier</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Shaun Powell</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Bill Walton</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Cynthia Cooper</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Kara Lawson</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Ahmad Rashad</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Rick Welts</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Bob Costas</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Lisa Leslie</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Willis Reed</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Jerry West</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Dave Cowens</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Nancy Lieberman</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Tim Reynolds</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Michael Wilbon</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Billy Cunningham</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Zach Lowe</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Bill Rhoden</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Lenny Wilkens</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Stephen Curry</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Jerry Lucas</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Pat Riley</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">James Worthy</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Clyde Drexler</td>
<td style="width: 24.8663%;" width="180">Jackie MacMullan</td>
<td style="width: 24.5989%;" width="180">Oscar Robertson</td>
<td style="width: 96.613%;" width="180">Jeff Zillgitt</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Some notable snubs include Tracy McGrady, Bernard King, Alex English, Vince Carter, Tony Parker, Chris Bosh, Dwight Howard, Bob McAdoo, and Pau Gasol to just name a few. This list was part of the NBA's marketing campaign for the league's historic 75th season and will surely spark a conversation/debate amongst NBA fans all over the world.

The NBA released the final 25 players of the 75th anniversary team Thursday on TNT.

Final 25 members of NBA's 75th Anniversary Team announced

The <a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/toni-kukoc-reveals-a-special-fine-phil-jackson-had-for-big-men/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-stringify-link="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/giannis-antetokounmpo-shares-why-he-doesnt-associate-or-practice-with-other-nba-players-in-the-offseason/" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">following article</a>&nbsp;first appeared on&nbsp;<a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="http://basketballnetwork.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="http://BasketballNetwork.net" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">BasketballNetwork.net</a>:
Reaching the mountaintop gives a man perspective. For Toni Kukoč, joining the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame was that mountaintop. He achieved everything a basketball player could ever dream of, and it gave Kukoč the freedom to talk about the game with as little bias as possible.
As a key member of one of the greatest teams ever to play, Kukoč is often asked to compare teams to the 1990s Bulls. The &ldquo;back in my day&rdquo; arguments are often superficial, but the Croatian big man sees something good in them &mdash; fire and passion about the game that never leaves a true champion&rsquo;s heart.
&ldquo;Everyone&rsquo;s going to say their generation played the best basketball and everyone has their arguments," Kukoc <a href="https://www.index.hr/sport/clanak/ekskluzivno-toni-kukoc-za-index-se-potpuno-otvorio-i-dao-najveci-intervju-u-zivotu/2309354.aspx?index_ref=naslovnica_sport_prva_d" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Croatian online newspaper Index.hr</a>. "The older generation will say &lsquo;If only I had private jets, massage therapists, nutritionists and a million dollars to spend on oxygen chambers, and YouTube to watch other players and learn from them.' When I hear that, and I want to be clear, there&rsquo;s a case to be made there; I&rsquo;m happy because it means the old guys still have the competitive spirit and would like to take on the younger generations.&rdquo;
Most of the time, we hear a guy saying, &ldquo;Get off my lawn&rdquo; when discussions like that start. That&rsquo;s where age and experience can provide perspective. It&rsquo;s easy to say older players are haters when pointing out the circumstances they had to play in vs. what the league is today, and social media programs us to take people at their worst. What Kukoč is saying is that we should take them at their best. It&rsquo;s not hate; it&rsquo;s the competitive drive that made those from the previous era the champions they are.
However, that doesn&rsquo;t mean Kukoč won&rsquo;t compare his era to today&rsquo;s NBA. He just does it without any bitterness or an ax to grind.
&ldquo;You could get away with more in my day. I&rsquo;m primarily talking about defense when I say that It was a more physical game," Kukoč <a href="https://www.index.hr/sport/clanak/ekskluzivno-toni-kukoc-za-index-se-potpuno-otvorio-i-dao-najveci-intervju-u-zivotu/2309354.aspx?index_ref=naslovnica_sport_prva_d" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. "Detroit, Boston, New York, Indiana &mdash; all East teams played a similar game. Back then, the consensus was East teams played better defense and West teams played better offense. Games were a lot stronger back then &mdash; not quicker, but stronger. The NBA&rsquo;s put in a lot of effort to protect the best players. We won&rsquo;t see the heavy fouls as we use to on [Isiah] Thomas, [Larry] Bird or [Michael] Jordan. And that&rsquo;s normal.&rdquo;
Kukoč disagrees with older fans who fell in love with basketball in the '90s when they say today&rsquo;s game and the players are weak. He believes the modern game has a lot more speed, and still has strength and new elements that make it a lot more dynamic. His Bulls were avant-garde by playing Dennis Rodman as a small-ball 5. Still, they did certain things the old way, and there was a price to pay if you broke the rules.
&ldquo;I remember we had a rule [with] the Bulls. 4s and 5s could only shoot the three if it was the last second of the possession," Kukoč <a href="https://www.index.hr/sport/clanak/ekskluzivno-toni-kukoc-za-index-se-potpuno-otvorio-i-dao-najveci-intervju-u-zivotu/2309354.aspx?index_ref=naslovnica_sport_prva_d" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. "If they launched one with more than a second on the clock and missed, Phil [Jackson] would fine them $500. Players like that [today] are expected to launch it early in a possession.&rdquo;
The drawback to power forwards and centers having free reign to shoot from behind the arc is that some players never develop an inside game. But that doesn&rsquo;t mean shooting is terrible &mdash; it just means the pendulum swung way too much in that direction. Still, a time where guys in Chicago got fined on rangier shot attempts simply because of their size also wasn&rsquo;t great. You don&rsquo;t get a Dirk Nowitzki if he had so much pressure every time he took a shot.
The pinnacle of basketball is a complete game. The players we adore the most, like MJ and Kobe Bryant, were special because they could do it all. Speed it up, and slow it down. Drain it from outside, go to work in the mid-range and back a smaller guy down.
Toni <a href="https://www.index.hr/sport/clanak/ekskluzivno-toni-kukoc-za-index-se-potpuno-otvorio-i-dao-najveci-intervju-u-zivotu/2309354.aspx?index_ref=naslovnica_sport_prva_d" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said it best</a>: &ldquo;The game is fast, beautiful, and I like it this way, but that doesn&rsquo;t mean I have a bad word to say about the game back then.&rdquo;
Check out more articles from BasketballNetwork.net <a href="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.

Toni Kukoc spoke on how the current NBA product differs from the past — and why that's okay.

Hall-of-Famer Toni Kukoc opens up on modern-day NBA, older era

The <a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/mj-on-rule-changes-if-teams-were-able-to-play-zone-defenses-i-never-wouldve-had-the-career-i-had/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-stringify-link="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/giannis-antetokounmpo-shares-why-he-doesnt-associate-or-practice-with-other-nba-players-in-the-offseason/" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">following article</a>&nbsp;first appeared on&nbsp;<a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="http://basketballnetwork.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="http://BasketballNetwork.net" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">BasketballNetwork.net</a>:
How would Michael Jordan, largely recognized as the greatest to ever play the game, square up against today&rsquo;s competition? That question seems to have a consensus answer: Michael would be even more dominant than he was.
David Falk, his longtime agent, said MJ would average 60 points on 75% shooting. Vlade Divac went even further, <a href="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/divac-on-why-michael-jordan-wouldve-averaged-80-ppg-in-todays-nba/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">saying MJ would average 80</a>. Jeff Van Gundy stopped at 40, and Dennis Rodman, who played alongside No. 23 in Chicago, predicted at least 50 a game.
While most of these claims hyperbolize Jordan&rsquo;s greatness to the point of absurdity, finding an alternative answer to the greatest hypothetical question of them all seems impossible. But we've stumbled upon an outside-of-the-box response, and unlike the aforementioned praise bordering on insanity, this one is as objective as it gets &mdash; the person behind it: Michael Jordan himself.
It was right before the NBA&rsquo;s latest revolution, when the league decided to eliminate illegal-defense guidelines, allowing teams to employ any scheme they wanted, including a zone. They also implemented a defensive three-second rule to prevent teams from anchoring a big guy down low for an entire possession. A few months before these changes became official, due to the potential harm they would do to the game, Jordan decided to speak out against their implementation. And to everyone&rsquo;s surprise, he used himself as an example.
Here's what longtime Bulls reporter Sam Smith <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2001-04-01-0104010375-story.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">penned in April 2001</a> when he was a writer for the Chicago Tribune:
"Jordan was making an impassioned plea before the competition committee that had gathered to consider rules changes to enliven the NBA game," Smith <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2001-04-01-0104010375-story.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wrote</a>. "Jordan spoke passionately. If teams were able to play zone defenses, he said, he never would have had the career he did."
Let&rsquo;s give MJ the benefit of the doubt and remember that he never actually gave his opinion on this publicly after the changes were implemented. Let&rsquo;s also keep in mind that Jordan focused solely on zone defenses, which hardly anyone runs in today&rsquo;s NBA &mdash; not in their original form, at least. But that can also be seen as a double-edged sword; elimination of illegal defenses allowed the creation of other, more complex defensive schemes that today&rsquo;s teams use often in the current NBA landscape.
Let&rsquo;s also remember that the league banned hand-checking &mdash; a go-to defensive tactic of the 1990s &mdash; after the 2003-04 NBA season. So it took a long time before teams and players caught up with changes introduced in the early 2000s. It took a long time before they learned to maximize (as well as counter) them. That goes without mentioning how the game evolved from what it was then to what it is today.
Would it be fair to say MJ&rsquo;s words apply to the context of today&rsquo;s NBA? In some sense, sure. But should we go as far as to say this is his most-up-to date answer to the one of the greatest NBA hypothetical questions out there? By no means.
We would say Jordan made an educated guess. Some people will say he&rsquo;s right, and more people will say he&rsquo;s wrong. The answer, as always, is probably somewhere in the middle.
Check out more articles from BasketballNetwork.net <a href="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.

How would Michael Jordan square up against today's NBA defenses? The man himself may have offered a hint 20 years ago.

Michael Jordan says he wouldn't have had same career vs. zone defense

The <a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/ive-seen-jordan-differently-metta-picks-his-top-5-nba-defenders/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-stringify-link="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/giannis-antetokounmpo-shares-why-he-doesnt-associate-or-practice-with-other-nba-players-in-the-offseason/" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">following article</a>&nbsp;first appeared on&nbsp;<a class="c-link" tabindex="-1" href="http://basketballnetwork.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="http://BasketballNetwork.net" data-sk="tooltip_parent" data-remove-tab-index="true">BasketballNetwork.net</a>:
The NBA has seen so many great defenders that picking out a top five seems impossible. But Metta Sandiford-Artest, who is one of the best wing defenders in league history himself, took up that challenge.
"Bill Russell gotta be No. 1. Then, you probably gotta have Wilt [Chamberlain] with 26 defensive rebounds. [Dennis] Rodman &mdash; he&rsquo;s incredible. Then, probably Michael Jordan," Sandiford-Artest <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDFhVO_-n2s" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said on Getcha Popcorn Ready with Terrell Owens and Matthew Hatchette</a>.
Whenever you hear the name Michael Jordan, it isn&rsquo;t crazy to assume someone is bound to bring up Kobe Bryant. And that&rsquo;s exactly what T.O. did.
&ldquo;Is Kobe one of the top defensive guys?&rdquo; Owens asked.
Sandiford-Artest <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDFhVO_-n2s" target="_blank" rel="noopener">responded</a>: "I don&rsquo;t think Kobe is as good of a defender as Michael Jordan. I think I&rsquo;ve seen Jordan differently because I looked up to Jordan&rsquo;s defense. Like when I was watching Jordan, I was like, &lsquo;His offense is incredible. I&rsquo;m not even gonna try to accomplish that.' But his defense is like... I would watch him play defense. He&rsquo;s just locking guys up.&rsquo;"
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MJ, Gary Payton, Kevin Garnett, and Kobe share the record for most NBA All-Defensive First-Team selections with nine, and Jordan was the first player in NBA history to reach that number. But MJ is the only one from that group Metta included on his list, and it&rsquo;s a good thing he did.
It seems NBA fans, in general, have forgotten how good of a defender Michael actually was. That&rsquo;s why it&rsquo;s great to have a former NBA player remind us of it every once in a while. People are so caught up in the GOAT debate, which for most boils down to the offensive side of the floor. (This is mostly true for the ones trying to make a case for LeBron as the greatest of all time.) But defense still matters, especially when comparing players head-to-head.
The NBA has only seen a handful of better perimeter defenders than MJ. That&rsquo;s why Sandiford-Artest has him on his top five, but he still can&rsquo;t decide who the last guy on that list is.
"If I had to pick one more, Ben Wallace is an amazing defender. [Scottie] Pippen is an amazing defender but I&rsquo;m not sure he&rsquo;s better than Rodman or Jordan," Sandiford-Artest <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDFhVO_-n2s" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>.
Notice how Sandiford-Artest doesn&rsquo;t have anyone from today&rsquo;s NBA in his top five? Well, the only guy close to making his list is Draymond Green &mdash; the <a href="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/draymond-green-and-tony-allen-argue-over-goat-defender-status/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">self-proclaimed greatest defender of all-time</a>. But the era he plays in makes it impossible for Metta to put him there.
"Now, when you talk about this era you can&rsquo;t compare that to all-time because they changed the rules for Wilt. When Shaq [O'Neal] came in the game, they changed the rules for Shaq," Sandiford-Artest <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lDFhVO_-n2s" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. Back in the days, it was impossible for a 6-6 guy to play power forward if you wasn&rsquo;t thick. I&rsquo;m not saying he&rsquo;s not strong enough, but I&rsquo;m saying it&rsquo;s a different era."
Sandiford-Artest still thinks of Draymond as one of the all-time great NBA defenders, just not good enough to make his top-five list, and that&rsquo;s fair. The fact he gave Green his credit proves this isn&rsquo;t your typical &ldquo;former player diminishing today&rsquo;s players&rdquo; type of argument. It&rsquo;s an honest assessment by one of the greatest perimeter defenders ever, and it&rsquo;s hard to argue against it.
Check out more articles from BasketballNetwork.net <a href="https://www.basketballnetwork.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.

Metta Sandiford-Artest named his top-five defenders in NBA history while guesting on "Getcha Popcorn Ready."

Metta Sandiford-Artest picks his top-5 NBA defenders

The GOAT argument has heated up in recent years, with a growing contingent claiming LeBron James over the incumbent greatest of all-time, Michael Jordan. But no matter if it&rsquo;s Jordan, James, Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain or Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, championships are a prerequisite.
Of course, team success is predicated on talent, and in basketball, one player impacts outcomes more so than in football or baseball. Still, the idea that the best player ever should inevitably be a decorated champion is oversimplified.&nbsp;
Ultimately, I posit that great players can achieve only so much on their own. A great supporting cast is also necessary. And if you examine the GOAT list, it becomes clear that great supporting casts are also a prerequisite. And with that being said, let&rsquo;s identify the best supporting casts of all time.
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5. Boston Celtics, 1980-1988
Key role players: Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, Cedric Maxwell, M.L. Carr, Danny Ainge, Nate &ldquo;Tiny&rdquo; Archibald, Dennis Johnson
Championships: 3 (1980-81, 1983-84, 1985-86)
These teams saw some turnover, but the core remained mostly intact throughout the '80s &ndash; Bird, McHale, Parish and Archibald or Johnson. The 1983-84 and 1985-86 iterations had five players average 30 or more minutes per game, and all three championship teams featured five players averaging double figures in points per game. They were incredibly role-oriented and players were intimately familiar with those roles. But ultimately, the main case for the Celtics is that they boasted three of the 50 greatest players ever for their entire run in the '80s.
Side note: Despite having a reputation for being banged up, Bird missed very few games in his prime, making it incredibly difficult to examine how the Celtics fared in his absence. In fact, between the 1980-81 and 1985-86 seasons, Bird missed only five regular-season games. While that&rsquo;s clearly a ridiculously small sample size, the Celtics were 5-0 in those games without Bird. It&rsquo;s not enough to make the case that the Celtics&rsquo; supporting cast achieved anything significant in his absence, but it&rsquo;s something.
4. Miami Heat, 2012-2016
Key role players: Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Ray Allen, Udonis Haslem, Mike Miller
Championships: 2 (2011-12, 2012-13)
The Heat were a surprisingly deep team. All we really remember is the Big Three and Ray Allen&rsquo;s clutch three-pointer in Game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals. But there was far more depth in Miami than we care to remember. Udonis Haslem, Shane Battier, Mike Miller, Mario Chalmers, Chris Anderson and Norris Cole all played big roles for the Heat. While there was a high degree of turnover in Miami in the 2010s, the key contributors were mostly the same. And they utilized lots of players; the 2011-12 team played 12 guys for 13 or more minutes per game, and the 2012-13 squad did so with 11 players.&nbsp;
But clearly nothing was more important for Miami than the Big Three. James was obviously the team&rsquo;s engine, but Wade and Bosh were crucial to Miami&rsquo;s success. Wade averaged more than 21 points per game in both championship seasons, whereas Bosh averaged slightly less than 20 points per game while taking on significantly more defensive responsibilities than in Toronto. Wade and Bosh combined to make the best one-two punch of any of the supporting casts on this list, making their inclusion here obvious.&nbsp;
3. Golden State Warriors, 2014-2018
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Key-role players: Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Ande Iguodala, Shaun Livingston
Championships: 3 (2014-15, 2016-17, 2017-18)
This team is the hardest to write about, mainly because calling Durant a role player feels like it's backwards. Durant has half as many MVP awards as Curry and more scoring championships. But the premise of the article is that the great teams have supporting casts and that great supporting casts support starts &ndash; and Curry is that star. He was in Golden State for their first championship without Durant, and he remains there following Durant&rsquo;s departure. In total, Golden State won three championships in a relatively short amount of time, and in the one year which they did not win the championship, they set a new single-season NBA win record (73).&nbsp;
But however you view this team, it accomplished a great deal &ndash; and it was not predicated on one star. On the contrary, the Warriors spread the wealth. The 2017-18 Warriors, for example, averaged 113.5 points per game, 73 of which came from Curry, Durant and Thompson. And everyone on this team felt like part of the supporting cast at times. Further, 14 players averaged 13 or more minutes per game &ndash; which is more than any other team on this list.&nbsp;
2. Chicago Bulls, 1995-1998
Key role players: Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, Ron Harper, Toni Kukoc, Steve Kerr, Luc Longley
Championships: 3 (1995-1996, 1996-1997, 1997-1998 &mdash; six in total, but the teams and supporting casts are distinctly different, separated by Jordan&rsquo;s retirement)
Eras make a difference. And the 1990s Bulls, featuring Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman, were just flat-out better than every other team in the NBA in the 1990s. Want proof? The Bulls were one of only five teams with two starters in the All-Star games in 1996, 1997 and 1998. Oh, and their second All-Star, Pippen, was second runner-up for MVP in 1993-94, leading the Bulls to the third-best record in the Eastern Conference in 1993-94 without Jordan. Ironically, Pippen was probably the most equipped to go head-to-head with Jordan.
Jordan, Pippen and Rodman brought unmatched defensive versatility, and Jordan and Pippen were unstoppable, thanks to an unprecedented combination of size and skill. Add in a 6-foot-6 point guard (Harper), a big, ultra-skilled wing (Kukoc) and a dead-eye shooter (Kerr), and it was just too much for teams in the 90s to handle. Bottom line: Jordan was obviously unstoppable. But one player can&rsquo;t do everything on his own, and the fact that this team is still arguably the best team ever more than 30 years since they were dismantled speaks to just how great their supporting cast really was.
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1) Los Angeles Lakers 1979-1988
Key role players: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Byron Scott, James Worthy, Mychal Cooper, A.C. Green and Mychal Thompson.
Championships: 5 (1979-80, 1981-82, 1984-85, 1986-87, 1987-88)
The Showtime Lakers are about as unique a team as you&rsquo;ll come across in basketball history. Their most important player was unquestionably their point guard, Magic Johnson, evidenced by his leading the Lakers to a championship as a rookie while filling in as center in a decisive game. Abdul-Jabbar is the NBA&rsquo;s all-time leading scorer and arguably, at his peak, the best player ever. James Worthy is also an all-time great, having been named a member of the NBA at 50&rsquo;s top 50 players of all time.&nbsp;
But nothing speaks to the team&rsquo;s versatility more than this &ndash; Byron Scott led the Lakers in scoring in 1987-88 (21.7 points per game) despite the presence and health of Johnson, Abdul-Jabbar and Worthy.&nbsp;
Great players are clearly the building blocks on which great teams are built. But great supporting casts are a necessary part of all dynasties, too. Without them, teams run out of gas and get out-maneuvered by complicated defensive schemes. At the end of the day, you need both &ndash; and sometimes more &ndash; to win championships in the NBA.

Drew Maresca takes a look at some of the best supporting casts around NBA GOAT candidates.

Which NBA teams had the best supporting casts of all time?

In this series, Matt Babcock shares his experience growing up around the Milwaukee Bucks organization since his dad, Dave Babcock, has been an executive with the team for 23 years. He also provides an inside look at the rise and fall of the Bucks during the late 1990s and early 2000s. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/breakingnews/growing-up-a-buck-millewahque-milwaukee-bucks-nba" target="_blank" rel="noopener">For Part 1, click here</a>. <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/growing-up-a-buck-george-karl-arrives-in-milwaukee" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> For Part 2, click here</a>.
The 1998-99 NBA trade deadline was approaching, and the Milwaukee Bucks were in playoff contention after not having secured a playoff bid since 1991. At the time, the Bucks were built around two young, blossoming stars: 23-year-old Ray Allen and 26-year-old Glenn Robinson. However, the team&rsquo;s front-office brass questioned if the supporting cast was enough to elevate their team to being championship-worthy.
Subsequently, Bucks general manager Bob Weinhauer made two bold moves prior to that year&rsquo;s trade deadline. The first move: a three-way trade where the Bucks exchanged oft-injured point guard Terrell Brandon for Sam Cassell, the charismatic lead guard from the New Jersey Nets. The second move had Milwaukee trading power forward Tyrone Hill to the Philadelphia 76ers for a young developing forward, Tim Thomas, and veteran big man, Scott Williams -- two transactions that ultimately proved to be extremely fruitful for the Bucks.
With their core unit set, the Bucks went on to finish that lockout-shortened season with a record of 28-22, giving them the seventh-best record in the Eastern Conference. After nearly a decade, the Bucks were headed back to the playoffs. In the first round, they faced a team that tied for the best record in the East, the Indiana Pacers. The Pacers were loaded with talent and experience, a tall task for a developing Milwaukee team, to say the least.
Due to my dad&rsquo;s position within the Bucks&rsquo; front office, I was given countless opportunities to be with and around that Bucks team during the late 1990s. I felt like I was part of that team, and one way or another, I was going to be in that arena for Game 1. I had traveled with the team earlier in the season, but I didn&rsquo;t go on the team plane for that trip. Don&rsquo;t feel too bad for me though... I was fortunate enough to be invited to fly with Senator Herb Kohl, the owner of the Milwaukee Bucks at the time, on his private jet.
Before I knew it, my dad and I were pulling into a private hangar and boarding Senator Kohl&rsquo;s jet. Onboard that flight was my dad, Larry Harris (who worked with my dad in the front office), Senator Kohl and myself. There I was, a freshman in high school, sitting with a US Senator and NBA team owner on his private jet, heading to my first-ever playoff game.
After a quick flight, we landed in Indy, and awaiting us was a car to take us to the arena. I learned quickly that the playoffs were completely different than the regular season. I vividly remember walking into the old Market Square Arena that night. I felt like my heart was going to pump out of my chest. Everyone from arena security to players to fans all had an extra pep in their step. Energy and excitement filled the arena. The intensity of the atmosphere was unlike anything I had ever experienced, and this was before the game even began. It was unforgettable!
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Once in the arena, I beelined to the court to find Coby Karl (the son of George Karl, Milwaukee's head coach at the time) so we could do our normal routine of shooting around with the players and hanging around the court before the formal warm-ups began. I remember being in awe watching some of the Pacers&rsquo; players.
To be able to see Chris Mullin do a shooting workout up-close was special. He is probably the most detail-oriented shooter I have ever seen. He would warm up doing a spot-shooting routine, where he would have five spots around the perimeter, which is typical. However, he would have to make a certain amount of shots in a row to move to the next spot and would not count the shot as a &ldquo;make&rdquo; if the ball even grazed the rim. That specific Chris Mullin workout has always stuck with me. That was one of my early lessons that elite shooters take a scientific approach to shooting and make a conscious effort to master their craft &mdash; going through the motions or just &ldquo;getting shots up&rdquo; is not enough to be elite.
The game was set to begin, but Coby and I didn&rsquo;t have assigned seats, so we sat on the court next to the Bucks' bench, as we usually did for away games. Aside from seeing Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman and the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls team the year before, I had never been impressed by a team quite as much as I was by that Pacers team.
First of all, their head coach was my childhood hero, the legendary former player, Larry Bird, who had been the recipient of the NBA Coach of the Year award the previous season in '98. His top assistant coach was Rick Carlisle, who had been Larry&rsquo;s teammate when they both played for the Boston Celtics in the mid-1980s. It had been said that Carlisle was the actual technical mastermind behind that Pacers team, and that Larry&rsquo;s role as head coach was somewhat as a figurehead. Regardless of their coaching structure having been set up as a hierarchy or not, whatever they did, it worked. Carlisle went on to be one of the top head coaches in the industry. He has been a head coach for nearly 20 years now, and is back with Indiana for his <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/indiana-pacers-hire-rick-carlisle-as-next-head-coach" target="_blank" rel="noopener">second stint as the team's head coach</a>.
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That Pacers roster had so much depth, and it was filled with many accomplished veteran players. Their lead guard was Mark Jackson. He ran the show and controlled the tempo. He was a modest 6-foot-1 with a stocky build, and not very quick or athletic, but he was a magician with his playmaking. He was incredibly creative with his passing, and had an uncanny ability to see the floor to find shooters on the perimeter or big men around the basket &mdash; he had &ldquo;eyes in the back of his head.&rdquo;
In the middle, they had the &ldquo;Dunking Dutchman,&rdquo; Rik Smits, a huge, 7-foot-4, skilled center who could really score. Alongside Smits were two &ldquo;blue-collar&rdquo; big men who split playing time: Dale Davis and Antonio Davis. It was during an era of basketball when the common theme was &ldquo;no layups.&rdquo; The Davis duo, no relation, was the epitome of power forwards during that time as they were &ldquo;bruisers.&rdquo; Both of them were extremely physical and tough and they did all of the &ldquo;dirty work&rdquo; (perhaps somewhat of a lost art, in my opinion).
On the wing, the Pacers started Mullin, an aging star. He was not quite the player he had been when he was a perennial All-Star earlier in his career, but the guy just knew how to play. And although he wasn&rsquo;t moving all that well anymore, he could still shoot the lights out.
That Pacers team was so good that they had an emerging star, Jalen Rose, coming off the bench. Jalen&rsquo;s role was to come into the game and aggressively look to score. He had the full green light and would score in bunches. He was a 1-on-1 nightmare for whoever had to match up against him. A 6-foot-8 lefty, he had handles like a point guard, a sweet mid-range game, was extremely crafty and had an overall knack to score the ball.
The Indiana bench also consisted of shooting big man Sam &ldquo;Big Smooth&rdquo; Perkins, the defensively-versatile forward Derrick McKey and speedy scoring point guard Travis Best. (Ironically, I ended up coaching Travis Best years later in Italy when I was a young assistant coach for the team Virtus Bologna, and Travis was finishing up his playing career.)
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As if that Pacers roster wasn&rsquo;t enough to keep any opposing coach up late at night, those were just the complementary players to their main weapon: Reggie Miller.
Quite possibly the cockiest player the NBA has ever seen, Miller developed a reputation for being the ultimate villain when playing on the road. I remember watching him during pregame warmups wearing a Superman T-shirt. We&rsquo;ve all seen the highlights of the show he put on at the Madison Square Garden in 1995, where he hit all of those threes at the end of the game to come from behind and beat the New York Knicks &mdash; doing so as he relentlessly trash-talked Spike Lee, who had been sitting courtside. Miller even wrapped his hands around his neck to give Spike &ldquo;the choke sign.&rdquo; Reggie fed off negativity. He talked trash constantly. He was arrogant and abrasive. The more hostile the environment, the more he turned up his play. Heckling from fans only added fuel to the fire. I joined a large contingent of non-Pacers fans throughout the NBA that despised him. But now, after all of these years, I have to admit: Reggie Miller was incredible.
At 6-foot-7, a thin physical build, and an extremely unorthodox shooting release, Miller is arguably the best shooter of all-time. Of course, we have Steph Curry now and Ray Allen before him, but Reggie is the one that set the stage for them, in my opinion.
While I was a player in high school, I was fortunate enough to be able to have some of the Bucks coaches work with me on my game. I remember in one instance, Terry Stotts (an assistant for Milwaukee at the time) put me through a shooting workout, and I suppose that I impressed him with my shooting ability. I remember Coach Stotts telling me, &ldquo;Okay, you&rsquo;ve proven that you are a high-level shooter, but now we need to make sure you are able to get your shot off.&rdquo; The lesson he was trying to teach me is exactly where Reggie thrived. The NBA has had many capable shooters that could make open shots at a high percentage, but there has not been anyone that could shoot at an elite level while also being able to create an open shot for himself without the ball quite like Reggie.
During Game 1 of the playoffs versus the Bucks, I was able to watch Miller operate while sitting only&nbsp; steps away. I watched his method closely.
As Jackson would initiate the offense off the dribble, Reggie would take his defender deep into the paint -- under or around the basket -- and he would initiate contact with his defenders, many times by grabbing their jersey. He would take a couple of moments to set up his defender; then, at the right moment, he would take off, a lot of times beginning with a shove to his defender&rsquo;s chest. He would sprint toward one of the hammering screens that were to be set by Smits or one of the Davis&rsquo;; if the screener&rsquo;s defender didn&rsquo;t show, Reggie would turn the corner off those screens like a runner in baseball rounding third base going to home plate. Jackson would deliver a pass right into Miller&rsquo;s numbers as he would do a quick one-two step into his jump shot -- a high release and a high-arcing trajectory. When Miller would release a deep three, the Pacers' arena would have sound effects of a bomb being dropped while the ball was in the air, and when the ball would go through the net, it would have the sound of an explosion. The images and sounds of Reggie Miller coming off screens to bury deep threes are tattooed in my head to this day.
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Unfortunately, those sights and sounds were seen and heard routinely in that series, as the Pacers would go on to sweep the Bucks. Although the outcome was not what we had hoped for, it was nonetheless a great introduction to playoff basketball for me. The emotions I experienced during that playoff series were intoxicating. I was completely hooked and I wanted more.&nbsp;
Well, I got it.
The following season, 1999-00, the Bucks would go on to finish No. 5 in the Eastern Conference. They faced the Pacers, again. An improved Bucks team forced a deciding Game 5 versus the Pacers in an exciting and competitive series. I was there for the action, of course. Unfortunately, Miller and his Pacers were still too much for the Bucks. After defeating Milwaukee that year, the Pacers went on to the NBA Finals to face Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O&rsquo;Neal and the Los Angeles Lakers. They came up just short of an NBA title, as the Lakers defeated them in six games.
As for the Bucks, in retrospect, the two consecutive years of being defeated by the Pacers in the playoffs were just what they needed to prepare for what was to come&hellip;
<a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/growing-up-a-buck-the-2001-playoff-run" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Read Part 4 of this series: "Growing Up a Buck: The 2001 Playoff Run." </a>
Also, check out Matt Babcock and <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/draft" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BasketballNews.com's latest 2021 NBA Mock Draft</a>.

Matt Babcock provides an inside look at the rise and fall of the Milwaukee Bucks during the late 1990s and early 2000s.

Growing up a Buck: 'It’s Reggie Miller Time'

Over the years, the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament has given thousands of NBA hopefuls an opportunity to showcase their game in front of executives from all 30 teams. The event has featured NBA legends such as John Stockton, Scottie Pippen, Tim Hardaway, Dennis Rodman, Rick Barry and Earl "The Pearl&rdquo; Monroe. In recent years, notable players such as Jimmy Butler, Jeremy Lin, DeMarre Carroll, J.J. Barea, Richaun Holmes and Derrick White have participated.
Well, for the second year in a row, the Portsmouth Invitational has been canceled.
Enter the Tampa Bay Pro Combine (TBPC).
The TBPC is a new pre-draft event that will be held on June 3-5 at the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus in Wesley Chapel, Florida. Like the Portsmouth Invitational, this combine will showcase top draft prospects from around the nation who are looking to prove themselves in front of pro-basketball decision-makers. The TBPC is expected to include more than 60 draft-eligible players. This three-day event will feature drills, games (5-on-5, 2-on-2 and 3-on-3), athletic testing and measurements.&nbsp;
Darryl Hepburn, who played professionally overseas, co-founded the TBPC with Rashaad Ubah. Hepburn says he created this event because he&rsquo;s from the Tampa area and wishes something like this had existed when he was a prospect.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I was once a standout player that was overlooked in Hillsborough County high-school athletics in which I lacked resources and exposure to be seen by top Division 1 colleges,&rdquo; Hepburn told BasketballNews.com. &ldquo;One of many goals in establishing the Tampa Bay Pro Combine is to create an avenue to build exposure for high-school basketball programs in Tampa and the surrounding areas. As the event grows each year, so will the opportunities to give back to countless athletes around the nation."
The prospects will be chosen by a player-selection committee that consists of:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Matt Babcock, BasketballNews.com NBA Draft analyst and former NBA agent</li>
<li>Fran Fraschilla, ESPN analyst and former NCAA head coach</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Doc Martin, former NBA scout and NBA coach who played at Alabama</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Jason Filippi, Director of International Scouting at Pro Insight, former NBA scout</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Matt McKay Jr., the CEO and founder of Pro Insight, former NBA scout</li>
</ul>
Babcock and Fraschilla are co-chairs of the committee, while also serving as senior advisors.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been around basketball for 40 years and seen many, many basketball dreams come to fruition in the NBA,&rdquo; Fraschilla told BasketballNews.com. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve coached 18 of those guys and covered another couple of hundred more during my broadcasting career. The Tampa Bay Pro Combine is about creating opportunities for young players to showcase their talent and pursue their professional opportunities.&rdquo;
&ldquo;For me, personally, the combination of currently working as an NBA Draft analyst and previously representing players as an agent has given me an appreciation for new opportunities for teams, scouts and media members to gather information and also for players to gain more exposure to show off their talent as they look to start their professional careers,&rdquo; Babcock added. &ldquo;I see the Tampa Bay Pro Combine as a platform for both of those things. Tampa is a beautiful city and there are a lot of good people behind this event.&rdquo;&nbsp;
The event will be hosted at the <a href="http://www.wiregrass-sports.com">Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus</a>, which is a 98,000 square-foot venue with eight courts. The facility is located 30 minutes from downtown Tampa, where the Toronto Raptors are currently playing their home games.
According to the organizers, the TBPC will be streaming this event in order to provide maximum exposure for the prospects. They are also weighing domestic broadcast options. BasketballNews.com will be covering the event as a media partner.
Here is the schedule for the three-day event:
DAY 1:
BAM (Basic Athletic Measurement) Testing
Yo Murphy Performance Testing&nbsp;
Skills Work and Drills
2-on-2
3-on-3
Three-Point Competition
Dunk Contest
DAY 2:
Competition
Round-Robin Tournament
DAY 3:
Completion of Round-Robin Tournament
Closing Ceremony&nbsp;
Awards
&ldquo;This is going to be a great addition to the pre-draft process,&rdquo; Babcock says, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;m very excited to be involved.&rdquo;
DISCLAIMER: BasketballNews.com is a media partner of the Tampa Bay Pro Combine. For more information, <a href="https://www.tbpc2021.com/">check out the TBPC&rsquo;s website</a>.

The TBPC is a new NBA pre-draft event that will be held on June 3-5 at the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus in Wesley Chapel, Florida.

Introducing a new NBA pre-draft event: The Tampa Bay Pro Combine

Andre Drummond may not be a terrifically well-rounded basketball player, but he is very, very good at one thing: rebounding. He does not shoot threes, he is not a great free-throw shooter and he does not block a ton of shots.
So he is not perfect, okay? &nbsp;Who is? (Aside from LeBron, of course).
Dennis Rodman was not perfect either, but he was a rebounding specialist whose skill set was incorporated into a Chicago Bulls team that needed someone to hit the boards like a maniac. That&rsquo;s what Rodman did quite well, leading the NBA in that category for seven consecutive seasons during the 1990s.&nbsp;
And Rodman made it to the Hall of Fame... not bad for a guy whose first job as a young adult was mopping floors at a Dallas-Fort Worth airport. Ben Wallace was the same type of player, a rebounder (and shot-blocker) who did little else statistically, but was a key cog in a championship puzzle; he was adored in Detroit. Dwight Howard led the league in rebounding five times, and DeAndre Jordan did it in consecutive seasons, becoming such a hot commodity in free agency that he spawned the NBA &ldquo;Emoji Era&rdquo; on Twitter back when the Dallas Mavericks were trying to sign him.
All of this is relevant today because the Cleveland Cavaliers are now <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-rumors-andre-drummond-trade-possibilities-destinations-no-contract-buyout-toronto-raptors-dallas-mavericks-brooklyn-nets-sacramento-kings-new-york-knicks" target="_blank" rel="noopener">trying to trade Drummond and his expiring $28.7 million contract</a>. There are people out there who are bashing him, citing quantitative stats that make perfect sense to the quants but mean nothing to the folks who judge basketball players more simply: &ldquo;Can he help us win a championship?&rdquo;
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Overthinkers are overly abundant in the NBA. Metrics can show just about anything you want, positive or negative, depending on how you spin the data you encounter.
Folks, Drummond has led the league in rebounding in four of the past five seasons. He currently is second in the league at 13.5 per game. Can&rsquo;t we just keep it simple and not pick apart things aside from his particular prowess doing the one thing he does well? Drummond has warts, but who doesn&rsquo;t?&nbsp;
Cavs general manager Koby Altman got Drummond last year for expiring contracts and a future second-round pick. It was a steal. Now, Altman has the league on notice that Drummond is available. His job is to <a href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/nba-rumors-andre-drummond-trade-possibilities-destinations-no-contract-buyout-toronto-raptors-dallas-mavericks-brooklyn-nets-sacramento-kings-new-york-knicks" target="_blank" rel="noopener">get as much as he can for Drummond</a> before the NBA trade deadline on March 25.&nbsp;
Somebody is going to have to outrebound Nikola Jokic (11.5 per game) or Rudy Gobert (13.2) in the Western Conference playoffs, and Joel Embiid (10.8), Julius Randle (11) or Domantas Sabonis/Nikola Vucevic (both averaging 11.4) in the East playoffs. &nbsp;
Drummond could be that player, and he is clearly on the market.&nbsp;
He is better than some may lead you to believe, sort of like Enes Kanter, who is No. 11 in the NBA in rebounding as an emergency fill-in for Jusuf Nurkic. Kanter is a one-trick pony, too, and his defensive inefficiencies are well-documented. But he rebounds well, and where would the Blazers be without him?
So let&rsquo;s wait and see what Altman can get for Drummond, who ends up being a rental in Cleveland as many expected he would be when the Cavs got him. At the end of the day, Drummond is an elite rebounder. He is 27. He has a lot left.&nbsp;
As Tuesday afternoon arives, the trade market welcomes Drummond&rsquo;s arrival. Let the bidding begin.

Andre Drummond is imperfect, but he has one skill in particular that can help a team contend for a title, writes Chris Sheridan.

Andre Drummond has his faults, but he could still be key championship piece

Dwight Howard experienced a rebirth this season with the Los Angeles Lakers. In fact, his redemption during his second stint with the Lakers has been one of the more inspiring comeback stories in recent NBA history.&nbsp;
People have short memories. They forget that Howard was an eight-time NBA All-Star, five-time All-NBA First Team member and three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year winner before he turned 30. He is one of six players to post 13,000 points, 2,000 blocks and 1,000 steals (along with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Robert Parish, Hakeem Olajuwon, Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan). But this season, he was playing on a non-guaranteed contract, as rumors swirled that this may be his last chance to keep his career afloat before he found himself out of the league. So, needless to say, he had a lot riding on this season.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Then you have JaVale McGee, who had a lot of success with the Golden State Warriors three seasons ago; and although he didn&rsquo;t play a ton of minutes, he provided instant production every time he checked into the game. When the Lakers signed him, many around the NBA questioned how he would be able to contribute and if he just looked good because he was on a good Warriors team. 
But he exceeded everyone&rsquo;s expectations in the 2018-19 season, as he averaged a career-high 12 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2 blocks in just over 22 minutes per game. It was arguably one of the best years of his career; he started at center a total of 75 times. His play forced all doubters, even Shaq, to put some respect on his name. And building on that momentum was big for JaVale coming into this year, so needless to say, he had a lot riding on this season as well.&nbsp;
McGee's numbers weren't quite as flashy in his second season with the Lakers, but his efficiency improved along with his advanced metrics (such as his offensive rating and defensive box-plus minus). Still, his impact was felt on the floor. 
However, as teams like the Houston Rockets fully embraced the concept of small ball -- and with Lakers head coach Frank Vogel simply electing for a strategy switch in the NBA Finals versus the Miami Heat -- both centers saw their playing time dramatically reduced during the playoffs.&nbsp;
But here&rsquo;s the most important thing: They didn&rsquo;t become distractions. They didn't protest or have their agents make public statements. Players have many go-to tactics when their minutes are reduced or when they are not being utilized to their individual advantage -- especially in a contract year -- but we didn't see Howard or McGee go that route. They opted to be the ultimate team players, accepting whatever roles they were given for the good of the team.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/usatsi_15055730-3_lg.jpg" alt="" width="552" height="AUTO" />
And as a result, they <a href="https://www.si.com/nba/lakers/news/lakers-praise-javale-mcgee-and-dwight-howard-for-their-maturity-in-handling-less-playing-time" target="_blank" rel="noopener">both received high praise from Coach Vogel</a>, who explained to reporters that it was a big relief that both McGee and Howard had been so selfless and understanding in regards to their fluctuating playing time.&nbsp;
"Their role acceptance in a matchup-oriented series like this is everything. and it&rsquo;s a big reason why we&rsquo;re winning," Vogel said. "If they&rsquo;re unhappy or disgruntled or anything like that, it pulls away from what we&rsquo;re trying to do. Those guys deserve a lot of credit for their approach and handling the role that&rsquo;s been given to them for this series."
Anthony Davis added: "A lot of guys can just fade away and be upset that they&rsquo;re not playing. Guys come in and say they want to do whatever to help the team win, but when they don&rsquo;t get minutes, they, like I said, fade away. But those guys said at the start of the season that they want to be here and do whatever they can to help the team, and you see it."
Instead of sulking, the big men became the team's most vocal cheerleaders.&nbsp;
"They&rsquo;re the loudest guys on our bench, cheering for our guys, talking to us during the game, talking to us during timeouts and that&rsquo;s what we need," Davis said of Howard and McGee. "Two guys who have been in the league for a long time. Dwight&rsquo;s been to the Finals, JaVale [won] multiple championships, so those guys know what it takes to win and we try to listen to them. And when their number is called, they still do the right thing to be ready."&nbsp;
When <a href="https://www.silverscreenandroll.com/2019/11/9/20956456/lakers-news-javale-mcgee-starting-center-role-minutes-dwight-howard-frank-vogel-miami-heat-recap" target="_blank" rel="noopener">asked about his reduced minutes</a>, McGee kept it simple. 
&ldquo;Well, a year ago, we weren&rsquo;t winning," McGee said. "So it&rsquo;s your priorities, you know what I&rsquo;m saying? I want to win. So if that&rsquo;s what we&rsquo;ve got to do to win, that&rsquo;s what we&rsquo;ve got to do
"Being in Golden State led to a mindset where I&rsquo;m not worried about minutes. I&rsquo;m worried about if these minutes work to win the game, then I&rsquo;m down for it. If we&rsquo;re losing and this is happening then it&rsquo;s a different situation, but you can&rsquo;t complain about minutes when you&rsquo;re winning,&rdquo;&nbsp;
Not all NBA players would've handled this situation like Dwight and JaVale. I have seen guys literally throw tantrums on the bench when they aren&rsquo;t getting their minutes. I&rsquo;ve seen guys jump up and down like 5-year-olds when they get taken out of the starting lineup. I&rsquo;ve seen guys literally pout -- bottom lip stuck-out, arms folded, feet crossed, not cheering when the person who replaced them does something applause-worthy on the court, even if other players around them are cheering. Not everyone is a consummate professional.
I have seen it all, and that&rsquo;s at every level -- NBA, college, high school and AAU; and that negativity begins to spread throughout the locker room and on the bench. Then, guys who aren&rsquo;t playing the minutes they would like begin to gravitate toward other guys who don&rsquo;t play and form a no-playing-time bond of negativity.&nbsp;
I&rsquo;ve coached my son&rsquo;s AAU team, FBCG Elite Dynamic Disciples, for about five or six years now, and I have definitely seen my share of pouting and tantrums. But I have also seen players handle fluctuations in playing time with the maturity that Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee displayed, and it has definitely benefited them.&nbsp;
I have a player named Camar Gregorio (Class of 2022 and Maryland Independent League 2019-20 State Champion with Lanham Christian High School), who is our Dennis Rodman. I give all the guys a player to study and tell them that&rsquo;s their player comparison, and Rodman is exactly who Camar embodies. The tenacity, going after every rebound, two, three, four efforts; he just has a nose for the ball after a missed shot. But like Rodman, he is undersized, so sometimes when there is a bigger front line, he doesn&rsquo;t play as much, as I elect to match the opposing big man height-wise.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/image-from-ios-10-1_lg.jpg" alt="" width="552" height="AUTO" />
We didn&rsquo;t play this past season due to COVID-19 concerns, but last summer in the semifinals of one of our tournaments, we played a team who had been bullying everyone -- fastbreaking, dunking, all the extra antics and everything. In scouting them, we discovered that they couldn&rsquo;t shoot from the outside and scored primarily by driving into the paint after they spread the court (like the Houston Rockets, but without the threes), so we made an adjustment and went big. We put our two centers in the game and played a tight 2-3 zone to force them to shoot outside, and we gave instructions for the guards to slowly rotate to the three-point shooters; the other team wanted a hard close-out to drive right past us because that was their strength (Coach Boeheim would be proud). 
So we packed it in and dared them to shoot, and it worked. They were bricking all over the place, and our bigs were rebounding and outletting. We stayed with that lineup, but Camar hardly played. Now, normally he is the best rebounder we have, but I just wanted size and crowding the paint, so that was the strategy. Camar didn&rsquo;t pout and didn&rsquo;t sulk; he cheered for his teammates with as much enthusiasm as we saw from Dwight and JaVale on the sidelines when they weren&rsquo;t in the game. 
Camar came back in the championship game, played literally almost the entire time and was his normal self. After the season, Camar was voted by his teammates as our MVP for the season. It had nothing to do with scoring because he wasn&rsquo;t a big scorer. He had Rodman numbers consistently all season -- four or five points, but 15 rebounds, five steals, three floor dives, 10 second-chance attempts to keep the ball in play and 100 percent positivity no matter how many minutes he played.
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/image-from-ios-11-1_lg.jpg" alt="" width="552" height="AUTO" />
I have another player, DJ Seedan. He&rsquo;s about 6-foot-9 and he's in the Class of 2022 at Southern Maryland Christian Academy. He has the ability to control a game defensively. His player comparison was Lew Alcindor (before he became Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). He&rsquo;s not the over-aggressive Dwight Howard/Alonzo Mourning-type of big man, but rather the finesse, skilled and athletic-type. DJ can jump-hook with both hands in the lane, knock down jumpers and will block and alter every shot that comes into the lane. When the opposing team has a traditional big man, those games usually result in DJ shining, as he is more skilled than most big men at this age. But when teams go small at times and I&rsquo;m forced to play him less, he always keeps a positive attitude and stays ready in case his name is called.&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://basketballnews-media.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/images/story/body/img_5712-1_lg.jpg" alt="" width="552" height="AUTO" />
Chris Davis is a member of the Class of 2022 at Takoma Academy. He's a big man who can play multiple positions and impact the entire game on both sides of the floor; his player comparison is Joel Embiid. He is a big, athletic body that can dominate, inside and out. I remember one game in particular where we were playing against an older team in Virginia; we found ourselves down by almost 20 at halftime. Our third-string point guard, Nickalus Smith -- who has the highest basketball IQ on the team -- doesn&rsquo;t always get the chance to play, but is always locked in and positive (he's going to make a great head coach one day). That day, Nickalus pulled me to the side and suggested I exploit the pick-and-roll because the opposing bigs don&rsquo;t have a lot of lateral movement. Knowing good coaches listen to suggestions from players, I went with it, and Nick&rsquo;s strategy worked. Chris was unstoppable; he had about 20 second-half points -- pick-and-roll, pick-and-pop, pick-roll hit the corner. They had no answer for him. 
But DJ and Camar didn&rsquo;t get back in the game. Nobody pouted, nobody threw a tantrum and everyone was cheering and clapping during our epic comeback.&nbsp;So when I saw Dwight and JaVale&rsquo;s enthusiastic cheering on the sidelines throughout the entire postseason, their positive body language whether they played five minutes, 25 minutes or zero minutes, the first thing I thought about was the positive example they are setting. They are reinforcing what I preach to my guys everyday. 
I explain to my players that colleges ask me about my guys and comment on their attitude all the time.&nbsp; They are watching everything. Nobody wants a head case in their locker room, and these teachings are going to pay off for these guys in the long run because college coaches have scratched many players off their list simply because of their attitudes. There are many NBA players who have found themselves out of the league due to their poor attitude and negative reputation too. 
Teams want good locker-room guys, and mark my words, our players took notice of the positive attitudes and team players that JaVale and Dwight were on their road to winning the NBA championship.&nbsp;
Now, personally, I think the Lakers would be out of their minds not to bring both of them back, but just in case they don&rsquo;t, they&rsquo;ve put themselves in position to get a nice payday from another team -- mostly because of their positive attitude, their willingness to sacrifice for the team and their ability to make a significant impact whenever their number was called.

Etan Thomas praises the Lakers' two big men for their terrific attitudes throughout the season and playoffs.