who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

[Yeah...THAT Guy]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

Larry Bird?

Pretty sure he was a small forward, right?

[Brandon13]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

Pretty sure he was a small forward, right?

Despite being listed as a PF, isn't that essentially what Dirk is?

[jeebs9]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

right, i'm not trying to downplay dirk's greatness at all. he's an all-time great, and easily the best shooting 6'10" and up player ever.

since you disagree, what jump shooting big men have been the (offensive) center piece of a championship winning team?

as for your statement about 3-5 years ago, that's sort of a moot point. 3-5 years ago, dirk was at the apex of his game athletically and in terms of production. pau has reached his peak athletically (grown tougher and more assertive) and production-wise now.

There has never been a player like Dirk. No player is like Dirk. Dirk is the first. Might be the only one of his kind we might see (for a long time). Dirk was pretty much 2 wins away from breaking the trend in his finals. I still think he can do it (well before Caron's knee that is).

And also... I don't know if Pau has reached his peak. I think Pau is playing the same way he has played since his Grizz days. I mean looking at the numbers. He not doing anything that much different. You might see toughest and assertive.... But I still see the same Pau. Again in my opinion.

[BATMON]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

what jump shooting big men have been the (offensive) center piece of a championship winning team?

The closest, since I've been watching the NBA, is Patrick Ewing who had a very good jumpshot, but could play w/ his back to the basket(somewhat), block shots, get rebounds, and defend the other team's Hall of Fame Center, from Kareem to Shaq.

But he still wasnt that dominant to will those Knickerbockers teams to victory.

He really never got a ROBIN, unless you think Sprewell was that dude. Or the Allan Houston after Sprewell showed him how to be aggressive. Starks was an All-Star ONE year. Larry Johnson wasnt Grandmama anymore when he joined.

Dork took way too long to develop his interior game....IMO.
He wasnt a Post threat the year he went to the Finals. He's now way more balanced than before.

Dork is like the big man version of Iverson to a degree. Iverson isnt a real PG or SG, just a great Ball Player. But their games are so specific that a special group of players have to be custom-tailored-made around them to really WIN, because of their unorthodox game. They both "Eat-Up" two positions - breaking down the definition yet still not really fufilling those positions needs.

[jeebs9]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

The closest, since I've been watching the NBA, is Patrick Ewing who had a very good jumpshot, but could play w/ his back to the basket(somewhat), block shots, get rebounds, and defend the other team's Hall of Fame Center, from Kareem to Shaq.

But he still wasnt that dominant to will those Knickerbockers teams to victory.

He really never got a ROBIN, unless you think Sprewell was that dude. Or the Allan Houston after Sprewell showed him how to be aggressive. Starks was an All-Star ONE year. Larry Johnson wasnt Grandmama anymore when he joined.

Dork took way too long to develop his interior game....IMO.
He wasnt a Post threat the year he went to the Finals. He's now way more balanced than before.

Dork is like the big man version of Iverson to a degree. Iverson isnt a real PG or SG, just a great Ball Player. But their games are so specific that a special group of players have to be custom-tailored-made around them to really WIN, because of their unorthodox game. They both "Eat-Up" two positions - breaking down the definition yet still not really fufilling those positions needs.

!!QFT!! Well said



10

[The15thunter]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

larry bird was a small forward.

dirk is a european power forward with american small forward skills, but has always played the four. he's a weird mix of the two, but he can't be anything but a four due to his size and his inability to defend 95% of swingmen.

while i agree that we haven't really seen anything quite like dirk, i still stand by my statement that big men who are primarily jump shooters don't win titles. whether or not dirk is a prototype or the latest proof of the statement is irrelevant, because it's still a historical trend that has yet to really be debunked.

[TheMatrix31]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

Please, stop saying "Dork". It is horribly immature.

[BATMON]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

Please, stop saying "Dork". It is horribly immature.

Sorry, if I hurt your feelings.

[NC State-31 UNC-27]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

Dirk 61
Pau 60

OS clearly saw this coming.

But really - I remember choosing Pau b/c I liked his inside presence and didn't think Dirk had enough left in his legs to be THE guy on a championship team, thus I'd take Pau and pair him with the super superstar like Kobe. Wasn't about who I thought was the better player really. Turns out, Dirk is that dude and a baller beyond what we even previously thought.

[LingeringRegime]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

I wish BATMON was still here.

[TMagic]

Eh...

I still say that it depends on your teams make up.

[The15thunter]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

i'll eat crow, a jump shooting big finally led his team to the promised land.

[jeebs9]

I still would take dirk hands down.

How of this even thread lol? We have come a long way lol

[The15thunter]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

I still would take dirk hands down.

How of this even thread lol? We have come a long way lol

well, part of the problem in retrospect is that gasol regressed from what he was at the beginning of the season, so it looks very foolish now. but i still stand by my idea that i'd rather have a dominant post big with a solid jump shot (hakeem, gasol, mchale) than dirk.

historically, it's like every title vs. dirk's.

[TheMatrix31]

Re: who would you rather have, Dirk or Pau?

Dirk any day, not to slight Pau at all.

Pretty much.