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It’s time to change the way we think about NBA basketball. The game has changed, but most people’s thought processes haven’t.
People are still hung up on traditional positions, which only exist to a slight extent but in most cases are no longer important in that form. It’s not about traditional positions, it’s about fitness, skill-sets and roles.
For example, don’t ask yourself whether you need a shooting guard or small forward, ask yourself whether you need a wing defender, a slasher to draw fouls and get to the line, a rebounder, and so on.
Also ask yourself whether his offensive and defensive skill-sets will fit well with your other players. The game is no longer about the positions on your program.
Most fans believe they need a big, traditional centre to compete in the NBA. Perhaps they missed this year’s playoffs.
As Bill Simmons frequently states, the 2012 Oklahoma City versus Miami finals series was a sign of where the league is heading; towards even more speed and athleticism and away from slow, traditional big men.
Disagree? Name a traditional big man who influenced the outcome of the finals. Additionally, in the conference finals, Roy Hibbert was rendered essentially useless.
Miami were simply too fast and athletic, resulting in Indiana barely being able to have their franchise player Hibbert on the floor at the end of crucial playoff games.
People’s reasoning as to why their team must sign a traditional centre tends to be something like this: “We don’t have a true centre! Who’s going to guard Dwight Howard and Andrew Bynum?”
Well, they have just named the only two good true centres in the league. Even if you do come up against them in the playoffs, rather than just asking how you’re going to guard Howard or Bynum, ask yourself how they are going to guard a modern day, non traditional big man who is fast, can step out of the paint, shoot as well as put it on the floor.
I hear and read this far too often: “Who’s going to start the game?” Who cares? Fans need to stop obsessing over who starts.
James Harden and Manu Ginobili don’t start. They are, however, genuine stars who play for their respective powerhouse countries and are on the court in crunch time.
Please limit your concerns to who finishes the game.
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