Last night, a buddy of mine sent me a post for me to obsess over it. I have been thinking about it pretty much non-stop since I first saw it. Which Basketball Era would win?
I don't know who Kalum Johnson is but by not building the best starting five from each era, he made this a very interesting exercise. Normally I'd say give me Jordan, Olajuwon, Bird and two peanut vendors and they won't ever lose. Out of all of the eras, I think the Baby Boomers have the best trio of players. But I do not think Barkley or Magic belong on the team. They are both exceptional players but they would not complete the best five the Boomers could put on the floor. Just for team composition I'd replace Barkley with Rodman and Magic with Gary Payton. I'm not saying these guys are better than the other two, but between their big three, they have plenty of scoring. They need defense and those two would provide it.
But the Boomers aren't the only team that is assembled poorly. The Silent Generation has three centers. Now Bill Russel, Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem happen to be three of the greatest players ever, but they are all centers. Oscar Robertson and Jerry West are great but that team has no chance.
For Gen X, Shaq is the weak link. He can't play defense. So he should be replaced by someone who can... like David Robinson.
There is no way James Harden belongs on the Millennials. he sticks out like a sore thumb. He has never played defense and he is a human rain delay on offense. He pounds his dribble for what seems like hours. That team is meant for cutting and passing not dribbling until someone gets close enough to you to draw a cheap foul. Plus I want these games exciting. Harden will put everyone to sleep. As much as I hate him, you need Chris Paul running that squad. But, since every player on that team is also a primary ball handler, why not add another in Giannis? If you put Giannis on that team, they are the best hands down. And as an old man and Bulls fan, that is hard for me to say.
I won't even count Gen Z. None of them are fully established except maybe for Luka. And he is established as a ball hog and a 1 dimensional player. The next time he plays defense will be the first time he plays defense. And if Jayson Tatum is one of your best five to go up against Michael, Kobe, or Jokic... I wish you luck.
So the only three teams in the conversation are the Baby Boomers with Rodman and Payton replacing Chuck and Magic, Gen X with The Admiral instead of Shaq, and The Millenials With The Greek freak instead of The Dribbling Beard.
Michael Jordan is the G.O.A.T. there is only one other player's name that I can't easily bury in an argument. Hakeem is one the greatest two way players of all time. Everyone knows him for his shooting and post moves but people forget he may be the greatest defensive center ever. And Larry Bird is a legend for a reason. But even that team would need to go seven games against Gen X. Tim Duncan is boring but flawless. Kobe can score. Kevin garnet is another one of the greatest defenders of all time and he was 7 foot before 7 foot was cool. There weak link is point guard but they have plenty to compensate.
But here's the problem. As much as I love the 90s, the Millennials team with Giannis instead of harden is unstoppable. Although I do not think LeBron is anywhere near as good as Jordan, he was a sensational two way player (he's just old now) who was unselfish to a fault. On this team he would be the 4th option. Let that sink in. That is insane. Although Steph isn't great at D, he's the best shooter in the history of time and he would get plenty of open looks. He'd have LeBron and Giannis to protect him on the other end. Durant is 7 foot and one of the best shooters ever. Good luck guarding that. Now onto the one guy who I actually have to spend energy on when someone says he's better than Jordan... Nikola Jokic. He is the best offensive basketball player I have ever seen. he has no flaws on offense... except he's slow. But he is so perfect in his execution that his speed is overshadowed by his size. When it comes to defense many people underrate him. He's slow. But he is the smartest player in basketball today. He is ALWAYS exactly where he should be on defense. He puts his giant body in the exact right spot and causes the other team problems. Oh and if they get by him, there is Giannis to swipe it out of the air.
So I'd take a revamped version of the millennials. No offense to Michael Jordan but he simply was not surrounded by the talent that Jokic is.
So who ya got?