Why are Steph and even Luka in consideration for being some of the best basketball players ever when they don’t play defense? In my eyes the top 10 should be the best players on both sides of the ball, not just one. Can Steph really be considered a top 5 player all time without ever being an above average defender?
Of course they’d be top 10 man 60 points is unheard of, but if you take steph averaging 30 vs a oscar or IT averaging 27 who would you take?
What? Steph
It’s funny you listed Oscar (an ancient player who is almost impossible to graft onto today’s game) and IT, two of the only standout PGs from a defensive standpoint.
But can you not see how Steph’s offensive insanity directly contributes to titles? Like, yeah, he’s not going to lock anyone up but you’re telling me when he gives up 18 points to a guy who only scores 12 but drops 42 on the other team’s head that his lack of all-nba defense makes it a wash? Really?
Depends on a lot of other things. For instance, IT only averaged 27 per 100 possessions once in his career while Curry’s averaged more than 35 per 100 possessions since 2015.
My point is that there is a threshold of offensive output where it outweighs the drop in defense. Obviously 60ppg at 70% is enough. Most would also say 40ppg at 70% is enough. If you reduce that number to whatever Steph averages on whatever TS%, most would say it’s still enough to offset his worse defense
Steph