Golden by Marcus Thompson

Author:Marcus Thompson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Touchstone

Splash Brothers

° ° °

“They are the greatest shooting backcourt that’s ever played this game. I don’t think it’s a debate. They are two incredible shooters. And we have not seen a tandem as deadly as those guys as far as shooting the basketball.”

—Mark Jackson

CHAPTER 6

There are layers to NBA stardom. Level 1 is simply having the skills to light it up at all. The ability to score, say, 30 points in an NBA game is a club with plenty members, but there is still some exclusivity to it. Not everyone can, even in optimal settings, go and get 30 for his team. But some are good enough that if a poor defense is in front of them, or their shot is clicking and they have the green light, they could produce a big night.

Level 2 would be the caliber of player who could get 30 against a good defense, which is a degree of difficulty that shrinks the club significantly. Not many players can manufacture such high production against teams that don’t make many mistakes on defense. The Level 3 players can get it done even when those good defenses are focused on stopping them specifically. An incredible amount of mastery is required to carry a team when the scouting report is designed to take away a player’s strengths and prey on his weaknesses.

But then there is another level: players who produce at high levels in the biggest games, when the good defenses are especially focused and the expectation becomes another foe. Few players can thrive while under immense pressure, such as in the playoffs. The elite are those who can summon greatness when needed most.

The best teams in the NBA in the last fifteen or twenty years have had at least two players at the highest levels, often three. The Miami Heat had LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh. All at least Level 3 players. The Spurs had Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginobili. The Lakers had Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal, then Bryant and Pau Gasol. The Celtics had Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen.

The Cavaliers won a championship because Kyrie Irving grew into one of those type of players on the biggest stage. LeBron James needed help.

The Clippers have had two of those players for years and have been in need of a third, which is why they went after Kevin Durant when Paul Pierce proved he was no longer that guy. The Pacers have one in Paul George, and a budding one in Myles Turner.

And some, like John Wall in Washington and Anthony Davis in New Orleans, are wasting away as lone stars with little hope until management can get them a cohort or two. The departure of Durant means Russell Westbrook will join them unless center Steven Adams keeps progressing.

This is how the NBA works. Players are so good, schemes so sophisticated, that winning big requires a plurality of greatness.

Since the Warriors became a playoff team, after trading guard Monta Ellis in

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.