FWIW - I take Jordan in a heartbeat.
and my next 3 would be Shaq, Magic and Hakeem

I would never select anyone who doesn't eat pork and fasts for half the season

Gah, I'm a huge David Robinson fan (hence the reason I like the Spurs) and was hoping he dropped to me at 12

I really don't understand the hate for the Bird pick. I can see an argument for Hakeem or Duncan there, but Bird is a good pick IMO.

Disagree, I can see Lebron becoming better than Jordan, Jordan also played in his prime during a time where the league's talent was much much much worse than it is now.

EDIT: I would obv take Jordan #1, but a case can be made for Lebron

For clarification purposes, would it be illegal to trade all of my picks for MJ (obv hypothetical) and then pick up 8 guys and a coach from "free agency"?

The person trading MJ would get a bunch of extra picks they wouldn't have use for. The closest you could do is trade your 1st through 5th round picks for MJ and his 7th-10th round picks. That way you'd both end up with 10 selections.

if you don't see larry bird's lack of athleticism compared to the modern player as a downside, then why the hell were you even considering for a millisecond taking tim duncan over him?

again, i don't see how it's controversial to think that today's game is much different than it was when bird was in his prime, and that bird would be nowhere near as good in today's game. i just watched some bird highlights and one thing that struck me was bird making a sweet pass into the post and the big guy just laying it in. the game demands so much more athleticism now from the average player, not just the 'greats'. do i think bird would be a good player now? sure, but 5th best EVER? no way.

kidcolin- btw, I had told Jack when you were deciding that I would have taken Duncan in that slot. But Bird there isn't awful like everyone makes it out.

Man I can't wait for the later rounds, that's where the true drafting challenge comes. 1st round picks are pretty easy, in part because you can go a ton of different directions. After the first few rounds you're locked into a certain type of team and need to tailor your picks to complement the players you already have.

1. I thought about Duncan for the reason Assani chose him: he's a defensive monster (note he's not Mr. Athletic himself.. seems to have fared pretty well over the years). Same with KG. However I passed because a) I love Bird and b) Timmy can be annoying and c) Timmy sorta pigeonholes my team into a certain style from the get go.
2. If we're using your line of thinking, why is Magic at #3 OK? Magic wasn't a supreme athlete by any means.
3. Sweet expert highlight analysis btw
4. Why do you keep saying controversial? No one ever said it was.
5. If we're holding the earlier eras lack of athleticism against itself, well that gays up the whole thing. Then you might as well make sure you take Baron over Isiah, or something along those lines.

Personally - I dont take Larry Bird that early for a few reasons.

Ok - I understand he brings a lil more than that deadly shot of his...but there are so many elite players that couldve been taken at that pick that have the same (if not more) of that intangible "Star" factor...(or winning-player factor).

I wouldve taken Hakeem or even Duncan in that spot - because...well - you could always pick up an elite 3pt shooter in the later rounds and the other skills that Bird brings to the table can easily be covered by many other players...and the difference between Bird and say...Reggie - can be more than covered up by selecting an elite player that brought something to the table other than AMAZING SHOOTING and average to above average skills (rebounding, passing, dribbling, defending). Selecting an elite centre or PG would define your team right from the get go more assertively imo.

you just compared Larry to Reggie you're opinion is not valued here

average rebounder and passer lol

Wow, big men going like hotcakes now. Shaq, Timmy, The Dream, The Admiral. Not too many guys like that left, none will be there at #31 .

Don't worry, Rasheed Wallace will be there, after all he is the most talented player of all time according to Charles Barkley.

Erick Dampier will be there.

Rik Smits!

1. fair enough
2. my 'line of thinking' only says that being a strong athlete is more important in today's game than it ever was in the past
3. dude, i watch basketball for fun, not to analyze ratios of this or that to determine who, mathematically, i proclaim to be the 5th best player in basketball history. honestly, that stuff seems ridiculous to me. bottom line is the game is clearly very different now. a big man catching the ball in the post with 5 feet of space and not dunking is evidence of that. irrefutable evidence based on hours upon hours of game study and statistical analysis? no, but you're being a huge nit.
4. i say controversial because we are now arguing about it. the game is different in a way that would not suit mr. bird particularly well. you disagree, or rather think that mr. bird would still dominate. there's the controversey.
5. ok, fair enough. but it also "gays up" the whole thing to only consider players within the time that they played. a necessary part of the draft is deciding how older players would fare in the modern game. and a big part of that is athleticism. again, the game has changed.

Yeah, you guys are right. (crosses fingers that Mark Eaton will be there)

Bird would have access to a nutritionist, weights, etc.. not just eat popcorn and drink Mountain Dew while shooting hoops in his driveway in French Lick. So there. I WIN

You come to conclusions very rationally.

Larry is obviously a huge favorite over just about any player in the history of the league (and yes - that means mr. late rounder himself...Reggie Miller)...

however - if you cant understand what point im tryin to make here...then maybe your opinions shouldnt be valued here. (Yes - Im a noob to 2p2 SE, but Im far from being a noob to the NBA and its history)...

My point that Im tryin to make is that just on shooting...counting nothing else, Reggie can shoot with the best of them....that means Larry too.

And, everything else that Larry brings to the table (aside from his shooting) can be made up for by picking different players.

edit: the only reason Im making this arguement is because there was still so much elite talent left to pick from at the number 5 spot.

I know, Christ, Bird as average in those categories is a gigantic understatement.

If someone wants to underrate everyone from the 80s, then fine. Its an opinion that I don't agree with, but its reasonable at least.

But no one scoffed when Magic was taken, all this "unathletic" stuff only came up w/rt Bird.

D

Also, Bird = best non-PG passer of all time?

racist ban

Lebron will be the best non PG passer of all time when it's all said and done