Tag: American Basketball Association

All-Time Brooklyn Nets Team

All-Time Brooklyn Nets Team Infographic

The All-Time Brooklyn Nets team is…lacking. It’s lacking the clear-cut greatest player in franchise history, Julius Erving, because he only played three seasons with the franchise (sorry Nets fans, but these are the rules of our tournament). It’s also lacking other greats such as Rick Barry and Drazen Petrovic, due to the same longevity issue. What we’re left with is an underwhelming group that reflects the team’s standing as an NBA also-ran and fails to adequately commemorate their two ABA championships. Even though those championships make them our 11th seeded team, their lack of high-end talent makes them susceptible to an early-round exit.

Since Erving is ineligible, the great Jason Kidd is the team’s best player, and is one of only three players to be a member of three of our all-time franchise teams (along with Wilt Chamberlain and Shaquille O’Neal). Kidd led the Nets through an historically weak Eastern Conference and to back-to-back NBA Finals appearances in 2002 and 2003. He’s joined in the starting backcourt by Vince Carter, an elite scorer in his time with the franchise, who represented them on three all-star teams. While the Carter-Kidd backcourt failed to put the team over the top from 2005 to 2008, they had complementary skill sets, and were lethal in the open court. They’re backed up by another three-time all-star, Bill Melchionni, who twice led the ABA in assists and was a contributor to the two championship teams in 1974 and 1976. Kenny Anderson, the talented New York product who never lived up to the enormous expectations placed on him, will serve as the third point guard. Otis Birdsong, a one-time all-star with the Nets, will back up Carter along with Kerry Kittles, a solid all-around player who ranks in the top ten in team history in field goals, three pointers, total points, and steals.

While Richard Jefferson, the starting small forward, was not Erving or Barry, he was a dynamic wing who played well off of Kidd. He became a competent three point shooter in his latter years with the franchise, and provided elite athleticism for his size. Buck Williams is the greatest big man in franchise history, and is the all-time Nets leader in games, minutes, field goals, free throws, rebounds (total, offensive, and defensive), rebounds per game, total points, and win shares. They’re backed up Kenyon Martin, a plus two-way player, who provided toughness and athleticism from the power forward position. Although he’s infamous for his 3-for-23 shooting performance in game six of the 2003 NBA Finals, Martin’s offensive game was well-suited for a complementary role, which he should be able to assume as an off-the-bench contributor for this team.

Although he was a natural power forward, Derrick Coleman will serve as the team’s starting center. Coleman was one of the most talented big men of the 1990s, who, unfortunately, developed a horrible reputation during his time with the franchise. Like Anderson, he didn’t live up to the enormous expectations placed upon him, but he was a two-time all-NBA selection who averaged a double-double in his Nets career. Off the bench, Billy Paultz was an elite ABA big man who was an excellent shooter for his size. Brook Lopez, the team’s current center, will also get minutes as a dangerous scoring threat who can use his elite size (7’0” 275 lb) to protect the rim.

This team consists of many solid pieces, but does not have the mix of hall-of-fame legends that many of their competitors in our tournament boast. They have an intriguing first-round match up with the Los Angeles Clippers, another also-ran who has only recently developed into a competitive franchise.

Coach: Kevin Loughery

All-Time Franchise Winning Percentage (through 2014-15): .440

All-Time Denver Nuggets Team

All-Time Denver Nuggets Team Infographic

Our next franchise is the embodiment of…mediocrity. That sounds harsher than intended; they have won almost exactly half of their games played, with a .499 all-time winning percentage. They started as a successful ABA franchise, winning 60 games or more twice, and competing in the only Finals in team history. Since then, they’ve been a frequent playoff participant (earning a trip in 24 of their 39 NBA seasons), but have never really emerged as a title contender, peaking as a Western Conference finalist twice. The All-Time Denver Nuggets team reflects their standing as a solid yet unspectacular franchise, with good to great players littered throughout the roster, without the all-time legends that many other teams boast.

The starting point guard is triple-double machine Fat Lever, a uniquely gifted all-around player who was a special rebounder for his size (6’3”). Lever was also a threat on the defensive end, ranking in the top 10 in NBA history in both steals per game and steal percentage. The two guard, Hall-of-Famer David Thompson, is a classic ‘what if?’ player, who still was able to dominate both the ABA and NBA in a short period of time before injuries and personal issues derailed his career. At his peak, Thompson was a two-time all-NBA first-team player, who was one of five players to ever score over 70 points in a single game. Off the bench, Chauncey Billups, who spent both early and late years of his career with the Nuggets, provides the team with its best three-point shooting threat (seventh ever in made three point field goals), and another excellent all-around option who can play alongside both starters. Ralph Simpson, a high scorer from the ABA days, will also see minutes at shooting guard.

The frontcourt has a mix of dominant scorers and defensive stoppers. Hall-of-Famer Alex English is a top 20 scorer in NBA history, and will combine with Thompson to form an unstoppable wing combination. He’s backed up by Carmelo Anthony, another deadly scorer with greater size to provide opponents with a different look. A third high-scorer, Kiki Vandeweghe, will back up both forward positions; while none of these three are defensive stoppers, they should be able to outscore most small forward pairings. The starting power forward, Bobby Jones, is best known for his work on the 76ers, but he started out as a three-time all-star on the Nuggets, and provides the starting unit with a much-needed dominating defensive presence. He’s backed up by the explosive Antonio McDyess, a high-flyer with a solid mid-range game whose career was also affected by injuries. The starting center, Hall-of-Famer Dan Issel, made up for his (relatively) small stature with a crafty offensive game and a relentless motor. He’s backed up by two defensive stalwarts, Hall-of-Famer Dikembe Mutombo and Marcus Camby, who each won a Defensive Player of the Year award with Denver.

This team should be tremendously versatile, capable of trotting out quality offensive and defensive lineups. Down the stretch of close games, Mutombo, Jones, Billups and Lever should form a stingy defensive unit, while their high scoring wings and Issel will help them to score on anybody. The 20th seed in our tournament, the Nuggets will face the Sacramento Kings in their first-round match up.

Coach: Larry Brown

All-Time Franchise Winning Percentage (through 2014-15): .499

All-Time San Antonio Spurs Team

All-Time San Antonio Spurs Team Infographic

The Spurs have come a long way from their days in the American Basketball Association. Since joining the NBA, this franchise has been a powerhouse. They’ve earned a .616 NBA winning percentage, which translates to 50.5 wins per season. They’ve appeared in six NBA Finals, and won five NBA championships. They’ve qualified for the playoffs in 35 of 40 seasons. In two of the five seasons they didn’t make the playoffs? They won the lottery (both literally and metaphorically), drafting future Hall-of-Famers David Robinson and Tim Duncan. As the number four seed in our tournament, the All-Time San Antonio Spurs team looks a contender to win it all.

Tony Parker, the starting point guard, is one of the fastest players in this tournament, and a deadly scorer who became a true force in the latter part of his career. While he doesn’t have the floor vision or all-around skill of many other point guards, he puts a ton of pressure on opposing defenders, and knows Gregg Popovich’s system as well as any player on this team. Due to the size and defensive might of their big men, this team can afford to start three guards, so both Manu Ginobili and George Gervin will play as the starting wings. Among shooting guards, these two rank sixth (Gervin) and seventh (Ginobili) all-time in PER. Gervin won four scoring championships in five seasons, and ranks ninth ever in NBA points per game. Ginobili ranks 20th ever (among all players, NBA and ABA) in win shares per 48 minutes. He also might be the best passer on the team, and will help to space the floor for their penetrators and big men.

The starting bigs are the aforementioned legends, Duncan and Robinson. The ageless Duncan has cemented his legacy with a mind-blowing 15 All-Star game, All-NBA, and All-NBA defense selections. He’s been at the center of every Spurs championship, and has a claim as a top-ten player in NBA history. Had advanced statistics been prominent in the 1990s, Robinson’s career may have been seen in a different context. Consider that Robinson ranks second in NBA history in win shares per 48 minutes, behind Michael Jordan. He ranks fourth in NBA history in PER, in between Shaquille O’Neal and Wilt Chamberlain. Robinson is the only player in NBA history to have led the league in scoring, rebounding, and blocked shots, and to have won Rookie of the Year, MVP, and Defensive Player of the Year.

The bench is very solid, with five former ABA and NBA all-stars. James Silas was a clutch player who earned the nickname “Captain Late” for his fourth quarter heroics. Alvin Robertson is a former Defensive Player of the Year, who is the all-time leader in career steals per game and steal percentage. The small forwards provide the team with different options: Mike Mitchell was an excellent scorer, while Kawhi Leonard is the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, who can attack opponents offensively as well. Larry Kenon was the Spurs first 20-10 man, and, with John Beasley (the franchise’s first star player) and Artis Gilmore, gives them great size to match up with any opponent.

This team can overwhelm opponents in a number of ways. They can play fast, with the three starting guards, and Robinson, one of the most athletic big men ever. They can play slow, with Duncan and Robinson dominating opponents inside. They can smother you defensively, with three former defensive players of the year in addition to Tim Duncan, who somehow never won the award, but rates as one of the greatest defenders ever. They also have one of the best coaches in this tournament, who’ll maximize the abundant talent on the roster.

Coach: Gregg Popovich

All-Time Franchise Winning Percentage (through 2014-15): .595

All-Time Indiana Pacers Team

All-Time Indiana Pacers Team Infographic 2

It’s difficult to profile the all-time Indiana Pacers team. They experienced their greatest success in the wild and wacky American Basketball Association (ABA), which Will Ferrell somewhat accurately portrayed in the movie ‘Semi-Pro’ (side note: Terry Pluto’s Loose Balls: The Short, Wild Life of the American Basketball Association, an oral history of the ABA, is my favorite basketball book ever – an absolute must-read). With three championships and five ABA Finals appearances, Indiana was the league’s most successful team. Despite the ABA’s buffoonery, the league had great players, and in the first season after the merger, 10 of the 24 all-star participants were former ABA players. So even though the Pacers have been a slightly below .500 team since the merger, their rich ABA history deserves to be honored here, and those players are evaluated in the same context as their NBA counterparts.

This team’s biggest hole is at point guard, where Vern Fleming and Don Buse will split time. These were perfectly solid players; both were good defenders, with great height to bother their opponents (Fleming is 6’5”, Buse 6’4”). However, this is a subpar pairing for a tournament of this caliber, especially on the offensive end; they both made the cut over Mark Jackson, a more talented offensive player who was comically slow-footed with a shaky jump shot. Reggie Miller is the clear choice as the starting shooting guard; despite being somewhat overrated due to his flair for the dramatic (he only made five all-star games in 18 seasons), he was one of the greatest shooters ever, and a great late-game option who embraced big moments. Paul George provides great length, defense, and versatility off the bench, and he and Billy Knight, one of the leading scorers in franchise history, can play at guard or forward, as needed.

Roger Brown and George McGinnis are the starting forwards. Brown was the first player that was signed in franchise history; he never went to the NBA because he was associated with point shavers as an amateur (his name was later cleared), but he was a Hall-of-Famer who shined brightest on the big stage (in the 1970 playoffs, he averaged 28.5 PPG, 10.5 RPG, and 5.6 ASG in leading the team to their first championship). McGinnis is a former ABA MVP who had a good jump shot and a nose for offensive rebounds. Both were good passers, which will help make up for the lack of playmaking at the point guard position.

Mel Daniels, a two-time ABA MVP and the leading rebounder in ABA history, is the easy choice as starting center. This team boasts impressive frontcourt depth, with Jermaine O’Neal providing a great defensive presence off the bench, and Rik Smits and two-time Sixth Man of the Year Detlef Schrempf doing the same on the offensive end. There were many solid frontcourt players who were not able to make the team, including Clark Kellogg, Dale Davis, Chuck Person, Herb Williams, Roy Hibbert, and Ron Artest (who would have had a good chance if hadn’t played less than 200 games for the franchise).

This should be a very good rebounding team who can shine defensively when Buse, George, and O’Neal enter the lineup. Miller and Danny Granger should help to space the floor for their big men to operate down low. With three championships, the Pacers are the eighth seeded team in our tournament, and face the Orlando Magic in their first round match up.

Coach: Slick Leonard

All-Time Franchise Winning Percentage (through 2014-15): .511