Mar
13, 2001 NBA
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NBA
MARCH MADNESS By
TOM SNOW SMG
Sports
snowwtsnow@home.com
The
fabled NCAA’s loom large on the horizon. For basketball fans there
is no greater celebration than this wall-to-wall roundball blitz.
Even NBA junkies who spend the entire winter ignoring the pro-lite game
staged on campuses across the nation can’t help but get infected by the
unique collegiate Vitale-ity of highly virulent "March Madness" disease.
But
before we give our attention entirely over to this fantastic spring spectacle,
I want to steal a bit of the curious nomenclature of this event and use
it to construct my own NBA player brackets. I think that the beauty
of this process is its sheer subjectivity. Simply put, I’m going
to rank the best players in the NBA. My methodology for this March
Madness is to identify who are the 64 best NBA players. Using my
tortured imagination, I tried to imagine who would do best if we had a
one-on-one tournament pitting these guys against one another. I start
with a field of sixty-four (no, not sixty-five) and whittle-em down one
round at a time. Our minds eye can follow their progression to 32 players,
to the sweet sixteen, the elite eight, the final four, and then, ultimately,
a winner.
Although
this is just a mythological exercise, I think it is a cerebrally satisfying
exercise. Just imagine some of the stirring and controversial
upsets along the way; for example, who would win-using my rules-if Stephon
Marbury and Karl Malone faced off one-on-one. And you, my fellow
opinionated fans, are encouraged to curse me, ridicule me, and argue with
me. Stake out your ground, sharpen your rational and you channel
your most competitive emotions, because it’s March, the Vernal Equinox,
and its time to go MAAADD!
The
Rules: Points are awarded for ability to win matches using the following
scoring formula: In-the-paint baskets score 1 pt. Between the paint
and the three-point line scores 2 points per basket. Beyond the three-point
line scores 1 point per basket.
Obviously
we’re trying to construct a competitive situation that emphasizes the scoring
zone where size and speed intersect. Therefore, I "penalize" you
for simply relying on height and a big ass to push a smaller man under
the basket for a layup or dunk-you can score this way, but only a point
at a time. The same goes for the three point shot. I don’t
want some quick little guard running away from a bigger opponent and lofting
trey after trey. Consequently, each "trey" yields just one point.
I
want the big and small, quick and slow, jumper and shooter to do battle
in the "scoring zone", that area where bank shots, leaners, fade-aways,
jump-hooks, and classic jump shots originate. Speed can be an asset
here, as can size. The scoring zone is the place where these assets
are equalized and where the players who most effectively meld these two
assets can rule.
There
is a twenty-four second shot clock and each called foul reduces your score
by one point.
The
first player to 20 points wins and moves on.
Remember,
this ranking system is based on my opinion of players’ overall skill/talent/ability
within a completely contrived format whose only purpose is to generate
some fun, and enlightened, debate. Before you declare me a certified, pluperfect,
fool for putting Shaq at the 10 spot, stop for a moment, breathe deeply,
and then attack me as a pluperfect fool. I’m not saying that these
rankings are useful for building a real NBA team or that being as big as
a house isn’t a very important quality. Lets just say that my system,
and my intent, is to reduce the singular importance of size and/or quickness
in favor of the total package.
THE
FIELD OF 64 (also, and importantly, known as MY PICKS)
1.
Kevin Garnett
2.
Kobe Bryant
3.
Tim Duncan
4.
Allen Iverson
5.
Chris Webber
6.
Antawn Jamison
7.
Tracy McGrady
8.
Antonio McDyess
9.
Vince Carter
10.
Karl Malone
11.
Shaquille O’Neal
12.
Rasheed Wallace
13.
Gary Payton
14.
Jason Kidd
15.
Michael Finley
16.
Steve Francis
17.
Shareef Abdur-Rahim
18.
Dirk Nowitzki
19.
Elton Brand
20.
Shawn Marion
21.
Paul Pierce
22.
Glenn Robinson
23.
Rashard Lewis
24.
Scottie Pippen
25.
Jalen Rose
26.
Lamar Odom
27.
Latrell Sprewell
28.
Ray Allen
29.
Baron Davis
30.
Juwan Howard
31.
Derek Anderson
32.
Eddie Jones
33.
Penny Hardaway
34.
Jamal Mashburn
35.
Stephon Marbury
36.
Allan Houston
37.
Jason Terry
38.
Mike Bibby
39.
Predrag Stojakovich
40.
Toni Kukoc
41.
Andre Miller
42.
Marcus Camby
43.
Kieth Van Horn
44.
Vlade Divac
45.
Jermaine O’Neal
46.
Steve Nash
47.
Clifford Robinson
48.
Reggie Miller
49.
Nick Van Exel
50.
Sam Cassall
51.
Cuttino Mobley
52.
David Robinson
53.
Dikembe Mutombo
54.
Larry Hughes
55.
John Stockton
56.
Antonio Davis
57.
Bonzi Wells
58.
Tim Hardaway
59.
Darrell Armstrong
60.
Brian Grant
61.
Hakeem Olajuwan
62.
Wally Szczerbiak
63.
Theo Ratliff
64.
LaPhonso Ellis
So
what do you think? Did I leave anyone out? Did I diss someone
who deserved better or perhaps give the benefit of the doubt to some hack
who really should be relegated to the defunct CBA. Do you have an
opinion? I hope so because that is what March Madness-both the traditional
MM and my new NBA MM are all about. Join the fray. But bring
an opinion, hopefully a rationale, and definitely an attitude. Its
time to stand up, say your piece, and be counted.
