would guys like Bob Cousy, Jerry West, John Havlicek etc be stars in today's league?

[jstern]

I agree. Things haven't changed that much. I think people put to much on how athletic they perceive players to be today. They are a little more impressive, but not by much. I am especially annoyed when people talk about how much more awesome the players are today compared to a time as recent as the 80's or especially the 90's

Nah it's cool man. I was saying that history tells us that women aren't that fast lol

Yeah, me too, especially when talking about the 90s. Like in 2005 you would hear a young kid who loves Kobe saying that Kobe plays in a much more athlectic era than Jordan in the 90s. They don't realize how short of a time 5 years is, much less 10 years.

I think it's just the way people perceive anything before their time. Even myself, when I was younger I saw Wilt Chamberlain lifting weight, and honestly my reaction was like, "They had weights at time?" Like logically I knew that of course they had them, but in a sense for some reason you a kid kind of reacts like that. (Honestly I was like 26, not a kid, I just turned 29).

Or when I was even younger like 9, I would look at this picture of me as a baby in this place called 3rd avenue, and I would go "Wow, 3rd avenue existed such a long time ago." Just 8 years. And you just don't lose that mentality of being a kid and seeing such a short span of time as being really long over night , or as a teen, it takes a few years of being an adult and thinking back to past events.

[KevinNYC]

Also you also have to consider that a white person has never ran the 100 metres dash under 10 seconds

A French guy did it last year. Christophe Lemaitre

If you want to go by those number, 1968 and lets say Kobe's prime, it's only a 2% improvement. So by that we can say that players are 2% more athletic.

But you also have to take into account the number of basketball players now and then. The pool of talent is drawing on is, what, ten or 20 times larger than when Bob Cousy was drafted? This would tend to push up the athleticism of the average player because the cream of the crop is being selected at all positions and there's no spot to hide someone who's not very athletic. I don't know how you measure that, but I think the effect would be greater than 2%

[OhNoTimNoSho]

No, they wouldnt even be bench players, the NBA has advanced light years since those days, Jerry West maybe would be a bench player at best. Cousy and Havlicek wouldnt be starters on good college teams, no amount of work and dedication would give them athletic ability.

[LAClipsFan33]

Yeah, me too, especially when talking about the 90s. Like in 2005 you would hear a young kid who loves Kobe saying that Kobe plays in a much more athlectic era than Jordan in the 90s. They don't realize how short of a time 5 years is, much less 10 years.

I think it's just the way people perceive anything before their time. Even myself, when I was younger I saw Wilt Chamberlain lifting weight, and honestly my reaction was like, "They had weights at time?" Like logically I knew that of course though they did, but in a sense for some reason you ask those questions.

Or when I was even younger like 9, I would look at this picture of me as a baby in this place called 3rd avenue, and I would go "Wow, 3rd avenue existed such a long time ago." Just 8 years. And you just don't lose that mentality of being a kid and seeing such a short span of time as being really long over night , or as a teen, it takes a few years of being an adult and thinking back to past events.

Very true. People also tend to forget about players. They'll talk about how long and athletic players are now and forget that Orlando Woolridge was that player. Then they'll look back like "Damn I forgot they had guys like that back then".

[Harison]

All superstars from the past would do just fine today. Sure, they would need some time to adjust to new rules, etc., but I have no doubt they'll survive. Anyone saying someone like Russell would be bench player today makes me

[KevinNYC]

Cousy and Havlicek wouldnt be starters on good college teams, no amount of work and dedication would give them athletic ability.

Spoken, by someone who doesn't know their games.
Havlicek would be like Rip Hamilton's prime. Run, run, run all day long.

[LAClipsFan33]

No, they wouldnt even be bench players, the NBA has advanced light years since those days, Jerry West maybe would be a bench player at best. Cousy and Havlicek wouldnt be starters on good college teams, no amount of work and dedication would give them athletic ability.

LOL. So misinformed...

[jstern]

A French guy did it last year. Christophe Lemaitre



But you also have to take into account the number of basketball players now and then. The pool of talent is drawing on is, what, ten or 20 times larger than when Bob Cousy was drafted? This would tend to push up the athleticism of the average player because the cream of the crop is being selected at all positions and there's no spot to hide someone who's not very athletic. I don't know how you measure that, but I think the effect would be greater than 2%

Interesting new, that it was finally broken.

About your second point, you could also say the same thing about sprinting in those days. It's all relative, and the population was smaller back then. I do take into account that there are more black players, and they are in general more athletic. Like I said earlier, I think basketball really improved skill wise from the the late 50s to the late 60s, but I'm really no expert. Also have to take into account different rules, like dribbling rules that made them less free. They wouldn't have those today. (Seeing Bob Cousey dribble today might seem funny, but it actually took a lot of skills to dribble that way.)

Very true. People also tend to forget about players. They'll talk about how long and athletic players are now and forget that Orlando Woolridge was that player. Then they'll look back like "Damn I forgot they had guys like that back then".

Yeah, that happens to me to. Bottom line, nothing is really new.

[STATUTORY]

60's it was hard for blacks to get in

In the 70's...the athletes were elite

somewhere in the 70s the athletes became close to modern times, in early 70s it still wasn't there. There was an average of 6 white players on every team in the 70s, now that number is close to be 2 or 3.

but that's just the athleticism dimension. the level of skills for perimeter player has been elevated to a new level.

[jlip]

Yes.
See how easy that was.

[TheAnchorman]

somewhere in the 70s the athletes became close to modern times, in early 70s it still wasn't there. There was an average of 6 white players on every team in the 70s, now that number is close to be 2 or 3.

but that's just the athleticism dimension. the level of skills for perimeter player has been elevated to a new level.

IMO the modern NBA athlete emerged after the NBA/ABA merger. The '76 Celtics, the last champion before the merger had subpar athleticism and was made up of lots of hustle/grit/energy guys without that much hops. People like Dr. J and David Thompson came from the ABA and brought their high-flying styles, causing a big shift in the way the game was played.

[G.O.A.T]

Yes.
See how easy that was.

I do think Cousy struggles at first in the time machine scenario. It's been 50 years since he played, and his career started pre-shot clock and integration.

However, Weast and Hondo would probably be better in an era where the court is more spread out and their is a premium of perimeter defense.

[OhNoTimNoSho]

LOL. So misinformed...

Bet you can't prove me wrong

[LAClipsFan33]

Bet you can't prove me wrong

Bet you can't prove yourself right

[PHILA]

Cowherd was talking about this, said a player like Maya Moore and Candace Parker could play than because they are just as athletic.. The fast sprinter back in those days is slower then the fastest woman today in sports

Wow.