[VIDEO/Discussion] Jerry West... is he a better all around player than Kobe?

[CavaliersFTW]

It's not about being humble. Kobe would destroy West.
A 1 on 1 game to 21, I would say Kobe wins 21-7

Well no shit, West is 74 years old that's not a fair contest at all

[Deuce Bigalow]

Well no shit, West is 74 years old that's not a fair contest at all

In their primes.

[inclinerator]

much better footage than the first one

[blacknapalm]

he has a terrible habit of dribbling with his right hand when he goes to his left and vice versa. he'd get picked in today's game relentlessly if he tried pulling that

[Poetry]

he has a terrible habit of dribbling with his right hand when he goes to his left and vice versa. he'd get picked in today's game relentlessly if he tried pulling that

He would adjust after a few weeks. His ability to learn would be intact.

[blacknapalm]

He would adjust after a few weeks. His ability to learn would be intact.

would he? i can only go by what i see, not do projections. i'm sure the evolution of the game would only help him...but the fact remains: he's way too right hand dominant

[CavaliersFTW]

In their primes.

one on one sure Kobe would probably win, he's probably one of the best one on one players of all time BUT I'm talking about who's a better all-around player. West looks like he plays a more complete game, and he's also a more efficient scorer

[CavaliersFTW]

would he? i can only go by what i see, not do projections. i'm sure the evolution of the game would only help him...but the fact remains: he's way too right hand dominant

lol, everytime someone applies pressure to his right he simply switches too his left hand in the video... as if it's no big deal. As if it would be no big deal if someone did the same today. Watch it again, he's only reacting accordingly - he keeps the ball protected, it's always out of reach, that's the point of handling a ball and he does that well. And should we assume Kareem couldn't dunk based on only watching footage of him in college when the rules outlawed dunking? My point being, the guy doesn't have the same dribbling rules as today. With looser rules on dribbling he'd be taking advantage of new moves, and the safety net allotted by making more corrections on the side of the ball. And he'd be mimicing what he sees he's a human not a programmed computer, the dude clearly has elite balance and fast hands - why not talk about the other parts of his game that aren't being restricted by today's tweaked rules?

[blacknapalm]

lol, everytime someone applies pressure to his right he simply switches too his left hand in the video... as if it's no big deal. As if it would be no big deal if someone did the same today. Watch it again, he's only reacting accordingly - he keeps the ball protected, it's always out of reach, that's the point of handling a ball and he does that well.

you're not supposed to go to your left and dribble with your right hand...like ever. you don't wait for pressure. players today would capitalize on that easily. it's certainly not protected. his off hand is by his side a couple times in the video and the ball is completely exposed.

he was a complete player, but let's not act like he was flawless.

[SuperPippen]

He couldn't dribble with his left hand and I severely doubt he had the post moves of Kobe.

at anyone who insists on regurgitating these lame myths. West could definitely dribble with his left hand. Sure, he was better with his right, but so are many players, even today. It seems to me, in fact, that even today, players tend to finish with their right hands a lot more than their left, even when going to the left side of the basket.

[SuperPippen]

It's not about being humble. Kobe would destroy West.
A 1 on 1 game to 21, I would say Kobe wins 21-7

1 on 1? Kobe would certainly win. West would be too good and too smart to be blown out 21 to 7, but yea, Kobe would win.


In a team game, though? West's overall impact could rival Kobe's, even today.

[CavaliersFTW]

you're not supposed to go to your left and dribble with your right hand...like ever. you don't wait for pressure. players today would capitalize on that easily. it's certainly not protected. his off hand is by his side a couple times in the video and the ball is completely exposed.

he was a complete player, but let's not act like he was flawless.

lol, I'm not acting like he's flawless I'm acting like he's elite and able to maintain being elite in today's game with nothing but a simple adjustment. Your acting like he's some sort of pre-programmed machine and he'd "have trouble". Nobody with that game in the video I posted would have any trouble in today's league, they'd dominate. In fact, they do - his ability to finish at the rim resembles Kobe/Westbrook/Rose/Wade/Parker etc. And his shooting resembles Ray f*cking Allen. And I watched the video again, and he actually dribbles with his left hand quite a lot in the video, and only goes left with his right hand a few times. It isn't the end of the world, the guy would easily adjust within a few weeks just as someone else already mentioned and the rest of his game would certainly translate into elite top tier dominance. If you can't see that based on the footage I don't know what to tell you, that isn't ordinary hoopmixtape talent, that's quite visibly all-time NBA talent.

[Poetry]

i'm sure the evolution of the game would only help him...but the fact remains: he's way too right hand dominant

Drop West in this era and you would pull the reins off, opening his skill set even further and making him an even better player.

West appears quite good at using his body to create a little space and he does use his left on occasion in this footage.

More importantly, based on this footage, even being right hand dominant, he seems to have something similar to a right handed stutter jab that would be effective in any era. Check out 1:22 and 1:30.

Stockton used that moved to great effect.

[Poetry]

3:33 to 3:40 is a great example of two moves that show what he can do going right or left.

[CavaliersFTW]

3:33 to 3:40 is a great example of two moves that show what he can do going right or left.

Textbook pick and roll to Imhoff, - West is so versatile on offense I'm only like half way through my archives and I'm tellin you the more footage I find of this guy the more complete and varied his game appears. I'm starting to wonder what can't this guy do.