Updated Kareem video. I really dont think he gets his due.

[Kblaze8855]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0oro9W5C70g

Thanks to fatal who had a video I took like 4-5 clips from to make a point ill get to in a moment.......


We all know the accomplishments.

But im not sure most really appreciate how good he was. How unstoppable. How good a shot blocker he was.

Kareem played the way people our size tell themselves they would if they could be as big as a lot of the scrub centers are. You imagine how easy it would be if you could just get on your toes and be 6 inches from the rim...but still have your athletic ability. Be as quick as you are now.

And that aspect of Kareem seems almost lost. How quick/fast/athletic he was for his size. And he was a giant.

hes often left out of the best giant talks but really...he was at least 7'2'' but most say 7'3'' and when you watch old games the announcers call him 7'4''. And with his hair in his youth his figure was probably 7'7''. With long arms and hops and speed....he would be a nightmare to play.



He would be at the top of the square on blocks and dunks so often its hard to even call it a highlight.

And in his later bucks and early laker days he was solid too. Not just tall. But tall and big. I cant imagine anyone today even trying to contain him. hes somewhere between 5 and 7 inches taller than Dwight. His wingspan is absurd. Hes not jumping ash igh but his highest touch is probably higher due to the size. Its like giving tweener forward(Jamison, young Sheed, or someone like that) mobility to a guy Mark Eatons size.

And he was skilled as hell. He doesnt often come up as the most skilled post players because people think he just took sky hooks. But he had hooks with both hands, fadeaways, finger rolls, up and unders, and runners and all. His footwork was immaculate. And he could pass his ass off.

Run the floor.

Rebound.

There is nothing he couldnt do. In any era past present or future I gotta believe that at his best...hes...probably the best or second best player in the NBA. Worst case....hes just arguably the best. At any point. Ever. People talk about next Shaqs and next Wilts and magics and all.

I think we might see another Magic before we see another Kareem. At his size being that mobile and skilled is just unfair.

That guy would just straight up own this league. They would have to sign over its rights and request permission to carry on business.

And I dont think he will ever be given the credit he should. Especially in the 80s. Magic overshadowed him looking back but he was still a finals MVP level player at what? 38?

Kareem was so good it puts you on the verge of hyperbole just trying to put it in words. And there are people who honestly get offended if you call him the GOAT.

I dont know that he is. But I dont think anyone really just played better than he did.

[RRR3]

2nd or 3rd best player ever IMO with a great case for being the GOAT.

[Asukal]

I have Jordan as GOAT but Kareem does have a case. I'll have to watch more games he played in and maybe I'll understand him better, stats just don't tell the whole story.

[Thorpesaurous]

I still argue that there's seven players you can't argue against being the greatest.
But on most days if someone forced me to pick one it would be Kareem. In part for his absolute lack of an adjustment period, and just rediculous length of time he was no less than dominant.

[Kblaze8855]

7? Usually i hear of 6. If you have 7 im guessing one is.....hakeem?

[Thorpesaurous]

7? Usually i hear of 6. If you have 7 im guessing one is.....hakeem?

Three centers, Three 80s/90s guys, and Oscar.

Although Oscar has sort of worked his way off my list. He's there mostly because he was my father's guy I think.

It's weird too, because they all sort of represent a different perspective of greatness. That's why they're a hard group to crack. Almost every player fits into one of their molds.

It's sort of why I've worked off of Oscar, because he's too Jordan-y without being Jordan.

[1987_Lakers]

I just watched your "**** Fundamentals" video, loved it.

[Kblaze8855]

Dont know how i forgot oscar. I wouldnt put him with that top 6 but understand those who do.


And the 2 best **** fundamentals were deleted by youtube. Bitches

[Fatal9]

nice video. i generally don't like 90% of mixes of kareem because they only include highlights from when he was a bald 40 year old, gives a wrong impression of his agility and athleticism for most of his earlier years. his passing also doesn't get enough credit, he was a great high post passer from games i've seen of him from '77-'80 (used more in this role i'm guessing in those years), obviously great at taking double teams, but I don't think that part of his game is appreciated enough because he scored really well in the context of the team (i've seen people on here claim he didn't which makes no sense).

i know you've probably seen enough '82-'85 Laker games, do you have an opinion on the importance of magic/kareem in those years? in general I think Kareem's impact on those teams gets underrated mainly because of how much better Magic became later on. he was "mr. set offense", their guy in the clutch, only guy on the team who'd get doubled and he'd create a lot of shots for perimeter guys and as old as he was still a major shot blocker who changed/blocked a lot of shots. in games Magic would miss, he'd still have the Lakers winning games most of the time, there was one game ('82 or '83) where he went into boston garden without magic and went off and won them the game. in a season like '82 for example, watching the games he should have been finals MVP. his playoff stats would have been greater had he not taken a step back because of how talented the team was (he might only score 20 points or something, but they'd be more valuable than your typical points because the only time he'd really take the ball and look to score is when the offense had nothing else going...basically taking a bad offensive possession and turning it into sure two points because of the sky hook), or if it's a blowout he'd generally play the least minutes because of his age so wouldn't really get to get his stats in those games. but people automatically assume Magic was clearly better/more valuable than him in those years when no one at the time did (neck and neck in MVP votes...KAJ would probably be ahead if he played more minutes, Pat Riley used to call him their leader/mvp, no one would really ever say that one was more valuable than the other).

[OldSchoolBBall]

I remember watching a Laker game from like 1983-'84 or so on ESPN Classic in the late 90's, and Kareem (nearing or in his mid-30's by then) posts up and does a Shaq like "Black Tornado" spin to the baseline for a dunk. I was FLOORED by how fast he was on the spin for a guy that big and that age. I remember saying "damn, no center today can move that fast, and none are as tall as him." His athleticism is DEFINITELY underrated. Must have been a beast of an athlete in his 20's, which I've seen much less of.

[Rose]

He's the only guy I know of that his skills are completely underrated. Yet he himself is overrated. I'm not gonna derail this thread with that because I'm with Simmons with him on Kareem.

But anyways, I feel like almost no one appreciates his ability to not only move in the post, but move out of and re-post. AND be able to use other players off of screens. Hell, he could pretty much use the post as another player, by how he could move around just in the lower post. Honestly him and Hakeem are really the only ones that were at least good at both of those things together, without having just sheer mass(Shaq). He had an array, and really a complete offensive repertoire of moves. Out of all the centers I've seen, only him Hakeem and Shaq have that. Not Ewing, not Zo, No one else. In all honesty, I think Kareem is the most fundamental player of all time. (I love ya Timmy but...the skyhook is better than your patented 15 foot bankshot)

[Round Mound]

I rank him 3rd in the All Time List after MJ and Wilt

[Kblaze8855]

Im not sure how one can overrate kareem. What did he not do? What did he not do multiple times? 6 mvps he would have been all nba first team 17 years in a row if he had 2 spots like guards and forwards. He made 10 finals and won 6 with 3 or 4 as the best plaer. He likely would have won dpoy. Led the league ij rebounds. Was a 35 15 5 player in his prime. What more could he do?

[Rose]

Im not sure how one can overrate kareem. What did he not do? What did he not do multiple times? 6 mvps he would have been all nba first team 17 years in a row if he had 2 spots like guards and forwards. He made 10 finals and won 6 with 3 or 4 as the best plaer. He likely would have won dpoy. Led the league ij rebounds. Was a 35 15 5 player in his prime. What more could he do?

Not dominant when the only other good player in the 70s was Dr J, who was in the opposite conference. And he also, only ever had teams win when he was with top 10 of all time guys. I mean Bird, Jordan, Hakeem, Shaq, all won without fellow top 10 guys.

Plus when he won with O and Magic both were top 5-ish players at the time. I don't think McHale, Pippen, Kobe, were top 5-ish for the first couple of C's/Bulls/Lakers championships. Kobe perhaps maybe in 2001. But that's definitely arguable. Pippen probably wasn't until 93. and McHale, was always a borderline top 10 guy, granted he played in the golden era but still.


He's kind of like LeBron, in terms of accomplishments and success. He had all the talent to be the undisputed best, but the mentality of a second fiddle.

[Vienceslav]

Well saying that he doesn