All-Time NBA Reasoning

So.. you've had a chance to see both teams and now I'll go into my reasonsing. First, here's my starting line-up regardless of my opponent.

PG: Oscar Robertson
SG: LeBron James
SF: Larry Bird
PF: Bill Russell
C: Shaquille O'Neal

So what am I looking at? Arguably one of the greatest all around PGs in the history of the game.. Mr. Triple Double himself, The Big O running the show. Let me start off by saying.. yes, I read the Book of Basketball by Bill Simmons and yes, I understand there were more shots at that time period and more misses. Guess what.. I don't care. Oscar was a PG and a career 48% shooter, they said he could get to any spot on the floor that he wanted, whenever he wanted. He was 6'5. He got to the foul line 8+ times a game for his career.. those stats translate to ANY era.
He also had great court vision, could handle it and again.. he was 6'5. He put the ball in your shooting pocket besides his scoring ability. He was also, by all reports, a solid defender who didn't back down.

Here is the first "hmmm.." on my team.. not that I have LeBron but that I am starting him at... SG? Shockingly, he's not as bad of a shooter as you'd think.. he shoots 48% but just 33% from 3. That's okay, I don't need him to bomb away; I've got other guys that can do that. I need him to use his size and athletic ability to frustrate a certain Michael Jordan character that my opponent sports. On the other hand, hoping he can make MJ or somebody else work on the other end. Bron can slash and kick and is a great rebounder for me.. an excellent guy to have at the 2.. and the best part... he doesn't even have to think about taking the last shot! He can facilitate and let Oscar work from the 2 if needed. LOVE IT.

At the 3, my first selection. The Legend. This is going to be interesting because the way I see it.. LeBron has to guard Jordan. Oscar has to guard Kobe.. which leaves Larry attempting to guard a PG, yes, he has to try to guard Magic to start the game. Thankfully, he's one of the most underrated defenders of all-time.. and happens to have Bill Russell behind him. Whew. Either way, Magic has to guard Larry on the other end, which makes things fun both ways. Larry can obviously step out and hit the 3, can score on the move or on the block and is probably the best passing forward to ever play the game.

Bill Russell. The ultimate winner. Everything you read or see about the guy oozes with confidence and understanding of both people and the game of basketball. How can you have a chemistry problem with him on your squad? You can't. You also can't have a problem defending. Look, I'm not looking for ol 44% shooting from the field and 56% from the line to step up and knock down some shots. I am looking for him to defend the most fundamental big in the game, Tim Duncan, protect the rim.. defend Kareem/Wilt if need be and rebound whatever misses there happen to be. It's an all-time team.. you think I can't find people to score? Oh, and if you get lazy and leave him alone he'll just score off a lob from one of my distributors or crash the boards and score that way.

Shaq. Young Shaq had to be one of the most imposing players to ever play the game. Athletic and strong as an oxe, he was REALLY fun to watch in college, with the Magic and early Lakers. He could take over a game. 10x he led the league in shooting %. TEN, he shot 58% in his career! You think that he couldn't take creampuff Kareem on the block and abuse and discard him however he wanted? Child, please. How do you stop him? Foul him. Okay, foul out Kareem and Wilt, I'm fine with that. He was also an underrated passer and an intimidating defender averaging over 2 blocks a game 12 of his first 13 years in the league. He can score on Kareem all. day. long.

My bench is about roles:
Jerry West. 6'2 and by all accounts played bigger. 27 PPG, 47% shooter. 81% from the line. Over 5 rebounds and 6 assists a game. He can score, defend, distribute and play either guard spot.

Walt Frazier. Revolutionary. 6'4 and another very good defender. 19 PPG, 6 boards, 6 assists. I'd put him at the PG as my main back-up there and let West play the SG. 49% shooter, 79% from the line.

Hakeem. IMO one of the most underrated players to ever play the game. A nightmare at over 7' and freakishly athletic. 22 PPG, 11 RPG.. oh.. and 3 blocks per game for his career?! Several seasons over 4!  51% from the field and 71% from the line. You think with a lead late in the game I can't slide Hakeem in for Bill Russell get the same rebounding/defense with better FT%? Or put him in for Shaq and put Larry at the 4? He'd get major minutes since I basically have 3 bigs, and I wouldn't lose a beat with him in. BTW: Shaq said that Hakeem was probably the toughest match-up he ever faced in the game.. he might start by series end.

Pistol Pete. My favorite player in the NBA with The Legend. I want you to remember a few things here.. first, despite what many people believe, Pistol wanted to win more than anybody. He wasn't a circus show that played for himself, read the things his teammates said.. He hated to lose. With Bill, West, and Frazier I wouldn't be afraid of leadership being an issue. Pistol could come off the bench and do as he pleased.. by all accounts he had incredible NBA 3-pt range (10-15 career when they finally added the line) but he shot from out there a lot anyway. He was probably the best passer to ever play the game, yes, I said it. Imagine Russell with a rebound, outlet to Pistol with Shaq or Hakeem or LeBron running the floor and Bird/Ray Ray spotting up. He could push the tempo, he could come off the bench as my microwave, and he could get in the lane and distribute. He was built for a team like this.

Dr. J: Do I really get him to come off the bench? Is this some sort of sick joke? 30,000 career points, 50% career shooting percentage, 8.5 boards, 4 assists, 2 steals and almost 2 blocks a game. Freakishly athletic. 77% FT shooter, semi 3-pt range. He can defend and he can get out and go.. now, my first 5 come out.. Imagine Dr. J on the wing getting full court outlet passes from The Pistol? C'mon man. That's not fair!

Ray Allen: I wanted a 3-pt marksman and considered Reggie Miller, Dale Ellis and even Dell Curry. Those are my favorite 3 point shooters, but Ray Ray is my favorite of them all and probably can do more than the others combined. He's turned into a solid defender, can handle the ball, pass and is, of course, an absolute marksman and really effective on the break. With the passers and slashers this game has there figures to be a lot of help in the paint stopping the dunk/drives and why not have the NBA's all time 3 point leader standing around the line reading to snipe. 40% career from 3, 89% from the FT line and 20 PPG. A great bench player.

Dennis Rodman: Yup, The Worm. Chemistry matters, remember? So where does The Worm fit in? Easy, the bench just straight boards and defense. Do you think that Red Auerbach, William Russell, The Legend and company would let one guy ruin chemistry? I don't. That's why I'm not worried about it and looking forward to adding a guy that can defend the 1-4 and just get after it defensively. He is actually a 52% shooter because he never shot more than lay-ups except those random 3s he drained. He was only a 58% FT shooter. 7 PPG, 13 RPG.. 6 straight seasons of leading the league in boards and 14.9 was his lowest amount.. absurd in that era. Oh, by the way.. 10 times he was an ALL-NBA player, 7 of them 1st team. That's my 12th man, the modern eras best rebounder and a 10x All-NBA defender.

IR: Kevin Durant. 6'9 with like 7-4 wingspan. 26.6 PPG career and 2x leading scorer already.
IR: Kevin McHale. 55% and 80% FG and FT. More ways to score on the block than Jabbar.
IR: Bob Cousy. 37% FG, 80% FT. 8 straight leading league in assists. 18, 7, 4 career numbers. (BTW: This link is probably the first I've ever seen of him.. lets be for real, if I saw this earlier, he wouldn't be on my IR. He was WAY ahead of the rest of those clowns. My goodness.)

That gives my bench the chance to have a wing, PG, and post player in case of an injury.

I can go big, small, offensive, defensive, and rotate guys in and out. Don't think I wouldn't press and run and gun with these guys. I will.

Good luck, JD, you're gonna need it.