If I could start a team with one player from every position to carry me for the next 5 years, who would it be?
The only factors are age, ratings, and stats. I am not taking into account salary
Center: Wilt Chamberlain – Utah Jazz
- Funny enough, two of the players that I was thinking about for this spot are on the same team, the Utah Jazz. After looking at every team, the decision was relatively easy for me with all things considered. Wilt Chamberlain came into the league with insane ratings and draft notes that could make him the best big man in the game within the next year or two. While I would expect him to struggle percentage wise, there is no doubt that he is the future of our league. He already boasts an A rating inside and rebounding, which is almost unheard of from a rookie. I think the main thing that sets Wilt apart from the honorable mentions is his potential. Like I’ve mentioned a few times in this paragraph, he should go down as the best center we’ve ever seen in NBN. Utah is lucky to have a guy like that on their roster.
- Honorable Mention: Goga Bitadze – Utah Jazz, Kresimir Cosic – Orlando Magic, Leroy Edwards – Detroit Pistons, Dino Meneghin – Denver Nuggets
Power Forward: Maurice Stokes – Vancouver Grizzlies
- This one was actually very tough and came down to really just two players. Stokes just edged out Bob Pettit on the Wizards, although any team would be lucky to have either one of these guys. Stokes came into the league a monster rebounder, but had questions on the defensive end (I know because I scouted and thought about taking him at pick 2). I think it’s safe to say that he has put those concerns to rest and it shows with his last two seasons, averaging close to 5 stocks per game. Stokes is a unique talent that will get you 20 points per night and grab an absurd 13-15 rebounds. Not only that, but he passes the ball very well for a power forward averaging 3.5 assists per game for his career. It would be very interesting to see Stokes’ numbers if he was the number one option. He’s a candidate to take over two huge career stats in rebounds and double-doubles.
- Honorable Mention: Bob Pettit – Washington Wizards, Skinny Johnson – Spurs, Jack Coleman – Golden State Warriors
Small Forward: Oscar Schmidt – Boston Celtics
- This one was just a little bit easier for me, mainly because of the age. What’s crazy is that I had both of these guys (other being George Yardley) on my roster at the same time, but since I’m dumb as fuck, now neither of them are. Schmidt struggled a lot early on, but once he got his true shot to shine in his 3rd season, he immediately made his name known averaging 22 ppg, 9 rebounds, while shooting close to 50% from the field. Like Stokes, Schmidt came into the league with concerns about his defense, but has been able to silence those critics, earning 3 All-Defensive 2nd team awards. Luckily for me, Van had got into some cap trouble and was forced to move Schmidt to the East. I cannot wait to see Schmidt paired up with Cousy. That’s super scary for the rest of the league, regardless of what conference you’re in.
- Honorable Mention: - George Yardley – Portland Trailblazers, Elgin Baylor – Denver Nuggets, Eddie Calder – Los Angeles Clippers, Paul Azrin – Indiana Pacers
Shooting Guard: Sergei Belov – Brooklyn Nets
- With Jordan Toles finally retiring, the torch can be passed off to the new shooting guard king in Brooklyn. Belov was trapped in Atlanta for a while without any help, but was shipped off to Portland where he somehow got better. Belov does everything that you want from your star player, he scores a ton, shoots the ball efficiently, grabs rebounds with the best of them at his position, and gets his teammates involved. What’s so puzzling to me is that he only has 2 All-Star game appearances, but at age 27, I expect that number to rise in the next few years. He doesn’t average a ton of stocks, so my guess is under the first layer, he has great on-ball defensive ratings, which is very important. With the Nets in a transition year, it will be interesting to see if they hold onto the star or ship him off for assets.
- Honorable Mention: Richie Guerin – Miami Heat, Anfernee Simons – Boston Celtics, Frank Selvy – Philadelphia 76ers, Miki Berkovich – Toronto Raptors
Point Guard: Panagiotis Giannakis – Denver Nuggets
- This was probably the toughest one to pick. Only looking at ratings, I think it’s fair to say that Bob Cousy is probably the best player in NBN. Since I am taking everything into account, I decided to give the nod to Giannakis. This could be that I am bias because I picked him or because Thunder would never trade me Cousy, but oh well. The 2035 draft had some insane talent at the top with guys like Twyman, Giannakis, and Stokes drafted. Since his second season, once he became the full-time starter, Giannakis has been a stud. He has continued to improve and is now a consistent 27-30 ppg scorer will dishing out 8-9 assists and keeping his turnovers low. That’s really all you can ask for from a top PG in the league. Oh yeah and he’s only 23 years old. His D potential scares me somewhat for a guy that’s so young, but I’m going to go ahead and ignore that one right here.
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Honorable Mention: Bob Cousy – Boston Celtics, Nico Mannion – San Antonio Spurs, Trae Young – Detroit Pistons
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