Any "All-Time" Nets Team Must Include Julius Erving
Skimming through old basketball articles can be informative and entertaining, but sometimes it can be frustrating. The 2010-11 issue of Athlon Sports Pro Basketball included a five member All-Time Team for each NBA franchise. Each All-Time Team designated two guards, two forwards and one center. No criteria or commentary accompanied the selections, other than a brief Editor's Note highlighting that Shaquille O'Neal was not selected as the center for Orlando (Dwight Howard), the L.A. Lakers (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) or the Miami Heat (Alonzo Mourning).Athlon Sports previously published a solid if unspectacular reexamination of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players List, but many of their All-Time Teams are ridiculous. In 2015, Mitch Lawrence selected a "Franchise Four" for 12 NBA franchises that made much more sense than Athlon Sports' All-Time Teams.
Athlon Sports' most egregious error was not choosing Julius Erving for the Nets' All-Time Team. Athlon Sports selected guards Jason Kidd and Vince Carter, forwards Buck Williams and Derrick Coleman, and center Billy Paultz. The inclusion of Paultz, whose Nets' career took place entirely during the franchise's ABA era, makes it clear that Athlon Sports' All-Time Teams are not limited to a franchise's NBA history. Coleman played five seasons for the Nets while Erving played three seasons for the Nets, but Erving had much more impact than Coleman not only on the franchise but also on the entire sport--the NBA's interest in acquiring Erving's talents was a major impetus for the ABA-NBA merger. Erving led the Nets to the franchise's only two league titles (1974, 1976) while winning three regular season MVPs (1974-76, sharing 1975 honors with George McGinnis), two Finals MVPs (1974, 1976), and two scoring titles (1974, 1976). Bill Russell (1961-63), Wilt Chamberlain (1966-68), and Larry Bird (1984-86) are the only pro basketball players other than Erving who won three consecutive regular season MVPs. In the 1976 ABA Finals--when Erving's Nets upset the league-leading Denver Nuggets--Erving had perhaps the best championship series ever, leading both teams in scoring (37.7 ppg), rebounding (14.2 rpg), assists (6.0 apg), steals (3.0 spg) and blocked shots (2.2 bpg).
Erving's omission alone is egregious enough to invalidate the entire project, but Athlon Sports made other mistakes as well. Athlon Sports' Indiana Pacers All-Time Team included Jermaine O'Neal instead of Hall of Famer Roger Brown. Brown won the 1970 ABA Finals MVP and he played for three Indiana championship teams. Brown's impact and legacy far exceed O'Neal's.
Athlon Sports' Portland Trail Blazers All-Time Team listed Sidney Wicks and Rasheed Wallace at forward, leaving out Maurice Lucas. Wicks put up gaudier statistics, but Lucas was a better all-around player, and he was a key contributor for Portland's 1977 championship team. Wallace played well for Detroit's 2004 championship team, but there is no question that Lucas had more impact than Wallace during their respective Portland careers.
Athlon Sports paired Allan Houston with Walt Frazier in the backcourt for the Knicks' All-Time Team. Houston had an excellent career with the Knicks, but I would choose Earl Monroe over him; Monroe played alongside Frazier on the Knicks' 1973 championship team and was selected as one of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players.
Although Spencer Haywood only played one season for Denver, he won the MVP, the Rookie of the Year, the scoring title, and the rebounding title! During Carmelo Anthony's seven-plus seasons with the franchise he did not accomplish any of those feats (he later won a scoring title with the Knicks), so I would choose Haywood's brilliant year over Anthony's solid seven years.
Although Athlon Sports listed positional designations, some of their All-Time Teams stretched credulity: Athlon Sports' All-Time Team for Detroit put Ben Wallace at forward to make room for Bob Lanier at center. Similarly, Athlon Sports' Houston team shifted Moses Malone to forward to keep Hakeem Olajuwon at center, and Athlon Sports' San Antonio team placed George Gervin at forward even though he was consistently listed as a guard on All-Star and All-NBA teams throughout his career. If the positional designations were not meant to be strictly followed, then Shaquille O'Neal should have been the Heat's center with Alonzo Mourning listed as one of the Heat's forwards. Instead, Athlon Sports inexplicably moved Rony Seikaly from center to forward and left O'Neal off of the team.
Labels: Brooklyn Nets, Denver Nuggets, Earl Monroe, Indiana Pacers, Julius Erving, Maurice Lucas, New Jersey Nets, New York Knicks, New York Nets, Portland Trail Blazers, Roger Brown, Spencer Haywood
posted by David Friedman @ 5:59 PM
