All-Time NBA Draft (not just international)

[Elizah Huge]

Alright, needing a defensive presence I'm going with

The Orlando Version of Dwight Howard

x3 Times DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

5× NBA rebounding leader (2008–2010, 2012–2013)

2× NBA blocks leader (2009–2010)

Orlando Magic all-time leading scorer

4× NBA All-Defensive First Team (2009–2012)

8× NBA All-Star (2007–2014)

5× All-NBA First Team (2008–2012)

Write up

- Dwight single-handedly took the Magic to the NBA Finals without much supporting cast at all

- Defensive presence, great pairing with Tim Duncan as it allows Tim to concentrate on scoring/bullying smaller PFs

- With GREAT LEADERS already on my team (Duncan, Pippen, Kidd) I believe this is a PERFECT environment for Dwight to thrive

- Playing alongside Duncan will make Dwight much better player as he can concentrate on Shot Blocking & Dunking & not worry about scoring

- Kidd can lob it to Dwight ALL DAY LONG

Lol if only you could pick which version of Howard you want.

 

[The Midnight]

Lol if only you could pick which version of Howard you want.

Of course you can - all players decline at some point in time right?


To me Dwight had a really good run defensively with x3 Defensive Player of the Year awards. He was a really dominant player and led his team of limited talent to the Finals.


The situation wasn't ideal, then he got injured which was really unfortunate.

 

[Elizah Huge]

Of course you can - all players decline at some point in time right?


To me Dwight had a really good run defensively with x3 Defensive Player of the Year awards. He was a really dominant player and led his team of limited talent to the Finals.


The situation wasn't ideal, then he got injured which was really unfortunate.

It really depends on people's opinion on Dwight. Not doubting the pick at all, just saying.

 

[spycam1]

Kidd was the right pick.

Dwight wasn't. There are other bigs available better than him.

I bet you could have picked one of them and picked Dwight as your 6th man with your next pick, if you really wanted him.

 

[spycam1]

I'm surprised at some of the PG's taken before Kidd.

 

[The Midnight]

Kidd was the right pick.

Dwight wasn't. There are other bigs available better than him.

I bet you could have picked one of them and picked Dwight as your 6th man with your next pick, if you really wanted him.

With Duncan already in place to do inside scoring, I really needed someone who could just be that athletic guy that can just occupy the paint, block shots and gather defensive rebounds. Dwight had a great run with x3 times Defensive Player of the Year (show me another big man still left on the board with that accolade). He wasnt just good at blocking shots, but he was a great defensive rebounder of the ball as well. (x5 times NBA Rebounding Champ).


It's a pity he had limited supporting cast in ORL, if there was another guy who could take off some of the scoring pressures he would have had much more success IMO.

 

[addictionary]

Let's take a look at pick 43...

Career stats: 27.4 PPG, 13.5 RPG, 4.3 APG
Accolades: 11x NBA All-Star, 10x All-NBA First Team, NBA Rookie of the Year
Slam magazine's 11th greatest player of all-time in 2009

Sounds insanely impressive right? That's because it is. This guy should not have slipped this far and was Julius Erving before Julius Erving. Who could this versatile, superbly athletic, well-rounded, elite basketball player be?

Ladies and gentleman...

With the fifth selection of the fourth round, and #43 overall, QuinSnydersHair selects...


ELGIN BAYLOR!!!!!!!

"Official" position: Small Forward
Other position(s) played: Shooting Guard, Power Forward

Read these quotes about him.


***"He was one of the most spectacular shooters the game has ever known", Baylor's longtime teammate Jerry West told HOOP in 1992. "I hear people talking about forwards today and I haven't seen many that can compare with him."

***Bill Sharman played against Baylor and coached him in his final years with the Lakers. "I say without reservation that Elgin Baylor is the greatest cornerman who ever played pro basketball", he told the Los Angeles Times at Baylor's retirement in 1971.

***Tommy Hawkins, Baylor's teammate for six seasons and opponent for four (and later a basketball broadcaster) declared to the San Francisco Examiner that "[P]ound for pound, no one was ever as great as Elgin Baylor." He also said, "Elgin certainly didn't jump as high as Michael Jordan. But he had the greatest variety of shots of anyone. He would take it in and hang and shoot from all these angles. Put spin on the ball. Elgin had incredible strength. He could post up Bill Russell. He could pass like Magic and dribble with the best guards in the league."



A look at Elgin Baylor's career stats would indicate that this was a player who spent much of his time in the paint, doing the dirty work against other teams' unathletic grunts. However, at 6'5", Baylor was no power forward; the Lakers' athletic small forward simply played like one, dominating at the rim while simultaneously excelling on the perimeter. Baylor not only averaged double-digit rebounds 11 times, but he also finished in the top five in scoring eight times during his 14-year career. If there was a player from the 1960s who would undoubtedly still be a star in today's NBA, it just might be Baylor. He was the first of his kind and the blueprint for guys like Dr. J and Kobe Bryant.

Awesome pick. Another player that could play great today. One of my top listers. He was very close to get picked if I didn't want a pg.

 

[Elizah Huge]

With Duncan already in place to do inside scoring, I really needed someone who could just be that athletic guy that can just occupy the paint, block shots and gather defensive rebounds. Dwight had a great run with x3 times Defensive Player of the Year (show me another big man still left on the board with that accolade). He wasnt just good at blocking shots, but he was a great defensive rebounder of the ball as well. (x5 times NBA Rebounding Champ).


It's a pity he had limited supporting cast in ORL, if there was another guy who could take off some of the scoring pressures he would have had much more success IMO.

LOL! What? Come on bro, in 2009 the year they made the Finals they had three all-stars (Howard, Lewis, Nelson). Lewis and Turkoglu took a lot of pressure off of Howard, that's why they were so good. They had Courtney Lee when he was a young great defender and shooter. If anything Howard could have worked on his offensive game which was limited to begin with. That team was awesome, I really thought they were going to win it all.

 

[spycam1]

- Dwight single-handedly took the Magic to the NBA Finals without much supporting cast at all

Huh? The whole reason they beat the Cavs in the East Finals was BECAUSE he had an actual supporting cast, unlike LeBron.

 

[jazzyapma]

Damn bro, I feel like I should have known that. I'm a youngster, forgive me.

Sarcasm detector just beeped.

 

[Thee Jazz Fan]

Heyhey you're up. I'm not going to bed till I pick!

 

[spycam1]

My dad lives in Orlando. I've spent a lot of time there. If I have a second team, it's the Magic.

Any Magic fan will tell you Turkoglu was the leader of that team and Lewis was their most potent scorer.

That's not to say either of them were necessarily better than Dwight, but to say he didn't have a supporting cast is just silly.