Those early years in Philly (when the Lakers were playing them for championships) I think transcend even Westbrook's godly numbers. Legendary player. I think there was an aura about him...but better? I'll say Westbrook.
I dont think its that close. AI was the more prolific scorer but he was also a low % chucker. Westbrook did pretty much everything else better and if he wasnt sharing the ball with Durant and trying to setup teammates with easy buckets he could have added a couple of 30+ ppg seasons to his belt. There's no way AI could have gotten Westbrook's assists and rebounds even if he tried.
Yes AI carried a team to the finals but that was during a time when the EAST was pathetic. Put Rusty on that very same team and he does the same.
Iverson has the career numbers but it shouldn't take long for Westbrook to surpass. Westbrook can do everything Iverson can but better. Nearly willed his team to a playoff berth in a tough West when Durrr-ant went down.
westbrook will get better numbers than iverson and he is bigger. but he couldn't move like AI nor can he shoot like him. p4p iverson is significantly better. but in reality, a gm should pick westbrook first solely because of size.
westbrook and ai were both fast...it seems westbrook is faster, but that's only north south. in a straight line scenario, westbrook is going to be superior because of his power. but overall, ai was far more agile and could move around way better. if westbrook had handles like iverson with his size, he would probably be the best player in the league.
Posted: Thu Jul 21, 2016 9:41 pm Post subject: Re: Iverson vs Westbrook
CandyCanes wrote:
Who's better?
Probably depends on which Iverson people remember: the "pound for pound best player" and delightful street thug in the first part of his career; or the alcoholic malcontent with poor work habits and a worst attitude in the second part of his career.
In many ways they are similar: two great, entertaining players who are fun to watch, but probably too wildly inconsistent to ever win.
Westbrook in his prime is better than Iverson. Iverson was more popular because of the braids and his crossovers. Iverson was more popular than Kobe even during the Lakers 3peat.
Iverson took a scrubby team to the finals. Let's see what Westbrook can do without Durant.
The early 2000s Eastern Conference was the worse conference in NBA history by a country mile. Whichever crap team made it to the Finals was summarily curb-stomped by the WC entry.
Joined: 20 Jul 2005 Posts: 20510 Location: UCLA -> NY
Posted: Sat Jul 23, 2016 9:52 pm Post subject:
jonnybravo wrote:
defense wrote:
Iverson took a scrubby team to the finals. Let's see what Westbrook can do without Durant.
The early 2000s Eastern Conference was the worse conference in NBA history by a country mile. Whichever crap team made it to the Finals was summarily curb-stomped by the WC entry.
Iverson took a scrubby team to the finals. Let's see what Westbrook can do without Durant.
The early 2000s Eastern Conference was the worse conference in NBA history by a country mile. Whichever crap team made it to the Finals was summarily curb-stomped by the WC entry.
A 45 and a 44 win team missed out on the playoffs in the West when AI made the finals. The #5 seed would've been #2 in the East. Westbrook took a team with Durant only playing 27 games to a 47 win season, barely missing the playoffs despite a win streak (they would've been 6th seed in East, maybe even better if they played East teams more).
What the (bleep) is going on here? This is questionable transitive math, and that's a charitable descriptor.
Does this time machine provide a glimpse into how ol' erratic Westbrook was going to team-up with three journeymen (Aaron McKie, Jumaine Jones, Tyrone Hill) and an aged Dikembe Mutombo (who was on-scene for less than 1/2 the season in 2001 ... so much for team chemistry) to beat the Lakers on the road in Game 1 of the NBA Finals for our only loss of the postseason? Was he also going to hang 36 points, six boards and four assists on us across the five-game set in that NBA Finals series ... scoring 48 points in that Game 1 upset, but then backing it up with 23, 35, 35 and 37 points in the successive games? Maybe Kobe and the backcourt would have enjoyed better success defensively against Westbrook? I think so ...
The Westbrook crowd here seems like it must be either too young to have really watched very much Iverson in Philly (or they simply remember him from Denver or (bleep) Memphis only) or everyone is simply drunk on UCLA love. Or both ... I honestly cannot tell, but it's got to be at least one of those. There is still A LOT of talent on OKC with Westbrook, but I could still see him being exposed next season as one of those UCLA products that can only deliver high yield in low stakes settings.
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