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Because Jordan's role/abilities would've been short changed by passing and creating plays for other people. Bird and Lebron both lack the ability to score efficiently with Jordan's volume so they increase their offensive impact by looking to make the right pass.
This misses the point. The point was that Larry Bird's assists totals were never stratospheric (his high for any one season was 7.6 APG, which is lower than Jordan's all-time high of 8.0 APG during the 88-89 season). Yet Bird is acclaimed as one of if not the greatest passer of all time. He was not a "ball dominator," as you say, so why is he considered one of the all-time great passers while Jordan is not?
So total assists can't be the sole barometer of a player's passing ability.
It's okay. You can admit it. Larry Bird and Lebron James were (are) better passers than Michael Jordan.
Last edited by BajanYankee; 06-01-2016 at 06:35 PM..
This misses the point. The point was that Larry Bird's assists totals were never stratospheric (his high for any one season was 7.6 APG, which is lower than Jordan's all-time high of 8.0 APG during the 88-89 season).
That's like saying a center that averages 5 assist isn't putting up high assist numbers. Bird simply DID NOT have the ball in his possession as much as Lebron. Therefore, when Bird did touch the ball he was scoring and getting assist. Bird never pounded the ball into the ground and passed out to a shooter for a bail out assist. Heck, he was a master at touch passes out of the post - possessing the ball for fractions of a second. Unlike Jordan, Bird could not create his own offense on the scale of Jordan so that nessecitates a completely different mindset compared to a lightning fast, aerial acrobat that can take anyone to the hole.
Also keep one thing in mind - a player like Lebron is surrounded by shooters in today's game. Jordan played in an era where lanes were crowded and you couldn't easily drive to the basket and kick it out to a 3pt shooter. And that's the bulk of Lebron's passing at this point - draw defenders and kick out to shooters.
Why doesn't a player like Boris Diaw get mentioned with Bird and Lebron? He averaged more assist than Lebron in the finals despite touching the ball about 90% less.
LOL, people complaining that accurate long range shooting , a basic fundamental basketball skill, is ruining the game?
People are all kind of confused. There's a constant griping about "fundamentals" even though basketball is more team-oriented today than it was during the 80s and 90s.
In the late 90s and 00s, the criticism, which had some racial element to it IMO, was that NBA players were all dunkers and And1 show offs. They did not play the game "the right way" in contrast to European teams (or Duke!) who relied on shooting, passing, cutting, defensive switching and rotations, etc. Now NBA teams are relying more on shooting, passing, cutting, and team-oriented defensive principles, and yet people are still complaining. It's literally a no-win situation.
I personally enjoy today's NBA more than the 80s/90s from a "fundamentals" perspective. Film study is much more interesting because defensive innovation ushered in more complexity in the offensive sets teams run today.
Check out the lanes that Jordan is dropping dimes in. Seems like every pass is through traffic or with 2-3 guys hanging on him. I think Jordan would love today's spacing.
And date I say, from an entertainment perspective, everything Jordan does on a basketball court is more aesthetically pleasing?
That's like saying a center that averages 5 assist isn't putting up high assist numbers. Bird simply DID NOT have the ball in his possession as much as Lebron. Therefore, when Bird did touch the ball he was scoring and getting assist. Bird never pounded the ball into the ground and passed out to a shooter for a bail out assist. Heck, he was a master at touch passes out of the post - possessing the ball for fractions of a second. Unlike Jordan, Bird could not create his own offense on the scale of Jordan so that nessecitates a completely different mindset compared to a lightning fast, aerial acrobat that can take anyone to the hole.
Still missing the point. This isn't about Bird vs Lebron. I'm saying that Bird and Jordan's assist numbers weren't that different yet Bird is considered not only a good passer, but one of the greatest passers of all time. So that must logically mean that there's more to Bird's passing greatness than the mere number of assists he racked up. In other words, you don't have to average 13 assists per game to be considered a great passer
Quote:
Originally Posted by eddiehaskell
Why doesn't a player like Boris Diaw get mentioned with Bird and Lebron? He averaged more assist than Lebron in the finals despite touching the ball about 90% less.
Because nobody's saying that assists are the END ALL BE ALL. They are certainly a factor, but there's clearly more to it than that.
Check out the lanes that Jordan is dropping dimes in. Seems like every pass is through traffic or with 2-3 guys hanging on him. I think Jordan would love today's spacing.
And date I say, from an entertainment perspective, everything Jordan does on a basketball court is more aesthetically pleasing?
It's "dare" I say. And the fact that you had to repost the same video that shows the same mundane clips you can find from any number of players says it all.
This is not to say that Jordan wasn't a good passer. But there's a reason why Lebron gets compared to Magic in this department. And "total" assists is not the reason. It's his vision, his accuracy, and his ability to get the ball to literally any spot on the floor.
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