Martti. wrote:Damn, I knew Ty would sit for the fourth, just didn't think he would sit the entire fourth quarter.
Great, great job with the article! Enjoyed it a lot!
Lamrock wrote:Great article. Long, but very very good. Woody has really developed as a writer. Also pretty sick that I nailed the prediction.
Houndy66 wrote:I failed Sit I would pay to see Sacramento @ Stealth Game 7 WCF that goes into OT
Thierry. wrote:I have to agree man. Your best article ever. Really enjoyed it. I must admit that's the direction I want to point in my journalism classes.
Clap clap clap for you.
March 1, 2013
Kidd: Second Greatest PG of All-Time?
By Willard Smith
Jason Kidd reached 1400 games last night after the Seattle Stealth did battle on their home court against the defending NBA champion Atlanta Hawks. Kidd finished with 11 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists in the 116-105 win. After the game, he brushed over a question about his new milestone and instead opted to look ahead to April, “I’m looking forward to the playoffs.” That’s the true modesty of a future Hall of Famer right there. Kidd’s future remains unclear. He is to turn 40 at the end of this month and he comes off contract after the season. Many pundits believe that he will retire and I believe that would be true if he were to win a championship with the Stealth. However, what happens if the Stealth fail to do that. Would Kidd come back for another season?
This brings me to a little bit of fun. If Kidd were to return, where could his numbers end up? This is a big deal – it could determine where Kidd ranks on the list of all-time great point guards. We will take a quick look at where he’s at:Points: 19,149
Rebounds: 8,997
Assists: 13,141
Steals: 2,685
Games: 1,400
Say that Kidd plays another 2 seasons (including the remaining 23 games of this season) and is at full health, he would be playing an additional 187 games. For the purposes of our estimations, let’s say he plays another 175 games before calling it quits. Where will his numbers be when it’s all said and done?
Points: He is definitely able to go over 20,000 for his career. If Kidd were to average 7 ppg to close out his playing career, he’d get to 20,374. That’s good for a place in the top 40 on the all-time scorers’ list.
Rebounds: His 8,997 rebounds ranks him in the top 50 on the all-time rebounding list; not bad for a point guard. Getting to 9,500 would be a nice milestone and achievable as it would require him to grab 2.9 rebounds over 175 games.
Assists: Stockton’s 15,806 assists will not be broken by Kidd unless he averages more than 15 assists over the next two years. However, he is a firm second place all-time. He should pass 14,500 if he averages 8 dimes over 175 games. That sounds possible given the scoring talent in Seattle.
Steals: As mentioned above, Stockton is going to be impossible to catch. The Jazz legend had 3,265 for his career. If it’s much consolation, Kidd ranks ahead of Michael Jordan’s 2,514. Just 1.8 steals over 175 games will get Kidd to 3000 steals. That might not happen with Kidd being a lot slower than he used to be.
Games: Kidd won’t reach Robert Parish’s 1611 games unless he’s going to play till he’s 44/45. However, if Kidd plays another two years and as injury-free as possible; Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s 1560 games is a very possible achievement.
If Kidd’s career were to end how I have predicted, where does that put him on the list of all-time great point guards? I got a definite top 3 in my mind (some of you may digress). I always have Magic Johnson as number 1 and I think it’s a very firm spot at the top. You cannot argue against his 5 NBA titles. My top three is rounded off by John Stockton and Jason Kidd. That’s where the problem arises; who is better?
Let’s compare the two of them with the numbers I have estimated for Kidd, if he were to play another 175 games:John Stockton: 19,711 points/4051 rebounds/15806 assists/3265 steals/1504 games/19 years
Hypothetical Kidd: 20,374 points/9609 rebounds/14541 assists/3000 steals/1575 games/21 years
Stockton is the all-time leader for assists and steals but Kidd is the better all-around point guard. How relevant is it to his argument if Kidd ends up second in assists, steals but wins in points, games, seasons played and doubles Stockton in rebounds? Will the fact that Stockton playing for one team over his entire career matter? Picking one ahead of the other isn’t easy. There is one thing that would tip the scales in the debate between the two players and that would be an NBA championship. And we all know only one of these two can change that. If Kidd wins a ring, I’m picking him as the second best point guard of all-time – even if he doesn’t end up with the numbers that I’ve guessed above.
The final verdict? If Kidd wins a ring before he retires, I would call him the second greatest point guard of all-time. If he doesn’t, Stockton pushes him to third. But the margin between the two of them is thisclose.
Thoughts?
Sit wrote:I finished my major in journalism and I have to say that nothing I learnt contributed to this... it's a piece of shit degree.
Sit wrote:I finished my major in journalism and I have to say that nothing I learnt contributed to this... it's a piece of shit degree.
Thierry. wrote:Sit wrote:I finished my major in journalism and I have to say that nothing I learnt contributed to this... it's a piece of shit degree.
Didn't know you were on journalism too man! Despite the wonderful articles, I had to figure. Or it was a joke? (after reading shadow's post)
No doubt Kidd is in the Top 5 PG's ever.
Martti. wrote:Nice article, though I doubt Kidd can still go for two years. I think he'll call it quits after this season.
Congrats on reaching 1000 replies as well.
puttincomputers wrote:I follow everyday as well!
Sit wrote:A lot of my journalism graduate friends don't even get jobs in the industry. Tough to break into.
De8 wrote:Me too lol anywayz gratz man
Thierry. wrote:Sit wrote:A lot of my journalism graduate friends don't even get jobs in the industry. Tough to break into.
Yep it's also tough around here. But it's my passion, and hopefully something will come around.
dare wrote:Congrats on the milestone, now it's time for the Stealth to have a title
Lamrock wrote:Congrats on another 1K+ reply dynasty, and cheers for the shout-out. Truly the best dynasty story ever.
Houndy66 wrote:When I saw "999 replies" I was like Holy Shit, I can get 1000th
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