Top 5 Front Court Duos
Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2015 5:02 pm
Top Front Court Duos:
1) Shawn Kemp and Alonzo Mourning - Seattle SuperSonics
This is an easy choice for me as #1. Could you imagine these two together back in the mid-90's? I am certain some of us would have quit for a decade. Even if these two are not in their primes anymore, the combination is still a force to be rekon with. Both can create on offense, dominate the glass and terrorize opponent's offenses. The only teams I see having an "advantage", if you want to even call it that, is a 3 point shooting specialized team that doesn't even worry about offensive rebounds. Very few teams can matchup with this duo and they deserve this #1 rank.
2) Shaquille O'Neal and Dirk Nowitzki - Portland Trailblazers
If there was one team I would say stood a chance at being the top ranked frontcourt duo, it would be the Trailblazers. I would even say depending on how training camp plays out, the continued decline of Kemp and Zo paired with Dirk's rapid rise could even vault the Blazers to #1. However, I won't predict what happens in training camp as no one can. Shaq is the best player overall in my opinion and is the sim-living meaning of the expression "keeping it one hunned." Dirk made the jump last season offensively in efficiency. While his total stats don't pop, he did shoot 46% from the field and over 40% from deep. This is a dangerous combination of brute strength down low and a sharp shooter as a bailout.
3) Chris Webber and Zydrunas Ilgauskas - Houston Rockets
Rockets GM 78 and Timberwolves GM JNR shocked the league immediately following the first UFA sim by trading prized PF Chris Webber for a pair of yiung studs and a pick. The acquisition for the Rockets also immediately began talks of the Rockets being a playoff caliber team with just 3 players under contract, all frontcourt pieces. Regardless of if they can gather a team in a limited amount of time is beyond the point of this article.The pairing of Big Z and Webber is a tremendous upgrade for a team in a playoff draught and is one of the best combinations in the league. We of course have yet to see how they mesh, but the scoring is there, the rebounding is there, and the defense is there. I like this duo a lot, but the Rockets need a distrubtor in the worst way to make the most of this.
4) Marcus Camby and Antawn Jamison - Dallas Mavericks
This is a reach, because I am assuming Jamison plays the PF position this season and Dunleavy moves in as the starting SF. If that is the case, the duo is definitely a Defense-Offense pairing. Camby is on of the best centers in the league, definitely Top 5 because of his rebounding and defense. He is a very underrated as a defender and has somehow not even made an NBA All Defense Team. Blows my mind as he is consistently top of the boards in blocks and rebounds. Jamison is lightning on offense and continues to get better each season there. He truly put his name into the conversation of "elite" after a 25 ppg season in which he earned All Star honors for the first time. The duo does have some weaknesses, especially Jamison's defensive ability, but Camby does make up for it plenty.
5) Ben Wallace and Antonio McDyess - Atlanta Hawks
So much was made of the Hawks "All your wings belong to us" campaign several seasons ago that lost in the mix of two championship seasons was the Hawks underrated frontcourt led by Big Ben and Antonio. Ben earned DPOY honors for the first time, along with his first 1st Team Defense honors, and again shot over 60% from the field. While he isnt a volume scorer, he is efficient and makes the most of his shots (1.46 PPS). McDyess has taken a step back from being an option on offense, but it is understandable given the rest of the team. McDyess is a strong, scoring PF that conpliments Ben well. If McDyess was still the big scoree he use to be, I would probably rank them higher.
Hope you enjoyed and aren't butt hurt if your group was left off.
1) Shawn Kemp and Alonzo Mourning - Seattle SuperSonics
This is an easy choice for me as #1. Could you imagine these two together back in the mid-90's? I am certain some of us would have quit for a decade. Even if these two are not in their primes anymore, the combination is still a force to be rekon with. Both can create on offense, dominate the glass and terrorize opponent's offenses. The only teams I see having an "advantage", if you want to even call it that, is a 3 point shooting specialized team that doesn't even worry about offensive rebounds. Very few teams can matchup with this duo and they deserve this #1 rank.
2) Shaquille O'Neal and Dirk Nowitzki - Portland Trailblazers
If there was one team I would say stood a chance at being the top ranked frontcourt duo, it would be the Trailblazers. I would even say depending on how training camp plays out, the continued decline of Kemp and Zo paired with Dirk's rapid rise could even vault the Blazers to #1. However, I won't predict what happens in training camp as no one can. Shaq is the best player overall in my opinion and is the sim-living meaning of the expression "keeping it one hunned." Dirk made the jump last season offensively in efficiency. While his total stats don't pop, he did shoot 46% from the field and over 40% from deep. This is a dangerous combination of brute strength down low and a sharp shooter as a bailout.
3) Chris Webber and Zydrunas Ilgauskas - Houston Rockets
Rockets GM 78 and Timberwolves GM JNR shocked the league immediately following the first UFA sim by trading prized PF Chris Webber for a pair of yiung studs and a pick. The acquisition for the Rockets also immediately began talks of the Rockets being a playoff caliber team with just 3 players under contract, all frontcourt pieces. Regardless of if they can gather a team in a limited amount of time is beyond the point of this article.The pairing of Big Z and Webber is a tremendous upgrade for a team in a playoff draught and is one of the best combinations in the league. We of course have yet to see how they mesh, but the scoring is there, the rebounding is there, and the defense is there. I like this duo a lot, but the Rockets need a distrubtor in the worst way to make the most of this.
4) Marcus Camby and Antawn Jamison - Dallas Mavericks
This is a reach, because I am assuming Jamison plays the PF position this season and Dunleavy moves in as the starting SF. If that is the case, the duo is definitely a Defense-Offense pairing. Camby is on of the best centers in the league, definitely Top 5 because of his rebounding and defense. He is a very underrated as a defender and has somehow not even made an NBA All Defense Team. Blows my mind as he is consistently top of the boards in blocks and rebounds. Jamison is lightning on offense and continues to get better each season there. He truly put his name into the conversation of "elite" after a 25 ppg season in which he earned All Star honors for the first time. The duo does have some weaknesses, especially Jamison's defensive ability, but Camby does make up for it plenty.
5) Ben Wallace and Antonio McDyess - Atlanta Hawks
So much was made of the Hawks "All your wings belong to us" campaign several seasons ago that lost in the mix of two championship seasons was the Hawks underrated frontcourt led by Big Ben and Antonio. Ben earned DPOY honors for the first time, along with his first 1st Team Defense honors, and again shot over 60% from the field. While he isnt a volume scorer, he is efficient and makes the most of his shots (1.46 PPS). McDyess has taken a step back from being an option on offense, but it is understandable given the rest of the team. McDyess is a strong, scoring PF that conpliments Ben well. If McDyess was still the big scoree he use to be, I would probably rank them higher.
Hope you enjoyed and aren't butt hurt if your group was left off.
