Tale of the Tape: Shawn Kemp vs. Anfernee Hardaway

[JNR]

In the storied history of the PBSL, there have been many players who have passed through our hallowed halls and made their mark on the league. There have been great scorers, incredible passers, and fearless champions.

Through all of the history, two men stand among the greats as living legends, even as they still play at the peak of their powers. One is a fearsome big man who patrols the post, scoring effortlessly and swatting everything within a five foot radius. The other is a field general who could play nearly every position on the court, whose athleticism and skills are unmatched across the league. Longtime Western Conference Rivals, these two are now in opposite conferences, and faced off in our most recent PBSL Finals. Truly they are champions, legends, future Hall of Famers.

But which is better?

My aim today is not to answer that question myself, but to provide the information necessary for us to make a decision. This is the tale of the tape: Shawn Kemp vs. Anfernee Hardaway.

Fan photoshops of Kemp and Hardaway playing for other teams

First, let’s introduce our competitors and look at their individual accomplishments:

Shawn Kemp
Team: Golden State Warriors
Height: 6’10

Weight: 270

Experience: 12 years

PBSL Career Points: 24960

PBSL Career PPG: 29.2

Career PER: 36.1

Accomplishments:
• 9 time All-Star
• 3 time All-Star Game MVP
• 8 time All-League First Team
• 2 time All-League Second Team
• 10 time All-Defensive First Team
• 4 time Defensive Player of the Year
• Scoring Champion
• Rebound Champioin
• 7 time MVP
• 2 time Champion
• 2 time Finals MVP


Anfernee Hardaway
Teams: Atlanta Hawks, Dallas Mavericks

Height: 6’7

Weight: 217

Experience: 8 years

PBSL Career Points: 15598

PBSL Career PPG: 25.4

Career PER: 32.7

Accomplishments:
• 7 time All-Star
• All-Star Game MVP
• 7 time All-League First Team
• All-League Third Team
• 2 time All-Defensive First Team
• Scoring Champion
• MVP
• 3 time Champion
• 3 time Finals MVP


Those are some damn impressive resumes! And Kemp's 7 MVPs are a clear advantage there. But let’s dig a little bit deeper into each part of their game and see who stacks up better!

Scoring

Kemp has had 5 seasons of over 30 ppg. Penny has had 1. They’re both incredibly efficient scorers, but Kemp has two seasons of 65 TS% while Penny’s highest is 64.5.

ADVANTAGE

Rebounding

Not really fair, but yeah, Kemp obviously has this one.

ADVANTAGE

Passing

Here we go! Penny only has one season with a A/T ratio under two. He’s averaged above 8 a game twice. Clearly this is Penny’s biggest advantage over Kemp.

ADVANTAGE

Okay, okay, enough of the small stats. Obviously Kemp will have more blocks, Penny will have more steals. They’re both PER wonderkinds, and they traded off Players of the Month in the Western Conference like they were Magic the Gathering cards. So let’s go to the most intriguing category.

Head to Head

We don’t care about the regular season. We care about the postseason. While Hardaway was a member of the Mavericks, the two titans met in four straight Western Conference Finals. In these four matchups, the Mavs won three times. An interesting note: the Mavs were the lower seed all four years.
Let’s look at the four WCF in a little more detail:

• 1994 Playoffs - Conference Finals

• • #2 Mavs 4, #1 Warriors 2
  • Penny: 33ppg
  • Kemp: 32ppg
  • Mavs go on to lose to Celtics in Finals

• 1995 Playoffs – Conference Finals

• • #1 Warriors 4, #2 Mavs 3
  • Penny: 27ppg
  • Kemp: 36ppg (!!!)
  • Warriors go on to defeat Celtics in Finals

• 1996 Playoffs – Conference Finals

• • #2 Mavs 4, #1 Warriors 2
  • Penny: 29.5 ppg
  • Kemp: 27.6 ppg
  • Mavs go on to defeat Wizards in Finals

• 1997 Playoffs – Conference Finals

• • #2 Mavs 4, #1 Warriors 2
  • Penny: 34.6 ppg
  • Kemp: 37.5 ppg (!!!)
  • Mavs go on to defeat Celtics in Finals

And as stated earlier, the two met this past season in the Finals:

• 2000 Playoffs – PBSL Finals

• • #1 Hawks 4, #7 Warriors 1
  • Penny: 27.2 ppg
  • Kemp: 28 ppg
  • Hawks win Finals

So the final tally in five head-to-head matchups is 4 wins for Penny and 1 for Kemp. Interesting to note that all 3 of Penny’s rings went through Kemp, whereas only 1 of Kemp’s 2 rings went through Penny.

ADVANTAGE

So there are only a few aspects of the two greatest players PBSL has ever seen. Who’s better? Kemp has the better individual accomplishments. Penny has one more title and has ruled their head-to-head matchups. It comes down to what you value. If you want a player for one game to win, you may take Kemp’s overwhelming dominance. If you value championship pedigree and team accomplishments, you probably give the nod to Penny.

It’s razor-thin, and there’s no straight right answer. The only thing we can really agree on is there have been no other players that match the dominance of Hardaway and Kemp in the PBSL, and there may not ever be.

[NOLa.]

Kemp. If ben could put players around Kemp like Darth and Wig have done for Penny, Penney probably wouldnt have championship rings

[ballsohard]

If Kemp had a better GM this would be a landslide. But Penny has had Fearthebrow and now Wignosy so that makes it close.

[Bowtothebill23]

If Kemp had a better GM this would be a landslide. But Penny has had Fearthebrow and now Wignosy so that makes it close.

Oh how different the narrative would be if Sam Cassell didn't break his leg then die.

[ballsohard]

If Kemp had a better GM this would be a landslide. But Penny has had Fearthebrow and now Wignosy so that makes it close.

Oh how different the narrative would be if Sam Cassell didn't break his leg then die.

We all feel sorry for you, GM who was gifted the greatest player in the league.

[JNR]

NEVAR FORGET

http://pbsl.ijbl.net/1993/players/player536.htm

[IamQuailman]

Kemp. If ben could put players around Kemp like Darth and Wig have done for Penny, Penney probably wouldnt have championship rings

Muggsy wasn't good?

[Bowtothebill23]

If Kemp had a better GM this would be a landslide. But Penny has had Fearthebrow and now Wignosy so that makes it close.

Oh how different the narrative would be if Sam Cassell didn't break his leg then die.

We all feel sorry for you, GM who was gifted the greatest player in the league.

No yall are right. I've never been able to put anyone around Kemp. Just ignore the fact that he's always been surrounded by Reggie Lewis -> Ron Harper -> Dennis Scott -> Cedric Ceballos. Ignore the fact that Glen Rice played alongside Kemp and Dennis Scott/Cedric Ceballos. And ignore the fact that second year Cassell was on that team then went from B/B to Y/Y in less than a year. Ignore the fact that playoff injuries to Kemp and Cassell destroyed my chances to winning a championship twice. Ignore the fact that I've never missed the playoffs and never lost in the first round despite being a 7 seed twice due to injuries. Oh by the way, the incredible GM who surrounded Penny with so much talent managed to lose in the first round with prime Penny. So continue with your little narratives with not very much to back it up. I guess that's fun for yall.

[NOLa.]

NEVAR FORGET

http://pbsl.ijbl.net/1993/players/player536.htm

Players were waaaay too good coming into the league back then.

Glad we are where we are at now

[ballsohard]

Oh how different the narrative would be if Sam Cassell didn't break his leg then die.

We all feel sorry for you, GM who was gifted the greatest player in the league.

[/quote]

No yall are right. I've never been able to put anyone around Kemp. Just ignore the fact that he's always been surrounded by Reggie Lewis -> Ron Harper -> Dennis Scott -> Cedric Ceballos. Ignore the fact that Glen Rice played alongside Kemp and Dennis Scott/Cedric Ceballos. And ignore the fact that second year Cassell was on that team then went from B/B to Y/Y in less than a year. Ignore the fact that playoff injuries to Kemp and Cassell destroyed my chances to winning a championship twice. Ignore the fact that I've never missed the playoffs and never lost in the first round despite being a 7 seed twice due to injuries. Oh by the way, the incredible GM who surrounded Penny with so much talent managed to lose in the first round with prime Penny. So continue with your little narratives with not very much to back it up. I guess that's fun for yall.[/quote]

[ballsohard]

[NOLa.]

Things escalated quickly

[coltsguy510]

Zo should maybe be in this conversation

[Darth Vegito]

Ben Ben Ben...No need to direct any of your venom towards me sir. Penny was awesome, Kemp was awesome. You surrounded him with some great players. I surrounded penny with some good players. At the end of the day...the better GM prevails. This is a classic case of that. Don't listen to them. You're a solid GM in my book.

[JNR]

By the way, my answer is Kemp. 7 MVPs don't lie.

[IamQuailman]

Aw, now i feel bad for ben

[JNR]

Zo should maybe be in this conversation

Zo is a Hall of Famer but I'd put him just a hair below both. I don't think it's a three-man race.

[Darth Vegito]

By the way, my answer is Kemp. 7 MVPs don't lie.

No one asked you.

[Bowtothebill23]

Oh how different the narrative would be if Sam Cassell didn't break his leg then die.

We all feel sorry for you, GM who was gifted the greatest player in the league.

No yall are right. I've never been able to put anyone around Kemp. Just ignore the fact that he's always been surrounded by Reggie Lewis -> Ron Harper -> Dennis Scott -> Cedric Ceballos. Ignore the fact that Glen Rice played alongside Kemp and Dennis Scott/Cedric Ceballos. And ignore the fact that second year Cassell was on that team then went from B/B to Y/Y in less than a year. Ignore the fact that playoff injuries to Kemp and Cassell destroyed my chances to winning a championship twice. Ignore the fact that I've never missed the playoffs and never lost in the first round despite being a 7 seed twice due to injuries. Oh by the way, the incredible GM who surrounded Penny with so much talent managed to lose in the first round with prime Penny. So continue with your little narratives with not very much to back it up. I guess that's fun for yall.[/quote]
[/quote]

Lmao. Dammit.

[Bowtothebill23]

Ben Ben Ben...No need to direct any of your venom towards me sir. Penny was awesome, Kemp was awesome. You surrounded him with some great players. I surrounded penny with some good players. At the end of the day...the better GM prevails. This is a classic case of that. Don't listen to them. You're a solid GM in my book.

Lol shutup. You never lost in the first round with Penny anyway. You should know that.

[IamQuailman]

Ben Ben Ben...No need to direct any of your venom towards me sir. Penny was awesome, Kemp was awesome. You surrounded him with some great players. I surrounded penny with some good players. At the end of the day...the better GM prevails. This is a classic case of that. Don't listen to them. You're a solid GM in my book.

Lol shutup. You never lost in the first round with Penny anyway. You should know that.

I am undefeated against Penny and Kemp in the 1st round, so you can both EAD

[IamQuailman]

PS - Kemp gets my vote

[NOLa.]

Oh how different the narrative would be if Sam Cassell didn't break his leg then die.

We all feel sorry for you, GM who was gifted the greatest player in the league.

No yall are right. I've never been able to put anyone around Kemp. Just ignore the fact that he's always been surrounded by Reggie Lewis -> Ron Harper -> Dennis Scott -> Cedric Ceballos. Ignore the fact that Glen Rice played alongside Kemp and Dennis Scott/Cedric Ceballos. And ignore the fact that second year Cassell was on that team then went from B/B to Y/Y in less than a year. Ignore the fact that playoff injuries to Kemp and Cassell destroyed my chances to winning a championship twice. Ignore the fact that I've never missed the playoffs and never lost in the first round despite being a 7 seed twice due to injuries. Oh by the way, the incredible GM who surrounded Penny with so much talent managed to lose in the first round with prime Penny. So continue with your little narratives with not very much to back it up. I guess that's fun for yall.

[/quote]

Lmao. Dammit.[/quote]
GOT
HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEM

[JNR]

Added a poll per Doug's suggestion

[ballsohard]

Ben Ben Ben...No need to direct any of your venom towards me sir. Penny was awesome, Kemp was awesome. You surrounded him with some great players. I surrounded penny with some good players. At the end of the day...the better GM prevails. This is a classic case of that. Don't listen to them. You're a solid GM in my book.

Does no one notice the jab???????

AM I THE ONLY ONE THAT SEES THIS