Player Appreciation Post Retirement

[Bulldog2Buckeye]

D Wade retiring has got me thinking about players who I absolutely despised during their primes for various reasons that, looking back on their careers, I have come to appreciate and admire. I HATED those Heat teams and now Wade and Bosh are probably two of my favorite players I’ve ever watched. Anyone have any others they feel this way about?

 

[bigfoot5415]

D Wade retiring has got me thinking about players who I absolutely despised during their primes for various reasons that, looking back on their careers, I have come to appreciate and admire. I HATED those Heat teams and now Wade and Bosh are probably two of my favorite players I’ve ever watched. Anyone have any others they feel this way about?

Kobe Bryant.

Incredibly overrated Imo & a downright douche.

Since retirement, I have at least respected his body of work.

 

[Cassity14]

Kobe Bryant.

Incredibly overrated Imo & a downright douche.

Since retirement, I have at least respected his body of work.

I'm the opposite on Kobe. I bought into the hype when he was playing, but since his retirement, I've realized just how incredibly overrated he is/was.


I had Spurs fatigue like most other people, but I really miss Tim Duncan now.

 

[Stark]

Pretty much still hate all of the players now who I hated while they were playing: Pierce, Kobe, Ray Allen, Rasheed, Billups, Arenas, Boozer... fuck all those guys.

Still have big love for Duncan, Ginobili, Stoudemire, Marion, Nash, Big Z, and tons of other players I grew up watching. Going to miss Dirk after this year as well, along with D-Wade, kinda.

 

[Randolphkeys]

I miss the heck out of John Crotty dropping "Crotty Chops" from downtown. But then again, who doesn't?

 

[BigErieCavsFan]

Pretty much still hate all of the players now who I hated while they were playing: Pierce, Kobe, Ray Allen, Rasheed, Billups, Arenas, Boozer... fuck all those guys.

Still have big love for Duncan, Ginobili, Stoudemire, Marion, Nash, Big Z, and tons of other players I grew up watching. Going to miss Dirk after this year as well, along with D-Wade, kinda.

There is really only one guy in pro sports I can think of that I hated when they played that i actually kind of like now. And he's a football player. Terry Bradshaw.

 

[macbdog]

Today was the last game for the greatest Mavalier of all-time: Dirk Nowitzki.

 

[Sebastian]

Is it me, or does there seem to be a dearth of great players in the caliber of the guys who played in the 2000s into the 2010s?

Or is it simply because all the Tier 1 players are on like four teams?

 

[I LOVE YOU ABBY]

IN SOVIET RUSSIA ABBY LOVES U

ONE-WAY TICKET PLEASE

 

[Joe Charboneau]

Here's how they might stack up in a fantasy matchup:

Dog's current top 12:
LeBron James
Kevin Durant
Giannis Antetokounmpo
Steph Curry
Anthony Davis
James Harden
Kawhi Leonard
Paul George
Joel Embiid
Nikola Jokic
Klay Thompson
Kyrie Irving/ Russell Westbrook/ Chris Paul/ Luka Doncic

Summary: I'd take that starting 5 against anybody. The length, speed, and 3-point shooting is on another level. Pretty incredible depth 6-12 too. Bit of a drop off talent-wise when it comes to the next tier of players, so maybe you have a point. Though the JV squad would still be really good with excellent point guard options, Jimmy Butler, and your Victor Oladipo's of the world.

2000- 2010 Top 12
LeBron James
Kobe Bryant
Shaquille O'neal
Tim Duncan
Kevin Garnett
Dirk Nowitzki
Steve Nash
Dwyane Wade
Kevin Durant (lite)
Jason Kidd
Paul Pierce
Yao Ming/ Ben Wallace/ Tracy McGrady/ Allen Iverson

Summary: It would be one hell of a matchup amongst the top tiers of new and old. Upon inspection, I would probably take tier-2 from last decade over the current one. You've got those prime Spurs and Pistons guys, then Chris Paul, Pau Gasol, Camelo, Vince, Superman Dwight, and Ray Allen.

Conclusion: The top 12 is really a toss up. I'm taking the current stars, but that's just me. 13-24 leans towards the past.
If you look at players 25-100, I prefer the current crop of players over last decade. But too much recency bias is involved to make a great case one way or the other.

Thanks for the provocative post at 3:28 in the morning @King Stannis.

How close is Vinsanity to making your 2000-2010 list? Great post by the way!

 

[I LOVE YOU ABBY]

ALWAYS

 

[Joe Charboneau]

You put a lot of work into these posts for sure. I really cant argue or debate any of your rankings. To me they are pretty spot on. Nice touch with the Vince at 15! He is definitely behind AI and Mcgrady.

" Lebron killed the Pistons" ....well, him and Boobie. One of the greatest sports moments of my life was when Lebron took their soul that night. There wasnt a damn thing they could do to stop it.

 

[Bulldog2Buckeye]

(Full disclosure before I begin my rant: Kobe is probably my least favorite professional athlete in any sport.)
Saw some stuff on twitter today about how Kobe is a top 3 player and blah blah blah, everyone’s seen the same stuff from Lakers and Kobe stans. Got me to thinking and I honestly don’t know if Kobe is even among my top 20 players of all time. There’s 7 active players that I’d take over Kobe off the top of my head. He’s just so overrated. Wonder if Dion would get this same love if he shot 30 times a game and raped someone.

 

[Dr. Claw]

I know for sure, it will be NO ONE from this Worriers team. NO ONE.
The Spurs GOATs all qualify though, esp. Duncan. I wanted him to win so badly in 2013