Position, Greatness and how they got there....part 2 of building a championship

  In part 1 of building a championship we took a look at the importance of each position on an NBA team and gave it a hypothetical value.  The breakdown came out like this, (in order of importance) #1 Shooting Guard, #2 Power Forward, #3 Point Guard, #4 Small Forward, #5 Center.  Some simple conclusions were made, the point guard and small forward are almost interchangeable in terms of value and championship teams.  There has not been an NBA champion with a great center since Shaquille O'neal.  The value of a great shooting guard and power forward are unmatched.  These two are an absolute must if you want to win a championship.  Now lets take a look at a break down of each position and some of the players at each position that could be considered franchise changers or corner stones.

• Point Guard-Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Derrick Rose, Kyrie Irving, Steph Curry, Rajon Rondo, Russel Westbrook, Tony Parker, Damian Lillard, John Wall

          The names on this list are the best of the best, the kind of point guard that you would want to start your franchise with.  There are only a handful of them that are considered "pure" point guards.  This position in the NBA has changed and developed into being a slashing, scoring position.  Almost a substitute for a good to great shooting guard.  There are two names on this list that have won NBA titles and both of those players played more of the "pure point" role, those being Tony Parker and Rajon Rondo.  While your team may need a point guard to grind out games and help your team tab wins, you will need a "pure point" to win you a title.  Now lets look at how these players got to their respective teams.  Eight of these players were drafted by their respective teams, two were acquired in trades.  The two that have the titles were drafted by the teams they won those titles with.  I think we can safely say that if you are looking for a building block, a team stabilizing force at the point guard position your best chance of getting one is going to be in the draft.  These players get drafted a by their teams and teams are reluctant to move them.

  

• Shooting Guard-James Harden, Kobe Bryant, Dwayne Wade

          We look at the short list of names on the list and can see why the shooting guard is the most important position.  Two of the three players on this list have won multiple NBA titles.  When Kobe won his titles, he was arguably the best player in the league.  He was a closer and a great defender.  Dwayne Wade was a tenacious defender, one of the best finishers in transition and had a knack for knocking down big shots.  James Harden is the only name on this list that has not won a title.  While Harden is a great offensive player, he is a terrible defender.  I mean pedestrian at best.  If he wants to join this group of elite talent he will need to improve his defense.  Now how did they get to their respective teams?  Kobe was a draft day trade to the Lakers, Wade was drafted by Miami and Harden was a trade.  While there seems to be many options for acquiring a superstar shooting guard, they are few and far between.  To me, it seems wise if you are building a franchise to compete for multiple titles you may want to do it in the draft.  The odds of these types of players do not come around very often.  So, however you go about getting a shooting guard you must be bold.

• Small Forward-Luol Deng Paul George, Lebron James, Camelo Anthony, Kevin Durant

          This group has more names on this list and to be honest may be stretching a bit with the likes of Deng but the small forwards value is just not as necessary as the shooting guards.  There is only one name on the is list with a title, Lebron James.  He is the best player on the planet.  A transcendent talent.  We have never seen anyone like him and likely never will again.  There are two other names on this list that could be put in the argument for best player behind James.  Kevin Durant and Paul George.  Both of these players have unbelievable talent and length.  George is a great defender and Durant is an underrated defender.  Three of these players were drafted by their respective teams. One was a free agent and the other a trade.  Small Forward while valuable can be found numerous ways and team can actually do with a serviceable "3&D" type small forward.

• Power Forward-LaMarcus Aldridge, Dirk Nowitzki, Chris Bosh, Kevin Love, Tim Duncan

          Again the value of the power forward speaks for itself.  Three out of the five players on the list are NBA champions.  The way LaMarcus Aldridge and the Portland Trailblazers are playing early this season could put themselves in a position to make it four of five.  You have to have a big that can play with his back to the basket, can clean up on the boards and is a capable defender.  The one question I have is Kevin Love.  He does kill it on two of the three requirements but his defense is lacking.  For Love and Wolves to take the next step he needs to be a better defender.  Every name on this list, with the exception of Chris Bosh was drafted by their respective teams.  If your team has the chance to secure a star power forward in the draft, it is a must.  You are not going to see teams let these players get away.  You have to have em!

• Center-Dwight Howard, Roy Hibbert, Marc Gasol, Tyson Chandler, Anthony Davis   

          This list is an eclectic one.  Many different types of players.  Back to the basket guys, defenders, fundamentally skilled players, athletes.  The one thing that all of these names have in common is defense.  By the end of the season, I'm guessing all of these players with the exception of  Anthony Davis will have won a Defensive Player of the Year Award.  That is clearly the prerequisite for this position, they have to be able to defend and be a rim protector.  There is only one name on this list with an NBA title, Tyson Chandler.  Funny how much the game has changed in the last 10-15 years.  Teams had to have a big physical presence in the middle and it was the most valuable position to have.  Not any more.....  Three of these players were drafted by their current team.  The other two were free agents.  It shows again that you can get by with a serviceable defender and you can get them in a variety of ways.

  This has been very interesting to go through these names and positions and see how these NBA champions are built.  While this doesn't go in to great detail and is not a sure fire formula for a championship, I think it gives some pretty good insight into what it takes to build that team and get there.  At this point I think I will turn my attention to this summers draft and see who and what players may be able to fill these valuable positions to building an NBA champion!

Utah Jazz vs. LA Clippers Preview

  The Jazz have their first back to back of the season tonight against the Clippers.  Granted the Jazz get this one at home, but the Jazz get an improved Clipper team.  The Clippers have a number of new additions to their roster but none more important than JJ Reddick and Jared Dudley.  This will be a good chance to see how the Jazz bounce back from a tough road loss.  Lets take a look at some of the keys....


Lineups-
  Ty went with a different starting lineup last night.  He started Burke, Burks, Hayward, Evans and Favors.  The only player that had a solid game was Gordon.  He played 26 minutes, went 5-11 from the field, 8-11 from the line, scoring 20 points.  He was effective getting to the basket and drawing contact.  The rest of his game was not as solid as the first preseason game.  He only had 2 rebounds and 1 assist.  The Jazz will need a better all around effort from their leader if they want to get a win.  This will also be a big bounce back game for Favors.  He had 3 offensive fouls on moving screens.  This really hurt his effectiveness in the game.  He as never able to get into the flow of the game.  It will be interesting to see if Ty goes back to Kanter and Jefferson in the starting lineup with Evans and Burks coming off the bench.

Matchups-
  There are number of them to watch.  The one that I will be watching the closest will be Trey Burke vs. Chris Paul.  Burke struggled from the field last night and was also taken to school by the athletic Damian Lillard.  This is the kind of game that we will have the chance to see what Trey is made of and how he bounces back.  I also look for him to watch Paul closely and attempt to learn some of the leagues best point guards tricks.  Blake Griffin is questionable for tonight's game after suffering a bone bruise.  With Griffin out the Jazz need to focus on getting the ball down low to Favors and Kanter.  DeAndre Jordan is foul prone which can play in the Jazz's favor.

Execution-
  Early against the Blazers the Jazz executed very well.  They were crisp running their offensive sets, as well as their defensive rotations.  When they fell behind, they started to press a little, causing their play to become sloppy.  They also struggled on the pick and roll defense.  If they had a hard time with the Blazers, it could be a long night as they go against the best pick and roll point guard in the game.  Look for Jazz bigs to hedge hard and get the ball out of Paul's hands.  The Clippers will counter with the addition of the two stretch 4's Antwan Jamison and Byron Mullens.  If Griffin does not play, look for the Clips to run a lot of pick and pop, as both players can shoot the ball from deep.  This will be the first real test for Jazz bigs against some effective stretch bigs.

Coaching-
  In the off-season the Clippers brought in arguably the best coach in the league, Doc Rivers.  He has already changed the atmosphere and attitude of this team.  Less clowning around by the likes of Jordan and Griffin and a lot more leadership with Dudley and Paul.  This team very likely could be the team to come out of the west.

  It will be good for the Jazz to be back home and have the crowd behind them.  Back to backs are always tough be the second of a back to back will be a little easier for this young team having it on their home court.  Look for Jazz to push tempo again and get the crowd in the game early.  No TV again tonight, but you can get David Locke and the radio broadcast at 1280 The Zone AM or 97.5 FM.  Here's to wishing I had some tickets for tonight's game!  Lets go Jazz!