Is Amare Staudemire the future of the NBA center position? Ever since the the zone defenses were admitted, it appears that centers are getting faster and more athletic, much like the shift power forwards had made in the 90s. The Rockets were banking on Yao becoming the next dominant center in the NBA, but the way things are going I seriously doubt Yao will ever even become a top 10 player given his style of play. The game today simply doesn't favor large, massive players who play close the basket. Shaquille Oneal is still a very good player, but the last few years his production has gone down mightily and I think it may have more to do with the way the game is played than any significant decrease in his abilities. In the 90s, the best big men were all centers -- Hakeem, David, Shaq. Now, its Duncan, KG, and Nowitzki -- all multitalented seven-footers who can play facing the basket. Shaq is still up there, and I'd probably still rank him above Nowitzki, but that's only because he is so powerful inside that he's able to overcome (to some degree) the direction the NBA is going. Looking ahead 5 to 10 years from now, what kind of impact can a traditional center like Yao or Shaq who try to take advantage of their size inside have? Will teams still covet those type of players? The most talked about player in highschool right now might be Greg Oden, who looks to be developing into a traditional center. He's not a ball handler, and doesn't have much of an outside shot. He's a good rebounder and scorer inside, and he has good size and strength. Can he be a star in the NBA given how the league is evolving? It will be interesting to watch, but my guess in that the great players of the future will have to have all-around games. Strong rebounding and ball-handling skills will be essential. They have to be able to create for teammates in the half-court and help on the fastbreak as well. Defensively, they should be able to defend inside and outside. Of course, they need to be able to hit a jumpshot, and also get to the basket when necessary. Players like Garnett, Duncan, Kobe, and LeBron will be the future of the league -- not players who model themselves after Shaq or Yao.
You have some good points. The traditional center is becoming extinct, as you mentioned, and Amare Stoudemire has shwn that centers don't always have to be just a back to the basket player. IMO the reason Yao isn't as succesful as Shaq or a "traditional" center is because he is not aggressive. When you watch Yao play he always shys away from contact by fading away or settling for a 10-foot jumpshot. I think a new type of center is becoming a common sight in the leauge. A versitale center is the perfect type of big man. Take the three you mentioned they can all shoot a midrange jumpshot, drive to the basket and play with their back to the basket. Any team that has a versitale player is at an advantage, IMO.
I love the old centers and how they played and I DO NOT want them to become extinct. Thats one reason I'm a Shaq fan. He's the only true center in the league and all the rest have gove. Alonzo is old, and he's really the only one playing. Dikembe is old too. Shaq is getting old. I really hope Dwight Howard becomes a beast so the Center position is not lost. Amare I would clasify as a Power Forward still. YAo is not a good center, if he was in the 90's he wouldn't even be in contention for an all-star spot. IMO there are only 2 true centers in the league, Shaq and Eddy Curry. Shaq is enough said. Eddy Curry IMO is a true center, if he worked on his rebounding. Amare is not the future of the Center position. IF the Suns continue to play Amare there he will get injured. HE can not bang with the big boys for too long.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Ace2k2:</div><div class="quote_post">IMO there are only 2 true centers in the league, Shaq and Eddy Curry. Shaq is enough said. Eddy Curry IMO is a true center, if he worked on his rebounding. Amare is not the future of the Center position. IF the Suns continue to play Amare there he will get injured. HE can not bang with the big boys for too long.</div> Amare was banging with the big boys since he came into the league. he's been in the NBA for 3 years now and i think his overall game has gotten better every year. i think 6'10 and 245 is a legit size for a centre but he isn't a true centre. Amare can play with his back to the basket like other centres but what separates him from the rest is that he is way more athletic than other guys his size.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Ace2k2:</div><div class="quote_post">I love the old centers and how they played and I DO NOT want them to become extinct. Thats one reason I'm a Shaq fan. He's the only true center in the league and all the rest have gove. Alonzo is old, and he's really the only one playing. Dikembe is old too. Shaq is getting old. I really hope Dwight Howard becomes a beast so the Center position is not lost. Amare I would clasify as a Power Forward still. YAo is not a good center, if he was in the 90's he wouldn't even be in contention for an all-star spot. IMO there are only 2 true centers in the league, Shaq and Eddy Curry. Shaq is enough said. Eddy Curry IMO is a true center, if he worked on his rebounding. Amare is not the future of the Center position. IF the Suns continue to play Amare there he will get injured. HE can not bang with the big boys for too long.</div> I don't want the traditional center to become extinct either. Another young player that might become a true center is Okafor. I don't see Amare getting injured so to speak, but rather fatigued. If he does continue to play against the bigger and stronger centers. Amare plays like a Pf rather than a center. Ihardly ever see him post up a defender and power his way up.
I think that if Yao played in the mid-90s, he'd be getting better numbers actually. Nowadays he has to contend with all the small, athletic centers and he really struggles against them.
The old center will never be extinct as long as you have two or three in the league who are really good like Shaq, Yao, Z etc. You need big bodies to defend them, so there will always be room to have a Greg Ostertag type on the roster. We'll see what the next generation brings.
if teams keep focusing on pushing the ball up the court every second, I see the center spot evolving. Because guys like shaq and yao are not capable of running the court full time as the sonics and suns push the ball. I think whether or not the center spot evolves depends on how good these fastbreak teams do this year and for years to come.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Quickness:</div><div class="quote_post">if teams keep focusing on pushing the ball up the court every second, I see the center spot evolving. Because guys like shaq and yao are not capable of running the court full time as the sonics and suns push the ball. I think whether or not the center spot evolves depends on how good these fastbreak teams do this year and for years to come.</div> I wouldn't look at it as if the center's were evolving but rather as how many centers do well in an open-court offense versus how many centers perform better in a half-court offense. Personally I like the slow down style of basketball which gives post players time to post up and score down low like Shaq does most of the time. But the stye of centers really depends on the style of play most teams in the leauge go by, much as you said. But there will always be at least one type of big man that fits into the "Traditional Center" category.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting alejandro:</div><div class="quote_post">Amare was banging with the big boys since he came into the league. he's been in the NBA for 3 years now and i think his overall game has gotten better every year. i think 6'10 and 245 is a legit size for a centre but he isn't a true centre. Amare can play with his back to the basket like other centres but what separates him from the rest is that he is way more athletic than other guys his size.</div> AMare was not banging with the big boys at all when he came into the league. Just this season. HE played the power forward spot his whole career. Actually I now do think that Amare can play center. THe problem IMo is that Shawn MArion CANNOT play PF. Thats the problem i think.
The human race does not produce a lot of Wilts,Shaqs or Yaos. For every Shaq there are 20 Ostertags and for every Ostertag there are a hundred guys 6-6 or 6-7. Garnett and Duncan are,whatever the label,7 ft big men near the top in RBDs and blocks..and they can do more. now that a guard is often 6-7 or taller,a guy has to be REAL big to Thrive using the old school pivot tactics which are based on height and bulk, a team with a guy like Amare,Dirk,Tim, Garnett etc who can ballhandle,hit a 20ft J,sprint,leap etc would not want to put him into a role where he doesn't use those tools. Oden,last I heard was around 7-0 235,skilled but not a bulk guy. Curry,Ben Wallace,Erick Dampier,Jason Collins and a number of others play center,and Okafor may be a PF or C. He's more mobile,but he doesn't have shooting range.
Now I've heard it all, Curry is more of a true center than Yao. It's not like he does a better job of banging inside for the tough rebounds. His offensive skills are still not at Yao's level.
