lol you got some good ass points but here i go...bruh KG was the Wolves and the heart and soul of that team, but lets not pretend that the dude didn't have the worst team management out of all those 5 HOF's, like he didn't have b!tch-ass McHale running the team down the toilet with terrible lottery selections and the team not getting any younger with terrible cap space and making the Wolves an undesirable place to be or go to.
KG didn't have worse teams than Barkley in Philly. Hersey Hawkins was Barkley's #2 during his prime in Philly, and while there have been worse guards, he wasn't exactly all-world. The final team he played with in Philly was beyond garbage. I know this because Charles Barkley was my favorite player and I followed the 76ers religiously back then. They were garbage.
Beyond that, Barkley was leaps and bounds better than KG on offense. Don't let the tail-end of his career fool you. You can't try to manipulate peaks to benefit KG vs. Dirk but then ignore them when it comes to Barkley. Sir Charles was putting up obscene playoff numbers, he had a TS% over 60 in multiple series. He was THE man, always. And as well-stocked as that Phoenix team was, he was the man from day one, took the big time shots, made the big time shots, and lost in the finals to the the player most regard as the greatest of all time, as well as the best team of the last 40 years. Don't sit here and try to sell that man short. Barkley wasn't playing with another Hall of Famer in Phoenix, that was no super team )though KJ deserves to be in), and when he was in Houston he had no lift, his back was done, and Dream and crew were two years past when it could've been a super team. Barkley's basic offensive numbers beast vs. KG's, and the nerdy stats like Win Shares give Barkley the edge by a significant measure too.
It's also
patently absurd to give KG some all time boost over Barkley for his one ring in Boston while simultaneously trying to spin Duncan's 4 rings any which way and still compare KG to Timmy. Can't have it both ways.
The dude could have just bounced earlier like Lebron did early in his prime and f**k a city even more,
Both entered the league out of high school. One left after 7 years, one left after 8. Stop it.
Also, one got out the first round every single year he made the playoffs. LeBron did not "fukk a city even more." He stayed 7 years, took his team to a lot of meaningful playoff series and a finals, then he left when he was a free agent, which is his right.
but don't discount him not giving 100% to his game at literally everything and anything on the court.
Saying that KG is not a top 3 PF in no way shape or form diminishes his otherworldly basketball skills.
The dude sacrificed his own personal stats and his ego and lets not pretend that eventhough he was the third option on offense and wasn't that go to guy, who was the defensive stopper and presence that was vital and one of if not the main reason why they won that finals and was most vital and important to that team, just look at the MVP voting of that year when he finished 4th or 5th that year.
And that's my only point. Great season for him, he anchored the D, he won a chip. Dirk did that two, carrying a team of old ole players on his back.
A leader is when a dude like KG goes to a team and makes them instantly the best Defensive team in the league and the team is still to this day the past five seasons, the C's are still one of the best defensive teams to this day cuhz of KG.
No, that's not a leader. That's your convenient definition of a leader. It holds no more weight than me saying "a leader is when a dude like Dirk is surrounded by different players year in and year out and his teams win 50 games and contend every single year." Or "a leader is when a dude like Barkley comes to your team and the very next year you break every franchise record there is as a team and give one of the best teams their money's worth in the championship game." Leadership is an intangible quality. Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo strike me as the leaders of the Celtics. Maybe I'm wrong. It's impossible to really define.
He ain't better than Duncan, but they are comparable though. Lets not pretend like Duncan didn't have Robinson right next with him in the draft
Let's not pretend Robinson ever got close to a ring before Duncan. Let's not pretend he wasn't nearing his end. Let's not pretend Duncan wasn't the primary player on every title team. Let' not pretend Duncan won with and without Robinson, Manu, and Parker. Let's not pretend the Spurs rosters don't change significantly every season. Let's not pretend the Spurs haven't not only been a very good team every year, but they've had the best winning % of any franchise in any major sport in the past decade and shyt.
This isn't one of those "he has that one ring, but if situations were different" scenarios. This is cut and dry: the Spurs aren't just a team with a ring and some success, they are in rarefied air and the main man the entire time has been Timothy Theodore Duncan aka Anti-Swag aka The Big Soulmate. There is no pretend game or hypothetical worth entertaining here.
lets not pretend like he didn't have one of the GOAT coaches,
Look, I think Pop is brilliant. I think he makes great decisions. I love that dude as a coach.
However do you really believe in the coach who aside from one rough season is the ultimate master every year? Or do you notice he started winning 50 games every single year when a certain player came into the league? Did you notice how Doc Rivers - despite how good he looked at times in Orlando - was being pushed out the door by fans and media but then suddenly was viewed as a great coach and got a big ass extension once he was coaching 3 Hall of Famers? Great players make good coaches great.
lets not pretend that KG hasn't been better than Duncan the past 5 years and has meant more to his team than Duncan has.
Not going to pretend. Just going to hum the theme to Ducktales and keep it moving.
Look, Kg is an all-time great. He's just not in the same league as Duncan. He's in Dirk's league, and it's tough for me to choose between them. I wouldn't be mad if someone chose KG over Dirk. Still, if I'm building a team I want to start with a player I can put complimentary pieces around, not one who will be the ultimate complimentary piece. The wolves almost got it when they put two fearless crunchtime shooters and slashers with KG. It still didn't quite work. I want a primary scorer or a back to the basket guy who can completely dictate the perimeter game with his scoring and passing out of the block. I wouldn't take KG over Barkley or Dirk. Maybe I'd take him over Malone, but that's only because I have always disliked that Mexican-girl-hunting, redneck-big-rig-dirving, intentional-elbowing, playoff-choking, statutory-raping, deadbeat-dadding piece of shyt.
Hakeem is 
status
@ people even trying to suggest KG is in any way better than Duncan
