90s All-Decade team

[edabomb]

Mitch Richmond deserves a mention too. Kemp was an awesome player in the 90's, didn't have the gaudy numbers of Malone and Barkley but he led a very succesful Sonics franchise a lot earlier in his career than Malone and Barkley managed to find success. They still shade him though IMO.

 

[Mr Saab]

Kemp was an awesome player in the 90's, didn't have the gaudy numbers of Malone and Barkley but he led a very succesful Sonics franchise a lot earlier in his career than Malone and Barkley managed to find success. They still shade him though IMO.

Kemp successful team??????????

he made the finals once in 1996 and managed to trail 3-0 before they made a mini comeback. Add to that he choked in the first round 94 (denver) and 95 (lakers)
Was traded to cleveland and that was pretty much the end of him.
Malone and Barley put up great #s and were both MVPs in the 90s.
Malone and barkley > Kemp

 

[General Knight]

Jordan
Pippen
Rodman
Kukoc
Longley

;-)

 

[edabomb]

Kemp was an awesome player in the 90's, didn't have the gaudy numbers of Malone and Barkley but he led a very succesful Sonics franchise a lot earlier in his career than Malone and Barkley managed to find success. They still shade him though IMO.

Kemp successful team??????????

he made the finals once in 1996 and managed to trail 3-0 before they made a mini comeback. Add to that he choked in the first round 94 (denver) and 95 (lakers)
Was traded to cleveland and that was pretty much the end of him.
Malone and Barley put up great #s and were both MVPs in the 90s.
Malone and barkley > Kemp

I'd say 5 straight 50win seasons was successful. They definately would of won it all in 96 if not for Jordans comeback, the 64-18 Sonics of 1996 are in the top 10 regular season records of all time I think. I know Barkley and Malone were the better players, but Kemp rates a mention IMO.

 

[Mighty Tiger]

1. Shaq/Olajuwan
2. Kemp/Malone
3. Pippen/Mullen
4. Jordan/Payton
5. Stockton/T.Hardaway

That is a bloody good line up IMO!

I'm not surprised that not too many people have really mentioned Richmond though, sure he was my fav player and the main reason I started to follow the Kings but he wasn't one of the top 5 let alone top 10 players during the 90's IMO

 

[Mr Saab]

I'd say 5 straight 50win seasons was successful. They definately would of won it all in 96 if not for Jordans comeback, the 64-18 Sonics of 1996 are in the top 10 regular season records of all time I think. I know Barkley and Malone were the better players, but Kemp rates a mention IMO.

64-18 doesnt rank in the top 10 all time records. Very good, but not in the top 10.

Malone's accomplishments in the 90s are far supreme. Malone and the Jazz had 50 plus wins about 8 times in the 90s.

Kemp is good, but as i said, IMO doesnt rank up there with Malone and Barkley

 

[edabomb]

When all was said and done, the Sonics had posted a record of 64-18, the 10th best season in NBA history. In the wake of their past history and the record-setting 72-10 performance of the Chicago Bulls, no one seemed to notice.

http://www.nba.com/sonics/history/sonics_history.html#19

 

[Mr Saab]

back then it might have been but now its not.
the bulls of 96/97 won 69 games to go along with their 72 the yr before.
The lakers in recent times have gone past 64 wins.

A great season for them, but its not in the top 10 all time in present day records

 

[edabomb]

Still makes it round the 13th best overall. The Lakers best has been 67-15 in 1999/2000, their only season better than 64-18. Still a better win ratio than Barkley ever had, and Malones Jazz only equaled that once. If not for the Sonics lacklustre post season showings in that period I think Kemp would have become a superstar.

 

[Mr Saab]

if kemp had a better attitude, stayed away from the drugs and McDonalds he could have been something ;-)

 

[edabomb]

Yea same with Vin Baker, but Kemp was five times the player Baker was in the first place.

 

[Mr Saab]

mmm i dont know. Vin Baker was a good player with the Bucks. I was impressed with him.
How ironic that the 2 players involved in that 3 way trade (seattle/cleveland/milwaukee) have hit hard times and are shadows of what they once were.

 

[edabomb]

Cleveland and Milwaukee are on the way up though. I don't see an end in sight for the Sonics rebuilding.

 

[CanadianSteve]

We would think differently about Kemp if his career had continued to rise, instead of falling apart to weight and I assume drug problems as it did. He was a rising superstar, played very well in the Finals against the Bulls, and was still young due to having started his career so early. If he had kept improving, instead of falling apart, we'd be talking about one of the all-time greats by now. Maybe not surpassing Barkley and Malone, but in the same ballpark.

At their best, Kemp was more explosive, and just better than Baker, though Baker was a very good player too.

 

[Mr Saab]

Cleveland and Milwaukee are on the way up though. I don't see an end in sight for the Sonics rebuilding.

yeah, but ALOT of water has passed under the brudge since those yrs.
Drafts, trades etc

 

[thewizard1o1]

Kemp also had like 20 kids all over the place so he had no choice but to visit McDonalds all the time :twisted: .

 

[Mr Saab]

Kemp also had like 20 kids all over the place so he had no choice but to visit McDonalds all the time :twisted: .

thats ALOT of happy meals.

 

[And1]

My 90's Team:

PG - John Stockton / Gary Payton / Penny Hardaway
SG - Michael Jordan / Clyde Drexler / Mitch Richmond
SF - Scottie Pippen / Grant Hill
PF - Karl Malone / Charles Barkley
C - Hakeem Olajuwon / David Robinson

My 80's Team:

PG - Magic Johnson / Isaiah Thomas
SG - George Gervin / Joe Dumars
SF - Larry Bird / Julius Erving / Dominique Wilkins
PF - Kevin McHale / (can't think of anyone else!)
C - Moses Malone / Robert Parish / Bill Laimbeer

 

[Mr Saab]

my 80's Team:

PG - Magic Johnson / Isaiah Thomas
SG - George Gervin / Joe Dumars
SF - Larry Bird / Julius Erving / Dominique Wilkins
PF - Kevin McHale / (can't think of anyone else!)
C - Moses Malone / Robert Parish / Bill Laimbeer

as much as i loved Big Bad Bill i would put Abdul Jabaar as my back up centre to Moses. Kareem still had a good 80s from 79/80 to about 87/8. (his last yr 88/9 he dropped off)

 

[CanadianSteve]

my 80's Team:

PG - Magic Johnson / Isaiah Thomas
SG - George Gervin / Joe Dumars
SF - Larry Bird / Julius Erving / Dominique Wilkins
PF - Kevin McHale / (can't think of anyone else!)
C - Moses Malone / Robert Parish / Bill Laimbeer

as much as i loved Big Bad Bill i would put Abdul Jabaar as my back up centre to Moses. Kareem still had a good 80s from 79/80 to about 87/8. (his last yr 88/9 he dropped off)

I agree about Kareem instead of Laimbeer, though I also liked Bill. I might add Mo Cheeks to my 80s team, move Dumars to the 90s, and play Magic at the shooting guard sometimes. Your small forwards are good, but James Worthy is another one to consider. After McHale, Buck Williams might be the power forward who had the most all-star appearances in the 80s. But if you're picking an 80s team to beat the 90s team, I might go for a center at the forward spot, like Jack Sikma who played some forward early on in Seattle before switching to center. Or, maybe Kareem, Moses, Parish, and McHale would be enough at the 4/5 spots. Plus Bird could play the 4 as well as the 3 if needed.

An 80s star I almost forgot, because his career was cut short by injury, was shooting guard Andrew Toney of the Sixers. The Boston Strangler. Bird said he was the most dangerous 2-man he ever faced other than Jordan.

Other 80s greats to consider - Sidney Moncrieff and Marques Johnson of the Bucks, Alex English, Adrian Dantley, Dennis Johnson ( a winner and under-rated). I'm probably forgetting some.