OT Why I loved Rodman and why the Blazers "chemistry" means nothing

[SlyPokerDog]

It's very hard for me to think of Ben Wallace as "undersized." Maybe "under-tall," but he was so fucking strong and so mobile at the height of his powers.

Exactly, Wallace was one of the very few players that had the strength and mobility to guard Shaq one on one without fouling.

 

[riverman]

Exactly, Wallace was one of the very few players that had the strength and mobility to guard Shaq one on one without fouling.

Sheed did a really good job guarding Shaq ...Sheed and Big Ben were a great front court duo

 

[Minstrel]

Sheed did a really good job guarding Shaq ...Sheed and Big Ben were a great front court duo

For all the flak Sabonis took about how he looked soft against Shaq, he was actually a really good primary defender on Shaq. He was massive and hard to move. Sabonis guarding Shaq with Sheed and Pippen darting in on double-teams often made life tough for Shaq.

 

[KingSpeed]

There's no one in the league like Ben now. Sad.

 

[KingSpeed]

also- Barkley, Drexler, and Olajuwon did form a super team in Houston. Beaten by a Stockton three.

 

[Rhal]

Chemistry on the court is very different then Chemistry off the court and it doesn't always translate. Sure Rodman hated Pippen and Jordan and vice versa but they played really well together on the court and thats what matters.
You can look at Durant and Westbrook who were supposed great friends off the court but on the court it never really clicked like it should have and you can really see that come to life in the final few minutes of close games.

 

[riverman]

There's no one in the league like Ben now. Sad.

I thought Larry Sanders would replace Ben as that guy but he's an artist now without an NBA contract

 

[Orion Bailey]

You're just jealous because he's one of the few people on the planet that can down more Coors Lights than you.

Holy shit! That had to sting a bit! HAHAHA

 

[ripcityboy]

Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain were best friends off the court and Wilt stayed with Russell when he was in Boston. That didn't stop Bill from trying to tear Wilt's head off when they played. Yet Babe Ruth and Louis Gehrig couldn't stand each other. And they are linked forever in history and won plenty of championships. Chemistry has nothing to do with TALENT. You get more talent on this team and you can have all the team bonding moments you want. Right now that means thing.

 

[blue9]

When did Malone/Payton join the Lakers? That's the year the NBA died, IMO.

 

[UncleCliffy'sDaddy]

That's not the only reason I'm jealous.

Is it because he looks better in a wedding dress than you do..................?

 

[e_blazer]

There's been far worse. lol. The dude partied like crazy and still came into work pulling down 20 rebounds.

We can't even get Meyers Leonard to pump fake correctly.

What are you talking about. Meyers pump fakes with the ball from his knees. His pump fake is YUGE!

 

[Minstrel]

Meyers Leonard is too honest a guy to pump fake.

 

[JfizzleBlazer]

Rodman is one of my top 3 favorite players of all time.

Rodman
Sabonis
David Robinson

Rodman was a fucking beast. He wanted that rebound more than anyone on the court. Dude was actually underrated at times imo when he played.

He is not as bad of a guy as you'd think. He went through a lot of fucked up shit. I give him props for breaking out from his extremely shy nature and anxiety to not give a fuck what people thought.

 

[riverman]

Meyers Leonard is too honest a guy to pump fake.

Maybe we should get Dorell Wright back to work on that pump fake!

 

[SlyPokerDog]

Dennis Rodman supports Donald Trump.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/24/politics/dennis-rodman-donald-trump-endorsement/

Mic drop. /thread.

If it makes the Blazers great again I'll agree to it.

 

[blue9]

Dennis Rodman supports Donald Trump.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/24/politics/dennis-rodman-donald-trump-endorsement/

Mic drop. /thread.

He also supports Kim Jong Un. I guess he has a soft spot for fascist dickbuckets.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

He also supports Kim Jong Un. I guess he has a soft spot for fascist dickbuckets.

Mic drop. /thread.

 

[riverman]

He also supports Kim Jong Un. I guess he has a soft spot for fascist dickbuckets.

I think after he flopped trying to play basketball in Mexico...that was the only dude who'd throw him a party...sort of like a sad, punch drunk ex boxer

 

[selloutking]

I agree with a lot of what is being said in here. Rodman was amazing, when I was a kid I loved that guy, and my parents hated it because of his off court stuff, but they just didn't get it. It always seemed like he worked harder than anyone out there. He had that fire. THATS what kids need to be shown growing up, is to have fire and passion about what they love. No one on this team seems to have that. Look at any great team/contending team, 95% of them had at LEAST that one guy like that on it. except maybe the spurs? they seem to be that outlier of hey we are just good oh well. but most of the best players through out history had that fuck you I am better than you and I will prove it right here. bird, Jordon, reggie, kobe, chuck, shaq, or they were guys that just showed every emotion they had on the court because they were going 110% for every second they spent on the floor, sheed, rodman, chuck, yes I listed chuck in both lists! Now all we got is top players that are clearly top players just fawn over one another and flop all over the floor even though they know full well the refs star bias will get them the call every time.

The only guys I see like that in todays NBA is westbrick and boogie, westbrick catches a ton of flack, but that dude is nuts, does he have holes in his game, sure, but he plays with fire, and seems to be the only dude that will hold a grudge on the floor anymore. I am loving seeing the story unfold between him and KD now that KD left. Boogie catches even MORE flack, but its clear to me that its because of how soft and nice the NBA has become, he shows true emotion for the good AND the bad on the court. You put that guy on a team in the 90's and we would be talking today about him being of that same type of player that rodman and sheed were.

 

[bodyman5000 and 1]

I know the answer to the first part of the title, not sure about the chemistry part.

 

[BlayZa]

Rodman was a beast. He'a actually the only player i have a signed jersey of.

why like him?

undersized
different
troubled
relentless
funny
confusing
over achiever
tenacious
knew his strengths and played to them

he had a hard upbringing and found leadership in guys like phil jackson, yes he's done some strange shit, but he's more broken than most, but on the court, i think we'd struggle to find many people with more determination than he had.

this still gets me tbh

 

[jlprk]

About half-way through listening to this, and so far the biggest take-away is that back then players HATED each other - these days they're ALL friends and want to team up together, rather than beat each other. And that's why today's NBA sucks compared to the way it use to be. The top players aren't nearly as competitive as yesteryear's top players.

Back then European rules were considered soft. About 10 years ago, Stern Europeanized the NBA rules. The new ball movement prevented physical play, forcing shots farther from the basket. Since big men no longer fought for position, they became friends.