Quote:
Originally Posted by Deke
excuses by era are dumb. the way i see it you score 30 ppg, you score 30 ppg. it doesnt mean kobes 35 ppg is better then MJs 38 ppg. and it doesnt mean birds 24 ppg is better then baylors 27 ppg. plus bird retired in his prime...
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what's dumb is not adjusting for era. it's nonsensical. you can't compare wilt's 27 rpg to rodman's 18 rpg and simply conclude wilt was the better rebounder. it's dumb. kobe's 35 ppg actually is comparable to jordan's 37 ppg. they were comparable relative scorers, comparable relative efficiency. jordan did have some far better overall seasons than that season though.
bird was a far, far more efficient scorer than baylor. and the best passer of all time at his position, and one of the best ever for any position. he's on an oscar robertson level, a tier above elgin.
as for defense, early in his career, bird was a pretty good man defender. later in his career, he wasn't. but many of the old clips we see him playing defense are against guys like worthy and nique, who are extremely difficult matchups, and come later in his career.
and he really didn't guard byron scott.