5) Tyson Chandler (NY);
The 2012 defensive player of the year is not forgotten in my books. He is a center who has made an all-star career is this "run jump block dunk (RJBD)" era of big men, and rightfully so. Just ask Chris Bosh, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James how good a job he did anchoring the defense that beat a heavily favored Heat team in the 2011 finals. He's good for 15-20 rebounds on any given night, which makes up for his offense, which leaves a bit to be desired. He's tough as nails, has relentless help defense which his teammates surely appreciate, and even in his thirties remains a great rim protector. His impact on the defensive side is what separates him from the other RJBD guys and skilled guys from guys like Brook Lopez, Al Horford and DeMarcus (BOOGIE) Cousins (by the way, it took everything I had to resist putting Boogie Cousins in my top five. even though he is a terrible teammate, CRAZY potential.) If you really want to know how good Tyson Chandler is, ask the 7-16 Knicks. It's no accident that they were a 500 team until he went down. If he gets back soon, Mike Woodson may just be the most excited Knick of them all.
4) Joakim Noah (CHI) ;
Effort and intensity alone put Noah on this list. A tenacious defender and great passer for a 7 footer makes him a versatile big in today's game. He averaged 11-11-4 last year, and was good for a couple blocks and steals along the way. Those stats are good not great, but it's the effort on both ends of the floor, and doing the things that don;t show up in the stat sheet that make Noah so valuable. In last year's all-star game, people worried it would be low scoring because Noah and Chandler were out there wreaking havoc on defense, as TNT Announcer Mike Breen said, "he only has two speeds, and that's zero and 100 mph."
3) Marc Gasol, (MEM);
Simply put, he's the best passing big man in the NBA, who also won 2013 Defensive Player of the Year. What he doesn't possess in athletic ability, he makes up for with intelligence, his underrated shooting range, and overall feel for playing his position. He was huge in the Grizzlies run to the conference finals last year, and is as efficient as centers come. he shot 49 percent from the floor and 85 percent from the line last year, while anchoring a top 5 defense and averaging almost 5 assists per game. From an efficiency standpoint, there is no one better in today's game, plain and simple.
2) Roy Hibbert (IND);
"Someone call an archeologist! A 7 footer who posts up and plays with his back to the basket!"
-Jalen Rose.
Besides post moves, the biggest thing separating Hibbert from Gasol among others; his size. Hibbert is 7'2'' weighing in at a "slender" 290 lbs. He took a photo with Tim Duncan and other NBA vets this summer, and made the other players look like kids. If ever there was a LeBron stopper this guy is it (side note: props to Stephen Curry having the stones to step to Hibbert in last year's pacers brawl. He got tossed aside like a doll, but I wouldn't have likely crapped my pants.) This is the year for Hibbert to challenge Dwight as the most dominant big man in the game. Stats aren't great (13-9-3) but impact is what matters. Hibbert alters shots and could block many more if he wanted. I like his game, and his defense speaks for itself. Just youTube his block on Melo if you need a reminder.
He gets my vote for the defensive player of the year, and if the Pacers were to win it all this year, I would have no problem with moving him to number one on this list. He doesn't have a ton of athleticism, but everything that makes a great center is there. In the conference finals against Miami, he averaged 22-10 with a block, shooting 55% from the field and 80% from the stripe. In the regular season, he may seem to coast at times because MVP candidate Paul George carries the scoring load offensively, so his stats seem underwhelming. But he turns it up when it matters; in the playoffs. Hibbert is a great player, and when is shot is clicking, no one can stop him. Not even number one on the list.
1) Dwight Howard (HOU);
I am a huge Hibbert fan ever since the 18-18 game he had against Miami in 2012 2nd round. But I am not delusional. Dwight Howard is the best center in the NBA. Free throw shooting aside, he has everything you want from a center. His worst year since emerging as a star was last year, when Dwight posted a ho-hum 17-12-2, a career year for almost any big man in the NBA. I almost take him for granted at times, because he has put up such insane stats that they have become expected of him. He had 32-17 against a big Portland Trailblazers team. When I first heard that I thought "Dwight Howard, big surprise" He is just that good. Questions about his intangibles open the door for the other centers to rival his greatness, but as of December 14, 2013, no one can dominate a game like Dwight Howard. The quickness, and athleticism, and utter presence along with the stats show there is no one better at this position than Dwight Howard. We will know for sure come playoff time, but as of now, it's Dwight's title to lose.
(For the record, I counted Duncan as Power Forward, his natural position. Small ball doesn't make Chris bosh a center, and the same applies for Duncan, KG and any other power forward playing out of position.)
Before I get into this, I just want to say that it's killing me to watch the regression of "today's NBA big men" These centers are great in their own right, but do anyone see them matching up with the great centers of the past decades? Just look at the names;
2010s: Centers listed above
2000s: Shaq,
90s: Olajuwon, Robinson, Ewing, young Shaq
80s: Kareem, Parrish, young Olajuwon, Moses Malone
70s: Walton, Kareem
60s: Russell, Chamberlain, young Kareem
I take any past centers over the current crop. Can anyone think of more than 5 polished offensive centers in today's NBA anyways? Maybe Brook Lopez? There are only a handful of total players who post up and play with backs to the basket, and a few are power forwards. And not only has the league gone small but the roles for these guys have completely changed. RJBD is the reality for most centers in this league, while it is fun to watch it hurts the game. No one wants to watch DeAndre Jordan get hacked and airball free throws everytime down the floor. These fast athletic big men are ironically slowing the game down. If youth coaches see that big men only have to run jump block and dunk, they may stop teaching kids post up moves or how to back guys down. No 10 year old sees Dwight Howard and thinks, "I love how he positions himself to get the rebound," people only care about seeing these highlight reel slams. I love the slams and Lob City as much as any fan, but there is a real tragedy here; true centers are going extinct.
The thing that made Kareem, Hakeem, Robinson and others so great are post up fundamentals. Athleticism only lasts so long. When physical skills diminish, what makes a player great is reinventing his game and owning it. When MJ lost his hops, he evolved into a great shooter. Garnett has scoring around 15 a game on jumpers alone since his knee injury in 2009. Tim Duncan has become s a top 5 all-time player because of fundamental post up play. We are denying future generations the fundamentals they can use to become great. Big men in today's game get by on athleticism. That is why they will never be great. When the athleticism fades, there is nothing else for bigs to fall back on. It is too bad. Nothing is set in stone until these 5 big men are done, but if there careers ended today, these big men in this small ball era would never be considered among the greatest centers in NBA history.
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