This weekend I got to thinking about the ever popular “All Time Starting Five” talk for the NBA. Obviously this is an impossible thing to answer “correctly”, but I figured I would share my “All Time Starting Five plus the All Time 6th Man”.
My criteria is - fill all five positions with the best players, in my opinion from the timeframe that I would realistically have been able to experience (so 2000ish - present). 6th Man is a position as far as I am concerned, so it can’t be someone who was a career starter but didn’t make the cut. Lastly, my list is based on players in their prime.
C - Shaquille O’Neal
PF - Tim Duncan
SF - Lebron James
SG - Kobe Bryant
PG - Steph Curry
6th Man - Manu Ginobili
I think these are all pretty self explanatory, but hit me up if you want to discuss or argue!
Now, this exercise got me thinking about my Current starting five and sixth man.. This was WAY tougher. Honestly, the all time based on my criteria (so Jordan, Bird, Kareem, etc didn’t count because I couldn’t watch them in their prime) was easy. But here is goes:
C - Joel Embiid
PF - Giannis Antetokounmpo
SF - Jaylen Brown
SG - Anthony Edwards
PG - Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
6th Man - Naz Reid
I think the controversial choices on this list are JB and Antman, but honestly, this year, they are both deserving. I don’t have the time to make my case right now, but I will gladly talk about it! The 6th Man was the hardest choice for me. There are some real contenders for this one. I narrowed my top 3 down to Naz Reid, Malik Monk, and Naz Reid with honorable mentions of Cole Anthony, Bobby Portis, and Tim Hardaway Jr.. Honestly, I think Naz Reid is underrated. Honestly, his offensive stats are impressive on 22 MPG and his defensive rating is better than any of the other choices by a long shot, not to mention his +/-.
Anyhow, what’re your All Time Starting 5 and Current Starting 5, plus 6th Men?
As for cigars, I didn’t have anything to mention this morning. I smoked a Big Sky Bitterroot and Blackfoot this weekend to sample the brand. I really dug the Bitterroot at first and found the cigar to be very solid overall. The Blackfoot was about average in my opinion. I am looking forward to smoking the other samples I have!
Take Care,
-Trevor