NBA is getting less talented

[QuadrupleDouble]

Nowadays we have guys like draymond green and tristan thompson etc demanding max contracts. No offence but because there are so little superstars in the league now, these second tier free agents are able to take advantage. I mean when we talk about best sgs in the nba we can only name a handful such as harden thompson wade but the list of superstars at each position back in the 2000s were crazy... Hopefully not but to me lebron and kobe are most likely the last players to ever be considered a top 5 - top 10 player. There are many great players in the league but doubt they would ever make that list (durant is a long shot). I mean, if this trend continues in the future we're gonna see a lot of above average players getting overpaid. I brought this up because people are willing to pay harris and middleton close to max offers but when rudy gay got paid a max contract many people immediately ruled it a ridiculous contract despite any of them being able to be a first or even second option on a championship type team. Reading all these forums and trade proposals i mean there really arent many superstars that we can get to take the raps to the next level which is why it is so hard for gms to build a contending team of course unless u have a lebron or harden or durant. Which basically leaves teams with 2 options get a superstar through free agency or tank and draft one unless you want to end up being a team like Raptors that have above average players that will never have championship aspirations
Anybody else feel like this?
heres to prove my point...........
http://espn.go.com/nba/statistics/pl...6/seasontype/2
and
http://espn.go.com/nba/statistics/pl...s/seasontype/2

I wonder if Reggie Evans at the age of 24 playing right now would think he's a max player LOL

[BobLoblaw]

I disagree, I think the NBA is more talented than ever. Although if young stars keep getting injured (Durant, George, Rose, etc), it might change.

'Max contracts' aren't what they used to be. They are heavily restricted now, especially for young players. Raw numbers might seem similar, but team budgets have grown so much, that relatively those big contracts have shrunk. For example, 1997: Timberwolves' all payroll was under 28 mil. That year they gave rookie Kevin Garnett an extension for 126 mil, starting at 14 mil. 2014: Mavs budget was over 67 mil. Parsons gets a max contract starting at over 14 mil (45 mil total). The difference is obvious. Contracts for young players have gone up a little -- or not at all, if we consider years. But team budgets have gone up so much much more. So it's natural that much more players can expect these big deals now.

Another thing is that the NBA's new TV deal will start soon. Team budgets will grow even higher. So these current max contracts will look even smaller, relatively. Teams will be able spend so much more, so they are willing to give someone like Draymond Green if not max, then still pretty big portion of max.

As far as early - mid 2000s go, they were very deep at SG. Other than that, not so much. PG and PF positions are now possibly deeper than ever in history of the NBA. SF is the most powerful in the history of the game at the top -- if Durant and George get healthy. Center is hard to judge, because rule changes have changed the center position. There are many good centers, but it's hard to dominate the game from the center position now, like it was possible in the 90s and early 2000s.

[WJF]

I think when their careers are over guys like Chris Paul and John Wall and Steph Curry will be able to be argued to be on all time top 10 point guard lists. Not too shabby if you ask me.

[Thomas A.]

How many top 10 guys do you expect to see every 5 years? Do you assume the list should just keep rolling over and over, with each new set replacing the last? Do you think that guys like Bird, Magic, Kareem, Russell, Hakeem and Shaq should have been ousted by now if not for the assumed talent drought?

Also, Duncan is a top ten player.

[WJF]

I think yo need to look less at all time top 10 and look at it by position rank all time, the league has been around since the 40's spanning 8 decades.

[Primer]

The game is way more talented now than it has ever been. A lot of starters from the 80's - 90's would barely be DLeague quality today, which made the stars of the era shine that much brighter. If Lebron played in the 90's he'd probably average something like 35-15-10 without trouble. The average NBA player is a lot better today than 20 years ago.

[Bear]

The players are FAR more athletically gifted and larger today, not saying they have more talent, or the big one...Heart..

[JimiCliff]

Big difference now is that kids are drilled way harder, starting at a younger age.

Plus, probably more people are playing, which gives a wider talent pool to draw from.

And the culture is different - no hacking darts at halftime, no cocaine...

[JimiCliff]

I think the best players from 10, 20, 30, 40 years ago would still be among the best today.

[Mess]

Since when did contracts/$$$ = talent?

[Joey]

Since when did contracts/$$$ = talent?

Exactly.

I was going to say Owners have just gotten more frivolous (idiotic?) with your spending.
That and they are much richer than owners of the past as well.

But ya, contract amount does not equal talent.

[Hurricane_Herm]

Nowadays we have guys like draymond green and tristan thompson etc demanding max contracts. No offence but because there are so little superstars in the league now, these second tier free agents are able to take advantage.
heres to prove my point...........

Keep in mind that a thompson max =/= a lebron max. These young players entering there second contracts are only being offered ~~15 million. Yes that is a long but it isn't kobe max. Also when you a team like GS and CLE you HAVE to pay to keep these young players to give yourself a chance. No way can you let them just leave. Plus like others have mentioned the players know the TV deal is going up and can more leverage in negotiations...

[Mess]

Or Utah with Hayward. Sometimes you just can't afford to lose a talented player. The way the CBA is structured now a young player's 2nd contract won't be a huge burden to a team unless they severely misjudge a player's value.

[Hurricane_Herm]

Or Utah with Hayward. Sometimes you just can't afford to lose a talented player. The way the CBA is structured now a young player's 2nd contract won't be a huge burden to a team unless they severely misjudge a player's value.

*cough* lance stephenson *cough*

[Mess]

Yeah they fucked up for sure but that wasn't near a max contract in dollars or years. Thankfully for them.