The NBA lottery happened tonight which means the draft itself is a month away. I could care less about ping pong balls deciding the future home of future ball players, but this actually got me thinking about the state of the NBA right now; The young talent in the league right now is exciting and to be honest I’m tired of these who older players who don’t seem to want to retire, mainly half of the Celtics and Lakers roster.

So this idea of young talent leads me to ask myself this very important question, a question that can divide a house whole of sports fans.

Lebron, Durant or Rose…Yes that is the question and I’ve been going back and forth trying to decide which of these superstars I would build my team around if the draft were today and I somehow owned a basketball franchise.. Who knows, it could happen.

But after what seemed like hours of research which turned out to be just minutes and relentless debate which I probably lost, I came to the conclusion that I really didn’t know. To make things easy I tried to eliminate one player right off the bat.  That didn’t work either so it was time to use what I know and what I can prove; you can’t argue numbers so here we go.

When you think about the numbers, age becomes a big consideration and that automatically puts Lebron at a disadvantage in this tough argument giving the fact that he is the grizzled veteran at 26 years old.  An old 26 when you also consider he has been in the league for 8 years out of high school.

Yes the mileage is there but the body of work brings him back into the argument because of what he has accomplished and his lack of any serious injuries.

I can make a great case for young Rose as I’m sure my younger sister who knows little to nothing about sports can.  The fact is he at 22 became the youngest MVP in NBA history, which alone can make him the wisest choice to lead my imaginary team.  He has led a team with no offense besides his constant assault on guards to the eastern conference finals.

Most importantly, Rose came in the league with no jump shot.. His weapons of choice were a quick first step and a relentless will to get to the basket.  This past season his shooting improved dramatically and opposing guards can no longer afford to give him space.  The guy works hard at his craft and that is more important than any other factor in sports.

Kevin Durant is a 6’11” guard slash forward and at 22 years old has led the league in scoring for two straight seasons also becoming the youngest scoring champion in NBA history.  Now that’s nothing to sneeze at, he also has improved his game and his quickness allowing him to play the guard position while also getting stronger which will benefit his longevity in the league.

So where does that leave us..In a guard driven league can I really pass up on a 22 year old MVP guard? , Can I pass on a 6’11” forward like Durant? The answer sadly is yes to both questions.

My pick will not be Derrick Rose or Kevin Durant.

I have to go with Lebron James, the most hated man in Cleveland; in fact they should be happy after the lottery tonight.

To be honest with you The Man who calls himself King James offers more to me as an owner.    He is Durant and Rose in one. He is Magic Johnson in terms of his abilities on the floor because of the versatility he brings.

Yes there are better shooters, smarter players, stronger, quicker and those with bigger hearts in willing their team to wins, but no one offers the package that this 6’8” 250 pound small forward brings to my franchise.  No one is more consistent on the court, averaging 27 points 7 rebounds and 7 assist every season with relatively no help up until the past two seasons.  I see many more MVP’s in his future and 2 or 3 championships to cement his hall of fame career.

Share This

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

About the author

Clodel Remy
Writing and sports are my passions and i can't see myself doing anything else.

Related Posts

NBA Draft Recap

With no surprise and being on the clock since winning the draft lottery, the New Orleans Hornets drafted Kentucky’s Anthony Davis. Davis was last years AP Player of the Year, leading his Kentucky Wildcats to a National...

The 2011 NFL Season: Legacies Tom Brady and Bill Belichick in Spotlight

With preseason finally over, and Monday nights opener against the Dolphins waiting on the other side of the weekend, the New England Patriots seem once again poised to make another promising run at the Lombardi Trophy. Already...

Best NBA Draft Day Acquisitions

This year’s NBA draft was an interesting one. Much of the talk going around was that it was a terrible draft in terms of talent. That being said, nobody will really be able to judge any of these players until they are playing...