Comments on: Most Dominant Playoff Tournament: Pool B, Round 1

By: EYO

EYO — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 03:55:48 +0000

Those basketball-reference stats are completely meaningless. In the early matchups, you're comparing a 9-time all-star with a rookie and with the difference in minutes played, there is no way that Pippen was guarding Bird for the majority of the time he was on the floor. When the playing time does even out, it's not a fair comparison as Bird was clearly in decline versus Pippen approaching his peak. Even if the numbers and ages matched up, there's no way to infer exactly who was guarding who without watching the games all over again. You're also trying to compare a #1 scoring option to a #2 option, of course the #1 is going to have higher counting numbers. Their efficiencies match-up much more favorably. And the comparison between Bird/McHale/Maxwell/Parish and Pippen/Rodman/Kukoc/Longley is absolutely meaningless again, you're clearly excluding the most talented player on either of those teams. You take the time to mention Gerald Henderson, Dennis Johnson, and Danny Ainge without mentioning Jordan?

By: AYC

AYC — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:19:55 +0000

Old Bird vs young Pippen:

http://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/h2h_finder.cgi?request=1&p1=birdla01&p2=pippesc01

By: AYC

AYC — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:15:43 +0000

84 Celts match up extremely well with the bulls; I'll take Bird/Mchale/Maxwell over Pip/Rodman/Kukoc ever day of the week; Parish vs. Longley? Please. And Gerald Henderson with DJ (and Ainge off the bench) is an underrated backcourt; bulls wouldn't be able to focus in on Bird because of all the other scorers on that team.

By: AYC

AYC — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:09:09 +0000

And Pippen was never a reliable outside shooter

By: AYC

AYC — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:05:15 +0000

Bird averaged 24.2 ppg in '84, 27.5 ppg in the playoffs Pippen averaged 20.2 ppg in 97, 19.3 ppg in the playoffs. Bird didn't play in the 50's, he played in the 80's and 90's overlapping with MJ and Pippen by a few years; he faced plenty of stellar defenders (Rodman, Robert Reid, Michael Cooper, Bobby Jones); and in 92 at age 35 with a bad back he was still dropping 21/10/7 per game

By: dickey simpkins

dickey simpkins — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 13:41:27 +0000

How is it a stretch to say Pippen couldn't score on Bird? He was a relatively efficient scorer who got to the rim and by the mid '90s was a very good outside shooter. And there's a reason why these scenarios favor the newer teams, they're almost always better, and that would be true in any major sport. You think the '72 Dolphins would go undefeated in the current NFL?

By: James

James — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 09:10:22 +0000

Pippen would have done a better job on Larry 'Legend' in both their primes than anyone ever did. Pippen was a solid scorer (and 94 without MJ was very good), but an outstanding defender as we all know.....Larry would have had problems with his length, quickness and ability to stay on the floor and not bite on pump fakes.

Pity we don't have a time machine to actually put some of these match-ups together, would be orsum! The Dream Team practices would have been the only place that was close to seeing Pippen v Bird, and Larry was well past prime by then.

Enjoying the tourney, nice work!

By: AYC

AYC — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 03:28:53 +0000

These simulations seem to overwhelmingly favor the more recent teams; I only count 5 series where the older team wins, and that includes the '50 Lakers beating the '55 squad.

PS Come on, Pippen outscoring Bird!!?