| Warriors’ Backcourt Best In NBA – After Detroit’s Authored by Payam Jahromi - January 2, 2006 - 6:15 pm
The Warriors’ backcourt of Baron Davis and Jason Richardson is the NBA’s best after the Pistons combo of Rip Hamilton and Chauncey Billups, and I will tell you why.
The other night when the Warriors’ backcourt combined for 66 in a win at Dallas, I received a text message from my friend, and it said, “You just saw the best backcourt in the league,” and that got me thinking.
I’ve always felt that the Warriors’ tandem was perhaps the most talented, but never one of the best when it came to winning and losing.
After all, how can you compare a backcourt that hasn’t a played a full season together to Billups and Hamilton, or Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, both of whom have won titles?
If you’ve watched the Warriors play the last week, one would understand why. Their backcourt does more with less.
Before I go on, let me acknowledge that there are other good backcourts out there – Iverson/Iguodala, Kidd/Carter, Cassell/Mobley, Hinrich/Gordon, Arenas/Butler, Kobe/whoever, Nash/whoever – but for the sake of this column, let’s just say the Warriors’ toughest competition are the Pistons and Spurs backcourts.
Let’s take a look at each:
Billups & Hamilton – It’s easy to point to their 24-4 record and the two finals appearances and say case closed. But let me ask one question: If they had to play with Davis and Richardson’s supporting cast, would they be better than 17-14 (the Warriors’ current record)?
Probably so, but not by much. And the only reason I’d put this backcourt ahead of the Warriors’ combo is the fact that both Billups and Hamilton are having career years.
Billups is averaging almost twice as many assists (8.4) over his career average (4.8), and his scoring average (19.0) is over two points above his previous best of 16.9 in 2003-04. But how much of that should be credited to his situation and how much is the fact he’s become that good?
I think it’s a little of both. I remember not too long ago when Billups was a struggling point guard who played for three teams in his first two seasons before finally settling in Detroit in year six. He elevated his game with the Pistons, becoming one of the most clutch players in the league.
No question Billups is much better than the guy we watched in Minnesota. But I also think his field-goal and 3-point percentages wouldn’t be as good on a lesser team where he’d have to force some shots.
Hamilton continues to be one of the most underrated players in the league. He leads the Pistons in scoring (21.7 ppg) while shooting a remarkable 50 percent from the field and 47 percent from downtown, both career highs.
This is the best backcourt in the league, but not by much.
Their supporting cast allows them to be the best. Either Wallace (Ben or Rasheed) is better than any frontcourt player the Warriors have. Teyshaun Prince’s versatility and defense make the guards better. For one, they know that Prince will usually guard the opposing team’s best player. Which brings me to…
Parker & Ginobili – Like the Detroit combo, these guys have Bruce Bowen to take pressure off on the defensive end, a luxury Davis and Richardson don’t have.
As a matter of fact, Davis and Richardson have to be the team’s best defenders as well as leading scorers. Forwards Mike Dunleavy and Troy Murphy are below average on defense, and Ike Diogu is undersized for a center.
Parker and Ginobili don’t have to worry about that. Bowen is arguably the league’s best perimeter defender, and Duncan is one of the best interior defenders (just as Ben Wallace is for Detroit). Speaking of Duncan, he’s pretty good, one of those superstars that makes everybody around him better.
Ginobili and Parker are part of that “everybody.” Give Parker and Ginobili the Warriors’ supporting cast and ask yourself if they would be better than 17-14? I doubt it.
For point guards, nobody is better than Parker at getting to the basket and finishing. But if Parker didn’t have Duncan, teams would focus on stopping him, as they do now with Baron.
Same with Ginobili. Don’t get me wrong, Manu is one of my favorite players to watch, and he may be slightly better than Richardson, but not this season. Not with his injuries and Richardson’s level of play so far.
Here’s a quick breakdown of the three backcourts:
Davis/Richardson: 40.8 points, 10.7 rebounds, 12.2 assists, 41% FG
Billups/Hamilton: 40.7 points, 6.5 rebounds, 11.2 assists, 47% FG
Parker/Ginobili: 34.6 points, 8.2 rebounds, 9.4 assists, 52% FG
Some of the Warriors’ bad FG% has to be attributed to the lack of supporting cast and inside game, forcing the Warriors’ duo to take more bad shots.
Which brings me to rebounding. The Warriors are one of the worst rebounding teams in the league, meaning Davis and Richardson must help out on the boards. The increased burden on defense and rebounding take a lot out of a player.
Simply put, the Warriors’ tandem has to play well for the Warriors to win. They also have to do more things than the other tandems.
One could say the same about the Iverson/ Iguodala and Kobe/Parker backcourts, but those duos are dominated by one player. Kobe is the best guard in the league, but any starting backcourt with Smush Parker cannot be considered the best, I’m sorry.
The Warriors’ 17-14 record is pretty remarkable considering the lack of frontcourt production (I know Murphy puts up good numbers, but he’s a perimeter player). If you watched their last three games – all wins vs. Boston, at Dallas and at Houston – it’s hard to imagine a backcourt tandem playing any better than those two.
Here are my top backcourts right now:
1. Billups & Hamilton, Pistons
2. Davis & Richardson, Warriors
3. Parker & Ginobili, Spurs
4. Iverson & Iguodala, 76ers
5. Kidd & Carter, Nets
If you have any questions or comments, you can reach me at pjahromi@sbcglobal.net |
