NBA and the role of support players
Every team has players out of which some become the face of the respective franchise and some play supporting roles to top players. Scottie Pippen is one name that will help you understand the above statement clearly. Scottie Pippen will be inducted in the Hall of Fame within a few hours and join the exclusive club along with the Los Angeles Lakers owner Jerry Buss.
Pippen is remembered for his great performances in the Chicago Bulls and this great basketball player enjoyed an era of glory playing alongside the great Michael Jordan. While the great Michael Jordan played the role of main scorer, Scottie came up with ecstatic performances of his own that enabled him to become the ten time consecutive All-Defensive Team inductee. Any team that has a second man, who can score around 20 points, come up with 5 rebounds and 5 assists like Scottie should consider themselves blessed. This is the reason that many experts agree to the fact the two faces within a franchise if kept together could result in multiple titles for the team.
Over here we will have a look at some of the players who play the same role as Scottie Pippen did to Michael Jordan.
One of the best power forwards in NBA history without a doubt is Boston Celtics Kevin Garnett. Garnett is a success story. The splendid player single handily led the Minnesota Timberwolves to the Western Conference Finals after which he moved to the Boston Celtics. After joining the Celtics Kevin Garnett became a part of Paul Pierce’s team and led the Celtics to the NBA crown in 2008, their first for over a decade. Kevin Garnett’s leading abilities along with other players like Allen Ray seemed to have completed the Celtics. That evaluation was proved correct when Boston won the NBA title in 2008 and reached the Finals this past season.
Manu Ginobili is another second place player in the NBA. The giant Tim Duncan helped by the speed of Ginobili made him even better than he was before. The Spurs are very keen on getting a hold of foreign picks, such as Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. Since joining the Spurs in 2002 the Argentinean has been able to win three championships alongside the great Tim Duncan, which surely cements his place as one of the future Hall of Famers. Ginobili with his shooting, drives and plays can turn things around within no time. With Duncan also helping the cause, the Spurs come up with dominating performances.
Paul Gasol currently playing in the LA Lakers team was seen to be a powerhouse during his time in Memphis. This powerful player was on his way to glory when the Lakers brought him to Los Angeles. According to experts Gasol has a great deal of contribution in Lakers coming up with back to back NBA titles to their name. It is also said by many that without Gasol assisting Kobe Bryant, it would have been almost impossible for the Lakers to win. However, playing alongside players like Kobe Bryant, Gasol seems to have learned a great deal that has made him mature and an achieving superstar in the NBA.
All of the above were based on facts but one inclusion in this list is a prediction of experts and some legends of the NBA, including Michael Jordan. According to them, the Cleveland Cavaliers was LeBron James’s team and anybody who joined it, joined his team. The same way, Miami Heat is the team of Dwayne Wade and LeBron will always be the second best in the team. No matter if the Heat win the Championship this time, all the compliments and glory will go to Wade. LeBron will just be praised for his efforts and using his talent to the fullest.
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