Sure. I didn’t intend to rebut the article, but reinforce it by adding in the example of Kevin Durant.
This really is a shift in the NBA. It’s becoming more skilled. Centers aren’t keeping up because guys that tall aren’t well-represented in the player base from which the NBA draws, and maybe, it’s harder for guys that big to operate at that level. They usually have a lot of mass to move around.
I still hear a lot from guys who think the NBA is *worse* than in their favorite eras. They think that guys from the 80’s or 90’s who dominated the league would blow away these young upstarts with clever post moves, iso footwork and body-banging ways in the paint.
Well. I’ve been enjoying basketball since I was a teenager in the 60’s, and I don’t see it that way. These guys today are knocking my eyeballs loose with their skill. Almost every game has jaw-dropping feats of basketball magic in them. Basketball was fun in earlier eras, sure. But it wasn’t being played at this level, much.
Guys like Dwight Howard aren’t worse than the great centers of yesteryear. He’s actually pretty darned good. But the old ways are not winning ways any longer, not in this league. And finding a 7-footer who can keep up with the skill level advancement the NBA is experiencing is unusual.
Used to be, being a 7-footer, in decent shape and having a deft touch within 5 feet of the rim could get you into the NBA. Those days are fast disappearing.