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Top Dogs: Duncan, Shaq
By Robert Doyen October 14, 2004
 We continue the SpursZONE.com series of Point/Counterpoint articles in which two people debate different aspects of Spurs basketball and the rest of the NBA.
In this edition, FullSportPress.com writers Robert Doyen and Michael Paceleo discuss the best players in the game today.
Doyen: Tim Duncan is the second best player in the league. The first ... Shaq.
There are many great players in the NBA and many who could argue their place as the best player in the game. Kobe Bryant is the most skillful. Jason Kidd is the smartest. Neither has much sense off the court though. Kobe chased away his meal ticket (Shaq), and Kidd opted to stay with the lame duck Nets rather than moving on to the Spurs. Tracy McGrady can score the most points and Vince Carter can jump the highest. Neither of these players has shown enough toughness to lead a team. Garnett is one of the most gifted all around players in the history of the game, but he's a David Robinson -- a player with more skill than he knows what to do with who needs a tough and receptive player alongside him. Minnesota has yet to find this component. All of these players are pretenders to the throne.
It's not really a matter of who has the best basketball skills. It's a matter of who is the hardest to stop. A matter of who is the scariest player to opposing teams. A matter of who gives his team the greatest advantage to win.
Could Karl Malone have single-handedly taken O'Neal out of a game as effectively as he handled Duncan in last year's playoffs? No. Is there any player who can single cover Shaq, even including Yao? No.
Duncan is a great player. His fundamental skills are the benchmark of the league. Unfortunately Shaq's skills are constantly underrated because it is assumed that his only ability is to bully opponents with his size. Not true. His footwork is phenomenal for a man of his size and he knows the game.
In the end the main question is: With equal talent surrounding them, who would win the Championship? In the frame of mind that he is in this year after having been traded, the answer is Shaquille O'Neal.
Tim Duncan is second. Nobody else is even close.
Paceleo: Is Tim Duncan the player in the game? In a word, yes. He is the most fundamentally sound player to be seen in this league for decades. Shaquille O'Neal still is an immensely talented player but he is now more immense than talented.
At one time, Shaq was the best player not named Jordan and the most talented center since Bill Russell. He was surprisingly nimble for a man his size and unlike the plodding big men of the past, he ran the court well. However, age and constant pounding night in and night out have taken its toll. Various foot and knee ailments have limited his effectiveness and a lack of seriousness when it comes to offseason conditioning has only compounded the problem. Although, to O'Neal's credit, he appears to have changed that this summer after being traded to Miami.
It is assumed that all Shaq does is bully opponents with his sizable ... uh ... "assets". It is assumed because it is true. This is not saying that O'Neal is not totally devoid of skill. In fact it is a nod to his intelligence because he knows he can get away with it and why not take advantage?
Shaq has never proven he can lead a team single-handedly to the promised land. He needed Penny to get to the Finals in Orlando and Kobe to get three rings. Duncan also needs support. He needed Robinson. He will need Parker and Ginobili this year and it still may not be enough.
It is more than about who can be stopped. Truth be told, neither player can. It's about pure skill. O'Neal is on the downside of his career, Duncan will only get better. Advantage, Duncan.
Doyen: Shaquille was getting more immense than talented. But after his trade to the Heat he has shown a renewed enthusiasm for himself and for basketball. The Lakers hurt his pride when they shipped him to Miami, and the only thing in the NBA larger than Shaq's body is his ego. He's hungry, and not just for hamburgers anymore.
The weight he's losing should take some of the pressure off of his feet and knees, and Miami's trapping defense will keep him moving and discourage his penchant for laziness.
Shaq is not the only fat man to ever play basketball. He's just the most agile. And even 100 pounds ago when he looked more human, he scared everyone in the league. Shaq does bully. This is no lie. He gets away with it. Another truth. That is exactly why you want him on your team.
Penny was no Kobe. Shaq basically did lead that team to the Finals. He's been to the Finals five times with two different teams. He's won three Championships. Duncan has two Championships in two appearances. Both are still quite capable of increasing those totals.
Last year in the playoffs the Lakers took out Duncan by isolating Malone on him and covering the shooters, and Duncan could not take advantage. Nobody stopped O'Neal all playoffs long. In fact he appeared to be the only Laker who gave an effort during the finals. Shaq can dominate anyone, but only if he wants to. This year he wants to, and at the age of 32, he's hardly an old man.
After taking Miami to the next level this year he will probably win the MVP, and though I do believe it's a close decision, Shaq still gets my nod as top dog above Duncan.
Paceleo: Shaq, while slimmed down, has still seen his better years. Moving to South Beach will extend his career due to the lack of talented big men in the Eastern Conference. He cut his battles with Duncan, Garnett and Yao in half and will be able to take a few more nights off with a weaker slate of conference foes. He very well may be able to take the Heat to the next level. However that would be, at best, the conference finals. That is still not where he was with the Lakers.
Duncan has his best years ahead of him and is not distracted by the outside forces that seemed to gravitate to O'Neal. He is the quintessential professional and from November to June -- his sole focus is his team, not himself.
Duncan is a superior passer, shooter and defender. He can take you off the dribble or shoot a 17-footer over your head. He does whatever his team needs him to do to win. More importantly, he is willing to defer to a teammate if that is what is needed for a victory. O'Neal craves the spotlight, Duncan has no use for it.
Shaquille O'Neal is the last of his kind. The big, slow post player who imposed his size on others because he could. He camps under the basket and shoves, bumps and dislodges people out of his way. Duncan is the future. Size, speed, footwork and a littany of offensive moves. A player that could play three positions and be an All-Star at each.
Shaq is bigger, KG is a better athlete. Tim Duncan is the best basketball player in the NBA, period.
If you would like to get in on the Spurs debates, visit the fan forum or send an email to Kori Ellis at KoriEllis@WOAI.com.
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