Who Are The Unicorns Of The NBA?
The modern NBA values big men who can either space the floor or protect the rim. It’s rare that a player possesses both of those skills, but those who do are as valuable as any other type of player.
In today’s NBA, there are two skills that a big man must possess: floor spacing and rim protection.
If a player can do one of those things, they’ll have a long career and make a ton of money along the way. When a player combines both of those skills, they become a Swiss Army knife of a weapon for their team. These players are so rare that we’ll just call them basketball unicorns.
Ideally, an NBA frontcourt consists of one player who can space the floor and another who can protect the rim.
One of the best examples of this partnership was on the 2011 Dallas Mavericks. Dirk Nowitzki, an all-time great scorer but defensive liability was backed by Tyson Chandler, an elite rim protector who struggled to score throughout his career.
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Chandler made up for Nowitzki’s shortcomings and Nowitzki picked up the offensive slack. Their fit was a major reason why the Mavericks were able to win a title.
It’s unthinkable that Chandler’s defense and Nowitzki’s offense could be combined into one player, but there are players who combine some version of Nowitzki’s ability to space the floor and Chandler’s ability as a defender.
When a team has one of these players, it creates lineup flexibility that gives their team an advantage — hence why having such a player is so revered by NBA front offices.
As we enter the 2016-17 season, let’s take a look at who these basketball unicorns are.