Brooklyn Nets: Derrick Coleman helped set the standard for today’s big men

The versatile style of today’s big men doing more on the court have changed the NBA, but this started with guys like New Jersey Nets legend Derrick Coleman.

It’s almost too common to see a young 6’11” center or forward handle the basketball and take long distance jump shots just like guards in today’s NBA. It’s a concept that was almost foreign to the league almost 25 years ago, as the big man was restricted to being only a rim protector on defense and post player offensively.

Derrick Coleman was a huge reason for the landscape change in today’s NBA with the addition of his offensive skill-set and versatility at either frontcourt spot in the early 1990s. Coleman was a first round pick of the New Jersey Nets out of Syracuse University, where he feasted on other Big East talent to create a name for himself. His ability to dribble past bigger defenders while overpowering smaller ones created countless matchup problems for some of the league’s best.

The idea of having to guard a player that was 6’10” and 230 pounds at the top of the key or behind the 3-point line forced teams to make absurd adjustments. Though he was only a career 29.5 percent 3-point shooter, his 1.4 attempts per game represented a much larger amount than it appears given the style of play when he was in the league.

The idea of going small or playing “position-less” basketball came into play in order to be effective against such a player that was rare during this time period. Coleman was able to eventually become an NBA All-Star in 1994 for the Nets, averaging 20.2 points and 11.3 rebounds per game.

Coleman gave plenty of praise for allowing him to be different to his then head coach, the late Chuck Daly, during a 1993 New York Times interview. It was a far cry from the standard big man restrictions he faced under his rookie head coach Bill Fitch.

"“Chuck lets me do a lot of things. He never tries to limit me to doing one thing and one thing only. Basically, if I have the shot, I take it. That’s his philosophy. With Bill, it was more like one thing. Post up, post up, rebound. With Chuck, it’s totally different. He gives me the green light. He lets me shoot, bring it down, whatever. There are no limitations.“He’s rooting for you, It’s good to have a guy on your side who is rooting for you no matter what. You need that. When things aren’t going well for you, it’s good to look over to the bench and see someone who says if the shot isn’t falling, keep shooting.”"

Players that follow the mold helped set by Coleman include this year’s No. 2 overall draft pick, Marvin Bagley III. Bagley will receive plenty of offensive opportunities playing for a struggling Sacramento Kings franchise has made a name for himself doing a lot of versatile things for a big man. His agility and willingness to take long shots from anywhere on the court helped him excel at Duke and rise up the draft boards.

The next level for players such as Bagley to evolve to will include making players around them better. The skills are only half the battle, as learned from Coleman’s shortcomings later in his career. It’s important to grow quickly mentally and mature for the betterment of the team.