Are traditional centers making a comeback in the NBA?

The NBA has moved away from the importance of centers in recent years, but more traditional big men could find themselves back in fashion in the bubble.

It would be fair to say that the last seven years have seen the NBA shift massively away from dominating centers and needing one to compete for a championship. The 3-point boom took over, and once the Golden State Warriors starting winning titles without a true inside force (with respect to Andrew Bogut), the decline of the big man came swiftly and brutally.

Players like Roy Hibbert, at one point so crucial in trying to help the Indiana Pacers beat the LeBron James-led Miami Heat in the postseason, find themselves out of the league far earlier than they would have expected to be. So sudden was the transition from moving away from building around behemoth centers to contend, that it took Dwight Howard about six years to accept his new reality.

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With most things in life, however, there comes a point where the pendulum swings so far in one direction, that it begins to come back around the other way. Everybody takes 3-pointers and wants to space the floor these days, but have we now reached the point where true big men, those who set screens, dunk and do not shoot a lot of threes, now have the space to get back to their once-dominant best?

On the surface, it is hard to see, but if you look closer there is some movement trending back in this direction. Not only that but this style of playing, going back to the old-school, could actually have a big impact in the bubble during the playoffs. There are a number of solid playoff rosters who could provide matchup problems for the contenders of the group.

One such player is Jusuf Nurkic of the Portland Trail Blazers. Finally back and fully healthy, he has been like a wrecking ball for his team during scrimmage play. The Trail Blazers will have their work cut out simply to make the postseason, but if they do then Nurkic would be a nightmare for a number of potential opponents in the Western Conference.

The Houston Rockets are the most radical thinkers of going small, using a combination of Robert Covington and P.J. Tucker at the position. Both good defenders, both capable of holding their own because of their strength and how quickly they can move. This style of play has also seemingly unlocked Russell Westbrook, a huge boost for them.

But if they were to meet the Trail Blazers, both Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum would pose a huge threat orbiting around Nurkic. Defensively he could be dragged onto an island by James Harden for sure, but pretty much every player gets that treatment anyway, big or small. Nurkic would be a beast inside, guaranteeing multiple offensive rebounds each game in a series.

You don’t want to give Lillard and McCollum a second bite at missed shots. It is not just Nurkic who could have a say, although the roster of the Trail Blazers is solid and as such Nurkic having that kind of help would only highlight his potential dominance more. But what about somebody like Boban Marjanovic?

The guy known primarily from John Wick 3, being close with Tobias Harris and now being good friends with Luka Doncic. A guy who has been thrown into multiple trades and for his career has averaged less than 10 minutes a night. How could somebody like Boban, who is seen as a gimmick by some, make an impact?

Against the Los Angeles Lakers in a scrimmage, they couldn’t get near him, as he posted 17 points and backed down anybody not named LeBron James or Anthony Davis with ease (and even then he didn’t have too much trouble). A one-off you might say, a fluke. But in the last regular season game before the NBA’s season was suspended, he put up a ridiculous 31 points and 17 rebounds in 31 minutes of play.

The Dallas Mavericks don’t need Marjanovic to play starter’s minutes and to dominate every game in a series. But for 10-15 minutes against the Rockets or Lakers, or even L.A. Clippers, he could cause them so many problems. Especially because his offensive game isn’t as wooden as you might remember, Marjanovic capable of some nifty floaters and playing with his back to the basket.

Another interesting case is Steven Adams. The Oklahoma City Thunder have been one of the surprise packages of the season, as Chris Paul seeks redemption for being vanquished by the Rockets. Adams has been there a long time, but his willingness to screen and move without the ball, and get physical around the basket, gives his team another element. One that is highlighted more when going up against an opponent with no inside presence, which is a lot these days.

Rudy Gobert of the Utah Jazz is the gold standard of centers, a two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, but even he has been forced off the court in the playoffs before because of how stranded he became against smaller teams who ran. That will still be the case sometimes, but if his recent play is anything to go by, centers are making their way back.

It is fitting to finish by returning to Howard. As a backup for the Lakers, he has had his best season in years and has accepted his role on the team. Only come the NBA playoffs, when the Lakers come up against other bruising big men inside, they will likely need to call upon him more. If that isn’t proof that the game is swinging back in the other direction then what is?