Power Forward

[As] the name suggests, these players usually excel at the more physical elements of the game: rebounding and defense. They are normally among the physically strongest players on a basketball team. The power forward plays the #4 position and may be referred to as a post player, meaning he spends much of his time in the low post (close to the basket).

From hoopedia. 

I think this debate basically boils down to Garnett v. Duncan, so let's throw out a few of the also-rans.

Charles Barkley. Because of his 21st century TV roles as loudmouth and huckster, I think people sometimes forget how great the Round Mound was in his prime. Straight by the numbers, it's not hard to make the case for him as GPFoAT. In what may have been his peak season -- '86/87 with the Sixers -- he averaged 23.0 pts (on an outrageously good .660 TS%) / 14.6 reb / 4.9 assists / 1.8 steals / 1.5 blocks in 40.3 minutes per game. A disturbing 4.7 turnovers, but still: it doesn't get any better for a PF, let alone one routinely giving up 4-5 inches to his opponent. And though his age 23-26 with Philly constitute his peak (four straight seasons of > .650 TS%), it's not like he fell off terribly in his late 20s / early 30s seasons with Phoenix. For one thing, with KJ around to do most of the ballhandling and initiating, he cut way down on the TOs. And how can Warrior fans forget, much as we would love to, his legendary performance in the wildly entertaining and wildly depressing opening round of the '93/94 playoffs? 

Game 1: 36 pts (14-24, 7-11) / 19 reb / 7 ast / 4 stl

Game 2: 20 pts (9-21) / 7 reb / 8 ast (KJ -- 38 pts, 9 ast -- did most of the heavy lifting in this one)

Game 3: 56 points (23-31!!!, 7-9) / 14 reb / 4 ast / 3 stl

OW-freaking-CH. Hard to overstate how much optimism I had for that Ws team at that moment, coming off a 50-32 season, with Spree and Mullin doing their thing, our 20 year-old superstar in the fold, and an injured Timmy poised to join in on the fun the next season. I mean, I wasn't really expected to win that series, but I had a glimmer of hope. Barkley basically took my youthful glimmer and crushed it with his big fat arse. (Of course, we know whose big fat arse really crushed our glimmer, the following season, but subject for another diary...)

So why doesn't Barkley make the final cut? Well, see pull-quote up top: "these players usually excel at the more physical elements of the game: rebounding and defense." Charles excelled at only one of these things. In his prime, he got his share of blocks and steals, but that's 'cos he was ballsy and a gambler. No one ever worried too much about being guarded by Barkley. I don't think number of championship rings should play too big of a factor in these ratings, but it seems clear to me that if Barkley had been a great defender, he'd have at least one. No D, no G-O-A-T.

Karl Malone. Basically, see comments regarding Barkley. Fantastic numbers, so-so defense, no rings. And unlike Barkley, he got to play his whole career with likely the best distributor of all time. To me, he was always the second-most valuable player on those great Jazz teams; not being the best player on your team should instantly disqualify you from GoAT discussions. Also: like latter-day Kareem, he loses "entertainment points" for having such a plodding and predictable game. The classic Stockton-Malone pick-and-roll game was unbelievably effective (if it hadn't been they wouldn't have repeated it ad nauseam) but just not remotely beautiful, imo. I demand a little poetry from my GoAT, regardless of position.

Dennis Rodman. If the PF criteria really is rebounding and defense, the worm has a serious claim here. At his peak (94-95 with SA), he was gobbling up 18.9 rebounds per 36 minutes, or roughly 30% of all available rebounds. For you Amare fans: STAT grabbed a measly 13% last season, or 15% for his career. Put another way: at his peak, Rodman grabbed more rebounds per minute than Amare and Bosh did last season combined. Rodman also gets points for me for the way he flirted with, fondled, and otherwise discombobulated the Macho Mailman in those classic Bulls/Jazz matchups. Homo-erotic foreplay is a highly underrated and underutilized defensive stratagem, imo. (Don't get too excited Tim Hardaway). I guess the question with Rodman will always be: yes, defense and rebounding are huge, but how valuable a player are you if you focus exclusively on those two aspects of the game? I think most would agree here: amazing, unique player, but certainly not the GoAT.

Bob Pettit. Numbers look pretty great (25 pts / 17 reb, with 11 FTAs per game at his peak) but having not seen him at all, not even really in highlights, I have to abstain. Obviously, if any of the seven people on GSoM who are older than I feel like weighing in his behalf, I'd love to hear their thoughts.

Elvin Hayes. Numbers don't really hold up to the competition -- very solid rebounding and block numbers in his prime, but too inefficient from the floor and a bit too much of a ballhog to merit consideration. But I'm nominating the Big E, and putting his pic up top, because as a wee tyke I had a deep and irrational affection for those '70s Bullets teams. Incredibly cool uniforms, incredibly cool players with cool names ("Elvin Hayesssssss!!!!" "Philllll Chenierrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!"), cool team name. The fact that they now wear dorky gold and babyblue uniforms with that lame-ass logo and call themseves the "Withards" (yes, I like to imagine it said with a lisp) always makes me sad. Yeah, I understand the horrors of handgun violence in our country, but c'mon: it's the Washington Bullets.

So it comes down to Garnett v. Duncan. Cut to the chase, I'm voting Duncan. On paper, Garnett may have the slight edge: he's close to Duncan's equal as a rebounder, defender, and equally efficient from the floor, but a better playmaker and passer. At his peak, I'm not sure there was another player in NBA history who was as good at everything as KG was. In '03/04 he averaged 24.2 points (.547 TS%), 14.9 boards, 5 assists, 2.2 blocks (v. only 2.5 PFs), and 1.5 steals in 39.4 minutes a night. The next season he may have been even better: slightly fewer points and blocks, but more assists (5.7) and a better TS% (.567). Basically any season you choose from his age 22 to age 31 seasons, he looks impressive. And of course there's the stellar D that the numbers don't fully capture: not just man D, but off-ball and team. When he's on, he's probably the best defender in the NBA, and his intensity at that end seems to infect his teammates. Also: while we stat geeks love to get hung up on rate numbers, it's important to note KG's insane toughness and durability. In the six seasons from age 23 to age 29, he missed 3 games total. 

Still ... as much as love the guy, I've sometimes noticed something missing in him, psychologically. I dunno ... a certain "softness," or lack of a killer instinct? For all his sturm und drang and well-publicized commitment to winning, he too often seems to shy away from the big moment when it comes.  I'm not talking about missing big shots -- all the greats do that. I'm talking about looking frightened to take them. Without Paul Pierce and Ray Allen demanding the rock and nailing shots in key moments of the 07/08 finals (and heck, without the gutsy performances of Posey and Powe in that series) Garnett would still not have his a ring. Part of me thinks he's just too sweet and sensitive a guy to be a true, take-the-whole-team-on-your-back champion at the highest level.

Duncan, by contrast, seems to have more the classic "winner" personality type: not a fiery, emotive killer like Jordan or Montana, but a quiet killer like Mariano Rivera or Roger Staubach, which can be equally deadly. Cool as a cucumber, steady as Gibraltar, almost never rattled. Meanwhile: four rings, three of them as team leader; a force in the post; that lovely mid-range off-glass shot; rarely injured; defensive beast; solid passer (not KG, but not Amare either -- 3.1 dimes per game career); 10-15 rebounds a night like clockwork. Maybe a bit on the boring side, but all-in-all it's gotta be the Dull and Deadly Mr. Duncan. 

Other options: Nowitzki, McHale, DeBusschere, Webber, Randolph, BrokenWing... Feel free to support or elaborate on their candidacies, or to nominate someone I didn't mention. (Obviously I'm not putting Randolph in the poll, 'cos I know if I do he'll beat the competition 1,000 votes to zero).