Draymond Green and Baron Davis debate whether Giannis Antetokounmpo is the best power forward of his generation. Draymond says Giannis is positionless basketball, not a classic PF like Tim Duncan or Kevin Garnett. Baron counters that modern teams draft and guard him as a 4, making him the era's best at the position.
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Agree or disagree?
Yes, sir.
Let's do it. The first one. Giannis just got his 6th straight All-NBA selection. Fans are debating whether Giannis is the best power forward of this era. Agree or disagree?
Do I get to explain why I agree or disagree?
Agree or disagree? No, no, no. Yeah, of course.
Okay. I'm gonna disagree. And the reason I disagree is this, Giannis has played in an era where it kind of became positionless basketball. And I don't necessarily quite think that Giannis is a power forward and has been throughout this whole becoming of Giannis. And so in saying that, that's why I disagree with that because Giannis is one of the greatest players of this era. And the game was kind of positionless. What made people start calling Giannis a power forward is because you had to start putting power forwards and centers on Giannis. The team that you build around Giannis, because his skillset was so great in driving, or still great driving and getting downhill, is you put a lot of shooting around him. So then when people look at the game, they're like, oh well, Drew Holliday must be this position and Chris Middleton must be this position and that guy must be this position. Brook Lopez is a 5. All right, great. So Giannis is a power 4, right? And that's why I think people start saying that Giannis is a power 4 because Giannis is what his attributes, he's 6'11", 250-some, 60-some pounds, strong as an ox, fast as a gazelle.
Yeah.
Because of those attributes and his downhill prowess, the way teams had to start matching up on Giannis was putting power forwards and centers on him. Because when he was, when you were putting guards on him because he handled the ball so much, they were way too small. And so in turn, I think people start matching up with Giannis, putting bigger guys on him because there was just no way you can guard him at the rim. So, and so then people are like, oh, he's a power forward. But if you look at the great power forwards, Giannis don't play like Tim Duncan. Giannis don't play like Kevin Garnett, right? And so I think people are being lazy and, or, and, or just don't understand what they're looking at when they're like Giannis, like pigeonhole him into the power forward position. I don't think that's accurate. And I, I just don't think that's very accurate. But we had to guard him because of his skill set and how great he is at it with power fours and centers. That gives you the best chance at trying to contain him getting downhill and at the rim. That's what people did. And so I disagree because I think he's just one of the greatest players. And I think it's lazy or lack of knowledge if people's just like, yeah, he's a power four. Yeah. I think you're doing him a disservice in his greatness.
All right, Giannis is the best power forward of this era. I would say I agree. Starting at power forward, Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Yeah, I don't think they say starting at power forward, they say at forward.
Oh, they do say at forward.
Giannis Antetokounmpo.
They don't say power forward.
At forward, Giannis Antetokounmpo.
In the hierarchy of basketball structure, if you picking a team, team, usually you'll pick Giannis to be a 4.
But, but here's the thing though, BD, because of the way he plays, under no circumstance is anyone ever gonna say Giannis is a better power forward than Tim Duncan.
You just not gonna say that. No, no, we not comparing him to Tim Duncan. We saying in this era of his era, like the 10 years that he been rocking, like the last 10 years.
But again, but if he's a power forward in his era, then that also puts him in the power 4, in the power 4 of all time era. And I just don't think people ever give him a fair shot at passing Kevin Garnett, at passing Tim Duncan, because you're not gonna see him with that same eye.
He passed Kevin Garnett.
He passed Kevin Garnett as an overall player, but nobody's ever gonna just be like, as a power forward, look at what he feel like. I just don't think people gonna give him that due. I just don't believe that. Like, you, you've never mentioned Giannis Antetokounmpo. And Karl Malone in the same sentence. You never done it. That's my point. Like, he's never gonna be mentioned with the great power forwards. Yes, he is. When you're having that conversation because it don't even fit. He's so much, like, what he does is so much different than those guys that you've never heard Giannis be mentioned with Charles Barkley. You've never once heard anybody say it. That's what I'm saying. So you're not gonna get anybody that's gonna be like, yeah, he's better than Barkley, he's better than these guys because it don't even register that like, look at how this dude play, that he's the same as them. That's not a thing. And so I just disagree with it.
But I would just say he's a one of one at his position, right? 'Cause if you look at somebody like Dirk Nowitzki, he's a power forward. He's not the traditional power forward, but he is—
He's not, but we mention him when we talk of power forwards because he played on the block against those power forwards. He wasn't dribbling the ball up the court going coast to coast. He wasn't like, he wasn't doing that stuff. The only thing Dirk did different than most power forwards is shoot the ball.
Yeah, Giannis has more—
You know, he get to his spot.
Yeah.
But like Giannis just do something different.
He's a hybrid forward, I would say. But power forward.
Forward, Giannis, Antetokounmpo. He gonna have to guard somebody.
Somebody, and somebody gonna have to guard him. And if you saying power forwards and centers guard him, then I gotta say he's a power forward.
Yeah, but then, so, so what about the night where the coach gets smart and they put a smaller guy on him like Alex Caruso? Then, then, so now he got being guarded by Caruso, then what?
That happens.
Then what?
That happens.
Now the power forward ain't guarding him no more. So, so because it's all about, you know, makeup of the opposing team's team. So then now We have a team that feels it's better suited if we put Alex Caruso on Joker. Does that make him now a power forward still? Because Alex Caruso ain't no power forward.
It's matchup. It is a matchup.
But, but that's what I'm saying though. But he's kind of been holding—
I don't think Marcus can be, dude. Does that make him a power forward?
Let me ask you. Well, you just said he'd get guarded by power forwards, so that make him a power forward. I think people has done that.
Yeah, people have to put power forwards and centers on him, which to me—
Yeah, but that don't make him a power forward and center because that's the only— yeah, I disagree.
He's a big man.
LeBron James came into the league as a point guard.
Uh, no, kinda.
These are facts. LeBron James came into the league as a point guard.
Kinda.
And because of then, you saw—
Giannis came into the— they played Giannis at point guard when he first, when Jason Kidd took over.
Absolutely. I agree they did. Just like Ben Simmons came into the league as a point guard.
So let's make him a point guard.
So then you put, you put what fits.
Let's make him a point guard.
You put what fits in, right? Like James Harden came into the league as a two guard. People still mention James Harden with Dwyane Wade. Nobody be mentioning him with Steph Curry and Chris Paul.
Yeah, they do.
These things don't make sense. They have to. No way.
He's a point guard.
No way do people mention James with this. All right, BD.
He's a point guard, is he not? Or he's a hybrid guard.
That's what I'm saying, he a guard. Like, I don't know, man. I just, again, you see what his skill sets are.
We're arguing over how many roses we're giving Giannis at this point. So we agree and disagree, but we both agree that he's a one of one.
Oh, 1000%. That's why I don't think pulling him into the Power 4 conversation, I think is a disservice to him.
Yeah.
Just my opinion.
All right. We'll do our fantasy, all-time fantasy draft and see if you draft Giannis, where would you draft him?
