The Best Backcourt of the Last 20 Years
Bibby and Peja in ‘03-04Though we determined that Reggie Miller is the greatest three-point shooter of our generation, we’re not going to explore the greatest in the rest of American culture over this time frame, as it’s slightly outside of our lens. So instead of debating who is the greatest actor (sorry Sam Jackson, but it’s Bruce Willis), the greatest group of musicians (Iron Maiden), or even the greatest defender in the NFL (the Minister of Defense Reggie White, R.I.P.), we’re sticking to hoops.
But we do have a great question thanks to some of your suggestions - we’ve put together an insanely competitive 18-entry playoff to determine who was the Best Backcourt of the Last 20 Years. But before unveiling the field, we’re hitting you with two play-in games to determine who earns the two eight-seeds and the right to face some mean competition.
The rules are different this time around. We’re taking a snapshot of each backcourt, evaluating them based upon the player that they were that season. Though it’s not a two-on-two competition, it’s important to look at these duo’s as pairs. How good were both guys that year? Within the context of a team game, how dominant were they? Stats are definitely a huge way to prove that they put everyone who stepped in front of them in the blender - but a compelling argument weighs more than numbers.
Stay tuned, as we’ll break out the full bracket after tallying your votes in the comments section later today…
Oscar Robertson Bracket
’03-04 Sacramento Kings - Lost Western Conference semifinals to Minnesota
Mike Bibby – 18.4 ppg, 1506 pts, 45.0% FG, 148 3PM, 39.2% 3FG, 3.4 rpg, 5.4 apg, 1.4 spg
Peja Stojakovic – 24.2 ppg, 1964 pts, 48.0% FG, 240 3PM, 43.3% 3FG, 6.3 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.3 spg
vs.
’00-01 Milwaukee Bucks - Lost Eastern Conference finals to Philadelphia
Sam Cassell – 18.2 ppg, 1381 pts, 47.4% FG, 30 3PM, 30.6% 3FG, 3.8 rpg, 7.6 apg, 1.2 spg
Ray Allen – 22.0 ppg, 1806 pts, 48.0% FG, 202 3PM, 43.3% 3FG, 5.2 rpg, 4.6 apg, 1.5 spg
Bob Cousy Bracket
’92-93 New Jersey Nets - Lost Eastern Conference first round to Cleveland
Kenny Anderson – 16.9 ppg, 927 pts, 43.5% FG, 7 3PM, 28% 3FG, 4.1 rpg, 8.2 apg
Drazen Petrovic – 22.3 ppg, 1564 pts, 51.8% FG, 75 3PM, 44.9% 3FG, 2.7 rpg, 3.5 apg
vs.
’04-05 Washington Wizards - Lost Eastern Conference semifinals to Miami
Gilbert Arenas – 25.5 ppg, 2038 pts, 43.1% FG, 205 3PM, 36.5% 3FG, 4.7 rpg, 5.1 apg, 1.7 spg
Larry Hughes – 22.0 ppg, 1345 pts, 43.0% FG, 59 3PM, 28.2% 3FG, 6.3 rpg, 4.7 apg, 2.9 spg
September 11th, 2008 at 11:52 am
jimmy says:
sam cassell & ray allen
- based on the actual year… ‘03 & ‘04 bibby and peja played so well b/c of vlade/cwebb
- i’d have to go with cassell & allen, off of gut feeling (cassell’s a primetime winner)
- cassell vs. bibby = mouse in the house… bibby though, was ON fire in ‘03-’04
gilbert arenas & larry hughes
- by a slight margin
- i have the most undue respect for drazen and kenny, but none of them would be able to D up Arenas… and Hughes would have fits guarding Petrovic
September 11th, 2008 at 11:54 am
jimmy says:
the above is based on 2 on 2 circumstances…
in a team format, the first one would be a toss-up
the 2nd one is a no-brainer… kenny & drazen for sure!
September 11th, 2008 at 11:57 am
Sam I Am says:
Mike Bibby & Peja
Gilbert & Larry Hughes
September 11th, 2008 at 11:58 am
S.K says:
It was Bibby and Christie in 03-04 not Peja.
Peja is a SF.
September 11th, 2008 at 12:05 pm
Pretty Smitty says:
Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars blow any these combo’c out tof the water. Forget about it.
September 11th, 2008 at 12:08 pm
T Dubbs says:
Cassell/Allen - Cassell could posted up Bibby all day back then. Peja defending Ray Allen… jokes.
Gilbert/Hughes - Petrovic would give Hughes mad buckets, but Arenas would still pull it out.
September 11th, 2008 at 12:14 pm
Sam I Am says:
Pretty Smitty…
No one was bringing up the bama Piston days OK
lol Back to the Future writin bama
September 11th, 2008 at 12:15 pm
kg fan says:
sam ray
gil larry
September 11th, 2008 at 12:18 pm
rangerjohn (R.I.P. EVAN TANNER) says:
come on guys where is the tony parker manu combo? i would put those 2 up against just about any of the ones named. i mean gilbert and hughes over parker manu?
those 2 would eat people up, none of the ones named could come close to matching spead wise anyways.
September 11th, 2008 at 12:21 pm
d says:
I’m gonna have to agree with S.K. on that observation. Stat-wise, Bibby and Peja would take Ray and Sam out. Bibby and Sam pretty much negate each other, although Bibby WAS on fire and was able to go off almost at-will. In that year Peja cleaned up the boards well, and although he’s not the best defender, he locks down Ray on the outside because of his height. I’m pretty sure it was that year that Peja’s name was being thrown into the MVP candidacy list. But I’m pretty sure that Peja was a SF at the time and it should have been Christie on this list.
Kenny Anderson and Drazen for sure win the matchup. Gil can’t defend and Gil would just be gunning. Could Larry Hughes even stay healthy through this matchup? Regardless, it’s really like having two SGs in Larry and Gil and their skill sets don’t seem to vary much from one another from what I can remember when they played together.
September 11th, 2008 at 12:21 pm
ugly_fish says:
Ray Ray and Sam I Am
and
Gilbertology and Larry
September 11th, 2008 at 12:24 pm
aj says:
Mike & Peja
Kenny and Drazen
September 11th, 2008 at 12:26 pm
jimmhumm says:
Kobe and Glove 2004???
Magic cooper? in the 80’s
Isiah and Dumars ???
Even Snow and Iverson 2001?
As far as this list goes Allen-Cassel 2001 where one shiesty call away from getting killed by KB8 and Shaq
September 11th, 2008 at 12:29 pm
junior says:
01 bucks
93 nets
September 11th, 2008 at 12:31 pm
Sam I Am says:
Ranger John
They said that they were going to do different combos.
Let them work up to better match ups
September 11th, 2008 at 12:33 pm
KingBruin says:
Bibby/Peja, Although the comment about Peja being a SF is true…
Kenny/Drazen
And everyone, STOP bringing up other people. This is for the last two EIGHT SEEDS… There are going to be FOURTEEN other pairs supposedly better than these four.
September 11th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
justice says:
Sam and Ray Ray, ray has a better chance of stoping peja than peja would ever have at stopping ray..and sam would beat bibby up in every area, bibby is too soft to compete with sam…
Kenny and Drazen, win the 2nd in a close one, no one would be able to guard each other it would be crazy,but i just give the nod to the team with kenny he was a monster
September 11th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
it aint easy being green says:
bibby
peja (though i thought it was christy as well, not peja)
agent 0
larry
September 11th, 2008 at 12:40 pm
the haters POV says:
Sam and Ray
Kenny and Drazen
I have spoken!!!
September 11th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
smity far away says:
by default- Ray and Sam
by non default- kenny and drazen
September 11th, 2008 at 12:52 pm
me says:
sam and ray- they’d win anyway, but i didn’t really think about it since the other team wasn’t a backcourt so their ineligible. and bibby/christie would lose to sam and ray. and anyone that says ray is gonna be stopped by peja is smokin something- i thought ray was the most complete player offensively back then (this side of mj at least). ray would kill peja. And the bucks would have been the toughest test for the lakers out of all the east teams, cuz they could space the floor and minimize shaq’s defense. They still woulda lost in 5, but i’m sayin…..
can’t remember much about drazen, but I do remember neither were known as lock down defenders. the gil/hughes combo has a great defender (at the time) and a great scorer, not to mention a slasher in hughes. Whoever kenny is guarding would get most of the points. so i’m goin with gil/hughes.
September 11th, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Dime Magazine says:
As KingBruin said, these are two PLAY-IN games to determine who gets the eight seed in the Oscar Robertson bracket and in the Bob Cousy bracket.
Virtually every other duo that’s been kicked around will be among the other fourteen backcourt pairs in the tourney.
Right now, we’re just debating whether Bibby/Peja would top Sam/Ray and whether KA/Drazen would top Gil/Larry Hughes…
-AK
September 11th, 2008 at 12:57 pm
wowzers says:
bucks pair and wizards pair
September 11th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
Amar says:
is this just on stats? if it’s about BBALL IQ and shooting fundamentals hard to go wrong with Stockton/Hornacek back in 1998 . . . unlike all of those combos you listed, they actually got to the NBA finals.
September 11th, 2008 at 12:59 pm
Amar says:
okay, I just read the intro blurb, going with the bucks and wiz.
sorry homers, kenny anderson wasn’t that special, eventhough he gets all this BS homer points for being a NYC PG.
September 11th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
Kanobi says:
Cassel and Allen.
I don’t think that we remember the damage that this back court did to teams throughout that season. Sure, Bibby was great that year, but he only played well because Divac and CWebb ran screens, especially Divac with the moving screens, all game. Also, Peja was the 3 on that team.
Anderson and Petrovic here.
These two were unbelievable in the early 90’s. Hughes was a great defender and would have made the all star team if he didn’t get injured, but Petrovic could straight up shoot. Hughes would struggle. And we all know that Agent 0 CANNOT play any defense, all he wants to do is out gun the other teams best player and this will allow Anderson to dribble, with that sick handle, circles around him and find is back court mate, when Hughes slides over for help, for buckets all day.
September 11th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
JA says:
1. RayRay and Sammy the Hammy
2. Kenny and Drazen (Gilbert and LH both shoot 43%)
September 11th, 2008 at 1:22 pm
justice says:
@amar
kenny anderson wasn’t that special? I get what ur trying to say but that’s a bit much..Ask bobby hurley..he was a solid pg in the league and a hall of fame player in the street hs/college..if he were in the league today he would definetly be in the top 5 pg’s…
what do you guys think?
September 11th, 2008 at 1:25 pm
kobe says:
gilbert is the best player n the second match up. he can fill it up. and larry hughes lead the league in steals that year. goin wit ray an cassell and gilbert and larry. new skoo.
September 11th, 2008 at 1:27 pm
Goonther says:
have to go with:
sam and ray - since it was bibby and christie that year as stated above (and christie only gets love cause of his hot a$$ wife)
kenny and drazen - petrovic doesnt get much love since he wasnt around for so long but was nasty from what i can remember … and kenny is so famous cats are pretending to be him to rob people …heh
September 11th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
ERIC says:
ET/JESUS
&
REAL Kenny Anderson/Drazen
September 11th, 2008 at 1:33 pm
GarethChantler says:
bruce willis?
September 11th, 2008 at 1:34 pm
Joe says:
Wasn’t Dough Christie the SG for the Kings then?
September 11th, 2008 at 1:34 pm
DJ Go Go Gomez says:
Bibby/Christie
Anderson/Petrovic
September 11th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
MoxWestCoastRep says:
Bibby and Peja
Zero and LH
September 11th, 2008 at 1:38 pm
Jim says:
Bibby and Peja, with the caveat that a soft 3 is still a forward. Good matchup though, with Allen and Peja both in MVP mix back then.
Kenny Anderson/Drazen–this is the darkhorse of the tourney, they could take some people out.
And these other things are jokes right, excepting Reggie White?
September 11th, 2008 at 1:39 pm
Abe504 says:
man this matchup just reminded me how good gilbert and larry were together that year. larry was such a dumbass to bounce to cleveland, look at his career now…..
September 11th, 2008 at 1:46 pm
biggeddy says:
I really hope you guys included Magic and byron Scott in the main bracket. MJ and Kobe have the issue that while their backcourt mates were solid role players, they weren’t good enough to be included (Maybe MJ and Harper). I’m a Laker fan, but I might have to give Isaiah and Dumars the early edge…
September 11th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
isotope says:
based on Peja’s disquallification then i’ll have to go with Cassel and Allen.
The 2nd is tough. Larry and GA were good but not “all time” good. But they did put up some good numbers. But i still have to go with Kenny and Drazen.
September 11th, 2008 at 1:55 pm
Sam I Am says:
GO ME!!!!
My name is Sam I Am
September 11th, 2008 at 1:55 pm
Sam I Am says:
Like legally I had my name changed to Sam I. Am
September 11th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
dcom says:
I go with nets in ‘93 and kings in 01 cuz i think mrs. christie cud kick the shit out of cassel
September 11th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
FatAlbert (PtGuard) says:
1-Tony Parker/Manu Ginobili, Spurs
2-Richard Hamilton/Chauncey Billups, Pistons
3-Baron Davis/Jason Richardson, Warriors
4-Gilbert Arenas/Larry Hughes, Wizards
September 11th, 2008 at 2:16 pm
FatAlbert (PtGuard) says:
Jason Kidd/Vince “halfman/halfamazing” Carter, Nets
September 11th, 2008 at 2:18 pm
lee says:
Didn’t Issah and Dumas win championships in 89 and 90 - only 19 years ago ???
September 11th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
David Brandon says:
first of all, BRUCE. WILLIS. ??? what? i need someone to explain that one at some point…i guess denzel just fell off the face of the earth.
ok you guys all know i’m a kings fan, but i’m a bigger hoop fan. that being said, if peja is a small forward, he can’t qualify as backcourt. when ppl say backcourt, you think of rip/chancey, monta/boom, sam/ray, roy/bayless…you get the point. peja doesnt count. simple. and if he was a two guard, he STILL wouldnt get my vote b/c his ass comes with more choke warning than those little toys from mcdonalds.
September 11th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
MC3 says:
Oscar Robertson Bracket
Ray and Sam
Bob Cousy Bracket
Agent Zero and Hughes
September 11th, 2008 at 2:25 pm
isotope says:
does it have to be 2 starting guards? What about starting and backup? Like Kenny Smith and Sam Cassel? or Tony Parker and Manu?
September 11th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
George W Kush Sr says:
Sam n Ray, there was no stopping Sam that year.
Zero n Larry, that was Larry’s contract year, he played like a beast that year.
September 11th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
Brown says:
Cassel & Allen (clutch shooting)
Arenas & Hughes (I’ll take defense over offense, even with the horrible 3-point percentages).
September 11th, 2008 at 2:48 pm
Ian says:
easy
sacramento
peja was a beast back then and i still hes a better shooter than allen. bibby could push cassell around
and
nets
drazen would bust up hughes
September 11th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Ian says:
but then again
its not supposed to be peja so if its doug its ray allen and cassell
and bruce willis best actor LOL please the best actor is mr gump.
September 11th, 2008 at 2:53 pm
George W Kush Sr says:
And seriously, if Peja can be in the backcourt then this discussion is over.
Pippen and Jordan. Pippen being a 3 just like Peja, Pippen complimented Jordan perfectly, and Jordan is Jordan.
So i just save you guys a whole bunch of time.
September 11th, 2008 at 3:02 pm
Dutch says:
@ SK
If they went with using Peja (a SF), why is Jordan and Pippen not included?
Also, where is Zeke and Joe Dumars?
September 11th, 2008 at 3:06 pm
MBE18 says:
Ray-Sam, Gilbert-Larry
September 11th, 2008 at 3:07 pm
jackass says:
yep the discussion is over, pip and goat will beat the living shit out of everyone else on the planet. and you can argue that pip as a pg cause he brought the ball up the court just as much as harper did.
September 11th, 2008 at 3:16 pm
Andrew Katz says:
We thought about keeping the Peja/Bibby duo out of the tourney because Christie matches up against the opposition’s two on defense. However, on offense their roles were largely flipped - with Christie running the baseline and playing the role normally reserved for a three while Peja obviously was the three-point shooting threat.
The organization of the Kings’ attack in ‘03-04 is far different from the Bulls championship runs. Pippen is a three in the truest sense of the position. Peja was an oversized two on offense and Christie was an undersized three.
September 11th, 2008 at 3:39 pm
soitslikethat says:
Bibby/Peja
Kenny/Drazen
September 11th, 2008 at 3:44 pm
SwedishMooze says:
Mike and Peja
Gil and Larry (CONTRACT YEAR!)
September 11th, 2008 at 4:01 pm
GEE...#$%%!#$! says:
sam and ray
Kenny and Drazen
September 11th, 2008 at 4:02 pm
isotope says:
If u stick with keeping Peja then i’m changing my vote to them.
What about ranking the current backcourts in the league. How would u rank them?
September 11th, 2008 at 4:07 pm
sans says:
kenny and drazen (wasn’t Doug Christie Bibby’s backcourt partner? Peja always stuck to the wing)
sammy and rayray
September 11th, 2008 at 4:26 pm
BALLZ says:
mike and chris whitney, wizards, 2001…lol
September 11th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
weezy f says:
all of them are losers tho? nobody won in any of those seasons
September 11th, 2008 at 4:43 pm
Stilts says:
Bibby & Peja.
Kenny & Drazen. Never saw them play, but Arenas and Hughes were and remain crap.
September 11th, 2008 at 4:44 pm
Samaki Walker says:
First of all, the Kings backcourt was Bibby/Christie, Peja has always played SF.
Second of all, check out Billups/Rip sweetness in 05/06
Chauncey:
18.5 ppg, 1495 pts, 41.8% FG, 184 3PM, 43.4% 3FG, 3.1 rpg, 8.6 apg, 0.9 spg
Rip:
20.1 ppg, 1609 pts, 49.1% FG, 55 3PM, 45.8% 3FG, 3.2 rpg, 3.4 apg, 0.6 spg
September 11th, 2008 at 4:59 pm
J says:
ray and sam, cause sam is championship experienced, so is ray, and ray is just a flat out better shooter and athlete than peja
larry hughes is garbage and his gambling would kill his team, plus drazen has god on his side, so drazen and kenny would win
September 11th, 2008 at 5:10 pm
isotope says:
LOL @ people not reading befor posting comments that make them look like idiots.
1. The Peja thing has already been explained!
2. This is just a play-in into the tournament. There will be more backcourts once the tournament is revealed.
sigh
September 11th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
nick says:
if we using sf’s in the case then VC and tmac would give ppl the business. however jordan and pippen still would win hands down vs anyone because of the their offense and defense.
September 11th, 2008 at 6:17 pm
The saint says:
gilbert and larry…..cuz gil iz my cousin in law
September 11th, 2008 at 6:46 pm
ctkennedy says:
bibby and peja cause bibby was the closer on that team even though they had one of the most talented players u will ever see in webber and was ray really more valuable than big dog
arenas and hughes cause arenas is a walkin 40 on ANYBODY
September 11th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
dagwaller says:
bucks and wizards
September 11th, 2008 at 7:57 pm
S-SiN says:
Bibby-Peja
Kenny-Drazen
September 11th, 2008 at 8:10 pm
chiaki says:
Jesus and ET
Kenny and Petro
September 11th, 2008 at 8:26 pm
kennypayne says:
dont forget
tim hardaway- mitch richmond
micheal jordan and john paxson (yeah i said it!)
john starks derek harper
September 11th, 2008 at 8:48 pm
D-NICE says:
Jesus and Sam I Am
Arenas and Hughes
September 11th, 2008 at 9:34 pm
Cammy Z says:
Sam and Ray.
None of the other duos have two legit stars.
September 11th, 2008 at 11:14 pm
HugotheHornet says:
Sam I am and Ray and Drazen and Kenny
September 12th, 2008 at 12:36 am
heartbreaker85 says:
yo dime i think you fucked up, peja played the SF during his kings days. it was doug christie who started at the 2 spot for rick adelman (alternating with bo-jax).
September 12th, 2008 at 12:42 am
heartbreaker85 says:
okay just read it, if we’re going with ‘how they play on court’ rather than the positions, then my vote goes to
lebron - plays pg
hughes/west - sg
who’s going to argue against a possible finals between two of these three backcourts?
billups/hamilton, dumars/thomas/johnson, jesus, sam i am
September 12th, 2008 at 12:58 am
Willis says:
yeah Peja was a 3 anyway so It would be Allen and Sam-I-Am vs Bibbylicious and DC13, and we all know who wins that hands down. Maybe Mike Bibby and Kevin Martin is a better match up. Mike is better than Sam, but Ray blows away anybody.
September 12th, 2008 at 1:36 am
bill says:
dime when you unleash the brackets for the real tournament can you hit us with games played too, cos I look at some of those combos and im wondering how many games those stats were actually put up over
September 12th, 2008 at 3:08 am
Amar says:
i’m sorry, kenny anderson is a very special player, the type of player who has the NYC cred that somehow means we should look past his shooting 38 fg% for the season.
September 12th, 2008 at 5:02 am
SparkyJay23 says:
ET and Jesus
Kenny and Drazen
September 12th, 2008 at 5:53 am
karan says:
ray ray and ET
hibachi and hughes
btw? iron maiden? wtf? go listen to rage against the machine or nirvana or even korn
September 12th, 2008 at 10:06 am
tobacher says:
ray and sam
kenny and drazen, the legend
September 12th, 2008 at 10:27 am
Richard from Cleveland says:
I think Sam & ray
And gilly & larry that when larry way pretty good
September 12th, 2008 at 11:25 am
Smooth says:
Oscar Robertson Bracket
Mike Bibby
Peja Stojakovic
Bob Cousy Bracket
Kenny Anderson
Drazen Petrovic
September 12th, 2008 at 6:42 pm
Nyeme says:
First off it was Bibby & Christie, Predrag was the 3.
Sam & Jesus….no brainer. All Bibby did was come off of curls and pop. He couldn’t create his own shot like that.
I’ll go with Kenny & Drazen
September 12th, 2008 at 9:15 pm
Homeless J says:
Bruce Fucking Willis?
Did Sir Laurence Olivier posthumously change his name to Bruce Willis?
I love Bruce and Sam Jack as much as the next guy but they can’t hold a candle to guys like Olivier (watch Hitchcock’s Rebecca or the equally awesome Wuthering Heights) or James Stewart.
Thank god you guys write about basketball and not movies.