The greatest trick an NBA franchise ever pulled was convincing its fan base that younger is better. For every sub-.500, Lottery-bound team in the League, there is somebody behind the scenes promoting a youth movement — one of the few kernels of hope available to paying customers being asked to keep buying those season tickets, because better days are sure to come.
Young teams don’t win championships. The question for fans of those young, constantly-rebuilding franchises is this: When is the future going to turn into the present, when these youngsters become seasoned vets?
I noticed something last night while poring through rosters looking for the best 25-and-under backcourt tandems: Most of them are on losing teams.
I started thinking of young backcourts after last night’s Blazers/Wolves game, in which Minnesota’s starting guards Jonny Flynn and Corey Brewer were blanked, combining for zero points and zero assists. The company line in Minnesota is that Flynn and Brewer are part of a youth movement that is the beginning of a return to franchise respectability, but good luck convincing a Wolves fan today that their future is bright.
Looking to confirm my original hypothesis — that the Washington Wizards and Golden State Warriors have the two best young backcourts in the League — the only opposition came from teams like Chicago, OKC, and New Orleans. But when it’s one superstar (e.g., Derrick Rose) and one borderline starter (e.g., Ronnie Brewer) matching up with two legit stars/future stars (e.g., Wizards and Warriors), I’ll take the group with more combined talent.
John Wall (20) and Nick Young (25) are, offensively, as close to the prototypical backcourt as you can get these days. Wall is a distributor at point guard, one of the fastest players in the League with the ball, and a playmaker on defense. Young is a pure scorer at the two, with a deadly mid-range game and reliable three-point shot. They have their flaws, obviously: Defensively, they need work, Young can get to the free-throw line more often, Wall can improve his jumper, and both simply haven’t learned yet how to win consistently or on the road. But as is the hope with every young foundation, hopefully they will mature and the Wizards will reap the benefits before the team is overhauled in another rebuilding effort.
In Golden State, Stephen Curry (22) and Monta Ellis (25) are built differently for a different style. Curry is less of a passer and more of a scoring point guard and pure shooter than Wall. Ellis shares Young’s score-first, score-last, score-everything mentality, but Ellis is more of a driver than a shooter, more explosive than smooth. Ellis can also change a game defensive when he buckles down.
If you were running an NBA team, which backcourt would you choose to build a franchise around?
Best of the rest — Derrick Rose and Ronnie Brewer (Bulls) … Chris Paul and Marcus Thornton (Hornets) … Russell Westbrook and James Harden (Thunder) … Darren Collison and Paul George (Pacers) … Eric Bledsoe and Eric Gordon (Clippers) … Mike Conley and O.J. Mayo (Grizzlies) … Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner (76ers) … Jonny Flynn and Corey Brewer (Timberwolves) … Jerryd Bayless and DeMar DeRozan (Raptors).
