My next question is similar: Could the backup big men in the late 80s to early 90s have started on teams of today?

I believe in terms of skill sets, there is significant evidence to suggest that bench role players in that era could start on teams today.

Who do you ask?

Consider Example 1 A:

John Salley. Salley was goofy. There was nothing graceful about “The Spider” unless you find grace in chaos. He worked hard, banged, and did everything asked of him defensively. Today, that would prove even more valuable in an era dominated by guys like Andrea Bargnani and Brook Lopez, synonymous with a marshmellow, as soft as can be, softer than 3 ply toilet paper.

There are many other big guys that fall into this realm, but Salley is an obvious one. I also feel that the best power forwards of that era would be near the top of the league in scoring today. Buck Williams and Kevin Willis would dominate the likes of Carlos Boozer and Amar’e Stoudemire (two matches statistically, at least).

The 7'2" Donaldson would make a much bigger impact in today's era of 6'9" and 6'10" centers

It would be interesting to see giants like the 7’2″ James Donaldson in today’s NBA

Example 1 B: Gigantic Big Men

True 7-footers, backing up even better big men. James Donaldson, James Edwards, Ed Pickney. There are others to consider, of course. These true 7-footers would be 2 to 3 inches taller than the so called 7-footers in the league today. Donaldson and Edwards were both 7’2″, for instance, and that isn’t even mentioning guys like Mark Eaton, who did start, and was 7’4″ Rik Smits was 7’4″ too. There were bigger players years ago, and with the shelf life of players like Yao Ming being minimal, we’re not likely to continue to see that many. People do, afterall, value the ability to walk, and a 7’6″ 300 pound body does a lot of damage to human feet and ankles. That’s a lot of weight to absorb after every cut and every impact on the floor.

Today’s players would be wise to study Kevin McHale’s legendary footwork

Example 2:  Skills in big men in the 90s aren’t even found in most players today.

The superior footwork of McHale and Hakeem Olajuwon has not been seen since. There is no equivalent to Ewing, to Olajuwon, to David Robinson, to vintage Shaq. Dwight Howard is developing very good footwork, but no other bigs exhibit that. Brook Lopez does have considerable talent but doesn’t seem too sure about how to best go about employing that talent. Pau Gasol is a fading star, but was a bright one for his time, a crafty and coordinated 7 footer, that fit perfectly in the triangle offense.

I don’t consider Andrew Bynum to have great footwork, though he did make a really impressive spin move past Shaq as a rookie (which prompted Shaq to punish him with a hard jam only one player later). He’s very fundamentally sound — he keeps the ball high — but he hasn’t yet picked up on the nuances of how to slip by defenders, simply by using fakes and step arounds/step throughs.

Ewing may average 28-30 points per game in today's league

Patrick Ewing would be even more dominant in today’s NBA

Example 3:  Great Centers Would be Even Greater

Patrick Ewing was a great center, but would be the best in the league today. He’s been attempting to teach Dwight Howard over the last four seasons, but has been unable to transfer the brilliance he exhibited on the court to the young Howard. I have seen Dwight Howard shoot threes, and you would be surprised to see what a thing of beauty it actually is. Howard’s form is exceptional and he hits a good number when playing around before games.

While it may be a while before he ever considers using such in a game, I have to wonder if the propensity to use it and be good at shooting threes at all doesn’t come as a direct result of Ewing’s tutelage.

Hakeem has imparted confidence into Howard, Ewing laid the foundation. Together, the two should have a great impact on the best center of today. It’s just painfully obvious that both mentors were superior to Howard as he is now, at least offensively. Hakeem was even better defensively, while Ewing and Howard may be equivalent in such comparisons.

Well, I have hopefully convinced you of the decline of the center position. The league has changed and perimeter players now dominate the rock. It’s much easier to score 25 a game when you see the ball twice as much as the post players. In the 80s and 90s, teams weren’t afraid to pound it inside.

Now, as I mentioned, soft centers tee up behind the three point line. Such players are a dime a dozen, and not worth a dime. The game has changed, and from a big man fan’s perspective, not for the better. The quality of play at the center position is at an all time low, with many centers having no post game at all, or even no game at all, for that matter.

I long for a time when true 7-footers roam the paint again. Now it seems the giants are dinosaurs, and with Yao Ming departing, there is only one less. Bring back the Centers; we yearn to see the power and banging beneath the basket, in hopes the whistle is blown less as more bodies fall to the floor.

Basketball is a contact sport.

Was Colangelo out of his gourd?

Or could the 2012 team really stack up with what many call the Greatest team ever assembled?

One thing that has changed in recent time is the inclusion of role players.  Tayshaun Prince was on the 2010 National team, and the current team features Tyson Chandler.  While both are excellent defenders, their offensive skill sets pale in comparison to every one of the 92 members, Christian Laettner included…We could speculate all day why Laettner was included on the team instead of the fresh faced LSU underclassman Shaquille O’Neal, but our answers would include the fact that Laettner both graduated and led Duke to a National Title, so maybe speculation there is unnecessary.

The 92 team was not without its head scratchers.  I wrote an article for Bleacher Report in 2010 that racism may have been a deciding factor in choosing an All American white boy like Chris Mullin over the much better and proven Isiah Thomas or even Dominique Wilkins, but we’re again going to stray from the lack of inclusion issues with the 1992 team, because what it did feature was a cast of legends:

David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, Larry Bird, Scottie Pippen, Michael Jordan, Clyde Drexler, Karl Malone, John Stockton, Chris Mullin, Charles Barkley, Magic Johnson (…and Christian Laettner).

Every single member of the 1992 team, with the sole exception of Laettner, is in the Hall of Fame.  All of them are included in the top 50 greatest players of all time.  As for whether the current team will include such a hallmark of resumes when everyone’s careers are completed is a matter of debate.

The 92 team also included the greatest player ever.  Michael Jordan’s excellence has been unequaled, and the closest thing the 12 team has to Jordan is Kobe Bryant.  What I fear is that Jordan could SHUT DOWN Kobe.  Jordan’s defense was equally as impressive as his offense, and even a prime Kobe would have trouble getting his usual array of shots off against a defender like MJ.

The 2012 roster includes: Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, Kobe Bryant, Tyson Chandler, Anthony Davis (The NCAA selection), Kevin Durant, Eric Gordon, Blake Griffin, James Harden, Andre Iguodala, LeBron James, Kevin Love, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, and Deron Williams.

Could any of those players step toe to toe with the guys in 92?  For starters, the lack of Dwight Howard would make neutralizing David Robinson and Patrick Ewing next to impossible.  Had Olajuwon participated, and not been a resident of Nigeria, I would fear for Dwight Howard’s life.  I wrote for Yahoo! that there’s just no way Howard could compare with the players of that era, and facing two of them in one game would give him fits.  It may be irrelevant with Howard not competing, but it needs to be considered, if you really want to even think a team like the 2012 team could match up down low.

Let’s try to look at this from a rational standpoint, comparing players on a per player basis:

92 Centers:  David Robinson & Patrick Ewing

2012 Centers:  Kevin Love & Tyson Chandler & Anthony Davis

Let’s be real:  Love and Chandler would have a lot of problems with Robinson and Ewing; both are far too talented offensively and Robinson has a tremendous speed advantage vs. them, and indeed any center in the modern era.  Robinson’s acumen facing up would give Love all he could handle to say the least, and Chandler would foul out in no time at all.  The 92 team is going to have a serious advantage on the blocks.  Davis would be all but shut down by the two legends.

92 Forwards:  Larry Bird, Scottie Pippen, Chris Mullin, Charles Barkley, Christian Laettner, Karl Malone

2012 Forwards:  Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh, Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin, Andre Iguodala, LeBron James

Think about this:  Bird, Barkley, and Malone are all probably in the top 25 players to have ever played. Pippen may even enter that realm in the eyes of many.

Chris Mullin would function primarily as a spot up shooter in any scenario with such a talented team, but the fact that Dominique Wilkins wasn’t on the team is another debate all for itself.

Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Durant, and Blake Griffin are all dynamic scorers, but Pippen could give any of them headaches, and Griffin wouldn’t get to the rim as easy for rebounds with someone like Karl Malone boxing him out all of the time.  LeBron James is the one trump card here, because I think Pippen could potentially have trouble with The King, but who on the 2012 squad could cover Sir Charles?

Even with six forwards, and very good defenders like James and Iguodala, I have a lot of trouble believing the ’12 squad could do much defensively to slow the Dream Team.

92 Guards:  Michael Jordan, Clyde Drexler, John Stockton, Magic Johnson

2012 Guards:  Kobe Bryant, Eric Gordon, James Harden, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook

Jordan and Magic are almost unarguably two of the five greatest players ever to touch a basketball.  Kobe Bryant is in that realm, but Gordon, Harden, Paul, and Westbrook are nowhere close.  The best we could give any of them is Drexler and Stockton level, and even that is pushing it, to be sure.

Will Chris Paul ever equal Stockton in assists?  It’s possible, and he might get there in steals too, but why wouldn’t we go with what has already been proven?

Harden, Gordon, and Westbrook all have yet to reach their full potential, but I don’t see anyone other than Kobe being able to hold a candle to the guys on the 92 squad, and I don’t mean just Jordan and Magic.

Kobe is better than Stockton and Drexler, but he’s just not paired with the guards to compare these backcourts.

Overall, I think you see the 92 team is just superior in all aspects.  Is the 2012 team very good?  Yes, you bet your butt they are, but they just aren’t proven Hall of Famers, and many of them never will be.  They’ll romp through their competition, and the ultimate measure might not be in box scores anyway, since the competition globally in 1992 was just far weaker.  Teams like Italy, Argentina, Greece, Turkey, Serbia Montenegro, and many others have just amassed a world’s more talent in the last two decades, and the game has become more global.  So, of course the 2012 squad will be unable to replicate the lopsided scores the 92 team did.

But that isn’t proof of any equality.  The teams just don’t stack up, and I don’t believe players are any better today than they were 20 years ago.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure all of the members of the 2012 squad could have flourished then, too, but as I wrote in the Howard article for Yahoo!, I don’t believe all of their dominance would have been quite as pronounced, and for this reason, I have to favor that 1992 team as the greatest team ever assembled in sports, all sports.