Was the NBA Better in the 80's, 90's, or 00's?

• cats gone wild

  For the people who were alive through these decades (or at least most of the 80's-present).
  
  I will go with the 90's.
• sleeper

  

  00's
  
  Lebron James
• namod65

  

  I agree the 00s were the best.
• hoops23

  

  The 00's have been the best. Every team has a legit star player it seems. I've been saying the NBA is entering it's golden age with all this talent.
  
  I feel the 90's were kind of watered down, and I'm not the only one..
• trackandccrunner

  Late 80's-Early 90's were the best.
• Mr. 300

  

  ^^Agreed.
• Skyhook79

  

  80's without a doubt.
• Rotinaj

  

  sleeper wrote: 00's
  
  Lebron James

  This man speaks the truth.
• JakeGiant

  I think the 1980s, then 2000s. Like LTrain, the 90s with expansion, and Europeans learning the NBA game, made the NBA mediocre at best, IMHO.
• cats gone wild

  For the people who chose the 00's, you guys are probably all young pups. The NBA is a not a team sport anymore. They play no defense, everyone stands around instead of running around, its more of a fashion show, and more of a thug league then anything. People seem to be forgetting who played in the 90's. Look at the real Olympic Dream Team roster.
• devil1197

  No defense? Yes, maybe in an 82 game season teams don't bring it on the defensive end. But you can bet your ass come playoff time that these guys are stepping it up on both ends.
  
  There is a great group of young talent that will go down as some of the best and a semi old group that will go out pretty well.
  
  Shaq, Kobe, KG, Duncan etc.
  LeBron, Melo, Wade, Paul, Howard
  
  Not saying their better, but Kobe, LeBron, Wade, Melo are pretty damn good group and three of those guys are still very young.
• sleeper

  

  cats gone wild wrote: For the people who chose the 00's, you guys are probably all young pups. The NBA is a not a team sport anymore. They play no defense, everyone stands around instead of running around, its more of a fashion show, and more of a thug league then anything. People seem to be forgetting who played in the 90's. Look at the real Olympic Dream Team roster.

  LOL
  
  Everything was better back in the day, right old timer?
• Skyhook79

  

  devil1197 wrote: No defense? Yes, maybe in an 82 game season teams don't bring it on the defensive end. But you can bet your ass come playoff time that these guys are stepping it up on both ends.
  
  There is a great group of young talent that will go down as some of the best and a semi old group that will go out pretty well.
  
  Shaq, Kobe, KG, Duncan etc.
  LeBron, Melo, Wade, Paul, Howard
  
  Not saying their better, but Kobe, LeBron, Wade, Melo are pretty damn good group and three of those guys are still very young.

  
  Doesn't come close to Magic,Bird,Jordan,Kareem,DrJ,Wilkins,Moses,Drexler,Isiah,Gervin,Akeem,Karl Malone,Stockton,Reggie Miller,Charles Barkley to name a few........
• wes_mantooth

  

  80's
• Hb31187

  

  Talent wise or what? Talent and ability is leaps and bounds better now then it was in the past
• HiddenGems

  80s in a blowout! I truly do not see much of a debate. Less teams and more true stars. Top tier players coming off benches in the 80s let alone the star studded lineups. Players now get called stars and truly are not.
• Heelz

  

  Mid 80's to the late 90's, Fundementals have gone right out the window and no one cares about defense UNITL the playoffs, but "back in the day" defense was played the whole season. Thats why college bball is watched more. Everyone has to play defense or they will get benched.
• BCSbunk

  Heelz wrote: Mid 80's to the late 90's, Fundementals have gone right out the window and no one cares about defense UNITL the playoffs, but "back in the day" defense was played the whole season. Thats why college bball is watched more. Everyone has to play defense or they will get benched.

  +1
  
  The 80's I quit watching in the 90's it is not even basketball anymore just a shadow of what the game once was.
  
  I am trying to get into college again, but the shot clock is pathetic. I will stick with High school ball where they actually pass and try to set up offense and are not rushed by the shot clock.
• Hb31187

  

  Lol yea yea yea the game is a "shell of what it was" according to the old timers.
  
  But the players now wuold give the players of the 80's the business
• BCSbunk

  Hb31187 wrote: Lol yea yea yea the game is a "shell of what it was" according to the old timers.
  
  But the players now wuold give the players of the 80's the business

  The business of fouling out before halftime? The business of not being able to shoot foul shots? The business of not knowing how to play defense so let the shot clock do it for you?
  
  There would be no business the new players would bring except funny business.
• Hb31187

  

  Lol, fouling out before hafltime? If anything the players form the 80's would foul out in TODAYS game. The pl ayers now cant play hard D like the players in the 80's did because if they get on someone its a foul right away, not their fault.
• Rotinaj

  

  The average player now is head and shoulders above the average player back in the day..That alone makes the game better now..Of course the great players would still be great in todays game but most of the role players wouldnt even make a roster now.
• Footwedge

  1970's was the best brand of ball.
• DaBrowns41

  Never?
• SQ_Crazies

  

  The game is better now than it ever has been, not even an argument. If you're naive enough to think that all sports aren't better now than they were 20-30 years ago then I don't know what to tell you.
  
  The talent level has never been anywhere near where it is right now in the NBA.