Paul Pierce top 5 toughest players to guard.

[timobusa]

http://www.theplayerstribune.com/paul-pierce-five-toughest-players-ive-ever-guarded/

Kobe wants to destroy his opponent every night, and his desire to do so is second only to Jordan. I never had to play against Michael when he was with the Bulls, so Kobe is the closest I’ve come to facing that type of determination in my career.

One of the toughest games I remember playing against Kobe happened in Boston. I think he made seven or eight shots in a row on me. So we come into the huddle during a timeout and Coach is looking at me with a face that I knew meant he wanted me to switch off of Kobe. And the rest of the guys on the team could see what was happening and they were looking at me too. Finally they bring up that maybe we should switch and put a different guy on him, and I yelled, “Hell no! I’m going to guard him! I got this!”

He ended up missing the last nine shots of that game with me on him, and we won. But the stat sheet is still vivid in my mind. Kobe took 47 shots. Forty-seven. No one has ever taken 47 shots on me. Most games a team will get up 81 to 89 shots.

Tracy is a point guard in a small forward’s body. He’s 6-9, has long arms and can jump out of the gym, so every time he went up to shoot there was no point even trying to block it.

Attempting to stop him always came down to how could you bother him. With some guys you can bother their shot by playing them really tight. But every time Tracy elevated to shoot, he got so high up that you were pretty much at his will. With those type of guys, you really just have to hope they miss.

Nobody wants to be on a Vince Carter highlight. In his prime, you knew he was going to get four or five highlights every game. And I’d always be thinking about that before we played against him. My mission would always be not to make the Vince Carter highlight reel, so before the game even started, he was already in my head.

From a defensive standpoint, he put you in such a tight spot. He’s hell to guard out on the perimeter because of the elevation on his shot. But you were so afraid of him blowing by you and throwing down a dunk that would be all over SportsCenter that you would allow him space to shoot. Then he would get hot from three-point range and at that point … what do you do?

And at his size, he’s still hands down the most athletic and fastest player in the league. Who ever heard of a guy that’s 6-8, 260 lbs being faster than everybody else in the NBA — and stronger?

Like a lot of top players, you just have to hope LeBron isn’t feeling it the night you face him. Once he takes his first step off the dribble, if he gets to the side of you, there’s no staying in front of him. He’s just too strong when he gets his shoulder into your chest. And he’s also one of the best finishers with his left and right hand that this league has ever seen.

And when he’s not physically dominating his opponents, he can also pick your team apart with his passing.

If I had to single one guy out who is the most difficult player to guard in the league, it would have to be Carmelo. He’s a unique blend of being big, strong, and athletic while also having a world-class shooting touch and a natural ability to get to the rim. That’s what sets him apart — every facet of his game is elite.

Some great players will have one or two particular skills that make them special. But Carmelo can do everything, which puts you in a baaad situation as a defender. A lot of guys might shoot better from certain areas, so you try to force them elsewhere on the floor. Carmelo doesn’t have a spot on the floor where he can’t consistently hit shots.

[D.o.s.]

Sounds about right.

[Clench123]

Very interesting.  Yet Celtic fans don't want Melo. Smh.

[pearljammer10]

Sounds about right.

Agreed.

[Roy H.]

I'm surprised that there was no Durant, but I guess Paul was focusing on the guys he spent most of his career defending.

[manl_lui]

still sucks to see McGrady go out like that

[Fafnir]

Only 3 players have taken 47 shots in a game since 85-86, each only one time.

Kobe against Boston in 2002, MJ against Orlando in 1993, and Webber against Indiana in 2001.

[Quetzalcoatl]

I love that Pierce remembers specific stats from over a decade ago against him and uses it to motivate himself.  Not just the 47 shots, but the number of shots an opponent made against him before and after a regular season pep talk.  What a gamer, I love that man

[kozlodoev]

I was sitting in my basement with my friends playing dominos and I looked up at a TV and saw what was happening and said, “Hold on, we gotta watch this!” I couldn’t believe my eyes.

Really now...

[timobusa]

I was sitting in my basement with my friends playing dominos and I looked up at a TV and saw what was happening and said, “Hold on, we gotta watch this!” I couldn’t believe my eyes.

Really now...

Are you implying that Paul Pierce doesn't know how to play dominos?
LOL

[kozlodoev]

I was sitting in my basement with my friends playing dominos and I looked up at a TV and saw what was happening and said, “Hold on, we gotta watch this!” I couldn’t believe my eyes.

Really now...

Are you implying that Paul Pierce doesn't know how to play dominos?
LOL

That's exactly what I'm doing when I'm hanging out with friends in my basement, playing dominos. 

[pearljammer10]

still sucks to see McGrady go out like that

I think he would have been up there as an all time great. In his healthy years, the numbers he put up were absolutely silly. I always enjoyed him and I wish he ended up having more success....Especially in the playoffs.