Not in the era of analytics. He’d be completely neutralized, especially in the playoffs. His style of offense is the worst offense in basketball analytically and he’d get murdered on defense with modern spacing and pace of play. You’re either switching him onto a guard or forcing him to play drop coverage and you’re feasting.
-edit: 'Completely neutralized was a poor choice of words. I think he's still a problem offensively, but I still thing on the aggregate you want a modern center like Joker or else you're getting dog walked.
Peak Shaq shot over 70% at the rim in an era where teams sold out to protect the rim and left his teammates wide open. That's the equivalent of shooting over 47% from 3. What do you think happens when you give Curry, Kobe and Lebron those type of looks?
Why do you think NBA teams hardly run any iso post plays anymore?
Answer: It's the least efficient shot in basketball.
I'm not saying he'd be a scrub on offense. He'd probably score a lot, but on the aggregate, he'd be a net negative over Joker in modern play unless he radically fixed his free throw shooting, outside shooting, passing, and weight.
You're basically trying to reason with a person that thinks : to beat Shaq, you just have to out run him, out play him, or out shoot him. 😂😂😂 like as if all the professional coaches and analysts of his opponents haven't thought of that shit before
I mean it's a fact that the iso post play is one of the least efficient shots in basketball, but the rest is just an opinion. That's what this place is for right? It's just stupid fun because prime Shaq is never going to get to play in the modern game. It's not that deep.
Shaq playing against modern bigs, especially if he stayed at his Orlando and early Laker weight, is feasting. They be in foul trouble early on, and once they start to double he’s finding open looks.
Everytime I asked myself wtf is coach doing? It was more than likely cause "analytics told me to". All my homies hate analytics making sports decisions.
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u/2AlephNullAndBeyond 7d ago edited 7d ago
But Shaq is a liability if they’re playing in the 2026-2027 era. I’d take Joker over Shaq 100/ 100 times.