Centers are a dying breed. But, today we show them some love. Here are our Top Five Centers in the Western Conference rankings.
The center position in the NBA has seen a dramatic shift since the 90s. The evolution of the game has essentially washed away the position. Centers were once cornerstones of franchises who could single handily lift their team into playoff contention. Nowadays, centers, such as Demarcus Cousins, can’t push their team to an 8th seed.
When evaluating who’s the best at this position difficulty lies in what factors to consider. This is one of the only position where I’ve had to disregard winning to a certain extent.
Other difficulties include separating centers from fowards. The NBA All-Star game has gotten rid of this separation all together. It does mirror today’s NBA more to just list big men as forwards. But, the are still a few traditional centers left who make their living playing in the post.
For these rankings, I basically considered the biggest/tallest player on the court who plays in the post primarily to be considered a center. They must, however, have started multiple games at that position.
No Small fowards playing center in small ball line ups are included.
Next: 5. L.A.'s Defensive Heart