Would you say Aldridge is currently an NBA superstar?...from what I've seen these last two games, if he isnt he will be very soon! Reminds me of Stoudamire before the knee issues.

22 and 9 is very good, but not sure that is super star territory. He has been making steady increases in his game every year.

He was an emerging star (and arguably, a second banana) when Roy went down. He has now taken over that team. Point being, if he is not already an NBA superstar, he will be in short order. He has just about every skill required to be a dominate force in Portland.

He's a third (maybe fourth) tier superstar.

First: Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Dwight Howard, Shaquille O'Neal, Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Chris Paul, Dirk Nowitzki, Steve Nash

Second: Derrick Rose (will be first tier after this season), Kevin Durant, Deron Williams, Carmelo Anthony, Blake Griffin (yes), Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, Chris Bosh, Pau Gasol, Amare Stoudemire

Third: Tony Parker, Russell Westbrook, Rajon Rondo, LaMarcus Aldridge, Joe Johnson, Chauncey Billups, Brandon Roy, Rudy Gay, Zach Randolph, Al Jefferson, Carlos Boozer, Manu Ginobli

Fourth: Kevin Love, Eric Gordon, Lamar Odom, Kevin Martin, Al Horford, Joakim Noah, Baron Davis, Antawn Jamison, Vince Carter, Gilbert Arenas, John Wall, Brandon Jennings, Andrew Bogut, Monta Ellis, Gerald Wallace, Andre Igoudala, David West, Brook Lopez, Luis Scola

I think he could be the best PF in a year or two. I think he gets overlooked because he plays in Portland.

He will never be an elite star because he is WAY too soft.

Until he takes pride in himself and starts really banging down low, he is going to be second tier.

I had to double check the timestamp, but Shaq and Duncan are first tier stars in the league... today? Ok then...

Tim Duncan is NOT a superstar at all. his numbers and popularity do not support that. his jersey isn't even in the top 15 in sales, and....well, his numbers are bested by tons of people in "tiers" below him

Taking account full body of work. Any time you can carry or have carried a team to multiple championships, you're an NBA superstar.

Now if we were doing tier system for best players in the NBA, it would be different. I guess the OP didn't really define "superstar" - but that's how I have mine set up. It's all opinions.

current superstar = elite statistics + popularity

duncan is neither

Sorry, once you reach the top, you don't lose your superstar status no matter what happens.

Tim Duncan and Shaquille O'Neal are like the Undertaker and Shawn Michaels, respectively. You really have to do something drastic or fall of the face of the Earth to lose your superstar status once you've been to the top. This goes for all sports.

There's a reason why Michael Vick is on the cover of Madden after being in prison for two years. He's a genuine superstar. As an active player who holds the title of Best PF of All-Time and likely Top 10 Player All-Time, Tim Duncan is a superstar by default until he retires.

There are so many good power forwards in the NBA right now. He is definitely a star, but where you rank him among the other stars is subject to lots of debate. He may be the best offensive power forward. He won't show up on anybody's defensive lists.

Michael Vick = popularity. Look at his jersey sales. come on HNIC. put two and two together.

Chris Paul is averaging a career low in points and is having his second-worst rebounding season and third-worst season in assists/game. Also averaging a career low in minutes. His jersey is not one of the top 15 jerseys in terms of sales.

Is Chris Paul no longer a superstar?

i didn't see they had to be statistically peaking in their career. just statistically better than the relevant person on the tiers below them.

chris paul is a good example, but an outlier as he clearly slid under the radar this year.

quote:

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chris paul is a good example, but an outlier as he clearly slid under the radar this year.

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ESPN's panel of experts placed him 7th in MVP voting. That's not too far under the radar.
Rose
Howard
Bron
Kobe
Dirk
Wade
Paul

source? here's the ESPN MVP Panel. no Paul.

quote:

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Results: Derrick Rose, Bulls (27 votes); LeBron James, Heat (4); Dwight Howard, Magic (2); Manu Ginobili, Spurs (1); Dwyane Wade, Heat (1).

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http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?page=MVP-2011

You guys are retarded. Back to the subject.

I think Aldridge is on his way...but I agree that he is too soft down low.

Here you go Simplebay:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?page=MVP11

Not a superstar. Couldn't maintain his regular season pts/reb stats in the playoffs. Played worse as the series went on. Bailed out by Brandon Roy when they needed someone to step up and be the Man. Dirk had his way with him on the high post. Failed at consistently getting to the FT line.

That's okay though. He's nice piece on a good team but not an all-nba caliber superstar player

Aldridge is an absolute badass, not sure how anyone can question that he is or will soon be a superstar. Can't imagine having him on the Mavs with Dirk these next couple of years.

Yeah he'd be a nice complement to a team with a legit #1 superstar. He's fit great on the Lakers or Hornets. But he's not a franchise carrying superstar. Not a perennial all-nba player.

He's playing at the level of his contract, which is what ~12mm/year average? Not a max contract.

He only had 24 FTAs for the entire series. Dirk had 63 FTA. A superstar knows how to get to the line in the playoffs, regardless of any perceived ref bias.

yeah but he's got the mid-range jumper and fadeaway down. a guy with his size, strength and speed should definitely be going to the hole more aggressively vs. always backing the defender up and shooting the hook or fadeaway.

Dude's great, but he may be as good as he is going to get - which is really, really good, but not superstar. This is his 5th year in the league. Some guys continue to improve for a good 10 years, but some hit a ceiling. It could go either way with him.



(And watching JJ abuse him in Austin was a LOT of fun, even if we dropped the game).

[This message has been edited by Whistling For Flies (edited 4/29/2011 9:22a).]

Simplebay:

Regarding Duncan, you are in a very small minority that doesn't consider him a superstar. He's a first ballot hall-of-famer if there ever was one. Many consider him the best power forward to have ever played the game.

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But then again, what the hell do I know?

Talking about Duncan being a current superstar in the 2011 season big guy.

HNIC makes a good argument for the few players that have reached the pinnacle of superstardom like Shaq and Duncan with multiple Finals MVPs. He says these players can always be labeled superstars regardless of how old they are. But lower level superstars like Kidd and are no longer listed because they never quite reached the pantheon while they were in their prime.

This thread reminds of the discussions about whether NASCAR drivers are athletes. It all depends on the definition.

In my opinion only, including merchandise sales as a criterion is ridiculous.

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But then again, what the hell do I know?

Based on this year, Aldridge (and Randolph) were better than Griffin (and Love).

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I think he gets overlooked because he plays in Portland.

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Big understatement. The west coast is death for national media attention unless you play for the Lakers.

That was a big reason the PAC 10 wanted to get Texas teams.



[This message has been edited by BBDP (edited 4/29/2011 11:50a).]

Aldridge was raw at t.u. His best days are ahead of him and he's one of those guys like Bynum whose full potential probably won't be recognized until he is 6-7 years in.

It looks like he's almost there.