Looking at alot of those hall of famers that are already in the Hall they didn't do much more than he did in three great healthy years all NBA a few times NBA finals second year alot of players in the Hall never made first team or went to the finals so why isn't he in there🤷🏿♂️
Pip was my guy and Penny used to scare the shiiiit out of me. That guy was SCARY, everywhere. His post game he'd dance around a helpless Pippen. Mind you Pippen is considered one of the greatest defenders of all time. Too bad Penny got injured.
Penny was the truth. Had he not had the injuries he did, he would of easily been a top 10 player of all time. One of my favorites players of all time after A.I.
@@tracymcgrady902 Kobe never played the ripe hardaway by time he was near top himself. Tmac was more himself and therefore would give kobe more challenge. If penny not get injured and injured with like five surgeries, and kept getting better and stayed healthy, hardaway would be tougher for Kobe to deal with. And remember, penny was Kobe/lebron before there was Kobe/lebron
@@LOL-ro9ef wow... that's a hot take. LOL I'll entertain a little that ELITE guys like Kobe, Penny, GHILL, can get off on him. But they can get off on anyone...
If you are from that era, you will know how scary Penny was. For those who knows his game, everytime he is brought into conversation, guys would just take a pause because everybody there knows how great of a players he would become, if not having injury.
The funny thing that Shaq even said that he was Kobe before Kobe. And people on that podcast STILL doubted Shaq saying “nah, no way”, Wow…a guy who played with Both. Crazy!!
Penny was making the Bulls team look crazy ! Lol if only he stayed healthy smh.... So many great players that don't have rings ! Rings don't define how great you are !
A healthy Penny would be a top 5 NBA player all time...yes it would put him over Kobe & LeBron...Just think of the 97 playoffs against the heat...he almost willed them to win by himself
Kenny Dupree Absence of Penny and Hill led to a vacuum of selfless leadership filled by many players misapplying MJ's example as a me first dunk first win second lesson, and not understanding the game. Hence you had the Starburies. Had Penny and Hill been healthy, it would have been a more fluid transition, and arguably, LBJ and today's players (a great generation of talent, good dudes, and talent) might be even better having seen more of those two, and not having experienced their premature injury shortened careers.
Grant Hill, Penny, Glen Rice, Glen Robinson, Jamal Mashburn etc.. alot of real cats cooked Pippen's overrated ahh defense.. he never stopped anyone elite, MJ was always the better 1 on 1 defender if he wasn't carrying the entire load on offense.
+Domini478 Jordan had problems guard Penny that's why Phil threw Pippen in to defend him, it took two different guys to guard Penny, plus the point guard.
+Domini478 Go back and watch those Bulls-Magic series, if Penny wasn't a threat why did the Bulls defend him with Pippen and not Brown or Kerr? The ECF Bulls guarded Penny with Jordan, Pippen, and a point guard at the end of each quarter and first half.
I'm a bulls fan! But I tell ya I admired Penny during this era. Loved his play, character, and his heart for the game. Plus he wasn't a thug like most of the NBA players today covered in tatoos! I miss the 90's NBA!
Penny was awesome! The only guy I could think of that made Pippen look like a poor defender. Big loss for the NBA when Penny and G.Hill had those injuries. I think they would both be in the top 10-15 of all-time.And yeah,i miss the NBA of the 90's.Watching less and less NBA as time goes on.
Dude, iRemember watching this game when iWas 10 & seeing him make that half-court shot at the buzzer. Prior to that, iHad never seen it done before & plus iThought making a basket from that distance were more worth than 3pts.
Kobe and Lebron are no match to a healthy Penny. This is the era when real defense is played. Jordan, Pippen, Rodman, this trio could make it to 1st team defensive team all time.
"I don't care what anyone has to say about it...Penny Hardaway not only held his own weight playing against the Bulls & Jordan but was a threat to Jordan himself. Look @ the way he owns Pippen (Prince Of The Court Dubbed by Jordan) & look @ what he does to Jordan in one-on-one combat. Too bad injuries got to him cause he would've been a champion multiple times over right now...straight up. Penny's the man"
If only Pennys' legs wouldn't had given out on him he would have become one of the best players of his generation. He was on his way to finally developing a 3 point shot and improving his back to the basket game. He single handedly vrought the big point guard into the league(6-6+).
Actually it was Magic who brought the oversized PG into the NBA. Penny was just sort of the culmination of the trend through the 80s and into the 90s. In many ways he was a version of Pippen without the rebounding or defensive lockdown ability, but with more offense generally.
i saw them series live i swear back in the day those were the finals part 1 i was kissing my canal + cable box it went off but then bulls crushed them it was good man
I don't understand how people hate LeBron but didn't hate Shaq?? Anyways this should have been the rivalry of the decade. I wish Shaq would've stayed in Orlando. Penny was getting better year by year and who knows how that would've affected Penny's career, Shaq's career, and even Jordan's career
Hardaway was a bad boy. Not a big scorer, but he could put up numbers when needed. He could've rivaled Magic, but Hardaway was a bad boy during his time. Magic IMO is the greatest Laker ever. And the greatest PG of all time.
their wasnt alot of players you can compare magic and jordan game to since i been alive. Lebron is the second but a long time ago penny made you learn the Hardaway 407 all day
While I respect your opinion,Penny would've had a hard time with the '84-'93 Jordan.Now,the '95-'98 Jordan,one on one would lose to Penny,but not by a mile.
Jordans the goat,but this game makes u say "what if"? Sad knee injuries and surgeries robbed penny of his atheletism.he was gonna be a perrenial all star,possible MVP, and maybe a ring or two prior to that.same with grant hill,Webber and Larry Johnson.
silvester dorsey well if mj is the goat! show did let penny get the best of him, every time they played. but another goat came a lone, and his name was Kobe bryant, and he killed penny hardaway_.
Penny was better Lj. Grant was cool and Web but Penny was special he cross you or spin on outside. On the inside he dream Shake you in fade away or spin inside and dunk. He way more special
@@ChrisM07 Isn't that how the team normally played? Brian Hill was a dumb ass coach, he should have been fired after losing Orlando lost to the Rockets.
My take on Penny was that he was the most talented player of his generation, but seemed to lack the killer instinct that Jordan, Bird, Magic had. Granted, he only had 3 or 4 healthy years in the league - and admittedly Orlando did make it to the finals in only his second season. But he seemed to be unable to take over big games in the same way as the great players who came before. He would have decent numbers but his team would end up losing (remember - Rockets swept the '95 finals against Orlando). Maybe he just needed a few more healthy years of experience to figure out how to assert himself in the clutch. You can't question his talent though...talent-wise he was a superstar, and made the kind of plays that even Jordan in his prime would have been jealous of. And he made them pretty routinely, at least until he got injured.
He did take over big games the problem with the Magic was not Penny, Shaq, or Horace, the problem were the role players. Nick Anderson was a good player, but was a liability in handling the ball he wasn't consistent with his shooting and many times he would easily loose his confidence. Dennis Scott was a good three point shooter, but he was always out of shape, no defense, no rebounding he was just a spot up shooter. Brian Shaw was a really good shooter, but he was another one that played no defense. As a long time Magic fan I truly believe the Magic made a huge mistake in getting rid of Scott Skiles. Skiles was a solid point guard who could pass really well as he holds the one game passing record, but if you had Skiles at the one, Penny at the two, Anderson at the three, Horace at the four, and Shaq at the five it would've been an interesting line up.
cflo1386 Yeah, I agree with you. I mean, whatever his minor shortcomings were, Penny was definitely not a "problem" for his team - far from it. Neither was Shaq. I wasn't implying that at all. I think you make a nice point about the role players on the Magic not showing up defensively. What team in the league at the time was really worried about the Magic defense? You were worried about them outscoring you, but not really clamping down on you defensively. And as clichéd as it is, it's true that a great defense usually benefits you more than a great offense. When the Rockets won it all in '95 Hakeem had a brilliant series, but I also remember Horry, Cassell, and the Houston role players making big contributions in key moments as well. Had the Magic possessed a tougher defense at the time that was capable of shutting down that kind of stuff, the story might have been different. Also, as much as it pains me to say it - because it was a lot of fun to watch him play point - I think you might be right about Penny being a more natural fit at the 2 position, at least over the long haul. As great a passer as he was, he was an equally great scorer. Without having to worry about setting up the offense and distributing the ball, etc. he could have focused more on scoring and getting his assists in transition/fast breaks, etc. which is where he was the most spectacular. Who knows - might have led to a longer career for him. Now, would he have accepted that kind of role at the time (i.e. his rookie season, or sophomore season)? Especially after all the hype about him being the "next Magic Johnson"? Tough to say. But I think ultimately he would have tried to do what was best for the team, at least in those days. 20 points and 7 assists per night is great. But 23 points and 5 assists per night might have been better for Orlando, and better for him. Can't comment on Skiles because I don't remember him very well, but I agree, would have been interesting to have seen the Magic in that kind of line up. But hey, that's kind of the essence of being a Penny fan isn't it? What "would have" or "could have" been : ) Thanks for your comment.
Jeremiah Davis At this time Orlando had The best point guard penny who make all nba first team in 1995 and 1996, one of the top 3 center, the best 3 point shooter in the league and a great defender: Grant who was in the second all defensive team in 1996. But after this 4 mens They had Nick the brick who has a lot of trouble with shooting and his FT, shaw who never make a lot of defense, Bowie and royal who were not very good player even for substitue. I said that Dennis scott was a great 3 point shooter but he was also one of the worst defender in the NBA so for me the Magic were lacking of Defense and experience and role player cause if you see Royal,Bowie,Shaw for me that's not enough to win the title espacielay when you play against teams like Chicago or Houston.
***** It's a matter of opinion but for me it isn't close. Grant Hill was a great player, I'm not denying that. But Penny had a weird, unteachable sixth sense about the game that jumped out at you even at the NBA level. When you watch highlights of Grant Hill you see a gifted, intelligent athlete at the peak of his powers. That's great. It's very impressive. When you watch highlights of Penny, you see some of that too, but what you see flashes of - on occasion - is something almost like a special effect: what previously seemed impossible becomes reality in the blink of an eye. At least that is my opinion. But maybe I'm just biased because he was so entertaining to watch. I mean, look at the shot he makes at 1:30...it's literally a jump shot from half court, and he was falling down (and out of bounds) when he let it go. I haven't seen a lot of Grant Hill stuff, but my impression is that he didn't regularly make plays like that.
***** Actually, a lot of Penny's most amazing plays to me were really assists which didn't rely so much on athleticism, but the kind of spooky court awareness I mentioned. If you check out his 'top 10' plays - or whatever it's called on youtube - number 1 I believe is a pass play in the lane. He threads the needle in heavy traffic, kind of an "eyes in the back of his head" type of play (there is a reason, after all, that people were comparing him to Magic Johnson when he was in only high school). And there were many plays like that from him, even after he got injured. It's an interesting arguement though...you're right that the Pistons were probably pretty terrible and GHill probably had to fight the double team more often. They were similar height and weight, similar physically. As far as the Lebron comparison...I think you'd have to be a Duke graduate to float that one : ) Although good luck with it. I think we're ultimately talking about 2 different things though. You seem to be talking about adaptability, longevity, caginess, toughness, etc. I'm just talking about pure ability, and comparing two guys at their peak, in their prime, i.e. comparing highlight reels. Bottom line, I think Penny could have made every play on Grant Hill's highlight reel. I don't think the reverse is true.
had the Magic not gotten swept Shaq likely would've stayed and him and Penny would''ve gotten at least one ring..but then again, had they beat the Rockets and won the championship the year before the probably wouldn't have minded losing this series
Hardaway was a great offensive talent and when players like that get hot it doesn't matter who is on them, yes I am saying it wouldnt even matter if Jordan was on Penny this game. Have you watched the video? Pippen wasn't playing bad defense.
if you can drop 38 points on one of the best defensive team and defensive player ever! then you are a legend!
Penny Hardaway will always be remembered !! No injuries and we're talking penny to the hall of fame.
Facts
Looking at alot of those hall of famers that are already in the Hall they didn't do much more than he did in three great healthy years all NBA a few times NBA finals second year alot of players in the Hall never made first team or went to the finals so why isn't he in there🤷🏿♂️
If I had the power to give any player their career back injury free after having it ruined by injuries, Penny Hardaway is easily my first choice
Matt Campbell I'ma go with d.rose
Man he was so good! I’d love to see what he could’ve done with an injury free career!
Love Penny. But I gotta go with Grant Hill.
@@balbin0329 tmac would be better than them. he was compared to kobe.
I would choose him or Grant Hill
Pip was my guy and Penny used to scare the shiiiit out of me. That guy was SCARY, everywhere. His post game he'd dance around a helpless Pippen. Mind you Pippen is considered one of the greatest defenders of all time. Too bad Penny got injured.
same
Right! That's the killer. ...Pippen a top-tier defender & Penny still cookin him. Penny was a beast!
Young Penny was unstoppable
The most graceful player for sure !!!!
Never thought of him as graceful. Freaking explosive as fork.
@@practicaldriverfacts
Penny had some of the best handles I ever saw. Injuries ruined a hall of fame career. And he was unselfish as a scoring point guard.
born 92, but Penny will always be (alongside Tim Duncan) my favourite player. I love your style. Penny could have been # 1 :(
these kids today don't know how great Penny was
Yup.. it was a damn shame he had to get injured. I always thought he had the potential to be one of the greatest ever.
Ryan Storm exactly
desertdetroiter Too far
I'd say top 10. I can't think of a point guard like Penny. If Tracy played point and pass more than shoot.
Agree
My favorite player of all time
in term of pure talent,skills and level..he is one of the best ever...even if he doesn't have a lot of achievements...
He's the reason why I love the game, childhood hero here
Penny was killin in this entire series.
Penny is his prime was an amazing talent
Penny was the greatest player ever from memphis.and there have been some great ones..
He's a champion in my eyes.
Penny was the truth. Had he not had the injuries he did, he would of easily been a top 10 player of all time. One of my favorites players of all time after A.I.
+King 27 ask kobe who is the toughest player he ever played against and that is T-MAC
@@tracymcgrady902 Kobe never played the ripe hardaway by time he was near top himself. Tmac was more himself and therefore would give kobe more challenge. If penny not get injured and injured with like five surgeries, and kept getting better and stayed healthy, hardaway would be tougher for Kobe to deal with. And remember, penny was Kobe/lebron before there was Kobe/lebron
The only pg in history who loves posting up inside. He can post up 1,2,3 and 4 position.
Absolutely 💯
Penny my all time fav player
My Childhood Idol💯🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
If there was no injury, penny would be a legend like MJ
Yeah he is my favorite player in 90, and I believe he is the best one on one player in history
Penny used to scare the crap out of me. He did this to PIP man!
Pip was not an elite 1 on 1 defender
@@LOL-ro9ef wow... that's a hot take. LOL
I'll entertain a little that ELITE guys like Kobe, Penny, GHILL, can get off on him. But they can get off on anyone...
loved to watch him play this takes me back
miss his play so much!
Penny was giving them boys that work! I forgot how great he was. Damn injuries ruined a certain hall of fame career.
So right! Penny wasn't just good, the man was a great player.
If you are from that era, you will know how scary Penny was. For those who knows his game, everytime he is brought into conversation, guys would just take a pause because everybody there knows how great of a players he would become, if not having injury.
The funny thing that Shaq even said that he was Kobe before Kobe. And people on that podcast STILL doubted Shaq saying “nah, no way”, Wow…a guy who played with Both. Crazy!!
Back then there was only one way to do it; the Hardway!!! RIP 90s basketball.
And he did it against Scottie Pippen.
What a player.
Watched a lot of these games live, the Magic lost this series but Penny use to cook Scottie Pippen on one on one match ups like stir fried. lol
Yes and Scottie Pippen one of greatest defenders ever but Penny Hardaway was lighting him up
Penny's so good they had to put Pippen on him most of the time, to save Jordan (the old days' version of minutes and game management).
Maaaaaaan, he was unstoppable!!!
1:03 embarrassed Pippen lol
Abigail Weller Anfernee is one of the greatest ever.
Penny was making the Bulls team look crazy ! Lol if only he stayed healthy smh.... So many great players that don't have rings ! Rings don't define how great you are !
Penny was putting in serious work!!!
man...he got all the tools to be one of the greatest....range, killer instinct, handle, iQ, athletic, defense, poise....damn those injuries...
Penny was so damn sick!
Penny did it ALL!
A healthy Penny would be a top 5 NBA player all time...yes it would put him over Kobe & LeBron...Just think of the 97 playoffs against the heat...he almost willed them to win by himself
Greatest at flopping
Kenny Dupree Absence of Penny and Hill led to a vacuum of selfless leadership filled by many players misapplying MJ's example as a me first dunk first win second lesson, and not understanding the game. Hence you had the Starburies. Had Penny and Hill been healthy, it would have been a more fluid transition, and arguably, LBJ and today's players (a great generation of talent, good dudes, and talent) might be even better having seen more of those two, and not having experienced their premature injury shortened careers.
Agreed
kobe is not top 10
Kenny Dupree ..... That Masterful 40 piece (41-8-8) he hung on them in the OG Foamposites💯💪🏾🔥🔥🔥
My twin brother and i's FAVORITE player!
penny without the injuries is top 5 all time, how many players can you say played with shaq in his prime and was better than shaq, only one hardaway
Penny was ranked number 130 in Slam's top 500 players of all-time magazine!!!!
Only guy to give pippen fits on the court, ever!!!
Grant hill used to cook Pippen too. But penny use to cook Pippen like barbecue chicken.
@@MackP414😂😂😂
Grant Hill, Penny, Glen Rice, Glen Robinson, Jamal Mashburn etc.. alot of real cats cooked Pippen's overrated ahh defense.. he never stopped anyone elite, MJ was always the better 1 on 1 defender if he wasn't carrying the entire load on offense.
Penny is the one can beat mj
Penny already has that left knee bandaged here, I think it was in the first round verse Detroit where he says he first damaged the knee :(
Perhaps the player Jordan had the most trouble guarding.
+Domini478 Jordan had problems guard Penny that's why Phil threw Pippen in to defend him, it took two different guys to guard Penny, plus the point guard.
+Domini478 Meaning as an older player you can't guard younger guys.
+Domini478 Go back and watch those Bulls-Magic series, if Penny wasn't a threat why did the Bulls defend him with Pippen and not Brown or Kerr? The ECF Bulls guarded Penny with Jordan, Pippen, and a point guard at the end of each quarter and first half.
Domini478 You don't think age comes in to play?
+Domini478 u buggin
if it wasn't for the injuires, penny could have been an all-time great
Next head coach for university of memphis!!!
I actually remember watching this game in real time
I'm a bulls fan! But I tell ya I admired Penny during this era. Loved his play, character, and his heart for the game. Plus he wasn't a thug like most of the NBA players today covered in tatoos! I miss the 90's NBA!
That NBA on NBC music still instantly cheers me up
Penny was awesome! The only guy I could think of that made Pippen look like a poor defender. Big loss for the NBA when Penny and G.Hill had those injuries. I think they would both be in the top 10-15 of all-time.And yeah,i miss the NBA of the 90's.Watching less and less NBA as time goes on.
NEBLEEKS Same happened to T Mac
+ricorob100 So tattoos=thug by default
I know this comment has to be a white guy. Tattoos equal thug smh
Pippen/ Hardaway/ Hill all day
Mark Mante . . .& Iverson
Dude, iRemember watching this game when iWas 10 & seeing him make that half-court shot at the buzzer. Prior to that, iHad never seen it done before & plus iThought making a basket from that distance were more worth than 3pts.
Penny was unguardable in this game.
My second greatest player of all time!
Kobe and Lebron are no match to a healthy Penny. This is the era when real defense is played. Jordan, Pippen, Rodman, this trio could make it to 1st team defensive team all time.
Top 5 most talented ever
penny hardaway and grant hill getting injured was the best thing to happen to kobe's career
There is NO player like him today.
Penny giving Scottie that work!
Shaq was so checked out in this series
"I don't care what anyone has to say about it...Penny Hardaway not only held his own weight playing against the Bulls & Jordan but was a threat to Jordan himself. Look @ the way he owns Pippen (Prince Of The Court Dubbed by Jordan) & look @ what he does to Jordan in one-on-one combat. Too bad injuries got to him cause he would've been a champion multiple times over right now...straight up. Penny's the man"
Reminds me of Magic and DWade. Style of play wise.
MJ always killed Penny like he did every body else.
I always point to this game with bulls fans anytime they say that Pippen would be able to slow down Kevin Durant. lol
Some of y'all be forgettin to put Mr. Iverson along with Penny & Grant. . .Three of 'em are in that same damn category & how their careers ended too.
If only Pennys' legs wouldn't had given out on him he would have become one of the best players of his generation. He was on his way to finally developing a 3 point shot and improving his back to the basket game. He single handedly vrought the big point guard into the league(6-6+).
Actually it was Magic who brought the oversized PG into the NBA. Penny was just sort of the culmination of the trend through the 80s and into the 90s. In many ways he was a version of Pippen without the rebounding or defensive lockdown ability, but with more offense generally.
i saw them series live i swear back in the day those were the finals part 1 i was kissing my canal + cable box it went off but then bulls crushed them it was good man
MJ, as great as he was, never gave anybody props. That's one of the major difference between him and other great players.
I don't understand how people hate LeBron but didn't hate Shaq?? Anyways this should have been the rivalry of the decade. I wish Shaq would've stayed in Orlando. Penny was getting better year by year and who knows how that would've affected Penny's career, Shaq's career, and even Jordan's career
Penny COOKIN Pippen! 🔥
Penny was getting all the rolls that game, not hating, just an observation
Hardaway was a bad boy. Not a big scorer, but he could put up numbers when needed. He could've rivaled Magic, but Hardaway was a bad boy during his time. Magic IMO is the greatest Laker ever. And the greatest PG of all time.
I Agree... I always told people LeBron is a combination of Penny & Grant Hill.
If you don't know how great was Penny after watching this video, go and watch how Pippen played against Magic Johnson in the past
their wasnt alot of players you can compare magic and jordan game to since i been alive. Lebron is the second but a long time ago penny made you learn the Hardaway 407 all day
penny hardaway would dominate jordan in my opinion too beast
Man . He was taking on mj and scottie .
My points is facts. MJ was a shut down defender. He was on 9 All NBA Defensive 1st teams and Defensive Player Of the Year in 1988.
While I respect your opinion,Penny would've had a hard time with the '84-'93 Jordan.Now,the '95-'98 Jordan,one on one would lose to Penny,but not by a mile.
The 3 dislikes were Pippen Jordan and Rodman.
Whether he has to guard them isn't the point. The point is MJ couldn't stop everybody.
(Insert childish insult)
Jordans the goat,but this game makes u say "what if"? Sad knee injuries and surgeries robbed penny of his atheletism.he was gonna be a perrenial all star,possible MVP, and maybe a ring or two prior to that.same with grant hill,Webber and Larry Johnson.
silvester dorsey well if mj is the goat! show did let penny get the best of him, every time they played. but another goat came a lone, and his name was Kobe bryant, and he killed penny hardaway_.
Penny was better Lj. Grant was cool and Web but Penny was special he cross you or spin on outside. On the inside he dream Shake you in fade away or spin inside and dunk. He way more special
Penny scored 38, and they still got blown out by 38. That's how great the 96 Bulls were
The rest of the team was standing around on the perimeter waiting for an open look Shaq and Penny were the only ones scoring.
@@ChrisM07 Isn't that how the team normally played? Brian Hill was a dumb ass coach, he should have been fired after losing Orlando lost to the Rockets.
penny was unconquerable in these days
Two man team......too bad Horace got hurt they could have gave the Bulls a real scare
Penny was a monster But the magic loss 4-0 to the bulls that year
It wasn’t because of Penny MJ and Bulls were on a mission
My take on Penny was that he was the most talented player of his generation, but seemed to lack the killer instinct that Jordan, Bird, Magic had. Granted, he only had 3 or 4 healthy years in the league - and admittedly Orlando did make it to the finals in only his second season. But he seemed to be unable to take over big games in the same way as the great players who came before. He would have decent numbers but his team would end up losing (remember - Rockets swept the '95 finals against Orlando). Maybe he just needed a few more healthy years of experience to figure out how to assert himself in the clutch.
You can't question his talent though...talent-wise he was a superstar, and made the kind of plays that even Jordan in his prime would have been jealous of. And he made them pretty routinely, at least until he got injured.
He did take over big games the problem with the Magic was not Penny, Shaq, or Horace, the problem were the role players. Nick Anderson was a good player, but was a liability in handling the ball he wasn't consistent with his shooting and many times he would easily loose his confidence. Dennis Scott was a good three point shooter, but he was always out of shape, no defense, no rebounding he was just a spot up shooter. Brian Shaw was a really good shooter, but he was another one that played no defense. As a long time Magic fan I truly believe the Magic made a huge mistake in getting rid of Scott Skiles. Skiles was a solid point guard who could pass really well as he holds the one game passing record, but if you had Skiles at the one, Penny at the two, Anderson at the three, Horace at the four, and Shaq at the five it would've been an interesting line up.
cflo1386 Yeah, I agree with you. I mean, whatever his minor shortcomings were, Penny was definitely not a "problem" for his team - far from it. Neither was Shaq. I wasn't implying that at all.
I think you make a nice point about the role players on the Magic not showing up defensively. What team in the league at the time was really worried about the Magic defense? You were worried about them outscoring you, but not really clamping down on you defensively. And as clichéd as it is, it's true that a great defense usually benefits you more than a great offense. When the Rockets won it all in '95 Hakeem had a brilliant series, but I also remember Horry, Cassell, and the Houston role players making big contributions in key moments as well. Had the Magic possessed a tougher defense at the time that was capable of shutting down that kind of stuff, the story might have been different.
Also, as much as it pains me to say it - because it was a lot of fun to watch him play point - I think you might be right about Penny being a more natural fit at the 2 position, at least over the long haul. As great a passer as he was, he was an equally great scorer. Without having to worry about setting up the offense and distributing the ball, etc. he could have focused more on scoring and getting his assists in transition/fast breaks, etc. which is where he was the most spectacular. Who knows - might have led to a longer career for him. Now, would he have accepted that kind of role at the time (i.e. his rookie season, or sophomore season)? Especially after all the hype about him being the "next Magic Johnson"? Tough to say. But I think ultimately he would have tried to do what was best for the team, at least in those days. 20 points and 7 assists per night is great. But 23 points and 5 assists per night might have been better for Orlando, and better for him.
Can't comment on Skiles because I don't remember him very well, but I agree, would have been interesting to have seen the Magic in that kind of line up. But hey, that's kind of the essence of being a Penny fan isn't it? What "would have" or "could have" been : ) Thanks for your comment.
Jeremiah Davis At this time Orlando had The best point guard penny who make all nba first team in 1995 and 1996, one of the top 3 center, the best 3 point shooter in the league and a great defender: Grant who was in the second all defensive team in 1996. But after this 4 mens They had Nick the brick who has a lot of trouble with shooting and his FT, shaw who never make a lot of defense, Bowie and royal who were not very good player even for substitue. I said that Dennis scott was a great 3 point shooter but he was also one of the worst defender in the NBA so for me the Magic were lacking of Defense and experience and role player cause if you see Royal,Bowie,Shaw for me that's not enough to win the title espacielay when you play against teams like Chicago or Houston.
***** It's a matter of opinion but for me it isn't close. Grant Hill was a great player, I'm not denying that. But Penny had a weird, unteachable sixth sense about the game that jumped out at you even at the NBA level. When you watch highlights of Grant Hill you see a gifted, intelligent athlete at the peak of his powers. That's great. It's very impressive. When you watch highlights of Penny, you see some of that too, but what you see flashes of - on occasion - is something almost like a special effect: what previously seemed impossible becomes reality in the blink of an eye. At least that is my opinion. But maybe I'm just biased because he was so entertaining to watch.
I mean, look at the shot he makes at 1:30...it's literally a jump shot from half court, and he was falling down (and out of bounds) when he let it go. I haven't seen a lot of Grant Hill stuff, but my impression is that he didn't regularly make plays like that.
***** Actually, a lot of Penny's most amazing plays to me were really assists which didn't rely so much on athleticism, but the kind of spooky court awareness I mentioned. If you check out his 'top 10' plays - or whatever it's called on youtube - number 1 I believe is a pass play in the lane. He threads the needle in heavy traffic, kind of an "eyes in the back of his head" type of play (there is a reason, after all, that people were comparing him to Magic Johnson when he was in only high school). And there were many plays like that from him, even after he got injured.
It's an interesting arguement though...you're right that the Pistons were probably pretty terrible and GHill probably had to fight the double team more often. They were similar height and weight, similar physically. As far as the Lebron comparison...I think you'd have to be a Duke graduate to float that one : ) Although good luck with it.
I think we're ultimately talking about 2 different things though. You seem to be talking about adaptability, longevity, caginess, toughness, etc. I'm just talking about pure ability, and comparing two guys at their peak, in their prime, i.e. comparing highlight reels. Bottom line, I think Penny could have made every play on Grant Hill's highlight reel. I don't think the reverse is true.
Ok guy, you got it. Jordan won every year he played a full season until the day he retired. You're absolutely 100% right
I love my Chicago Bulls, but One Cent was unstoppable
Had Kobe Bryant like talent just injuries derailed his career.
Monster.
Mike say'd "aiight kid, i take the W" :P GOAT!!!
had the Magic not gotten swept Shaq likely would've stayed and him and Penny would''ve gotten at least one ring..but then again, had they beat the Rockets and won the championship the year before the probably wouldn't have minded losing this series
Nick Anderson bricking 4 free throws when only 1 of them would've won Game 1 probably would've seen Orlando win in 95.
The first 3 years Shaq was in LA the playoff results were the same, he needed a defensive minded coach like Phil Jackson.
Shaqs ego and him demanding a bigger contract..smh. that's why he left. They could have really grown together.
@@hsvsv8 I still can't believe that..4 straight!
They double penny neither could guard him one on one
33 is early 30s no excuses bruh penny is just a beast bruh
OTC Jordan nem held they own because penny and shaq wasn’t no joke but that lead 😮damn
Hardaway was a great offensive talent and when players like that get hot it doesn't matter who is on them, yes I am saying it wouldnt even matter if Jordan was on Penny this game. Have you watched the video? Pippen wasn't playing bad defense.
@Domini478 Sorry I mess up but Jordan did gave him props google it you will find it