While superstars are important in helping put a team in an opportunity to win a championship, having great role players is the key to actually winning one; just ask the Los Angles Lakers.
The reason the Celtics won the NBA Championship last year was not because of how either team's big three played, but was because the Celtics' role players outperformed the Lakers' role players.
The key for someone to be great role player is to for them to know their role and not try to be the star. Great role players can have an impact on the game without putting up great statistics.
Great role players play hard defense, hustle, take charges, dive for loose balls, find the open man, and hit those open and occasional clutch shots when asked upon.
Great role players aren’t generally the most athletic guys, but they have great basketball IQ’s. What goes unnoticed about great role players is that they are also generally unselfish quality human beings who tend to have great chemistry with their teammates as well.
This list is for those role players, who although will probably never get the credit they deserve, our instrumental in helping their team win.
The All NBA Role Player Team
Captain PG
Derek Fisher- Three-time NBA champion
Derek Fisher is a typical role player. He runs the Laker's offense efficiently, plays hard defense, and hits that open three when needed to. Derek Fisher is that silent assassin who everyone fears. He’s the type of player that will hit that three pointer that quiets the crowd.
There is one game that sums up Fisher's career for me.
In the 2007 NBA playoffs, in the second round against the Golden state warriors, Fisher was forced to miss the first half of the second game because his 11-month old daughter required an emergency three-hour surgery and chemotherapy at New York's Presbyterian Hospital.
Prior to Game Two, Fisher had asked head coach Jerry Sloan to leave him on the active list, but could not guarantee he would make it in time to play. After his daughter’s surgery, he and his family flew back to Utah.
After landing in Utah with Game Two already in progress, Fisher was notified that teammate and starting point guard Deron Williams was in foul trouble and his backup for the game, Dee Brown, had been seriously hurt.
Fisher arrived at the arena in the middle of the third quarter, suited up, and made his way to the court. He was immediately called upon by Sloan to enter the game, and received a standing ovation from the crowd.
With little time remaining, Fisher made a critical defensive stop on Baron Davis that helped send the game into overtime.
In the final minutes of overtime, the Jazz held a narrow three-point lead when Deron Williams found a wide-open Fisher for a three-pointer that sealed the victory.
SG
Bruce Bowen- Four-time NBA champion
He might be the best perimeter defender to play in this decade. He always guards the opposing teams best offensive perimeter player and he was a key contributor on all of the Spurs Championship runs. He is a career .392 three point shooter and is has been known to hit that open three pointer when called upon.
SF
James Posey- Two-time NBA champion
He is currently known as the best role player in the NBA. He is very similar to Fisher in that he is known for hitting that clutch three pointer that derails the opposing team’s momentum.
He epitomizes what role players do as he is notorious for taking charges and diving for loose balls. Shaquille O'Neal once said that the Miami Heat would not have won their NBA championship without James Posey.
In the offseason, the New Orleans Hornets made signing him their priority. He received one of the biggest contracts a role player has ever gotten.
After nine years of being a great role player, he has finally gotten the recognition he deserves. Coming this June, I would not be surprised to see if he is the missing piece that helps takes the Hornets over their hump into the NBA Finals.
PF
Udonis Haslem- One-time NBA Champion
He is another great role player who plays his role so well. He is solid rebounder, solid defender, and he’ll hit that open 15-foot jump shot all day. He was a key contributor to the Heat’s 2005 NBA championship.
C
Kendrick Perkins- One-time NBA Champion
He is the perfect starting center to play with the three all stars the Celtics have. He is an excellent defender, rebounder, and solid finisher that fits perfectly into the Celtics game plan. In last year’s playoffs, he contributed some vital plays that helped the Celtics win the NBA championship.
comments (23) write a comment »
write a new comment
about 1 month ago
Nice article man.
Fisher's return to Utah after halftime is one of my favorite NBA moments of recent memory.
Tyson Chandler, Shane Battier, David Lee and Kelenna Azubuike are all players that I feel should be in your discussion despite not winning a championship, although I think you made some pretty good picks.
from about 1 month ago
look below
about 1 month ago
Thanks man. I actually did I put Shane Battier as my sixth man. But those are definitely guys I could have put on this list. David lee in particular probably should be on this list. Azubuike also.
But Chandler is more iffy more me, because even though he is good, many people think he could be better than he is. he is a former number 2 pick. He could be considered an underachiever, and roles players are overachievers.
about 1 month ago
Really nice article. Great role players do not have the talent of players likes Stephon Marbury or Steve Francis. But almost any GM would rather have those unselfish role players on their team than selfish players who don't make their teammates better like Marbury.
about 1 month ago
funny I was thinking about writing the same kind of article...but you did it first.. but what about Matt Harpring, Chuck Hayes, Eddie House, Tayshaun Prince, Biedrins.......etc
from about 1 month ago
I don't consider Prince a role player, he's more of a border line all star. There are many games where he's the best player on the floor. Biedrins can't be considered a role player yet either, he's young and still could develop into an all star calibur player. The other two aren't really great role players, but there good.
from about 1 month ago
they all have defined roles and they all play them to perfection....hence the term: ROLE PLAYER. Prince is one of the most underrated role players in the league....Harpring is a bench banger, he knows his role, it is to play physically, learn about it.
from about 1 month ago
I do see what Jay is saying though. In a way most doesn't Lebron have a defined role. Being a role player isn't just about having a defined role but having a specifically defined role outside of being a go to scorer.
Prince is averaging almost 18 points a game this year. If Prince is a role player, than is Shawn Marion, one too? Prince was once a role player but now he is often a go to guy who has plays set for him. Posey's specific role is to play good defense and hit open three's. I actually thought of putting Prince as one at first but what is Prince's specifically defined role nowadays?
from about 1 month ago
Prince's ability to knock down the three adds a new dimension to his game, he reminds me so much of AK, what is AKs role???? it is the go to, do everything player, he does it all like Prince so I guess you could say they are implementing more game into their roles thus their classically defined roles are vanishing slightly because they are doing much more than merely what is expected....
about 1 month ago
Great article ! Great subject! I agree that the greatest role player is Robert Horry. He is the one in addition to Shaq who t gave Lakers few championship. Poepel forgot and atrributed the wins to Kobe but he never took the last winning shot. When Kobe decided he was the main man and he belived the myths of the media and decided to take the last shots in the last LA lakers championship with Shaq, they loast. Kobe never understood the importance of Role players but Michael Jordan knew and gave them the balls twice to let the role players shoot the winning shots. Michael was never threatened by role players but Kobe always was insecure and too self absorbed and selfish to give anyone the credit.
And this is why MJ was the greatest ever!
from about 1 month ago
Did you thought of thinking Shaquille coming into work in shape to play for FULL year, play hard everyday, they might have fared better? And FYI, the year they lost, it was the Mamba who won the game by hitting not one but TWO threes at the buzzer to give them the best record in WC. Nobody is denying MJ was the greatest, but lets give some props where they are due.
from about 1 month ago
Ya but Hana's on the right track here. Kobe outshot Shaq almost double but yet he shot less than 40% from the floor in the finals, while Shaq shot around 60%.
from about 1 month ago
Ari,
My point wasn't that Kobe didn't shot poorly. He shot horribly in that series compared to Shaq (but any great SG will lose that battle when compared to a great Center) and he did took about 5 more attempts per game than Shaq. But my issue wasn't about that. Issue I had was the fact that saying Kobe didn't understand the importance of role players like Jordan did. Do people really forget Jordan's first 5 years in the league that easily? Same thing used to be and can be said about the greatest in earlier part of his career as well. And when someone goes says things like "he never took the last winning shot" and "never understood the importance of role players" and :But Jordan knew and gave them the balls twice to let the role players shoot the winning shots." Its these type of comments that makes me irk. Kobe of today is ten times better at these concepts than Kobe of then but to say that he didn't understood them back then, everyone knows that's not true. Lakers got beat by a better team in those finals. Plain and simple. Two biggest shots in Lakers playoffs history during Kobe's era has been by two ultimate roles players: Horry in game 4 in WCF vs Kings and Fisher's "0.4 shot" vs Spurs. And the only game won in the finals by the Lakers was due to only Kobe taking over down the stretch. So yeah, he played horribly in that series, but without him (and him trusting his teammates), they wouldn't been there in first place.
about 1 month ago
Pretty good article, but I think it was a little inappropriate to name Bruce Bowen the shooting guard considering he is a small foward. While Bowen does defend of kinds of perimeter players, offensively and overall there is no way Bruce can be considered a shooting guard. Other than that, great job.
from about 1 month ago
Technically he's a small forward, but he can easily play the shooting guard spot and has before. Not to mention, he quite often guards the opposing teams 2 guard.
Based on who deserves to start, I was going to start him or Battier, and Bowen obviously fits the 2 guard spot better than Battier.
In the NBA these days, people aren't ever set in their spots. Look at guys like Tracy Mcgrady or Vince Carter who can have played both SG and SF.
from about 1 month ago
That's true, but McGrady and Vince are both guys who are CAPABLE of playing either position. Both are extremely athletic, quick, and well rounded enough to do the job. Bowen, on the other hand, would never be able to hold the 2 spot on any team because he doesn't have the offensive capabilities or the penetration abilities to be a factor at the position. However, he does still guard 2's, 3's, and even 1's because he is his team's best perimeter defender. I personally would have gone with Raja Bell as the starting 2 guard. His defense isn't far off from that of Bowen, especially now that Bowen is getting older. In addition, Raja Bell actually is a 2 guard, and he's a much better offensive player.
As far as the rest of the NBA not following set positions anymore, I find that this really only applies to 4 and 5 guys. Nowadays, there aren't enough good legit centers, so many teams play a power foward at the center position (see 6'8 Udonis Haslem in Miami). There are also some circumstances when teams will occasionally put three guards on the floor at a time, but this is primarily done by teams who run the small run n gun offense (see New York). Long story short, Bruce Bowen belongs on the team, but I personally would rather see him at a position that he plays, for organizational purposes if nothing else.
about 1 month ago
What about Manu Ginobli?
from about 1 month ago
dude,
he is an all-star...all-star are not role players. plain and simple.
about 1 month ago
I like your choices. Makes me wonder where "Big Shot" Robert Horry is.
about 1 month ago
I would take Antinio McDyess before Haslem. And Perkins is not very good even as a role player. He just had to stand under the basket and wait for Paul and Ray to miss to his side, while KG cleaned up the other side.
Those are just my opinions though. Good article.
about 1 month ago
Manu comes off the bench his role is instant offense after getting into the game therefore he is a role player.
24 days ago
first of all, Derek Fisher decides to leave the JAZZ to spend time with his family, but go to the lakers. i dont think he should be on here, and posey is the most ignorant player in the league. do you know how many flagrant fouls he has against the Bulls? yea he may be good but he doesnt deserve to be on this list, MANU should be there before BOWEN, bowen is an ignarant player too, same with battier and haslem, you obviously dont know what your talking about.
from 24 days ago
I don't hahahahaha!!!!!!!!!!! Manu isn't a role player, hes an all star. hahahahahahahhaha
Fisher signed with the Lakers because the hospitals are better there and it would be better for his daughter. and I don't know anything!!!!!!
Posey is ignorant. that doesn't even make sence. He is a great role player. Who cares if he got flagrants agianst the Bulls. Someone has a grudge.
write a new comment