Center (basketball)

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skyhook
.

The center (C), or the centre, also known as the five or the pivot, is one of the five

NBA history are Manute Bol and Gheorghe Mureșan
, both of whom stood at 7 feet 7 inches (2.31 m) tall.

Centers are valued for their ability to protect their own goal from high-percentage close attempts on defense, while scoring and rebounding with high efficiency on offense. In the 1950s and 1960s, George Mikan and Bill Russell were centerpieces of championship dynasties and defined early prototypical centers. With the addition of a three-point field goal for the 1979–80 season, however, NBA basketball gradually became more perimeter-oriented and saw the importance of a traditional center diminish.[1]

History

1940s–1950s: Emergence and George Mikan era

George Mikan with No. 99

The center is considered a necessary component for a successful team, especially in professional leagues such as the NBA. Great centers have been the foundation for most of the dynasties in both the NBA and NCAA. Until the 1940s, even dominant centers such as

goaltending rule, and in 1951 the NBA widened the foul lane, a decision known as the Mikan rule.[2]

1960s: Bill Russell–Wilt Chamberlain era

Bill Russell (left) and Wilt Chamberlain (right)

In the 1960s,

the top eighteen season averages for rebounds
.

NCAA championships (1955, 56). He joined the Boston Celtics and helped make them one of the greatest dynasties in NBA history, winning eleven championships over his thirteen-year career (1956–69) as well as five MVP awards. Russell revolutionized defensive strategy with his shot-blocking, rebounding and physical man-to-man defense. While he was never the focal point of the Celtics offense, much of the team's scoring came when Russell grabbed defensive rebounds and initiated fast breaks with precision outlet passes, primarily to point guard Bob Cousy. As the NBA's first African-American superstar, Russell struggled throughout his career with the racism he encountered from fans in Boston, particularly after the 1966–67 season, when he became the first African-American in any major sport to be named player-coach.[3]

His principal rival

career rebounds
(23,924).

A lesser-known center of the era was Nate Thurmond, who initially played the forward position opposite Chamberlain for the San Francisco Warriors but moved to center after Chamberlain was traded to the new Philadelphia franchise. Although he never won a Championship, Thurmond was known as the best screen setter in the league, and his averages of 21.3 and 22.0 rebounds per game in 1966–67 and 1967–68, are exceeded only by Chamberlain and Russell.

1970s–1980s: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar era

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (right) against Wes Unseld (left)

In contrast to the Celtics dynasty of the 1960s, the 1970s were a decade of parity in the NBA, with eight different champions and no back-to-back winners. At the college level, the UCLA Bruins, under Coach John Wooden, built the greatest dynasty in NCAA basketball history, winning seven consecutive titles between 1967 and 1973. UCLA had already won two consecutive titles in 1964 and 1965 with teams that pressed and emphasized guard play. After not winning in 1966, Wooden's teams changed their style when Lew Alcindor became eligible. He led UCLA to three championships-in 1967, '68 and '69-while winning the first Naismith College Player of the Year Award. During his college career, the NCAA enacted a ban on dunking primarily because of Alcindor's dominant use of the shot.[5] His entrance into the NBA with the Milwaukee Bucks in 1969 was timely, as Bill Russell had just retired and Wilt Chamberlain was 33 years old and increasingly plagued by injuries. After leading the Bucks to the 1971 NBA championship, teamed up with legendary point guard Oscar Robertson, Alcindor, who had converted to Islam, changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. In 1975, Abdul-Jabbar was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, and, after the arrival of point guard Magic Johnson in 1980, formed part of a new Lakers dynasty that won five NBA titles (1980, '82, '85, '87, '88). In addition, Abdul-Jabbar won six regular-season MVP awards (1971, '72, '74, '76, '77, '80). At 7'2" (2.18 m), 235 pounds (106 kg), he lacked the strength of Chamberlain in his prime, but had a longer wingspan and ultimately proved more durable, adhering to a strict physical-fitness regime that enabled him to play for twenty years, the longest career in NBA history at the time. Offensively, he was best known for his trademark 'Skyhook' hook-shot, almost impossible to block because of his height and wingspan. His regular season career scoring total of 38,387 points was an NBA record for nearly 39 years.[6] Defensively, the 1973–74 season was the first in which the number of blocked shots were kept, and, over the next seven years, Kareem led the league in this statistic or finished second.[7]

Another product of John Wooden's UCLA program,

Sixth Man Award. Willis Reed won two championships with the New York Knicks in 1970 and 1973, teamed with point guard Walt Frazier; although undersized for the center position at 6'9", he had the strength to play inside, was a highly skilled jump shooter and was effective at setting picks, a key element in the Knicks motion-oriented offense. The undersized but scrappy Dave Cowens, drafted at the recommendation of Bill Russell, helped the Boston Celtics
win two more NBA titles, in 1974 and 1976.

Leading centers of the late 1970s and early 1980s include Wes Unseld of the Baltimore/Washington Bullets, Artis Gilmore of the ABA Kentucky Colonels, Chicago Bulls and San Antonio Spurs; Moses Malone of the Houston Rockets and Philadelphia 76ers; and Robert Parish of the Boston Celtics, who was acquired from the Golden State Warriors in 1980 for the top overall pick in the NBA Draft. Unseld led the Bullets to four NBA finals appearances and one championship, in 1978. Using his strength and determination to compensate for his lack of size (6'7", i.e. 2.00 m), he was famous for his rebounding, shotblocking, and bone-jarring picks. Artis Gilmore, often overlooked because of the mediocrity of his teams, established himself as the best low-post scorer in the league. He set the NCAA Division I record for career average in rebounds (25.2) at tiny Jacksonville University, and enjoyed an illustrious ABA career before joining the NBA's Chicago Bulls in 1976, playing there until he was traded to San Antonio in 1982, for whom he played until his retirement in 1987. He remains the NBA's career leader in field goal percentage (minimum 2000 shots made) with a 59.9 percentage.[8] Malone, the first high school player to turn professional, was drafted by the Houston Rockets after several years in the ABA, and won two MVP Awards and led Houston to its first NBA Finals in 1981, before joining the Philadelphia 76ers, where, teamed with Julius Erving and Bobby Jones, he won an NBA Championship in 1983, as well as a third League MVP. Never a dominant defender, his quickness and tenacity made him one of the best rebounders in NBA history, particularly on the offensive end; he led the league in rebounds six times in a seven-year period and still holds the NBA record for offensive rebounds.

In the mid-1980s, the 7'4" (2.23 m) Mark Eaton was the most prolific shot-blocker in the league, and, although never a major offensive contributor, won two NBA Defensive Player of the Year Awards while helping transform the lowly Utah Jazz into a playoff contender. Of all these players, none enjoyed the success of Robert Parish, who, with forwards Larry Bird and Kevin McHale, formed the legendary frontcourt of the Boston Celtics team that won three titles (1981, 1984 and 1986). The Celtics' fierce rivalry with the Lakers dominated the NBA during the decade and helped basketball reach an unprecedented level of popularity. Nicknamed "Chief" after a character in the film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest because of his stoic demeanor, Parish was known for his trademark arching jump-shot—leading many experts to consider him the best medium-range shooting center of all time[citation needed]—and his ability to finish fast-breaks with his surprising speed. Playing until the age of 43, Parish broke Abdul-Jabbar's record for career games played.

The 1979–80 season saw the introduction of the three-point shot. While the concept of the 'stretch five' would not come until the new millennium, players such as Bill Laimbeer and Jack Sikma developed a reliable outside shot later in their career, hitting around the 30% mark.

1990s: Hakeem Olajuwon–David Robinson–Shaquille O'Neal era

Hakeem Olajuwon

Coach John Thompson, once a seldom-used backup to Bill Russell with the Celtics, developed the Georgetown Hoyas into a chief pipeline for talent at the Center position, producing a succession of great defensive big men in Patrick Ewing, Dikembe Mutombo and Alonzo Mourning. In 1984, Georgetown, led by Patrick Ewing, defeated the University of Houston, led by Hakeem Olajuwon, to win the NCAA championship. The number one picks in the 1984, 1985, and 1987 NBA Drafts would all be used on centers who made major impacts in the NBA of the 1990s and eventually became members of the Basketball Hall of Fame: Olajuwon in 1984, Ewing in 1985, and Navy's David Robinson in 1987.

The

Finals MVP awards in the same season. Defensively Olajuwon broke Abdul-Jabbar's career record for blocked shots. Offensively, he was best known for his 'Dream Shake', a series of fakes and spin moves regarded as the pinnacle of big man footwork.[9]

Ewing, from

USAID scholarship, was among the greatest shot blockers in NBA history, leading the NBA in blocked-shots five consecutive years, in the course of a career in which he ranked second in the history of the league in blocked shots, behind only Hakeem Olajuwon. He was also the recipient of four NBA Defensive Player of the Year Awards, tied for the record with Ben Wallace
.

Robinson, drafted by the San Antonio Spurs in 1987, did not enter the NBA for two years due to his commitment with the United States Naval Academy. Upon his arrival in 1989, Robinson instantly transformed the Spurs into title contenders, eventually becoming a ten-time All-Star, MVP and Defensive Player of the Year. Leaner but more muscular than most centers, Robinson outran opponents with his speed and agility, while possessing a reliable left-handed jumper.

The 1992 NBA draft marked the entrance into the league of Shaquille O'Neal, who was drafted by the Orlando Magic. Immediately drawing comparisons to Wilt Chamberlain, the 7'1" (2.15 m), 325-pound (147 kg) O'Neal was billed as potentially the most physically dominating player ever. By his third season, he led the league in scoring and led the Magic to the NBA Finals, where they were swept by the Houston Rockets. After the 1995–96 season, he signed with the rebuilding Los Angeles Lakers. Former Georgetown center Alonzo Mourning, also drafted in 1992, established himself as a premier big man with the Charlotte Hornets and, later, the Miami Heat, winning two Defensive Player of the Year Awards thanks to his prolific shot blocking while also proving a reliable scoring threat.

2000s: Changing times

Shaquille O'Neal

The NBA landscape began to change in the 1990s as more international players entered the league. Yugoslavia's Vlade Divac and Lithuania's Arvydas Sabonis arrived in 1989 and 1995 respectively, and brought in a new play style. Unlike traditional post-up centers, Divac and Sabonis focused more on playmaking and perimeter shooting, hallmarks of the European style of play.

The balance of power shifted to the Western Conference, and the NBA was dominated by the Los Angeles Lakers, who won titles in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009, and 2010, and the San Antonio Spurs, who won in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2014. Even as traditional centers such as Shaquille O'Neal and later on Yao Ming and Dwight Howard continued to dominate the game, the importance of a center was starting to change.

In the 1990s, an increasing number of smaller forwards, most notably

power forward position, giving them more room to run the floor and play outside the paint. Under the influence of European basketball, the offensive role of big men has been redefined to include more emphasis on perimeter play, as exemplified by 3-point shooting big men like Dirk Nowitzki, Mehmet Okur, Andrea Bargnani, and Channing Frye
.

Most importantly, winning an NBA championship no longer required a dominant center, unlike in previous years. Perimeter players such as Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Stephen Curry became the faces of modern championship teams, and in those instances, their centers were more of a complementary piece than a cornerstone.

2010s: Rise of stretch five and playmaking centers

The low-post functions of the center position continued to dwindle in the 2010s as the NBA embraced small ball and a more perimeter-oriented style of play. While there are still a few centers that play a more traditional style, some centers begin to adapt to the outside game.

Nikola Jokić

The Miami Heat, for example, featured a "positionless" lineup as coined by head coach Erik Spoelstra, with power forwards Chris Bosh and Udonis Haslem shifting between center and power forward depending on matchups. The Heat won two NBA championships in 2012 and 2013 using this unconventional lineup.

The Golden State Warriors then won three championships in 2015, 2017, and 2018 with a smaller and quicker group known as the Death Lineup. In this case, 6'7" forward Draymond Green was often slotted into the center position, creating matchup problems for larger centers with his defensive versatility, speed, ball-handling skills, and perimeter shooting.

The rise of the stretch five paved the way for centers to add outside shooting to their arsenal. While they continue to roam the paint at times, they have also expanded their game to the perimeter with their three-point shots.

Another byproduct of the small ball revolution is the emergence of big men who possess guard-like skills. An example is Nikola Jokić, whose passing ability for a player his size made the Denver Nuggets contenders in the late 2010s and early 2020s, winning their first ever NBA Championship in 2023.

In women's basketball

In women's basketball, 7'0" (2.13 m) Uljana Semjonova played the center position, helping the Soviet Union women's team win two Olympic gold medals, in 1976 and 1980, and never losing a game in international competition. Semjonova also led her club team, TTT Riga to fifteen European Champion's Cup titles. The 6'8" (2.03 m) Anne Donovan led the Old Dominion University Lady Monarchs to the 1979 Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women championship, and was the first female Naismith College Player of the Year recipient in 1983, before enjoying a successful professional career in Japan and Italy.

Margo Dydek

With the formation of the

NCAA Championship in 1995, but never recovered from a torn ACL and had a disappointing professional career. When at the University of Oklahoma, Courtney Paris was considered the next dominant female center after becoming the only NCAA player, male or female, to score 700 points, grab 500 rebounds and block 100 shots in a single season; however, she had a disappointing WNBA career and was waived before what would have been the start of her second season in 2010. The tallest center in the WNBA, the late Margo Dydek of Poland, who stood 7'2", is still the league's career leader in blocks per game (2.72) and total blocks (877), solidly ahead of Leslie in that category despite Dydek having played 40 fewer games before retiring.[10]

See also

  • List of tallest players in National Basketball Association history

References

  1. .
  2. ^ "NBA.com: George Mikan vs. The Knicks". www.nba.com. Archived from the original on 2012-05-28. Retrieved 2007-06-25.
  3. ^ "Boston Sports Review". Archived from the original on 2007-10-09. Retrieved 2007-07-14.
  4. ^ "NBA.com: Wilt Scores 100, Averages 50". Nba.com. Archived from the original on 21 February 2010. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
  5. ^ "Basketball: Lew's Still Loose". Time. 1967-04-14. Archived from the original on March 12, 2007. Retrieved 2010-04-28.
  6. ^ "NBA.com: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Bio". Nba.com. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
  7. ^ "Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
  8. ^ "NBA.com: Artis Gilmore Summary". Nba.com. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
  9. ^ "It Was All A Dream". Nba.com. Archived from the original on 13 December 2006. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
  10. ^ "Statistics: All-time leaders: Blocks". Wnba.com. Retrieved 6 December 2012.

Further reading