When I was growing up a point guard was someone who makes his teammates better, you know? He takes 8 shots and makes 5. You know what I mean? Whereas nowadays we realize, why would we take the ball out of the point guards hands if he’s causing the defense this many problems? So, I think this is the nature of the game. If I played today, obviously I would have been influenced by those that came before me, and influenced by what the trends are. So, I would have been slightly different, but at the same time, I don’t want to giveaway what made me unique, and that was–a little bit like Jason Kidd–we used to get the ball and not be afraid to throw it ahead, to push, to create early opportunities for our teammates, to probe, to try to control the game with our vision and tempo, and without having to score necessarily. That was a different time, and there aren’t as many guys like that per se. But it’s not a judgement, its because the trends, the circumstance and the context of the way the game is played today is different.
Reference: Pull Up Podcast with CJ McCollum
Film study: Best of Steve Nash and Jason Kidd Assists
How to: Shaka Smart on teaching your players to be true point guards
