The NBA All-Decade Team

The decade has seen its share of stars, and the game has changed since the last decade. Talented big men have almost become extinct, and the influence of international players has grown which has resulted in the league becoming more diverse.

My criteria for picking the all decade teams was simple—just pick the five guys I thought accomplished the most this decade based on their overall body of work, which is why you won’t see younger guys like Chris Paul or Deron Williams, those are the players of the next decade.

First team

PG: Steve Nash gets the starting point guard spot. All the positions were easy to pick except point guard, as it came down to Steve Nash and Jason Kidd. Kidd has led his team to two finals appearances to Nash’s zero. Kidd also has the edge in all star appearances. Kidd is a much better defender even at this point in his career, and Kidd was the starter over Nash back when both played in Phoenix.

However I would give the edge to Nash. Although Nash’s teams never made the finals, they were better teams than Jason Kidd’s Nets. The two years that Kidd’s Nets made the finals despite never topping 52 wins, plus they had the benefit of a very watered down Eastern Conference in which Nash’s great Suns teams would’ve certainly made the finals.

Nash turned around a 29-win Suns team into an NBA best 62-win team, which led to his first MVP award. The next year the Suns, led by Nash and without their star forward Amare Stoudemire, won 54 games which is still better than Kidd’s Nets' teams when they made the finals. Nash ended up winning the MVP that year becoming the only point guard not named Magic to win the MVP in back to back years.

SG: Hands down, the starting shooting guard spot goes to Kobe Bryant. Kobe may be the closest thing we have to Jordan since Jordan retired and may be the closest thing to Jordan we’ll ever see. For the decade Kobe has four rings, including one without Shaq as he reinvented himself as the true top dog of the Lakers. Kobe has made the all star team every year this decade, including winning the all star game MVP three times. He won the MVP in '07-'08 and has earned the reputation for being one of the hardest workers the game has ever seen and a true winner.

SF: LeBron James has been the greatest small forward this decade. LeBron came in to the league in 2003 as the first overall pick and was hyped to be the next greatest thing, and he has not disappointed despite the high expectations. He led his team to the NBA finals in his fourth year and won his first MVP of many last season. The scary part is that James is only 25 and is a lock to be the player of the next decade as well.

PF: Tim Duncan may go down as the greatest power forward to ever play the game. Over the decade, despite being slightly overlooked Duncan is a three time champion this decade, a two time MVP, and the leader of the Spurs. The Spurs have never missed the playoffs since Duncan’s arrival to the NBA. Duncan was excellent at defending the pick and roll; he was a great shot blocker, an excellent passer out of the post, and can forget the sweetest bank shot in the game.

C: Shaquille O’Neal in his prime was the most dominant player in the NBA today. A primed Shaq demanded a double team immediately and a triple team sometimes. Teams even played Shaq like they used to play Wilt Chamberlain, constantly fouling him due to his power down low in the post. Shaq won three titles with the Lakers to start off the decade, won another with Dwayne Wade in Miami in 2006, and is seeking another title with LeBron James in Cleveland. Despite playing with the three best perimeter players in the game, Shaq was an unstoppable presence and will go down on as one of the greatest centers to ever play the game.

Second team

PG: Jason Kidd took a Nets team that was the laughing stock of the NBA and turned them around taking them to back to back NBA finals appearances. Kidd established himself as a great defensive point guard and a consistent threat for a triple double. Kidd won 50 games with every franchise he played with this decade. Kidd came just shy of an MVP but no doubt will go down as a top 10 point guard of all time.

SG: Dwayne Wade gets the edge over Allen Iverson due to the fact that Wade has a ring. This was another tough decision, but Wade has been the most productive player drafted this decade not named LeBron James.

At 6'4'', Wade slipped to the No. 5 pick in the 2003 NBA draft and has exceeded expectations. If it weren’t for LeBron James, Wade would be the best player in the 2003 draft class; however, Wade is the best non-first overall draft pick this decade. Fearlessly attacking the basket, Wade has established himself as one of the top scorers of the decade averaging 25 points. Wade will turn 28 in January, which perhaps means that his best numbers have yet to come.

SF: Paul Pierce led his team to the '04 Eastern Conference finals despite being a young 24-year-old. In the '07-'08 season, Pierce got his help as Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen both joined the team, despite Kevin Garnett being the leader Pierce was the finals MVP. Pierce has been the face of the Boston Celtics since his arrival to the league, and now that he has a championship, Pierce solidified himself as a future hall of famer.

PF: Dirk Nowitzki will go down as the greatest international player to ever play in the NBA. It is still hard to believe that the '07 MVP winner was acquired by the Mavs through a draft night trade in which Nowitzki was traded for Robert Tractor Traylor. Since then, Dirk has been a match-up nightmare due to his size and long three point range. Dirk paved the way for many of the European big men. While Dirk lacks a ring, he was a Dwayne Wade miraculous performance away from doing so. We may never see an international player as good as Nowitzki.

C: Although Kevin Garnett plays the power forward position, he is seven feet, and no big man that I haven’t listed already comes close to his body of work. Yao Ming is a center, but he hasn’t been healthy enough to be the center for the second team. Despite winning the 2004 MVP, Garnett was known as the guy who couldn’t lead his team to a championship. He was traded to Boston, and in his first year became the leader of a championship team. Garnett is one of the greatest defenders of this era and may go down as the second best power forward to play the game.

Third team

PG: Although he started the decade with the Timberwolves, Chauncey Billups has become one of the most clutch shooters in the NBA, earning the name Mr. Big Shot. However, before playing in Detroit Billups was known more as a journeyman player who couldn’t play the point guard position due to his shoot first pass second mentality.

With Detroit Billups quickly became a fan favorite, he quickly changed his reputation of being a shoot-first guard to a true floor general who was a lockdown defender and a clutch shooter. Billups was the Finals MVP when the Pistons beat the Lakers and is probably the best player on the great Pistons teams. He turned around a young Denver Nuggets team into a true contender in the Western Conference.

SG: Allen Iverson redefined the way the game was played.  At 6'1'' he may be the toughest player to ever play the game pound for pound. Led the 2001 Sixers to a finals run, had a 48 point explosion which gave the 2001 Lakers their only loss of that postseason, and earned the MVP that season. While he may be ending the decade on somewhat of a down note, Allen Iverson was a great player who turned around a franchise that prior to Iverson had yet to recover from the Charles Barkley trade.

SF: Tracy McGrady may be also ending this decade on a down note, but when healthy McGrady was one of the game’s best scorers. For the first half of this decade, McGrady never averaged below 25 points per game. Despite his shortcomings in playoff series and his injuries, McGrady earns a spot as a third teamer due to his excellent first half to the decade.

PF: While Carmelo Anthony plays majority of his minutes at the small forward position, I could not keep him off this list. Anthony may be the toughest player to guard in the NBA today. Anthony has never missed the playoffs in the tough Western Conference; he won a gold medal with the Olympic team, and as a 19-year-old rookie, Anthony improved the Denver Nuggets win total by 26 games. Like LeBron James, Anthony is 25 and still maturing. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see Anthony’s name on next decade’s team, as next decade may be his better decade.

C: Despite injuries, when healthy Yao Ming is one of the most productive big men in the NBA. Drafted first overall in 2002, Yao has averaged 19-9 for his career and is one of three players to average 20-10 for the past three seasons. When healthy, Yao is a force in the post as he posses great post moves, a feathery touch around the basket, and a smooth jump shot. Yao also shoots at a 86 percent clip from the line leading all centers. There’s no doubt when healthy Yao is one of the best big men to ever play the game.