Basketball fans under 30 are the prominent voice on social media. Many partook in the ‘We Done with the 90s‘ trend, which downplayed the skill and talent of players in the 1990s and prior. This unsurprisingly irked analysts, former players, and fans who witnessed that era. Most took up arms, in this case, their keyboards, to defend their era, including Hall of Famer Isiah Thomas.
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The Pistons icon came across an X post that quoted retired NBA star Lou Williams saying, “Drop LeBron James in 1975 and he’d win 15 straight championships.” The former Clippers star made that remark in 2019 during an appearance on the No Chill Podcast. He claimed that the NBA changes massively every decade. Any star would dominate if they could time travel 10 years back from when their career began.
He then stated that James’ size and athletic ability would automatically make him the best player in the 1970s. However, Thomas felt the statement was too reductive. He scoffed at Williams’ take and wrote,
“I find it comical and laughable how some not all people think this is the first generation of basketball players that athletically could run and jump. I’m not sure he would be the best athlete in 1975 all things being equal.”
I find it comical and laughable how some not all people think this is the first generation of basketball players that athletically could run and jump. I'm not sure he would be the best athlete in 1975
all things being equal. https://t.co/U9vsBfoHG8— Isiah Thomas (@IsiahThomas) July 25, 2024
He didn’t deny that James would be the most skilled player in the 1970s. However, he disagreed that players in that decade weren’t athletic or physically gifted. Thomas has never shied away from defending the era he played in and the one he grew up watching.
Isiah Thomas defends 20th-century basketball
After his verbal tirade about Williams’ comment, the Hall of Famer scrolled through the replies to his post to hunt for fans who agreed with him. He shared replies that had photos of players from the 1970s like Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar showing their otherwordly athleticism.
Great photos of unbelievable athleticism https://t.co/wZ4JiXe3tt
— Isiah Thomas (@IsiahThomas) July 25, 2024
The Pistons icon doesn’t only believe that stars in the 20th century were as athletic as the stars of today, he even claimed that the greats from yesteryears struck more fear in the hearts of their opponents than the biggest names today do. During an appearance on the Point Forward podcast, he used Larry Bird as an example to explain his point. He said,
“Like every time Larry Bird caught the basketball, it’s like, ‘Oh, sh*t!’ He didn’t do nothing but we was like ‘Oh, he got it! He got the basketball’ And the type of fear that puts into you and then that type of fear makes you do something stupid defensively.”
Every fan believes the era they grew up watching was competitive. Only a handful can enjoy each era for what it was rather than indulge in superfluous debates on social media. However, as Thomas proved, even a Hall of Famer isn’t above getting sucked into arguments with no conclusions.
