foreword
When it comes to the most famous draft in NBA history, it is bound to have the title of "Platinum Generation 03". Since 1996, their success rate and star cap have been the highest, among which James, Wade, Bosh and Anthony are undoubtedly the core players. Because of the existence of these four players, whenever the draft is mentioned in the future, we can think of the grand occasion of 2003.
Before the draft, these four players were well-known athletes in the United States, so even Bosh and Wade, who were slightly lower, ranked fourth and fifth, not to mention James and Anthony, who had been locked in the top three since high school. Now, among the four players, only James is still playing in the league, and the other three players have chosen to retire and enjoy retirement. Looking back on their respective careers, have they surpassed the draft template set for them by the outside world?
James (template: Magic Johnson)
As the youngest player among the four, James entered the NBA without playing NCAA after graduating from high school. The reason is that his performance in high school is completely different from that of other players. Other players may need to experience it in college, but at that time James already had the level of NBA. At that time, James’s playing style also reminded the outside world of Magic Johnson. As a striker, James’s passing ability far exceeds that of any player in the same position, and this advantage is even more obvious than his physical fitness.
To know what kind of star the magician is, he entered the league in the year when James was born, and he led the Lakers to win the championship and was successfully elected as FMVP in his rookie season. During his 13-year career, he helped the Lakers win five championships in total, among which he was the best player in the finals three times. The magician’s career would have been more brilliant if he hadn’t been injured in the back, which shows that the expectations of the outside world for James are very high, and they hope that James will become the facade of the next generation of the league.
However, James has obviously adapted to this pressure, so since he entered the league, James has quickly made a name for himself. Now James has been in the league for 20 seasons, during which he has played for Cavaliers, Heat and Lakers respectively, and James has won FMVP in these three different teams, during which he has also won MVP four times. In addition, all kinds of historical records set by James are countless. It can be said that except for the organization, James is slightly inferior to the magician, and he has already surpassed his own template in other aspects. If you look at the historical position, James is now sitting on the sidelines, and only Jordan is left in front of him.
Wade (template: Byron Davis)
Compared with James, Wade is the oldest of the four of them. He was 21 years old when he entered the league. Because he has been in the NCAA for many years, Wei Debi’s other rookies are more mature in technology, and he also has strong physical fitness. Even compared with some strikers, Wade’s physical talent does not fall behind.
At that time, in the selection of scouts, Wade’s draft template was unanimously considered as Byron Davis, the first bearded man, but Davis had just played in the league for four seasons. Before Wade entered the league, Davis’ strongest season averaged 18.1 points, 4.3 rebounds, 8.5 assists and 2.1 steals. After Wade entered the league, Davis also slowly entered his peak period. In 2003-2004, he averaged 22.9 points, 4.3 rebounds and 7.5 assists per game, but the highlight of Davis’ career was to lead the Warriors in the first round of the playoffs in 2007.
Although Davis is also excellent, if compared with Wade, his career will obviously be much faster. In the season before his Black Eight Mavericks, Wade in the third grade successfully led the Heat to win the championship, which Davis has never achieved in his whole career. Later, Wade won a total of three championships, and all kinds of honors such as the best lineup and all-star were also soft. It can be said that the two are not a level star.
Anthony (template: different opinions)
At that time, the only person in the United States who could compete with James for the top prize was Anthony. Although he was one year older than James, they had played against each other in high school before, and they played equally. After entering the university, Anthony successfully led Syracuse University to win the national championship in his freshman year. Judging from his strength at that time, he didn’t need any running-in like James, and he could play directly after entering the NBA.
At that time, some people thought that Anthony’s template should be Gwen the Iceman, while others thought that his template should be Marshburn and Chris Webber. However, these players are all famous All-Stars in the league, so the expectations of Anthony are also very high. After entering the league, Anthony did not live up to the trust of the outside world. In the rookie season, he became a scorer who averaged 20+ per game. It is reasonable to say that his performance that year was fully qualified to share the best rookie of that season with James.
Because Anthony is the most unruly of the four, he played everything according to his own ideas. Similarly, Anthony didn’t consider the future at all. In 2010, James and Wade recruited him to win a championship, but in the end, in order to make money, Anthony chose the Knicks in new york. Although Anthony has played an outstanding career and won a big contract, he lost that strength when he wanted to win the championship in the later stage of his career. He also wandered for the championship, but unfortunately he didn’t get what he wanted until the end. However, it seems that he is relieved that he chose to retire this year because of the obvious oil.
Bosh (template: Kevin Garnett)
When Bosh entered the league that year, his draft template was considered as one of the best power forwards in history, Kevin Garnett. Before 2003, although Garnett had never won the MVP and the championship, he had been selected as the best player and the best defender for many times. Compared with most inside players, Garnett’s playing style is more comprehensive.
In Bosh’s first season in the league, Garnett successfully won the first MVP of his career, which made Bosh’s "pressure" even greater. Under the training of the Raptors, Bosh’s performance is getting better and better, but as Bosh played in the league for longer and longer, people found that his playing style was completely different from Garnett’s, especially on the defensive end, Bosh did not have Garnett’s dominance at all.
Before joining the Heat, Bosh was only selected as the best second team once, and people gradually realized that he might not be able to surpass Garnett. In 2010, Bosh joined the Heat under the recruitment of Wade, and this decision also brought him two championship rings, but he was also the player who sacrificed the ball the most among the Big Three. Later in his career, Bosh suffered a serious heart injury. Because of this injury, he was forced to leave the NBA early. Finally, he retired after playing in the NBA for 13 seasons, when he was only 31 years old.