For decades now, there have been 5 positions in the NBA: the point guard, shooting guard, small forward, power forward, and centre. However, in the NBA, traditional positions have become outdated and obsolete because players are much more well rounded and have wider skill sets than before. There are 3 main positions in the modern NBA and also some amount of overlap between them: the guard, wing, and big. A guard is generally someone who would traditionally be considered a point guard or a shooting guard. Focusing mostly on shooting, passing, and dribbling, guards are usually shorter, capping out around 6’5, but some guards are bigger. Wings, who are versatile defenders and have a good combination of strength and speed, would usually be a shooting guard or small forward with traditional positions. More skilled than bigs but less so than guards, they focus on scoring and defense. Bigs, including virtually all centres and some power forwards, are great rebounders, tall and strong. Big players don’t dribble much; they usually set screens, roll to the rim, or shoot on offense. Accordingly, some stars have traits from all 3 categories, like Giannis Antetokounmpo, who can dribble and run like a guard but has the size of a big.

Historically, NBA players had more focus on a few specific skills, usually determined by their height. For instance, Oscar Robertson, an NBA MVP, once said, “[Bill] Russell, [Wilt] Chamberlain, Nate Thurmond, those defensive players stayed under the basket” (Herrmann). These big players would primarily stay in the paint, swatting away opposing shots, and shooting close to the rim on offense. In the past, perimeter players had much more difficulty driving to the basket as they dealt with hand-checking, which affected the game. For example, “An NBA rule change in 2004 that outlawed hand-checking above the foul line further weighted the game in favor of the smaller player. It allowed ball handlers, most often guards, to be more aggressive offensively”(Gendelman). Bigs could push through the contact and still score, but smaller players struggled to drive with such physicality. Traditionally, bigger players ruled the game and often decided what team would win a game. To elaborate, “Center – until recently the only position a 7ft tall person would ever play – produced the first nationally recognized legends of the NBA in the 1960s”(Gendelman). It’s shown that big men would control the flow of the game, having the strength and size to score and block, therefore creating a much larger impact than a smaller player. Therefore, we get a sense of how the game used to be played. In general, people had specific skills, usually dictated by their height. Bigs were the heart of a team, and to win, teams needed a good big because guards struggled to drive through stiff hand checking and rough defense

NBA basketball is played very differently today as shooting and adaptability are highly valued. The league is trending toward a faster and more skillful style of basketball, going away from the slow, punishing games of the past. Bigger players are becoming more versatile in how they play. For instance, one writer said, “Turner and Jokic … are their teams’ representatives of a new generation of NBA big men, all roughly 7ft tall, who, to varying degrees of competency, can shoot three-pointers, pass, and dribble”(Gendelman). Instead of using strength and height to score, they are beginning to use shooting and skill, much like a guard. Bigs have gone from large and strong to fast and versatile. In addition, 3 point shots have exploded in popularity. To demonstrate, “In hindsight, the most significant effect was that three-point-shot attempts, which had plateaued for several years prior to the rule change, began to increase. In 2004, the average number of three-point shots attempted by a team was 15 per game. This season it is 27” (Gendelman). More teams are taking 3 point shots because it is better strategically than taking a long 2 point shot. 3 point attempts also open up the court more and having shooters on a team allows other players to dribble toward the hoop. Some teams, like the Houston Rockets, are making systems around only shooting 3 point shots or taking layups. Also, defensive versatility is prized more than being able to defend just one position well because teams now favour “switching” on defense when faced with a screen. For example, “Teams across the league are increasingly relying on experimentation with lineups, strategies, and players to create free-flowing offenses and strong team defensives, a phenomenon reflecting the transition to “positionless basketball” (Datta). Teams are often playing with less traditional positions, meaning defenders who can guard multiple positions well are highly valued. Players like OG Anunoby or Ben Simmons spend nearly equal time guarding each position. These changes show how much the league has evolved in regards to basketball positions. Bigs are gaining skills traditionally reserved for smaller forwards or guards, including 3 point shooting which is now an almost necessary skill, for every position. Lastly, defensive versatility has become much more important, as some players can guard 4 or even 5 different positions.

3 changes are causing a massive difference in how the game of basketball is played. Overall, the most important players are no longer massive bigs, but fast and agile forwards and guards: “One of the greatest changes seen over the last decade is the successful rise of “small ball,” and the deviation from big men consistently stationed under the post. Small ball is played by teams who sacrifice player size and low post emphasis to instead utilize smaller, agile outside scorers. Small ball teams build around a strong forward, such as LeBron James, Kevin Durant or Carmelo Anthony, who are then surrounded by players who can fluidly switch between positions” (Grant). This illustrates the move toward star guards and wings, away from massive centres anchoring the post. For instance, the Golden State Warriors had a core of Steph Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green. These 4 stars all played with speed around the perimeter. Many teams are focusing their offense on a few stars who run the show. For example, a 50s-60s star like Bob Cousy usually made under 30% of his team's passes. Now players like Giannis Antetokounmpo or James Harden make over 40% of their teams’ passes. This illustrates the popular concept of heliocentricity, where teams choose to run offense through one player rather than spreading the ball around. By doing this, teams simplify their offense and can choose very specialized players rather than having to get people who can do more skills. Teams are putting more emphasis on analytics when making decisions. For instance, “NBA commissioner Adam Silver said teams now have players wear monitors not only during games but during practice to measure, in part, performance and fatigue. They even have saliva sampled as it contains indicators of fatigue. Teams track and quantify a player’s diet” (How NBA Analytics is Changing Basketball). This demonstrates the importance of quantifying many different parameters when dealing with NBA teams. Teams record and compare many different statistics because they can help decide what players are valuable and how a team can become better. First, players are prioritizing speed and agility over strength. Second, a growing number of teams choose to play through one star instead of sharing the ball. Third, analytics often decide how a team makes decisions. These innovations are making a great impact on NBA basketball.

In the modern NBA, the five traditional basketball positions are outdated and no longer provide valuable descriptions of the strengths and weaknesses of a certain player. In the past, the NBA was very different from what it is now. Tall, strong players ruled the league, as hand checking often hurt the ability of smaller players to drive to the basket. Because of this dominance, there was never a need to diversify players’ skill sets, and most players focus on just a few abilities. However, these concepts are no longer true. Larger players are now forced to gain new skills, as their inside scoring is no longer as valued as it was before. This is because of the rise of 3 point shooting. Teams now prioritize players who can guard multiple positions, as it provides for more defensive versatility. There are also 3 main changes to the game. Smaller players are starring in their teams’ offenses, over bigger centres. A star player usually dictates a team’s playstyle, rather than sharing the ball, and teams use analytics and math to make decisions. These changes are important because by better understanding what has changed in the game, we can see what teams and players should improve for the future. Teams often study videos of past games, and likewise, it is important to view the innovations and differences in the NBA as a whole.

Works Cited

Datta, Vivek. “Evolution of the NBA: Sports Analytics Group at Berkeley.” Evolution of the NBA | Sports Analytics Group at Berkeley, sportsanalytics.berkeley.edu/articles/nba-evolution.html.

Gendelman, David. “Size Matters: the Evolution of the NBA Big Man.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 12 Jan. 2017, www.theguardian.com/sport/2017/jan/12/nba-big-man-evolution-basketball.

Herrmann, Mark. “Herrmann: Modern Basketball Is Well-Guarded.” Newsday, Newsday, 1 Apr. 2018, www.newsday.com/sports/columnists/mark-herrmann/modern-basketball-is-well-guarded-1.17789745.

“How NBA Analytics Is Changing Basketball: Merrimack College.” Merrimack College Data Science Degrees, 25 June 2020, onlinedsa.merrimack.edu/nba-analytics-changing-basketball/.

Banner image taken by Niamat Ullah