Players love to picture themselves in other eras. Players believe different rules would make their games bigger. Some point to hand-checking, others to pace and space. It’s something that comes up often around the NBA.
Ralph Sampson is one who recently chimed in on the era discussion. He’s watched how the league evolves and what it does to players like him. In his era, Sampson got four All-Star selections, won Rookie of the Year, and made the All-NBA Second Team. If not for injuries, we’re probably talking about a much bigger career.
Now Sampson, though still appreciated, is most often cited as a comparison in NBA conversations. In today’s game, his name comes up when people talk about Victor Wembanyama and other lengthy bigs. For Sampson, it reinforces the belief that he’d excel even more in today’s game. He’s gone as far as to say he could put up 30 points and 20 rebounds per game.
“I could have played in this era for sure and I would probably dominate the game more than I dominated the game in the past. 30 and 20. Easy. They say I’m Wemby, the first, he’s Wemby, the second. But I’m Ralph the first, he’s Ralph the second. I could post-up, I could dribble, and I could shoot outside. We didn’t shoot many 3s when I played, but I’m sure my mindset would’ve been really tough to play and would’ve been at an elite level of the game.”
