Recently retired Shaquille O’Neal once called himself the ‘last center left’ (LCL). After coming up and earning his stripes playing alongside legends of the game like Hakeem Olajuwon and David Robinson in the 1990’s, Shaquille O’Neal dominated the NBA for almost his entire career. If Shaq was indeed the ‘last center left,’ what other players were among the greatest centers of the 2000’s (1999-2009)?
1. Shaquille O’Neal
Drafted: 1992
Career
| 23.7 ppg | 10.9 rpg | 2.3 bpg | 52.7%FG |
Playoffs
| 24.3 ppg | 11.6 rpg | 2.1 bpg | 56.3%FG |
It’s almost too easy to overlook just how dominant Shaq was during the ’00-’02 NBA Finals.
2000 Finals
| 38.0 ppg | 16.7 rpg | 2.7 bpg |
2001 Finals
| 33.0 | 15.8 rpg | 3.4 bpg | 4.8 apg |
2002 Finals
| 36.3 ppg | 12.3 rpg | 2.7 bpg | 3.8 apg |
Awards
- 4 NBA Titles
- 2000 MVP
- 2000, 2004, and 2009 All-star MVP’s
- 2000, 2001, and 2002 Finals MVP’s
- ROY
- 9x All-star
- 7x 1st team All-NBA
The Shaqtacular
- 9x playoffs
- 7x leader in FG% in 2000’s
- 1x led league in scoring 1999-2000 (also in 94-95)
- #1 PER (Player Efficiency Rating) in league from ’98-‘02
- From ’93-’03, he was among the top scorers and rebounders in the NBA
- 4x shot over 60% FG, something even Wilt did not accomplish.
O’Neal was, in my eyes, the undisputed best player in the game—particularly in the playoffs and Finals—for 3 straight years, ’00-’02. Although I would agree that by the time the Lakers reached the end of the second year of their three-peat, they had two legitimate leaders in Shaq and Kobe Bryant. In this stretch the Big Stock Exchange put up monstrous numbers while leading the Los Angeles Lakers to their first ever three-peat. Shaq was unreal. Between the 2000 and 2001 playoffs, Shaq averaged over 30 points and 15 rebounds a game. It’s probably unfair for Shaq to call out all other centers, though, with a comment like ‘I’m the last center left’ because Shaq was so physically gifted. We had not seen a player so physically dominant since Wilt Chamberlain, which is why, of course, it made sense for Shaq to call himself ‘Wilt Chamber-neezy.’
Shaq’s near quadruple-double in the Finals
2. Dwight Howard
Drafted: 2004
Career
| 18.2 ppg | 12.9 rpg | 2.2 bpg | 1.0 spg | 57.8%FG |
Playoffs
| 19.9 ppg | 14.4 rpg | 2.77 bpg | 60%FG |
Awards and Accomplishments
- 2009 NBA Finals
- Has not averaged less than 13.2 rpg in 4 seasons
- Averaged more than 2.0 blocks per game in the last 4 seasons
- 3x playoffs (5 career)
- 3x All-star
- 1 Defensive Player of the Year (‘09), but he’s gotten 2 more since then and 3 straight DPY awards (‘09-‘11)
- Led the NBA in total rebounds for 5 straight yrs (4 in the decade), in which time he’s also had the highest Defensive Rating (‘09-‘11)
Howard has become the most physically dominant big man in the NBA. As his post game continues to evolve, Howard continues his great all-around play. Among NBA centers, I think Howard is most fit to take the mantel from Shaq, not only as a dominant center, but also as a gentle giant that fans adore.
3. Amar’e Stoudemire
Drafted: 2002
Career
| 21.9 ppg | 8.8 rpg | 1.5 bpg | 53.7%FG |
Playoffs
| 23.5 ppg | 9.1 rpg | 1.7 bpg | 51.4%FG |
Awards and Accomplishments
- 6x playoffs
- 4x All-star
- ROY ‘02-‘03
I almost looked back at Stoudemire as a power forward, like he’s playing for the New York Knicks, but then I thought about Coach Mike D’Antoni’s run-and-gun offense. In fact, Stoudemire played mostly center for the Suns, aside from a couple seasons where Jake Voskuhl did and one season that Shaquille O’Neal played center.
4. Yao Ming
Drafted: 2002
Career
| 19.0 ppg | 9.2 rpg | 1.9 bpg | 83.3%FT | 52.4%FG |
Playoffs
| 19.8 ppg | 9.3 rpg |
Accomplishments
- Averaged 19.7 ppg or more 4 straight years ‘06-‘09
- 4x playoffs
- 7x All-star
I hope Yao Ming’s career is ‘to be continued,’ but only time will tell. And I haven’t seen anything that looks promising. Either way, Ming lasted as long or longer than most players over 7’3 ever have. His shooting, especially his outside shooting, was something we’ve never seen from a player his size.
5. Ben Wallace
Debut (Undrafted): 1996
Career
| 6.0 ppg | 10.0 rpg | 2.0 bpg | 1.3 spg |
Awards and Accomplishments
- 2004 NBA Title
- 4x All-star
- 3x league leader in Defensive Rating (‘02-’04)
- 2x league leader in rebounds and rpg
- 5x 1st team All-NBA Defensive Team
- 4x Defensive Player of the Year (‘02-’06)
- Averaged over 10.7 rpg and 2.0 bpg for 7 consecutive seasons (’01-’07)
- Averaged a career high 15.4 rpg in ‘03
- Averaged a career high 3.5 bpg in ‘02
- In 8 playoff runs, Wallace averaged 11.2 rpg
6. Marcus Camby
Drafted: 1996
Career
| 10.0 ppg | 10.0 rpg | 2.5 bpg |
Awards and Accomplishments
- NBA Finals (1999)
- 2006-2007 Defensive Player of the Year
- 7x playoffs
- 4x league leader in blocks per game
- 2x All-NBA Defensive Team
- 3x league leader in blocks
- Top 10 in Defensive Rating throughout decade
- Averaged over 10 rpg his last 8 seasons
- Averaged over 3 bpg 4 consecutive seasons
7. Vlade Divac
Drafted: 1989
Best Year with the Sacramento Kings
| 14.3 ppg | 10.0 rpg | 4.3 apg |
Playoffs
| 12.0 ppg | 7.5 rpg | 2.4 apg |
Awards and Accomplishments
- 2002 Western Conference Finals
- 2001 All-star
- played for the Sacramento Kings 2000-2004
- 5x playoffs in 2000’s (14 career)
- (1991 Finals with Lakers)
Although certainly Vlade Divac had a more sustained impact in the 1990’s, he was a key element of those successful Sacramento Kings of the early 2000’s.
8. Zydrunas Ilgauskas
Drafted: 1996
Career
| 13.0 ppg | 7.3 rpg | 1.6 bpg |
Accomplishments
- ‘03-‘06, over 15.3 ppg (4 seasons)
- 4x playoffs
- 2007 Finals
- 2006, 2008 East Semi-Finals
- 2009 Conference Finals
- 2x All-star
After some foot problems early in his career, Big “Z” finally got healthy for the 2002-2003 season.
9. Brad Miller
Debut: 1999
Career
| 11.4 ppg | 7.2 rpg | 80.4%FT | 32.6% 3’s |
- played for the Sacramento Kings 2004-2009
- 7x playoffs
- 2x All-star
10 Chris Kaman
Drafted: 2003
Career
| 11.8 ppg | 8.3 rpg | 1.4 bpg |
Playoffs
| 10.7 ppg | 8.0 rpg | 2005-2006 |
2008
| 15.7 ppg | 12.7 rpg | 2.8 bpg |
Accomplishment
- (All star in 2010)
So, was Shaq right? Was he the last center left? Are any of the up-and-coming centers true centers?
