Best of the aged

A lot of people are saying that Michael Jordan had the best year ever for a 40 year old NBA player, and I guess I gotta agree with that. Look at these numbers: .483 from the field, .363 from three point range, .826 from the stripe, 7.7 assists and 1.7 steals per game in a mere 27.7 minutes…

Oh, sorry. That’s John Stockton at 40. OK, OK.

Shooting .462 from the field, with 7.8 rebounds per game, 4.7 assists, and 20.6 points per game, it’s… damn it. Karl Malone.

Jordan, bless his indecisive little heart, shot .445 from the field, .291 from three point range, .821 from the stripe, had 6.1 rebounds per game, 3.8 assists per game, and 1.5 steals per game. An even 20 points per game, too.

If I’m choosing up teams, I think Malone has it by a whisker or two. He won’t hit as many three pointers for you, but the rest of his game is clearly better. Malone doesn’t actually turn 40 until July 24th, but there’s no reason to think he couldn’t turn in about the same numbers next year; the guy keeps in shape.

The Stockton/Jordan choice is more difficult, because they fulfill such different roles. Still, Stockton is a better shooter despite playing the position that doesn’t demand good shooting, and 7.7 assists per game! At his age! In fairly limited minutes! Insane skills. I think in general you want to fill the PG slot before the SG slot, too, so I pick Stockton over Jordan. And Stockton is a legitimate 40, so there you go.