Timberwolves

MOLESKY: The Senior Squad

The talk of the NBA over the past couple of weeks has been on the youth in the league. Whether you talking about Kyrie Irving hitting the prime of his career or teams keeping young up-and-coming stars instead of trading for established talent, youth is on the minds of basketball fans.

But it is also important to remember the studs who have kept it going past the normal prime, and still make an impact on teams well into their 30’s. Here is the 30-plus starting five, position by position. It is important to note everyone on this team is overĀ 30, which means players right at 30 (Kyle Lowry, George Hill, etc.) will be excluded.

Players are listed with their season averages from a season ago.

Center – Marc Gasol (32): 19.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.6 assists

For any center to transition his offensive game to the perimeter is impressive. For a player at Gasol’s age, it is exceptional. He averaged 19.5 points per game, the highest season average of his career, because he hit 38 percent from downtown. It was also the first time in his career he attempted triple-digit 3-pointers, trying 268 deep shots over the season. As a centerpiece (pun intended) of the Memphis defense, Gasol has transitioned nicely into the Grizzlies offense, which has been trying to move towards more floor spacing. He is the perfect center for the 30-plus squad.

Power forward – Paul Millsap (32): 18.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, 3.7 assists

Over the last four years, Millsap’s consistent offense has been the backbone for the Atlanta Hawks, as he’s averaged 17, 16, 17 and 18 points per game. He is also incredibly flexible, playing on a stacked Hawks team with Kyle Korver, DeMarre Carroll, Al Horford and Jeff Teague and still managing to grab points inside and around the paint. When the team started to fall apart in free agency, he hit more and more shots from outside as the offense needed more slack picked up from deep. He is physical enough to play inside, yet fast enough to hurt a defense in transition — perfect as the big flex wing.

Small forward – LeBron James (32): 26.4 points, 8.6 rebounds, 8.7 assists

The best at extending his prime in the league — perhaps ever — is James, who swims in the fountain of youth year after year. He has never dropped below a 25-point average since he averaged 20 points per game his rookie season, and has shot below 50 percent only once through a season in the last eight years. In last year’s Finals — his seventh consecutive trip — he set a record as the first player to record a triple double in the NBA Finals (33.6 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists) despite passing the 30-year mark. He’s by far and away the best player over 30, not to mention still holding his spot as the best player in the world.

Shooting guard – J.J. Reddick (33): 15 points, 2.2 rebounds, 1.4 assists

The Duke sniper is a deadly asset from outside and is a great spot-up shooter to have sit on the perimeter. Last season, he hit 42 percent of his 3-pointers, ranking him in the top-six in the league and in a game that rests heavily on the ability to hurt a team via transition offense, the pull-up sharp-shooter is a valuable asset. Reddick’s accuracy through the years also keeps him ahead of other players like J.R. Smith.

Point guard – Chris Paul (31): 18.1 points, 5 rebounds, 9.2 assists

The benefit of having Paul on the floor is his exceptional two-way talent. On offense, he controls the tempo of the game and makes the pass that puts his team mates in the best position to score, while continually hurting the defense driving to the basket, despite his age. On defense, he is a relentless, man-to-man defender who sticks to his assignment and pesters the opposition into making sloppy plays. At 31, he is still a top-level point guard with an ageless crossover.


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