Cooper would give Steph fits on the ball in 87 rules. Off the ball, Steph running around like crazy would help except that he'd end up on the floor trying to run through screens.

and like monk said, give him a few games to figure it out & Steph would be fine... but that first couple you'd see some serious turnovers & 2/13 ****.

Current rules, Cooper would still be tough on the ball buuuuut Steph becomes Steph again.

Steph can get it off before Cooper can even get to him. If he tries picking him up full court he could go for the outlet pass if he needed to, otherwise he's playing against four defenders and can get his shot off at 40 feet anyway. If he goes right at Steph, dish right to the corners and let him cut off ball where he's just as dangerous anyway. No one can handle that much space, and 90's teams certainly couldn't keep up with the scoring. This is where we find ourselves.

we said 1987 rules, Steph is on ground a lot (watch Last Dance if you have time, I'm thoroughly enjoying it)

Steph would have to put on some weight too. He'd have his career cut short by injuries (ala Penny Hardaway) if he went inside with that frame.
Gary Payton said John Stockton was the hardest player he ever defended. (no kidding, watch the video)

Perhaps we should clarify what we mean by 1987 rules. Because I think when people say 1987 rules what they really mean is, like, 1996 rules. I think the biggest issue for Steph would be the way that double dribbles/carrying were called; that's slowly evolved over the course of the game. But the way defense was played in the 1980s would not have been a real problem for Steph, except maybe against the Pistons. For some reason (I think mainly because of the Bad Boys) people remember 1980s basketball as really physical and grinding, with constant hand-checking. It really wasn't - in fact it was a free-flowing, high scoring era, comparable to what the NBA has become in the last couple years in terms of pace and scoring - and you can see that if you watch old 80s games on Youtube. There is not nearly as much physical contact as you might think - guys were not routinely getting laid out on screens and in the paint or anything. Steph might have taken more fouls from sheer frustration, some of them physical - there were more fouls called in the 80s than today - but other than the risk of a cheap shot injuring him I really don't think it would have been that difficult. It wasn't until the mid 90s or so that the NBA really leaned into a more grinding, physical style with more contact on ballhandlers.

Look, I love Steph but he would’ve been an infant back then and wouldn’t have stood a chance against a grown man.

well, there's that but I dont think that's what we're arguing about

haha steph would make those defenders in the 80s cry...."i actually have to go past the elbow to play defense?...what is this madness!"....then after he hits a 30 footer - "thats it i quit"

i love how people mistake lack of spacing for "physicality"...it looks more physical when you have 6 to 8 bodies packed in the paint...harden probably weighs more than most of the forwards in the 80s...its a joke to think that todays players couldnt handle the "physicality" of the 80s

Posted by dh555 on 6/3/2020 6:17:00 PM (view original):
haha steph would make those defenders in the 80s cry...."i actually have to go past the elbow to play defense?...what is this madness!"....then after he hits a 30 footer - "thats it i quit"

i love how people mistake lack of spacing for "physicality"...it looks more physical when you have 6 to 8 bodies packed in the paint...harden probably weighs more than most of the forwards in the 80s...its a joke to think that todays players couldnt handle the "physicality" of the 80s

I can’t think of anything I agree with more.

Posted by dBKC on 6/3/2020 6:14:00 PM (view original):
Look, I love Steph but he would’ve been an infant back then and wouldn’t have stood a chance against a grown man.

NM. I found it.

Posted by copernicus on 6/3/2020 5:52:00 PM (view original):
how many people have won DPOY coming off the bench? I'll give you a hint....

I have no clue what in the hell starting or coming off the bench has to do with anything.

ive watched a ton of 80s games while the nba has been off...they played noooo defense...and i was watching playoff games!

Posted by tarheel1991 on 6/3/2020 6:05:00 PM (view original):
Perhaps we should clarify what we mean by 1987 rules. Because I think when people say 1987 rules what they really mean is, like, 1996 rules. I think the biggest issue for Steph would be the way that double dribbles/carrying were called; that's slowly evolved over the course of the game. But the way defense was played in the 1980s would not have been a real problem for Steph, except maybe against the Pistons. For some reason (I think mainly because of the Bad Boys) people remember 1980s basketball as really physical and grinding, with constant hand-checking. It really wasn't - in fact it was a free-flowing, high scoring era, comparable to what the NBA has become in the last couple years in terms of pace and scoring - and you can see that if you watch old 80s games on Youtube. There is not nearly as much physical contact as you might think - guys were not routinely getting laid out on screens and in the paint or anything. Steph might have taken more fouls from sheer frustration, some of them physical - there were more fouls called in the 80s than today - but other than the risk of a cheap shot injuring him I really don't think it would have been that difficult. It wasn't until the mid 90s or so that the NBA really leaned into a more grinding, physical style with more contact on ballhandlers.

Anytime someone tries to convince me how good the defense was in the 80s, which I was alive for and watched, I remember that Kelly Tripucka scored over 20 points per game in that era (26.5 once) and then laugh off the argument. Defense now is significantly more complex and sophisticated.

Posted by dh555 on 6/3/2020 6:17:00 PM (view original):
haha steph would make those defenders in the 80s cry...."i actually have to go past the elbow to play defense?...what is this madness!"....then after he hits a 30 footer - "thats it i quit"

i love how people mistake lack of spacing for "physicality"...it looks more physical when you have 6 to 8 bodies packed in the paint...harden probably weighs more than most of the forwards in the 80s...its a joke to think that todays players couldnt handle the "physicality" of the 80s

This is correct and true.

My whole thing is if you have the green light from half court 1987 rules don’t really matter because as long as you’re past half court you can just shoot. This does matter if you’re Draymond or Damion Lee but not Steph