Leader of great talent, Tony Parker has achieved real madness on the floors of the league. However, a Hall of Famer affirms that the Habs were not a pioneer in their genre… A player from the 90s would have done the same thing as him, without talking about him.
If Tony Parker has a huge track record, with four championship rings and a Finals MVP in 2007, it is not just for his trophy cabinet that the former boss of the French team is applauded by all. While his physique was far from unanimous in the US, he was able to become a force of nature in scoring in the paint, leading the league in points in this area during his prime. No matter how hard the defenders tried to stop him, Spur always found a way to conclude.
He also inspired a crowd of players afterwards, Chris Paul being the first to admit it. If Gary Payton does not question the impact of TP on the game, however, he believes that he should not be the only one to receive credit for it. In a recent interview, the Hall of Famer explained that the game of the former star of the Blues was very similar to that of one of his predecessors, practically unknown to the public:
Rod Strickland, ancestor of Tony Parker?
Rod Strickland was tough to play, he was a great playmaker that nobody talked about. Before Tony Parker arrived, we had Strickland chaining the baskets under the circle. He was doing the same thing as Parker before him. He entered the painting as he wanted, and he scored at will. You couldn’t defend him as usual, he was really strong. I have a framed jersey of him at home, which shows how much I respect him.
As The Glove says, the player’s name won’t mean much to fans, but we’re talking about a guard with over 1,000 NBA games on the clock. Able to turn in 18 points and 10 assists in his best years, he may also have suffered from his journeyman status (9 franchises in 17 seasons). Nevertheless, he remains today acclaimed by his peers, being able to pull off some really beautiful moves. A real nightmare to defend near the basket:
Sauce @rod_strickland pic.twitter.com/l4bWpcgKqb
– Marl Kalone (@KaloneMarl) May 1, 2022
In a way, Tony Parker may be the heir to Rod Strickland’s style of play, at least when it comes to scoring. The two men revolutionized position 1 in this way, but we remember the Frenchy much more thanks to his career with the Spurs.
