The future of center play in the NBA

[KillerLeft]

They need to make the ball bigger or the basket smaller to bring back center play.  Given how well guys shoot the 3 it's just not efficient to dump the ball into a center unless they shoot 65 percent from the floor, never miss a free throw, and never turn the ball over on the entry pass, which is dependent on your point guard as well.

I recently listened to a pod where Daryl Morey (who I admit might be a bit too reliant on analytics, but is undeniably a leading professional in the basketball business and totally immersed in the sport) laid out all the issues they had to go through in order to make the team work with Yao Ming. 

Among the points made that I think fans take for granted is that to play through Yao, they had to chase free agents and make trades for players who were proficient at the entry pass, and that there were surprisingly few competent at that skill in the league. Basically, you had to get 2-3 of them and then somehow "make them work" regardless of what weaknesses they brought with them. It made team building more difficult. 

There were other things discussed, but that one really stuck out to me. There were players whose entire careers were extended simply because they understood how to throw the ball into the post, and I just don't think the average fan understands how difficult that can be against a good defense (not against the Shawn Bradley/Don Nelson era Mavs, who never stopped anyone from posting up, ever). 

Ultimately, the conclusion made was that NOT having Yao Ming around would have been exponentially better for the team, as it would've resulted in a much better version of Tracy McGrady's career (giving him space to create by not allowing the lane to be clogged 24/7) and (in the opinion of both Morey and Simmons) at least one Houston championship. 

I'm not saying that last opinion is fact, and I'm sure some disagree, but what I am saying is that Yao Ming was a GREAT player (on a totally different level than Boban) playing in an era where teams were far less equipped to take advantage of his weaknesses, and some great basketball minds have since come to the conclusion that running their offense through HIM was a dead end strategy. I think that's fascinating.