We have completed our examination of the NBA perimeter. These are your high flying athletes, your poised scorers who test one another with speed, athleticism and precision. The front court or most commonly known as ''the bigs'' is a different game. This is where your typical NBA giant is playing. Front court players are titans, who more often than not influence the momentum of a game by rebounding, kickstarting fastbreaks and making second chances points. The most important offensive player in the front court is the power forward. Let's examine who he exactly is and what does he do on an NBA court.
Kenneth Faried is an ideal power forward on up-tempo teams.
How to recognize the power forward on court: He is the smaller, more mobile of the two front court players. The typical NBA power forward ranges from 6-6 to 6-11. Some even are 7 foot tall, but they are extremely rare and are often asked to play center. He is the prime finishing target off the pick-and-roll, so it's important for him to be versatile, to finish above the rim as well as to have an array of below the rim finishing moves. He doesn't NEED to be a good mid-range shooter although it's always a welcome addition to a skill set. It basketball was chess, power forwards would be the rooks. A very powerful piece that ccan be used in several situations.
The power forward's best friend on court is: Who ever is the primary ball handler. In today's NBA, a capital skill to possess for power forwards is to be able to create space for your ball handler to penetrate from the pick-and-roll. If you can do that, a good passer can make things happen for you, create plays and make shit happen all over the paint. The power forward will never be in charge of the ball, so he needs to create space for the ball handler and get himself in good position to score once his guard has gotten inside the perimeter.
Kevin Garnett is one of the most versatile power forwards in the game.
Different styles of power forwards: There is a very popular style of power forward in today's NBA called the ''Stretch 4'': a big man that can shoot 3 points. Kevin Love, Pau Gasol, Andrea Bargnani and Jared Sullinger are examples. It's a great skill to possess because it drags your man away from the paint and create some space for quicker players to wreak havoc inside. If the opposing big man is unwilling to move out of the pain, the ''Stretch 4'' is going to shoot right over the smaller defender, due to his tremendous length. To be efficient, you still have to be able to take care of business and rebound down low, though. Some of the ''Stretch 4'' players received criticism for being soft when they get in the paint. There are other, different styles of power forwards: the classic rebounder-and-finisher (Derrick Favors, Kenneth Faried) or the sophisticated post player (David West).
Capital stats for a power forward: 1-Points 2-Rebounds 3-Offensive Rebounds.
The perfect power forward is: The name of the game is finesse, here. At the size they are, every power forward is an animal. Whoever can hustle down low, keep plays alive with offensive boards and yet possess a couple of shift post moves and a smooth shooting stroke will be a nightmare for his defender. The two-way game of Kevin Love is perfect, hence the video-game like numbers he racks up at every game. He is not as poised, cerebral and unpredictable as Tim Duncan (the greatest power fowards of all-time), but if he can harness those intangibles, Love could become one of these players that mean a surefire championship to your team. Duncan is the perfect power forward, but Love has the potential to redefine what this statement means,
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