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The Buckeye state has brought to Earth a number of NBA greats led by MVP winners LeBron James and Stephen Curry. These two standouts form the core of Cavs Nation`s all-time Ohio team which has turned out to be a very exciting combination of shooters, defensive players, and shot blockers. Imagine a Thurmond block or a Havlicek steal igniting the Steph Curry-led fast break with LeBron and Redd running in the wings. Now, train your eyes on the roster, play around with multiple combinations, and run your sets.
PG – Stephen Curry (Akron)
The freshly minted MVP of the 2014-2015 regular season grew up in Charlotte but was born in Akron. Selected 7th overall by Golden State in the 2009 draft, the 2-time All Star is as deadly a sharpshooter can be and he’ll let no one, even himself, stand in his way to greatness. In the 2012-2013 season, Curry splashed in a league record 272 three-pointers only to be broken this year by none other than himself when he drilled 286 shots from beyond in the regular season.
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SG – John Havlicek (Martins Ferry)
One of the NBA’s 50 Greatest Players and also a hall of famer, the man they call “Hondo” was one of the major contributors to the success of the early Celtics dynasty. Havlicek is an 8-time champion, Finals MVP in 1974, 13-time All Star, and was selected to multiple All NBA and All Defensive First teams. He has career averages of 20.8 points, 6.3 boards, 4.3 dimes, and 1.2 steals per game over the course of 16 productive years.
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SF – LeBron James (Akron)
When this Akron native decides to retire, he will surely go down as the best basketball player to ever come out of Ohio. LeBron James has Buckeye blood running through his veins, from his high school years to majority of his NBA career, the 4-time MVP and 2-time champion has kept his heart and his home within the state while also showing huge love to the NFL’s Browns and the Buckeyes of college. LeBron still has a generous amount of mileage ahead of him and his continued success only brings so much pride and glory to his home state.
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PF – Jerry Lucas (Middletown)
A hall of famer, Jerry Lucas was a double-double machine and an absolute beast off the glass with a 15.6 career rebounding average, good for 4th in the all-time leaderboard. A member of the NBA’s 50 Greatest Players, Lucas normed 21.5 points and 21.1 rebounds for the Cincinnati Royals in the 1965-1966 season. Lucas is a true winner having won championships in high school, college, and the NBA to go along with an Olympic Gold in 1960.
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C – Nate Thurmond (Akron)
Another offspring out of Akron, Nate The Great was a 7-time All Star with career averages of 15.0 points, 15.0 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks. Thurmond spent most of his career as a San Francisco Warrior and also played a few years for the Chicago Bulls and Cleveland Cavaliers. During the 1968-1969 season, the hall of famer and member of the NBA’s 50 Greatest Players was simply a beast, averaging 21.5 points, 19.7 rebounds, and 3.6 assists – blocks weren’t recorded at that time. After the league started to record other statistical categories, Thurmond became the first player to score a quadruple double with 22 points, 14 rebounds, 13 assists, and 12 blocks.
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Sixth Man – Michael Redd (Columbus)
Michael Redd played in 11 seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks where he was recognized as one of the best shooters in the game. The southpaw was lights out from distance with his quick trigger and uncanny range. His best scoring year was in the 2006-2007 where he.averaged 26.7 points. Redd was also a member of the 2008 USA Men’s Basketball Team, dubbed as the “Redeem Team”, that captured the Olympic Gold in Beijing. He ended his career playing one season with the Phoenix Suns.
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Bench – Ron Harper (Dayton)
Ron Harper was a prominent fixture in the highly competitive Cavalier teams of the late 80s. He was a great two-way player, capable of providing scoring punch while being able to defend 3 positions on the floor. Harper played for 4 teams in his career and was a member of the three-peat Chicago Bulls team of the late 90s and was also a back-to-back champion as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1999-2000 and 2000-2001 seasons. His most prolific year was in the 1989-90 seasons where he split time between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Los Angeles Clippers, averaging 22.8 points, 5.9 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 2.3 steals, and 1.2 blocks. He is an exemplary symbol of sacrifice when he went from being a 20-point scorer as a Clipper to averaging single digit points in order to help the Bulls win 3 straight championships.
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Bench – Herb Williams (Columbus)
Talk about longevity. Herb Williams played 18 seasons in the NBA with stops in Indiana, New York, Dallas, and Toronto – quite few when taking into account the length of his career. During his prime, Williams was close to a double double machine while being a decent rim protector. He ended his career with averages of 10.8 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks. His numbers have obviously been dragged down by the lesser game exposure towards the twilight of his career. Williams also played college ball for the Ohio State Buckeyes.