The bench press is garbage, but squats and deads are essential to overall development and strength. You have to learn to perform these lifts if you're serious about making progress in the gym.

Clarification- I rarely do barbell flat bench press especially with heavy weight. Single and double db presses, flyes mostly. Just too much stress on my shoulder. The freedom of movement with a db allows my entire body to be more engaged in the motion. I still bench on ocaission, just not with the frequncy I had in the past. Also started doing reverse grip bench a while ago, after getting through the initial awkwardness of the grip, I have grown to like doing them.

@jwethall How did you grow you chest if you don't do bench press? Flys alone?

I agree and disagree... of course you can get around doing all of these certain movements, but they still have their merit. I rarely (if ever) do barbell benching anymore. My shoulders were so torn up from it that I couldn't stand it anymore. My chest days are just as hardcore now (if not more than before) by using a lot of dumbbells, cables, some machines, pushups, and whatever else I can utilize. I still do probably at least 15 sets of presses every chest workout before I get to any flies, but not using barbells means my shoulder joints are free to move how they would like to rather than moving in a certain unnatural motion. The deadlift though.... people with major lower back problems I can see trying to avoid this and for good reason, but otherwise it's a freakin' beast. I'm as strong as I've ever been but no matter what when I have a hardcore deadlift/back day my back is incredibly sore from my traps to my glutes for at least 2 days. It's definitely something I wouldn't avoid unless if you had a reason to.