House System In Schools Pros And Cons, Articles B

-- Kevin Pelton, Teams The average score by point guards was 16.1. In terms of career statistics and postseason accomplishments, he ranks as the NBAs fourth-best point guard of all time. That said, hes 61st all-time in steals with 1392 and he had six seasons in the top-20 in steals. That would make sense, but there are two reasons to choose the unconventional scale. On pick-and-rolls when hes not set, teams have learned to expect this. It seems so much of Conley is either there or not there; you get it or you dont get it. Bob Cousey 8. Stockton embodied a true point guard - an extension of the coach that ran the team's offense seamlessly. Jason Kidd was the definition of a jack-of-all-trades point guard: he could pass, score and grab rebounds. Somehow, he seems to be able to get his hands in the way of a lot of shots and passes that should be out of reach. With his record of successes and pioneering point guard talents, Magic is at the top of the list. Simply put, defensive win shares (DWS) are defined by how many wins a player produces based on his defensive ability. The Glove is hands down the best defender a the point guard position. Ergo, a negative number is a positive thing, and a positive number is a negative thing. Please check your email for a confirmation. Total Defensive Plays per 36 Minutes, or TDP/36 is simply the total number of defensive rebounds, steals and blocks a player accrues every 36 minutes. Since the first time a professional basketball player dribbled a ball, weve seen some of the greatest point guards in history. Brandon Knight has exceptional speed and quickness. It only looks at the data. All pre-draft measurements were obtained from the database hosted on Draft Express. Coming off one of the best offensive seasons in NBA history, Curry takes the top spot on our list of the league's best point guards, followed closely by 22-year-old wunderkind Luka Doncic, who may . Players Stats: 17.9 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 9.1 APG, 1.5 SPG, 0.2 BPG, Honors: 3x All-Star, 5x All-NBA Selection, 1988-1989 Most Improved Player. Because of his combination of length, speed and jumping ability, Rose has become an excellent team defender against the jump shot. -- Pelton, Perhaps the most incredible part of the Big O's triple-double season is that he finished third in MVP voting (behind winner Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain, who averaged 50.4 PPG). He also defends well against post-up plays, yielding just .54 points per play, although thats on an admittedly small 17-play sample size. The only time hell go under a pick is when hes supposed to. On the other, he so rarely allows his opponent to get past him that he doesnt need to rely on it either. Over the last decade, the best point guards such as Stephen Curry, Damian Lillard, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, and others have dominated the position. You're the worst defensive point guard in the NBA!!! He works well within a system where there are no real defensive weaknesses. A point guard primarily defends on the perimeter, just as they primarily play on the perimeter on offense. Instead of passing after bringing up the ball they quickly drive to the basket or step back for an outside shot. Even though hes been injured a lot, Paul is averaging over two steals a game for his career. For example, there was a play in which he was switched up against the Clippers, and he was put on Chauncey Billups, while Tony Allen was on Chris Paul. His high rebound rate, while partly indicative of his speed is also a result of positioning, which relates to his IQ. Dubs' Curry (leg) could return as soon as Sun. In the last entry, we focused on the five best defensive NBA point guards of all time. He has trouble compensating for his lack of size when challenging jump shots. It tracks the production of a players counterpart while he is on the court. While Gregg Popovich and his brilliant system deserve a lot of the credit, Tony is a Finals MVP and is a multiple NBA champion who deserves to be recognised for his role in the legendary Spurs dynasty. -- Peterson, He's one of only a few players in history who has been deemed too good for the sport's own good. He literally may be the least athletic guard in the Association. The only point guard to win Defensive Player of the Year, Payton was a defensive nightmare and he never had a DWS lower than 1.2 during his 17-year career. -- Peterson, Teams Walt Frazier 10. But only once did he actually truly defend the play. He does add a lot, but its not frenetic, its just frantic. He applies himself and stays committed, but when hes beaten on a play, hell relax waiting for his bigs to pick up the slack. He cant be faulted for not being taller or longer, but he could use the length he has better. The strength of this is that it shows what the other player does offensively. Adande, Brad Doolittle, Tom Haberstroh and Kevin Pelton are NBA writers for ESPN.com. If he tends to be the helped, he gets a worse score. Aside from the centre, having the best point guard is critical to improving your game because every play starts with him. A point guard specializes in certain skills, like other player positions in basketball. Hes always looking where hes supposed to go, and moving in that direction, but he just takes his time getting there. Six blind men all go to see an elephant which they'venever encountered before. He merits a high score here. His foot speed is as good as anyone's in the league, and you cant measure that. During his career, he was selected to nine All-NBA Defensive Teams and five All-Star teams. His lateral quickness is below-average, and his straightaway speed isnt much either. In essence, hes athletic enough to do a respectable job of what hes asked to do. At 6-foot-1, he's the shortest NBA Finals MVP in league history, a reflection of his unique ability to dominate at the point guard position. He just doesnt have the length to effectively guard against them. Lowry looks around like he just woke up from a nap in a foreign city, and hes trying to figure out where hes supposed to be. Two-time MVP (2004-05, 2005-06), eight-time All-Star, seven-time All-NBA selection, Career stats In the late 1980s, he was the face of the Bad Boys Pistons, who defeated Jordan's Bulls three times in a row in the playoffs. Hes fearless, and no matter how large the big setting the pick is, he wont back down. If he's not on the slide and he played 1,200 minutes, he should be on this list somewhere. Defense is one of the more oft-overlooked aspects of basketball because it isnt as pretty as what happens on the offensive end. Rushmore of greatest postseason performances in league history. At 5ft 3in (1.60m) the shortest player in NBA history, Muggsy Bogues enjoyed 889 games in a 14-year career as a point guard. If youre not interested in that, feel free to skip ahead. He could launch it from 30 feet or more with ease. Del Negro just worried about the matchup without ever developing a true defensive system or identity with the Clippers. He has a real grasp of the game, and he helps convey that to his teammates. Hakeem Olajuwon 2. Once he had the ball on the fastbreak, The Flash was gone. With his limited speed, he is always in full throttle and getting himself around the court, pestering whoever has the ball. Players Stats: 14.1 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 5.0 APG, 1.3 SPG, 0.6 BPG. Each touches a different part of the elephant, one an ear, another the torso and so on. His wingspan isnt much better at just 64. In recent years, the sport's shift from a fundamental style of play to a more athletic, scoring-oriented game resulted in the proliferation of so-called combo guards at the point guard position. Does he know when to help and not to help? Watson, Kirk Hinrich and Nate Robinson. Rondo consistently applies every bit of effort in him on the defensive end. That all-around game made Kidd one of the league's top point guards for nearly 20 years. He has all the tools to be one: great reflexes and speed, and those long arms with big mitts on the end. Even so, combo guards still require above-average passing skill, but not as much as possessed by "pure" point guards (which is what those in the traditional mold of a point guard are referred to). Thomas was ultra-quick with the ball and, at any moment, could pull up for a deadly jump shot. Hes controlled in how he plays hard. He gets a higher score here than he technically deserves because he tries so hard. The corresponding WAM or WAMS scores indicate how many points a group of like-skilled players on the court would theoretically give up in 100 possessions. His helter-skelter wizziness has him flying around the court, and sometimes its good. Is he an effective flopper? He presses hard as long as the opponent is in front of him, but will frequently give up on the play once the defender is past him. His low foul rate of 4.5 percent is another indication that hes adept at getting into position quickly. He doesnt use his size exceptionally badly or incredibly well, though. John Stockton 6. Do they get their hands up and use their length? Players Stats: 15.2 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 5.4 APG, 1.0 SPG, 0.2 BPG, Honors: 2003-2004 Finals MVP, 5x All-Star, 3x All-NBA Selection, 2x All-Defensive Team Selection. His quick feet give him tremendous lateral movement. When he was at his peak, Rose was one of the greatest point guards of all time, and he merits a spot in the top 15. Lillard, on the other hand, is generally able to get things going from the perimeter anytime he wants. As a result, hes 17th all-time with 1944 and had six seasons in the top-20 in steals. Over the last decade, the best point guards such as Stephen Curry, Damian Lillard, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, and others have dominated the position. Chris Paul 13. You also can follow along @ESPNNBA and on Facebook. He gets crossed over pretty easily, and not just by the Associations elite point guards. Defensively, Stockton had 3,265 steals the most all time during his 19-year career, helping him get 64.9 DWS. Strictly speaking, he should have a score closer to 20, but because of all the help he is in the locker room and practice, he gets a little leeway. Speed is important; a speedy point guard is better able to create separation and space off the dribble, giving themselves room to work. His most notable awards include five NBA championships, three Finals MVPs, three MVPs, nine All-NBA First Team selections, and 12 All-Star appearances. One conundrum has always been how to account for who is guarding the best player on the other team. You can find him juggling the ball every Sunday on the field, with FIFA on his PlayStation as the night drill. -- Haberstroh, Teams In fact, hes a bit of a bull on the court and tries to intimidate his counterpart. Just because someone gets past him doesnt mean theyre going to score. Most players will take a little on-court breather now and then. Knight doesnt always recognize the help situations, but when he does, he is usually effective. Allen Iverson 11. Even when he has to go under the pick, which is most of the time, hes so fast that hes able to close the distance before the ball-handler has time to do something with it. Take, for example, Carlos Boozer in 2012. In fact, a player may have great individual numbers precisely because he is actually detrimental to his team. His contributions won him a spot on the NBA All-Time 50th Anniversary Team. That helps him to dominate games defensively without having to leave the ground. He just doesnt have the physical tools to play at an elite level. It will be interesting to see how well he does with Larry Sanders behind him in Milwaukee. Then, over 10,000 video clips were viewed and players were evaluated based on subjective criteria. They were combined and adjusted to cover a range roughly between 18 and 22. Parker applies himself defensively in bursts, and this appears to be by design. His career averages of 27 PPG, 6.0 RPG, and 7.0 APG were arguably the best ever put up by a point guard when he retired in 1974. If you want to get involved in the discussion or just follow along, #NBArank is the Twitter hashtag to use. Isaiah Thomas 5. He has no All-Defensive team accolades, because those werent introduced until the 1968-1969 season. By the time he was done, he had racked up 10 All-Star appearances, nine All-Defense selections, six All-NBA . This year, without Rose, the Bulls were 23rd, at 21.0 points per game. Per Synergy, he forces turnovers 18.5 percent of the time, and he does so barely giving up any points. Sometimes, thats just not enough, especially if hes left to guard in isolation, where hes horrid, giving up .92 points per play. Magic had unparalleled vision; he could see players get open and deliver the ball before they even realized they were open. He has a high basketball IQ, and he has that veteran savvy thing going for him, too. When it came to size, the main flaw in his game was that he was very fast and explosive with his handles. Jeremy Lin is not one of the faster point guards in the NBA, and hes not particularly quick either. Rob Peterson is an NBA editor for ESPN.com. Notably, several modern point guards have used a successful style of post play, a tactic usually practiced by much larger centers and forwards. Some will just hang around waiting for the play to end, but Jack keeps track of his man and also helps if its needed. Went from dominating games strictly with his passing to making the fifth-most 3-pointers in NBA history. Nevertheless, its just as important. Mike Conley is exceptionally quick, virtually teleporting himself from one part of the court to another at times. If a player tends to be the helper, he gets a better score. The greater problem is how easily he gets disrupted on pick-and-roll defense. While he is frequently noted for his ability to see the court and make the right play on offense, he doesnt get the same recognition on the defensive end. Parker is a seasoned point guard who plays the game like a pro. Hes not just ordinary quick, either; hes pesky-quick, with fast hands that dart in and take the ball out of the ball-handler's dribble with alarming frequency. As a Golden State Warrior and Miami Heat legend, Tim Hardaway may have the best crossover in basketball history. 25.7 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 9.5 APG, .485 FG%, The player In case you missed it, Jason Kidd was tops on the list with 75.1 DWS, good for 11th all-time. You cant build a house first, and then pour the foundation underneath it. He does such a good job of it while the ball is in front of him, theres no reason he couldnt do it after the ball-handler gets past him. On the positive side, Rose does a decent job of understanding his role in a complex system. His huge hands allowed him to pass as effectively with one hand as most could with two. Russ is already on the verge of breaking into the top five of all time, but its going to be a challenge. As Kyrie Irving showed in the decisive Game 7 versus the Warriors when he beat Stephen Curry to the game-winning jumper, Kyrie Irving is also one of the finest guards in NBA history, and he possesses some of the best hands of all time. All-Time #NBArank: Top 10 point guards ever, 'Not going out this way': Nets, down 28, stun C's, Kerr touts 5-0 homestand: Dubs 'turned a corner', KD: Mavs tilt, Kyrie meeting 'just another game', Owner: Snyder, Fields will bring Hawks success, Isaac has surgery on adductor, done for season, Clips' Powell out at least a week to treat shoulder, LeBron to have tendon injury checked in 3 weeks. Although Drexler never made an All-Defensive Team in his career, he did average two steals per game for his 15-year career. Many consider Bob Cousy to be a passionate athlete who was the first All-Star and dominating player for the Boston Celtics squad that included legends like Bill Russell and Kevin Collier. In the MVP vote for the 1967-1968 season, he finished second behind the unstoppable Wilt Chamberlain. He spends too much time getting back into the defensive play because he ran himself out of it. The greatest point guard in NBA history. Then, after a single down year, he had y straight years of 2 steals per . The Clippers were 10 points better with Lamar Odom on the court than DeAndre Jordan according to NBA.com/STATS. But, there is one only shooting guard that leapfrogged over all others. From there, hes playing catch up. (Note: Players chosen only if they have played as a shooting guard for most, if not all, of their career.). Stockton was a member of two gold medal teams and twice reached the NBA finals during his remarkable career. This score is to help alleviate that. He is in charge of getting the ball into the hands of the shooters. The five-time All-Star and four-time All-NBA selection has averaged more than 24 points per game since being drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers in 2012. Opponents dont have much success getting around him. He is a natural playmaker with excellent point guard abilities, creating the ideal point guard prototype.