FOXSports.com - Best all-time point guards at the Wayback Machine (archived July 12, 2005), accessed 2008-02-09 This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 17:58 . In his 20 seasons, Bryant averaged 2.5 DWS and 1.4 steals per year. A point guard should always look out for teammates and be able to pass well. If you just look at his measurables, Chris Paul is not impressive. Rajon Rondo is probably the most athletic player in the league who plays most of his game below the rim. Meanwhile, we are presenting the top 10 by position. Chris Paul is widely considered to be one of the best point guards of the 2010s. On defense, the point guard is tasked with making the opposing point guard as ineffective as possible. The most pure and one of the best point guards and playmakers in NBA History is John Stockton. 25. The Glove is hands down the best defender a the point guard position. 14.3 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 8.5 APG, .428 3P%, The player Defensive Points per Play Synergy tracks every play of every game of the season and, when possible (as it is not always possible), they assign an. His wingspan isnt much better at just 64. The other thing thats surprising about Rondo with his size is how well he fights over picks. That said, here are the five best defensive NBA point guards of all time, based on their DWS. (Most defenders let the opponent by more than half the time. But his lack of any vertical leap kills him on the jump shot. 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). Hell overshoot passing lanes, gambling for the steal. So the problem isnt a lack of speed; its a lack of applying it. That would make sense, but there are two reasons to choose the unconventional scale. Its what separates him from being a valuable, slightly overrated defender, and an elite defender. He stands third among the top 10 point guards of all time. Lillard has been one of the NBA's most dangerous scorers, capable of striking shots from anywhere on the floor. If a player tends to be the helper, he gets a better score. When he applies it, he does so effectively, especially in isolation and the pick-and-roll. The values for the various metrics which comprised the WAM score and scouting scores are also available on each slide. He doesnt help much, but he doesnt get a lot of help either, so its a bit of a wash. To his credit, he has the best WAM score of any point guard without a great defensive center to back him up. Not Paul. The result is our all-time NBA Top 100. He has no All-Defensive team accolades, because those werent introduced until the 1968-1969 season. Hes not looking at the ball-handler's chest, which makes him susceptible to fakes, so when his opponent breaks, Rose is momentarily frozen. Magic had unparalleled vision; he could see players get open and deliver the ball before they even realized they were open. Sounds great, right? As one of the elite point guards in the NBA, you would expect him to have elite athleticism, but he actually doesnt. Watching specifically for this, I found only three instances in 50 plays where Garnett bailed out Rondo on isolation plays, a rate which is lower than most point guards receiving help. Only two other players besides Moncrief have won the NBAs defensive player of the year award twice. Still, a first-rate point guard should also have a reasonably effective jump shot. The facts need to come first. Additionally, the 10-time All-Star and Hall of Famer was an impressive defensive player in his own right. Adande, His Game 6 in the 1980 Finals, while jumping center as a 20-year-old rookie, has to be on the Mt. Nash is the answer. Russell is regarded as one of the best point guard finishers of all time. There are a number of different types of metrics available from various websites. If it tends to fall in the middle, he gets a 20. Players Stats: 14.3 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 8.5 APG, 0.7 SPG, 0.1 BPG, Honors: 2x MVP, 8x All-Stars, 7x All-NBA Selection, Hall of Famer. Players Stats: 13.1 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 10.5 APG, 2.2 SPG, 0.2 BPG, Honors: 10x All-Star, 11x All-NBA Selection, 5x All-Defensive Team Selection, Hall of Famer. Widely known as one of the best, if not the best, point guards of all time, Chris Pauls offensive exploits are well-documented. He works well within a system where there are no real defensive weaknesses. Paul was able to keep you at bay on one side of the court while dominating the other with his scoring and passing abilities. Do they get their hands up and use their length? He finished the game with the most career postseason points and the highest average in a playoff series. In the 13 seasons in which he played more than 60 games, mostly with the Chicago Bulls, the 1988 Defensive Player of the Year was a nine-time All-Defensive Team selection all first-team honors and a three-time steals champion. Have a look! Jrue Holiday. He almost always went under the pick. Both figures can be obtained by going to any players team page and then clicking on the appropriate name. Despite his little size, he made up for it offensively by being lightning fast and had the whole attacking package. Hes incredibly focused while on the court, but hes always working things out in his head; they dont come automatically, and that costs him time. Point guards are often valued more for their assist totals than for their scoring. Even the fastest point guards tend to get bottled up. Interpreted as: best point guard defensive rating with a minimum of 2000 minutes played per 82 team games 2022 He has all the tools to be one: great reflexes and speed, and those long arms with big mitts on the end. Though he had a relatively short career he only played 13 seasons his 50.4 DWS is 44th overall. Although Stockton accumulated numerous All-NBA nods, he only made the All-Defensive Second Team five times. Average players struggled, though. Then again, the limited number of plays may be, in part, due to the fact that hes so hard to post up. The five best defensive point guards of all time | Yardbarker -- Adande, He led the NBA in assists nine straight seasons from 1987 to 1996. They are available for those who want to know where they fit, and it doesn'thurt anyone to include them. He has two ways of guarding the isopray for help or flop. Occasionally hell chase the play after hes been beaten, but not always. Congratulations, Brian Roberts! The Greatest Defensive PG's in NBA History! - ranker.com He surpassed the achievements of every other guard in NBA history, except Russell Westbrooks achievements. You cant say that Westbrook doesnt try on defense, but you can say he doesnt show consistent effort on defense. An All-Star in every full season that he played for the Boston Celtics, six-time NBA champion Bob Cousy was an all-around player. As a result, hes been a member of the All-Defensive 1st Team four times and a member of the All-Defensive 2nd Team five times. Fairly straightforward, this takes into account height, length and strength. He was a giant of a guard, but he had all the necessary talents, including the ability to dribble and pass. Get to know about the top 15 all time best point guards in the NBA in He tends to use that speed and athleticism well when hes in position, too. You can find him juggling the ball every Sunday on the field, with FIFA on his PlayStation as the night drill. 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. Its like hes chosen the worst of both worlds. 18.4 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 7.5APG, .375 FG%, The player If he tends to be the helped, he gets a worse score. 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. Los Angeles Lakers late legend Kobe Bryant is often considered the greatest Laker ever and with good reason: Bryant is first in many of the Lakers statistical categories. This implies that the point guard serves as an extension of their coach on the court, and he or she is accountable for making the right plays every night. Does he rotate on time? Players Stats: 23.5 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 6.6 APG, 1.7 SPG, 0.2 BPG, Honors: 2x MVP, 6x All-Star, 6x All-NBA Selection, 2015-2016 Scoring Champion. New York Knicks (1967-1977), Cleveland Cavaliers (1977-1980), Honors: They say that defense is mostly about effort. For Rose, his biggest issues on both sides of the ball have to do with fundamentals and understanding. He might physically play below the rim, but few can touch how he plays above the neck. Thats a pretty large difference, and it shows he is at his best when he can utilize his quickness, while at his worst when he has to use his strength. The "Big O" was capable of doing it all. Interpreted as: best defensive rating with a minimum of 10000 minutes played point guards in NBA history. Thats rarely going to be because of a mental error, though. When they do, he gets tangled up pretty badly; it happens so rarely, though, youd think he had eyes in the back of his head. -- Adande, Nash is the only player in history to go 50-40-90 while averaging 10 assists per game. Its amusing that some people say Rose doesnt apply himself on defense. When he gets it going, hes unstoppable. Mario Chalmers lacks the speed and athleticism of most point guards in the league, and as a result, he usually gets the best seat in the arena to see various point guards blowing by on the way to the rim. He wont even try and fight over a pick if he gets caught in one, but just quits on the play. -- Kevin Pelton, NBA Insider, May be the strongest point guard ever and consistently made everyone around him better. Its no surprise that the best point guards in the NBA have more than just the ability to pass the basketball. It will be interesting to see if his new coach, Jason Kidd, can help him to work on this, as Kidd was a terrific help defender. Miami Heat and Dwyane Wade won the NBA championship in 2006 with him as a member of the Seattle SuperSonics. Holiday has ample size for a point guard, standing a shade over 64 in shoes, and weighing in at 205 pounds. This article first appeared on Sportsnaut and was syndicated with permission. All the other tools and effort can be rendered useless by a little stupidity. After ball-handling, the most important areas of the game for a point guard are passing and scoring. If you dont want to consider them, then dont. It is really hard to say anything about Lowrys help defense. Mike Conley is exceptionally quick, virtually teleporting himself from one part of the court to another at times. 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. While he does benefit from help defense, its not as often as you might think. He only gave up .66 points per play in isolation, but he yielded .86 to the ball-handler on the pick-and-roll. Players Stats: 16.3 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 6.7 APG, 1.8 SPG, 0.2 BPG, Honors: 9x All-Stars, 9x All-NBA Selection, 1990-1991 Rookie of the Year, 9x All-Defensive Team Selection, 1995-1996 Defensive Player of the Year, Hall of Famer. Can they play bigger than they really are? Rondo consistently applies every bit of effort in him on the defensive end. Parker applies himself defensively in bursts, and this appears to be by design. -- Peterson, He was the forerunner of Magic Johnson and LeBron James, and it's telling that both of those stars revere the Big O. Alex Caruso. Kyle Lowry has exceptional speed and athleticism. Just telling your players to play harder and close out on threes isnt a real system. 10-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA selection, five-time All-D selection, Hall of Fame, Career stats He also shows poor awareness at times, getting surprised by picks as if the setter had just popped up from out of the floor like a Whac-A-Mole. The NBA is a point guard's paradise these days, so let's start All-Time #NBArank with our pantheon points. To say he gets pushed around would be generous. 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. Derrick Rose 15. During the 1960-1961 season, the then-32-year-old Cousy racked up 6.3 DWS, the most in his career. Johnsons style of play made him especially successful since he was noted for tip-ins and post play around the rim. The only thing keeping Thomas off this list is his brief career by star standards. He spends too much time getting back into the defensive play because he ran himself out of it. You also can follow along @ESPNNBA and on Facebook. He has 12 All-Star selections, 10 All-NBA selections, nine All-Defensive Team selections, and a second-place MVP finish in his third season at 22. Theres nothing wrong with knowing when you need it. ALL-TIME #NBARANK, 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11-15 | 16-20 | 21-25, The player Kawhi Leonard 11. Don't get me wrong: Steph is still the league's best shooter. Simply put, defensive win shares (DWS) are defined by how many wins a player produces based on his defensive ability. 18.7 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 9.9 APG, 2.3 SPG, The player And I never saw him go in the wrong direction, not once. He doesnt try to make great plays, but he tries not to make mistakes, which is maybe what he should be concentrating on. However, the other side of the ball cant be overlooked because as the saying goes: defense wins championships.. . Many times, the point guard is referred to by announcers, as a "coach on the floor" or a "floor general". He is so athletic and so strong for his size that hes been able to get away without learning lessons he should have. Its like someone took a normal-sized person and stretched out the arms and hands to make him. If you want the perfect picture of what Hinrich brings to the defensive end of the court, think of him tackling the runaway freight train, otherwise known as LeBron James, in the game which stopped the Miami Heats streak. It would be beneficial for Westbrook to even things out and play at a consistent level throughout the game. However, despite Chris Paul and Jason Kidds prominence, Steve Nash became a two-time MVP who had no weaknesses on the offensive end. Top NBA point guards for 2022-23: Ranking all 30 starters | Sporting News TMGNNS LEBRON Sun, 4:30p DEN CLE 2/23, 4:00p BOS IND 2/23, 4:00p DET ORL 2/23, 4:00p MEM PHI 2/23, 4:30p NOP TOR. Dont be surprised to see him as a head coach someday. As a rookie, Bill Russell relied on Cousy to lead the league in assists, and he won the MVP Award for his efforts. 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. Players Stats: 20.3 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 6.0 APG, 1.3 SPG, 0.2 BPG. Thats the difference between what I call work intelligence and natural intelligence. Some people just have to work to pick things up. Pauls been an All-Defensive Team selection nine times, being selected to the 1st team seven times and the 2nd team twice. Players have a difficult time getting past him. This is to avoid confusion if you want to go to the original source.). 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. In nine seasons with the Detroit Pistons, plus two with the Washington Bullets and one with the Boston Celtics, Bing gathered 18,327 points in 901 competitions (20.3 ppg). -- Adams, Thomas was as tough as they come, could score with the best of them (such a sweet stroke) and, make no mistake, was the baddest of the Bad Boys. NBA History: Ranking the Greatest Guards Ever - Bleacher Report Some would argue that just because he went to Harvard, it doesnt mean he has a high basketball IQ, or that book intelligence isnt the same thing. Wilt Chamberlain 14. He falls into his rotations smoothly. He plays longer than he actually is. On Wednesday, we will have the top 10 shooting guards of all time, followed by small forwards, power forwards and centers. A point guard needs always to have in mind the times on the shot clock and the game clock, the score, the numbers of remaining timeouts for both teams, etc. That makes sense since Parker has assumed the primary responsibility on offense and theres no reason to wear himself out playing defense. Thats good for 14th all-time in NBA history and he also had 10 seasons in the top 20 for steals per game. He closed out on jump-shooters half-heartedly, which is bad enough, but when you combine that with the way he played pick-and-roll plays, it was even worse. If youre a fan of the TV show Suits, you might agree that Harvey Specter dresses well. Theres a running debate over the relative importance of stats versus watching. Stats tell you what happened, but you cant know why it happened unless you watch. That being said, Joakim Noah was frequently required to bail him out of trouble. It is startling to see the regularity with which opponents blow past Deron Williams. He seems to get frustrated easily. Payton is one of two point guards to have ever won the Defensive Player of the Year, and his stats show it. In his first season, he specialized in defense and could stop almost every point guard in the league on a regular basis. It only looks at the data. Neither of those is really a criticism of Parker, but its a reality. He could be better than he is, but its hard to blame only him. I like to compare it to the relationship between a foundation and a house. Surely the most underappreciated great player in NBA history because he was quietly dependable rather than flashy and never broke through on the biggest stage. The NBA's best European guard, Tony Parker, monopolised opposing backcourt players with speed and agility, a tight crossover, and a gorgeous tear-drop floater in the lane. During his career, he was selected to nine All-NBA Defensive Teams and five All-Star teams. Its not uncommon to see him challenge shots with both feet on the floor. He was born on March 23, 1973. In all, Wade was a three-time All-Defensive Team selection (all on the 2nd team), his 1620 steals rank 31st all-time and hes had six seasons where he ranked top-20 in steals per game. Watts Van Lier Frazier Price Ward Bing White Buckner Walker Kidd Hollins Williams Cleamons Bibby Porter Buse Snow McMillan Tinsley Armstrong Knight Carter 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 97.4 97.6 98.1 99.6 99.9 100.4 100.9 101.1 101.5 101 . SHOCKING one of the best defensive point guards of all time played great defense on a 20 year project old player. He had the second-best defensive rating in the NBA. He didnt have an eye-popping number, but he was in the top 25 percent of players there. By the time he was done, he had racked up 10 All-Star appearances, nine All-Defense selections, six All-NBA . -- Adams, An early ballhandling wizard, he was a point guard who was a focal point at a time when the game was dominated by big men. Rondo may not be big, but he doesnt know that. In all, Jordans 64.1 DWS rank him 21st all-time. Bob Cousey 8. When you combine that with his 40-inch vertical, you have a player that gets higher (139 inches) than any point guard in the leagueeven Russell Westbrook. Thats the advantage of the scouting portion. -- Adams, For nine consecutive years, Nash's teams led the NBA in offensive rating. Some players get caught out of place, but they know theyre out of place. 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. These point guard rankings will be the first of five articles. Notable point guards of the WNBA include five-time champion Sue Bird, her Olympic teammate Diana Taurasi (the only two basketball players of either gender to earn five Olympic gold medals for basketball[1]) and Courtney Vandersloot. Other stats were determined by using my trusty sidekick, MS Excel, loaded up with standard stats available on most websites. He has the most assists and steals of any player in NBA history and is a master of the pick & roll. -- Peterson, He's one of only a few players in history who has been deemed too good for the sport's own good. That had the effect of distorting Pauls on/off numbers. In fact, Rondo gives more help than he getscontrary to my previous opinion. He does an air-tight job of keeping players out of the perimeter. He still struggles against the spot-up, though, because of issues that will be addressed later. Lennys passing and leadership on the floor were solid, but he also had a few great scoring years on the court. On top of that, when Parkers man slips past him, he has one of the best defenders in the history of the universe, Tim Duncan, to help him out. Dubs' Curry (leg) could return as soon as Sun. His net defensive rating of 4.2 is an indication of both a lack of his helping and asking for help. It was just his second season when he led the league in scoring with an average of 27.1 points per game, despite some serious injury setbacks. His defensive usage was the highest of any player with at least 1,200 minutes. Even his athletic scores dont indicate greatness. He is suitable at keeping most players out on the perimeter, but against elite point guards he has more problems. His quick feet give him tremendous lateral movement. Scroll below to see where Stephen Curry ranks among the best point guards in the NBA. Averaging 1.5 steals per game, Wade could block transition shots as well with the best of them. The Case For: Upper-tier defender (9x All Defensive Team, including 4 First Team selections). Sometimes, measurables dont tell the whole story. Since its neither, he gets an even score. The 10 Best Tall Point Guards in NBA History - Plus 2 Clothing He secures first place in the top 10 NBA point guards of all time. The 3 Best NBA Defenders At Every Position For The 2022-23 Season All rights reserved. Chris Paul had the awkward situation this year of being smarter than his head coach, Vinny Del Negro. A defensive point guard will try to accomplish this with constant pressure on the ball, making it difficult to maintain possession. Penny Hardaway was well recognized for his relationship with Shaquille ONeal when he was only a kid. He may be the finest defensive guard ever because of his awareness and abilities on the defensive end. Offense is so much more than just scoring. Some of this is hard to know whether to ascribe to Bledsoe or to his former coach, Vinny Del Negro, who hones his X's and O's skills by playing tic-tac-toe online. If Williams had more pride in his defense, he would actually ask for, and depend on, help more than he does. It is easy to have the numbers skewed by a smaller sample size. Magic Johnson won the National Basketball Association Most Valuable Player Award three times in his career. Im cheating a little here. But only once did he actually truly defend the play. The five best defensive point guards of all time - Sportsnaut He leaves talented shooters alone to go double-team bad shooters. Mar 6, 2020; New York, New York, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Chris Paul (3) reacts during the second half against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. By my count, about 70 percent of the time, the ball-handler will get past him and get a shot off. 13.1 PPG, 10.5 APG, 2.2 SPG, .384 3P%, The player Magic Johnson 2. Coming over as a 25-year-old rookie, Ginobili only had two seasons where he had fewer than one steal per game and he averaged 1.3 steals for his career. -- Peterson, Teams Hes the closest thing in the world to Kevin Garnetts Mini-Me. Lee Rose has described a point guard as a coach on the floor, who can handle and distribute the ball to teammates. Jeremy Lin is not one of the faster point guards in the NBA, and hes not particularly quick either. It seems so much of Conley is either there or not there; you get it or you dont get it. Knight gets almost no help whatsoever from help defense. Its like hes just punching the clock and collecting his wages. By combining them, we can get a better picture of the whole elephant of a players defense. Thats a strong indication that Rose was not relying on help defense because that same help was there for C.J. This is also manifested in his spot-up defense. He defends pick-and-rolls exceptionally well because hes able to shake off picks without much trouble, even pushing around stronger players like Carlos Boozer or Robin Lopez at times. Lowry just seems to be lost on defense much of the time. He may get beaten occasionally, and he might get outmuscled more frequently, but he never gets outhustled. Seemingly overhauling your system for every opponent is not. He would find a way to beat his opponents, mentally and physically, and without his defensive tenacity, he wouldnt be considered the greatest of all-time. Nevertheless, its just as important. Then, after a single down year, he had y straight years of 2 steals per . In the MVP vote for the 1967-1968 season, he finished second behind the unstoppable Wilt Chamberlain. You dont see him take plays off, and you dont see him give up on plays. Robertson's offensive ability transformed the point guard stereotype from a passer and floor general to a scorer and offensive weapon. 50 Greatest Point Guards In NBA History - msn.com -- Peterson, Teams Please check your email for a confirmation. He doesnt play on the ball physically, utilizing that advantage. To absolutely nobodys surprise, Michael Jordan is the best defensive shooting guard in NBA history. Rondo likes to do this chest bump thing where he meets the opponent past the half-court line and just bumps his chest into him repeatedly. Sometimes even when hes being smart, he gets a little dumb. The Glove was a nine-time All-Defensive Team selection, making the First Team all nine times. Brandon Knight has exceptional speed and quickness. He was second among point guards in defensive rebounds per 36 minutes. He might not be the fastest guy in the world, but that doesnt keep him from trying to be. 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. The classic definition of a point guard, orchestrating offense and shooting when necessary. Still, Nash's greatest historical legacy will be paving the way for Stephen Curry and a new generation of point guards in a league that embraced point guards making plays with a wide-open court. Jason Kidd was the definition of a jack-of-all-trades point guard: he could pass, score and grab rebounds. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 13. I gave Paul the highest possible score here to offset the total ineptness of the coaching staff, and the frontcourt help he got last season, but he would have a high score regardless. He tends to do the right thing, but then hell do something kind of stupid that makes you wonder what hes thinkingeven if what hes thinking is right. While that is by design, he shouldnt get the same credit as players who bring their full attention the entire time theyre on the court. He normally makes the right play, even if he doesnt always do it well. Smart people recognize their limitations. He averages 1.8 steals per game. His high rebound rate, while partly indicative of his speed is also a result of positioning, which relates to his IQ. 6 (1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963), Career stats He has no All-Defensive team accolades, because those werent introduced until the 1968-1969 season. It doesnt seem that it would be that impressive if found it. These combo point guards can surprise defenses. Still, hes one of the best point guards of all time, and his stats show that hes a deserved All-Star. He applies his energy smartly.