best defensive point guards of all time

Players Stats: 18.8 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 5.6 APG, 0.8 SPG, 0.3 BPG, Honors: 2010-2011 MVP, 3x All-Star, 1x All-NBA Selection, 2008-2009 Rookie of the Year. Nixon played 6 seasons with the Lakers, making the All-Star Teams in 1982 and 1982 when he posted 17.6 PPG and 17.2 PPG respectively. While Rose was fairly criticized for not playing hard defensively prior to Thibodeau, that criticism is no longer accurate. He still struggles against the spot-up, though, because of issues that will be addressed later. The 10 Best Tall Point Guards in NBA History - Plus 2 Clothing Sixth-greatest point guard in basketball history. There's no way Stockton & Curry are better than Isiah. Kevin Durant, Jayson Tatum top NBA quotes of the week. On the other hand, you cant deny what happened, regardless of how much you watch. 1987 Lakers are often seen as one of the greatest teams ever. 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. The list of the best defensive NBA point guards for 2022-23 starts off with two of the elite perimeter defenders overall. As a point guard, Tim Hardaway was one of the most popular and respected players in the NBA during his time with the Miami Heat. Norris Coles individual numbers are all better than Chalmers, but he gets docked with lower team numbers. Watching video on Lin gave me one impression that stood out above everything else: his awareness of where he was on the court and where he needed to be. The best way to track how effective a player is on the defensive end is by looking at their cumulative defensive win shares. Then again, the limited number of plays may be, in part, due to the fact that hes so hard to post up. Notably, several modern point guards have used a successful style of post play, a tactic usually practiced by much larger centers and forwards. Seemingly overhauling your system for every opponent is not. Knight gets almost no help whatsoever from help defense. It will be interesting to see how well he does with Larry Sanders behind him in Milwaukee. 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. Westbrooks Synergy numbers on the pick-and-roll (.75) and isolation (.7) suggest hes better than he actually is. That said, here are the five best defensive NBA point guards of all time, based on their DWS. He averaged 3.9 win shares per season, totaling 75.1 DWS at the end of his 19-year career, good for 11th all-time. 12.6 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 8.7 APG, 1.9 SPG, The player 10-time All-Star, six-time All-NBA selection, nine-time All-D selection, co-Rookie of the Year (1994-95), Career stats Stockton is one of the greatest assist players in NBA history, if not the greatest. MVP (1963-64), 12-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA selection, Rookie of the Year (1960-61), Hall of Fame, Career stats Even though hes been injured a lot, Paul is averaging over two steals a game for his career. Hinrich has a bit more going for him in terms of size. He averaged 18.4 points, 7.5 assists and 5.2 rebounds per game. -- Adams, Honors Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 13. Generally speaking, the point guard is the player in possession of the ball for the most time during a game and is responsible for maintaining possession of the ball for their team in the face of any pressure from the opponents. Still, hes one of the best point guards of all time, and his stats show that hes a deserved All-Star. Sometimes, thats just not enough, especially if hes left to guard in isolation, where hes horrid, giving up .92 points per play. Players Stats: 23.2 PPG, 7.1 RPG, 8.3 APG, 1.8 SPG, 0.3 BPG, Honors: 2016-2017 MVP, 9x All-Star, 8x All-NBA Selection, 2x Scoring Champion. If someone goes past him, hell usually just wave goodbye. He fights through picks, going over them when he can and under them when he cant. They were combined and adjusted to cover a range roughly between 18 and 22. First, a range of 18 to 22 makes it easier to arrive at the eventual score of 100the baseline everything was weighted to. Who's the best defensive point guard of all time? - Quora Nevertheless, its just as important. His net defensive rating is fairly close to even, and slightly above average for point guards. Each fails to realize that they are all right, and that the real answer is in the combination of what they all experienced. He was an unstoppable offensive force who could score from anywhere on the court and in any way he wanted. 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. Many times, the point guard is referred to by announcers, as a "coach on the floor" or a "floor general". -- Pelton, Today's children will ask, "Who was the Steph Curry before Steph Curry?" In essence, hes athletic enough to do a respectable job of what hes asked to do. He just doesnt have the physical tools to play at an elite level. Sometimes hell even rush to defend the wrong guy while his man is draining a wide-open three. Honors: 1978-1979 Finals MVP, 5x All-Star, 9x All-Defense Selection, 2x All-NBA Team Selection, Hall of Famer. Having said that, he does play team defense, too, and he is part of the team. The problem is that sometimes players are so inept, they skew the stats of other players. The true driving force of his partnership with Karl Malone. Some point guards are still given a great deal of leeway in the offense. Sometimes, measurables dont tell the whole story. Additionally, the 10-time All-Star and Hall of Famer was an impressive defensive player in his own right. It is akin to the blind men and the elephant in the Indian fable adapted to a poem by John Godfrey Saxe. Point guard from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States of America 3 Jason Kidd Point guard from California, United States of America 4 Walt Frazier Point guard from Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America 5 Dennis Johnson 6 Fat Lever Point guard and Shooting guard from Pine Bluff, Arkansas load more He might physically play below the rim, but few can touch how he plays above the neck. Some players with tremendous athleticism just dont apply it on both ends of the court. The Case For: Upper-tier defender (9x All Defensive Team, including 4 First Team selections). He compensates for his diminutive size by fighting hard and using that aforementioned quickness. If you are a basketball freak, you might be interested in knowing about NBA and other Best Basketball Leagues in the World. That has more to do with the second-string frontcourt, led by Lamar Odom, backing him up than it does his team defense. Over the last decade, the best point guards such as Stephen Curry, Damian Lillard, Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, and others have dominated the position. Whenever anyone imagines a point guard, chances are theyre thinking of Utah Jazz legend John Stockton. Mentally subtract them from the rankings if you feel they shouldn'tbe included. He does add a lot, but its not frenetic, its just frantic. The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. You also can follow along @ESPNNBA and on Facebook. 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. He bulls through picks well and is not afraid to go over them. As a Golden State Warrior and Miami Heat legend, Tim Hardaway may have the best crossover in basketball history. What he gives up at the point of attack, he makes up for with his team defense. Honors: 7x All-Star, 3x All-NBA Selection, 1966-1967 Rookie of the Year, 1967-1968 Scoring Champion, Hall of Famer. 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). He is easily one of the physically weaker players in the league, even for his position. He never leaves his man to help a defender that doesnt need help, but he always seems to be there when help is needed. 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. I doubt its much beyond his height. Archibald, who was just 61 tall, was able to consistently sink the ball despite his diminutive stature. 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. In terms of point guards, Magic is the finest there has ever been. Synergy tracks every play of every game of the season and, when possible (as it is not always possible), they assign an initial defender on a play. To create All-Time #NBArank, we put together a ballot with the 150 greatest players ever. Widely known as one of the best, if not the best, point guards of all time, Chris Pauls offensive exploits are well-documented. As a point guard, Frazier was one of the greatest in NBA history. The point guard is positioned on the perimeter of the play, so as to have the best view of the action. Defense is one of the more oft-overlooked aspects of basketball because it isnt as pretty as what happens on the offensive end. He might not be the fastest guy in the world, but that doesnt keep him from trying to be. Gary Payton 12. A 12-time All-Defensive Team selection, a nine-time 1st team All-Defense and three-time 2nd team All-Defense, Bryants 50.6 DWS ranks him 43rd overall. Magic Johnson 2. Even when he gets switched up on opposing shooting guards trying to post him up, he does a solid job. He has above-average size and strength, but he doesnt play like it. Photos: Top 10 NBA Point Guards Of All Time. On Wednesday, we will have the top 10 shooting guards of all time, followed by small forwards, power forwards and centers. Additionally, Stockton was a fantastic shooter and defender, almost possessing no weaknesses on the floor at all. The five best defensive point guards of all time Jarrod Castillo Dec 16, 2019; Oklahoma City, OK, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Chris Paul (3) directs his team during a play against the. Offense is so much more than just scoring. He applies his energy smartly. Triple Double and for good reason: hes fourth all-time in triple-doubles with 107. 7-time All-Star, 6-time All-NBA selection, 7-time All-D selection, Hall of Fame, Career stats That makes sense since Parker has assumed the primary responsibility on offense and theres no reason to wear himself out playing defense. Get to know about the top 15 all time best point guards in the NBA in Getting paired with Tom Thibodeau has made it even better. Do they get their hands up and use their length? His wingspan isnt much better at just 64. He always picks up on the switch. He does all those little things that dont show up in box scores. The NBA is a point guard's paradise these days, so let's start All-Time #NBArank with our pantheon points. Even players like Derek Fisher will hang him up and then hit him with the step-back. The result is our all-time NBA Top 100. In the last entry, we focused on the five best defensive NBA point guards of all time. For example, in the clutch, with the Rockets engaged in a playoff run, the team locked up in a tight battle with the San Antonio Spurs and the score close with less than five minutes remaining, Lin consistently showed the same 90 percent effort he always shows. 18.7 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 9.9 APG, 2.3 SPG, The player Something was great about that play, but it was Knight showing the heart to challenge Jordan, not Jordan dunking on a man a foot shorter than himself. Rose had it all, including speed, explosiveness, and the ability to score when it mattered most. As a result of his hurling himself around the court with utter abandon, he was generally a positive when it came to help defense. The same applies to any decent basketball argument (or any other kind, for that matter). One of the greatest point guards ever, Jason Kidd could make the flashy pass or the simple play with the best of them while also loving to hightail it in transition to wear opponents down in. NBA top 15 point guard rankings for 2021-22: Stephen Curry sits at No Its like hes chosen the worst of both worlds. It doesnt help to be fast if you dont use it, so Bledsoes score here is lower than you might expect. Interpreted as: best defensive rating with a minimum of 10000 minutes played point guards in NBA history. Defensive Rating (DRtg) is the average number of points per 100 possessions a players team surrenders while he is on the court. Ultimately, Johnson's unselfishness earned him the title of greatest point guard of all time. If you want to get involved in the discussion or just follow along, #NBArank is the Twitter hashtag to use. But he jogs when he should run, is lackadaisical closing out shooters and goes through the motions when running through his rotations. Last season, when Rose was healthy early on, they gave up the thirdmost, 16.3 points. David Robinson 6. He secures first place in the top 10 NBA point guards of all time. On the one hand, he doesnt seem cogent enough of his surroundings most of the time to really offer any. 5 (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988), Career stats At 64, hes big enough to guard shooting guards, as well as point guards. DWS are how many wins a player produces based on his defensive ability. He owes his charitable demeanour to a group of elementary school parents. In the NBA, Isiah Thomas is an amazing leader and is truly the most competitive force on the court that we have seen from a tiny guy. Humility can often be a sign of intelligence at work, and it is with Hinrich. In fact, hes a bit of a bull on the court and tries to intimidate his counterpart. Players Stats: 14.1 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 5.0 APG, 1.3 SPG, 0.6 BPG. Even though Payton only played a little part in 2006, the Heats success would not have been possible without his defensive presence and leadership. Magic had unparalleled vision; he could see players get open and deliver the ball before they even realized they were open. Its also a big part of why he has the most defensive plays per 36 minutes, using his quickness to get to those long rebounds. Magic Johnson. Hes one of the slower point guards in the league now, but in spite of that, hes almost ubiquitous at times. We have listed down 25 of the finest point guards, so lets see who makes it to the top 10 point guards of all time. According to Hoops Stats, in his MVP season, the Bulls gave up the fewest points to opposing point guards. Taj Gibson, his backup, is a tremendous defensive player, which only amplified the effect of Boozers shortcomings. I considered both their actual measurables and how well they used them. His Synergy numbers tell the story. However, who are the all-time top point guards? 18.4 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 7.5APG, .375 FG%, The player Only two NBA championships would make him the second-best player in NBA history. But Gary Payton did as a member of the Seattle Supersonics. Hes not going to get beaten back, and he doesnt give up in transition. With the increased emphasis on the deep three, point guards account for a large portion of the league's top scorers. He uses his speed well, as long as hes engaged in the game. In many cases, I looked at their combine results. He actually plays his best games against his best opponents. -- Pelton. The next three slides will tell how this particular sausage was made. Golden State Warriors (2009-present), Honors With his limited speed, he is always in full throttle and getting himself around the court, pestering whoever has the ball. Being big and strong doesnt mean players automatically got higher scores, though. Conley correctly identified the defender who was out of position, showing intelligence, but stupidly ignored that his man had the ball and an accurate jump shot. Just telling your players to play harder and close out on threes isnt a real system. Top NBA point guards for 2022-23: Ranking all 30 starters Players Stats: 18.8 PPG, 2.3 RPG, 7.4 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.1 BPG, Honors: 6x All-Star, 5x All-NBA Selection, 1972-1973 Scoring Champion, Hall of Famer. A lot has been made of how an explosive offense is the way to captivate fans. He made everything go for those Lakers teams. James is well-known for his incredible skill and ability to score big points, which frequently help his team win crucial games. That all-around game made Kidd one of the league's top point guards for nearly 20 years. Thats good for 14th all-time in NBA history and he also had 10 seasons in the top 20 for steals per game. Hes so undersized, youd think he was just some regular guy. . Other stats were determined by using my trusty sidekick, MS Excel, loaded up with standard stats available on most websites. Theres nothing wrong with knowing when you need it. The more often he is the primary defender, the more likely he is to be responsible for guarding the player who is getting the most plays offensively. Whatever it was, Holiday was just not bringing effort on the defensive end last year. He gambles too much, and that often gets him caught out of the play. Refusing to back down because youre afraid of being put on a poster is a good thing, not a bad thing. If he tends to be the helped, he gets a worse score. Sounds great, right? On the other hand, he was frequently bailing out whoever was playing shooting guard on numerous occasions. -- Micah Adams, No one was more dynamic, or magical, with the ball in the open court than Earvin Johnson. For the purpose of this study, 82games was used because the net defensive rating was also easily available and it made for consistency. Finals MVP, 12-time All-Star, five-time All-NBA selection, Hall of Fame, Career stats Its more than that. Players Stats: 19.2 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 9.3 APG, 1.9 SPG, 0.3 BPG, Honors: 1989-1990 Finals MVP, 12x All-Star, 5x All-NBA Selection, Hall of Famer. 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. Although Stockton accumulated numerous All-NBA nods, he only made the All-Defensive Second Team five times. Lillard has been one of the NBA's most dangerous scorers, capable of striking shots from anywhere on the floor. Chris Paul had the awkward situation this year of being smarter than his head coach, Vinny Del Negro. 21.6 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 6.9 APG, .441 3P%, We counted down the greatest players in NBA history. Players Stats: 15.6 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 3.6 APG, 1.2 SPG, 0.3 BPG, Honors: 5x All-Star, 5x All-NBA Selection, 2x Defensive Player of the Year, 5x All-Defensive Selection, Hall of Famer. The bulk of his thefts came by stealing the dribble, not by shooting the passing lanes. Always free! Bledsoe is not a great help defender, in spite of boasting a -4.9 net defensive rating. Big O is widely regarded as one of the best offensive point guards of all time. Wayne Gretzky on the court, Nash could hurt opponents by getting rid of the ball quickly or by holding on to it for so long that the defense finally made a mistake. He wont even try and fight over a pick if he gets caught in one, but just quits on the play. No question hell be inducted into the Hall of Fame, and hes one of the greatest rim-attacking players in NBA history. Let's see who has made it to the top 10 best point guards of all time. In his 16-year career, Wade averaged 2.961 DWS per year and his 47.38 DWS is good for 55th overall. The five best defensive NBA shooting guards of all time Although Wilkens is best known as a head coach, he was once an outstanding athlete. The perimeter player gets rewarded statistically for what the center did, even though he actually played shoddy defense. They say that defense is mostly about effort. Other defenders deficiencies are hidden by being put on weaker offensive players. However, when he gets beaten,Serge Ibaka is a huge asset in help defense, altering the shots of many a shooter who has just blown past Westbrook. New York Knicks (1967-1977), Cleveland Cavaliers (1977-1980), Honors: Bill Russell 3. Dikembe Mutombo 7. Point guard - Wikipedia If you just look at his measurables, Chris Paul is not impressive. The values for the various metrics which comprised the WAM score and scouting scores are also available on each slide. Along with leadership and a general basketball acumen, ball-handling is a skill of great importance to a point guard. Either way he chases the ball until he catches it. For his time with the Phoenix Suns, Johnson is most known for his role alongside Charles Barkley. He seems to get frustrated easily. Jrue Holiday is not fast so much as he is quick. His lateral movement and reaction time are exceptional, and thats indicated by his isolation defense. He doesnt use his size exceptionally badly or incredibly well, though. However his brilliant and consistent team defense team keeps passing lanes secure and helps prevent a lot of plays from developing the way they normally would. Players Stats: 17.7 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 8.2 APG, 1.6 SPG, 0.1 BPG, Honors: 5x All-Star, 5x All-NBA Selection. 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. A defensive point guard will also pressure opponents in passing lanes in an attempt to generate steals and scoring opportunities for their own team. His record and effect on the game, particularly offensively, are legendary, and its easy to see why. This is also manifested in his spot-up defense. People that just do their job dont usually pitch in and help their co-workers. Top 20 best defensive midfielders in the world today: who are they? -- Kevin Pelton, NBA Insider, May be the strongest point guard ever and consistently made everyone around him better. Watson, Kirk Hinrich and Nate Robinson. Then our ESPN expert panel voted on thousands of head-to-head matchups, with voting based on both peak performance and career value. Despite the fact that he was unable to win an NBA championship, his charisma and dribbling prowess will never be forgotten. If Westbrook could channel his energy in a consistent way, he would be an elite defender, but for now, hes just a solid defender whos kind of spazzy. He does get a bit of a bump here for his rebounding. On the positive side, Rose does a decent job of understanding his role in a complex system. Championships: 3. His MVP season, he had the second-best block total by a point guard in history (although John Wall exceeded that total last year.). NBA All-Time Player Rankings: Top 10 Point Guards Their primary job is to facilitate scoring opportunities for their team, or sometimes for themselves. He could be better than he is, but its hard to blame only him. He has no All-Defensive team accolades, because those werent introduced until the 1968-1969 season. Hes not as horrible as some people would make it sound. Kirk Hinrich wasnt the fastest player in the NBA when he came out of college. These were calculated using the raw stats available on any site carrying basic stats. Aside from the centre, having the best point guard is critical to improving your game because every play starts with him. In fact, Rondo gives more help than he getscontrary to my previous opinion. Despite his little size, he made up for it offensively by being lightning fast and had the whole attacking package. Rondos lack of a need for help defense allows Garnett to help more elsewhere. He was the primary defender on 1,127 plays last year in all, surpassed only by Stephen Curry among point guards. When the pick gets set, he just hurls into it and uses the momentum of the bounce to send him in the right direction. Holiday wouldnt just go under the pick; he would go too far under the pick. His 47.4 DWS is 54th overall, good for an average of 2.963 DWS per season, slightly edging Wade. A point guard often controls the offense and they also control who gets the ball and who doesn't, as this type of controlling style of play is necessary to control the tempo of a game. In fact, hes probably as adept as anyone at this, and his Synergy numbers, .68 points per play against the pick-and-roll, certainly back it up. On pick-and-rolls when hes not set, teams have learned to expect this. 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. Thats pretty much what you see with Conley. He also uses that length to be one of the best shot-blocking point guards in the league. His high rebound rate, while partly indicative of his speed is also a result of positioning, which relates to his IQ. Hell overshoot passing lanes, gambling for the steal. Point guards are often valued more for their assist totals than for their scoring. That earned him the nickname Mr. After the All-Star break, when Rose hardly played, that number fell to 17.8 and the Bulls dropped to ninth. Top 10 Point Guards of All Time - Point Guard Rankings - Observer Desk He and Chris Paul are the contenders for smartest defensive point guard in the game today. The debate over whether it should have been a flagrant is mootclearly that got into James head because he was talking about it after the game.

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