To say he gets pushed around would be generous. Trail Blazers playoff failures have been a major blemish on both his game and his career so far. A point guard will often use their ability to score in order to augment their effectiveness as a decision-maker and playmaker. Defensively, Stockton had 3,265 steals the most all time during his 19-year career, helping him get 64.9 DWS. Jrue Holiday. Players Stats: 19.5 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 11.2 APG, 1.9 SPG, 0.4 BPG, Honors: 3x MVP, 3x Finals MVP, 12x All-Star, 10x All-NBA Selection, Hall of Famer. He averages 1.8 steals per game. The weakness is that it also includes some of what the other player does defensively, (e.g.. blocks, steals, and defensive rebounds). Ben Wallace 12. This proves problematic, especially in isolation, where Williams usually just backs up. -- Peterson. Always free! 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. Eventually, that learning has to become instinct, though. He does so by using positioning, skillful footwork and what lateral quickness he does have (which is a liberal use of the word "quickness") to minimize the damage. . Only two other players besides Moncrief have won the NBAs defensive player of the year award twice. His lateral quickness is below-average, and his straightaway speed isnt much either. It is really hard to say anything about Lowrys help defense. Some players with tremendous athleticism just dont apply it on both ends of the court. Speed is important; a speedy point guard is better able to create separation and space off the dribble, giving themselves room to work. Tony Parker is one of the fastest players in the league if youre going by pure speed. 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. The perimeter player gets rewarded statistically for what the center did, even though he actually played shoddy defense. -- Peterson, He's one of only a few players in history who has been deemed too good for the sport's own good. He gets a higher score here than he technically deserves because he tries so hard. He led the NBA in scoring in only his second season, 1967-68, with 27.1 points per game. The point guard is positioned on the perimeter of the play, so as to have the best view of the action. Let's see who has made it to the top 10 best point guards of all time. Apart from that, he seems to do what hes supposed to be doing when hes away from the ball. Johnsons style of play made him especially successful since he was noted for tip-ins and post play around the rim. There was always that kid in high school or college who tried so hard to get decent grades. 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. Over the next four weeks, well unveil the rankings for the other four positions. Although Drexler never made an All-Defensive Team in his career, he did average two steals per game for his 15-year career. -- Adande, Teams He works well within a system where there are no real defensive weaknesses. -- Brad Doolittle, Robertson's averaging a triple-double in 1961-62 is probably overrated because it was a product of the fast-paced play in the 1960s, but his role in the Milwaukee Bucks' early '70s championship run is probably underrated. Went from dominating games strictly with his passing to making the fifth-most 3-pointers in NBA history. When the pick gets set, he just hurls into it and uses the momentum of the bounce to send him in the right direction. If it tends to fall in the middle, he gets a 20. -- Pelton, If he had played with The Mailman or a defense as stout as the Pistons, he might have made a couple of Finals by now. He uses his feet and body well, steering his man into the help defense when he knows hes not able to keep up. Bucks: Start time, where to watch, what's the latest, Rockets vs. Spurs: Start time, where to watch, what's the latest, Hawks vs. Heat: Start time, where to watch, what's the latest, Pistons vs. Cavaliers: Start time, where to watch, what's the latest, Raptors vs. Wizards: Start time, where to watch, what's the latest, Russell Westbrook still wants Sixth Man of Year award from time with Lakers, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. He doesnt put a lot of effort into chasing his man through screens. -- Adande, The only players in NBA history with more games with 20 points and 10 assists are Oscar Robertson and Magic Johnson. -- Adande, Nash is the only player in history to go 50-40-90 while averaging 10 assists per game. For that reason, subjective analysis was also included. Born on July 15, 1990, Damian is an American professional basketball player for the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association. Perhaps it was the fact that the Philadelphia 76ers were having a disappointing season without their newly acquired star, Andrew Bynum. In systems like the Grizzlies play, the point guard is the first line of defense. But Gary Payton did as a member of the Seattle Supersonics. When Gibson played with the starters, the Bulls gave up 10 fewer points per 100 possessions. Dennis Johnson. For this reason, a point guard is usually, but not always, more skilled and focused on passing than shooting. Other defenders deficiencies are hidden by being put on weaker offensive players. It seems to be down to less than once a game. Furthermore, he is a legend for the Phoenix Suns and one of the teams finest players. It probably tells the accurate story here. Thomas was ultra-quick with the ball and, at any moment, could pull up for a deadly jump shot. Players Stats: 15.2 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 5.0 APG, 1.6 SPG, 0.4 BPG, Honors: 4x All-Star, 3x All-NBA Selection. Did they get pushed around easily? Defensive Rating (DRtg) is the average number of points per 100 possessions a players team surrenders while he is on the court. Who's the best offensive point guard of all time? Its frustrating watching Holiday play because when he gets out of position, it doesnt appear that its because hes caught out of position in the sense that he doesnt know where to be. Think: Dennis Rodman. Hes able to use that size advantage by being physical, playing close and aggressive, often forcing shooters into shots they arent comfortable taking. Russell is regarded as one of the best point guard finishers 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 doesnt make stupid mistakes, but he doesnt anticipate plays either. -- Doolittle, Over the past season and a half, Curry has played point guard as well as anyone else in NBA history. However, he doesnt appear to have the same strength they do. 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. Yet somehow he manages to compensate and do a reasonably fair job of defending, even in isolation. Allen Iverson 11. 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. Chauncey Billups, or Mr. When he does do it, he does it half-heartedly. Between his height, lack of real effort on closing out and taking too long to figure out where hes supposed to be (if he ever figures it out all), he becomes the perfect storm for easy pickins. He gave up just .87 points defending the spot-up (making him one of the few players to defend the spot-up better than the iso). He gives up too much space and still gets beaten. Per Synergy, he forces turnovers 18.5 percent of the time, and he does so barely giving up any points. If he's not on the slide and he played 1,200 minutes, he should be on this list somewhere. His 48.8 DWS is 48th all-time and the fourth most by a point guard. Lin is a mixed bag when it comes to help defense. J.A. For his time with the Phoenix Suns, Johnson is most known for his role alongside Charles Barkley. There are some disadvantages to this style of play. He spends too much time getting back into the defensive play because he ran himself out of it. Parker has a hefty 1.05 points per play against defending the jumper, even though he typically gets there and challenges shots. How hard do they fight through them? Still, a first-rate point guard should also have a reasonably effective jump shot. David Robinson 6. Chalmers is 62 and 190 pounds, which is about average size for a point guard. Among the greatest point guards of all time, Tiny is among the finest ever. 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 His shot-making and defense made him a top-tier point guard throughout his career. Point guards must be able to maintain possession of the ball in crowded spaces and in traffic and be able to advance the ball quickly. There's no way Stockton & Curry are better than Isiah. He could create at an elite level while also scoring off the dribble from the midrange. He plays way too far off the ball, supposedly so he wont get beaten, but since he perpetually gets beaten like a drum anyway, why not play closer up so he can at least do a better job of defending the jump shot? I doubt its much beyond his height. Its like hes chosen the worst of both worlds. He plays longer than he actually is. Thats largely true. Its safe to say that Kidd is one of the greatest guards to ever play on the basketball floor. Injuries robbed Rose of the opportunity to become one of the games top five point guards. Moncrief is well known for his defensive prowess. 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. In the history of the combine, only nine players have recorded better sprint and agility scores, and of those, only three had a better vertical than his 37.5 inches. 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. They average the number of points a player gives up when he is the initial defender, and this is represented by defensive points per play. West became synonymous with brilliant basketball during his 14-year playing career with the Los Angeles Lakers. Sometimes that works, such as his quick darts under picks. During the 1960-1961 season, the then-32-year-old Cousy racked up 6.3 DWS, the most in his career. Although Jordan won that battle, theres nothing wrong with being named the third-best defensive player at his position and one of the best shooting guards of all time. It is startling to see the regularity with which opponents blow past Deron Williams. Doc Rivers has had a lot of input into how Rondo plays the game. Marcus Smart. Teams Probably no point guard in the league does a better job of recovering defensively than Rose does. 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. Hell get to the corners to challenge threes; hell pick off passes; hell get rebounds; hell get some chase-down blocks. 10-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA selection, five-time All-D selection, Hall of Fame, Career stats He does get a bit of a bump here for his rebounding. ESPN ranked the Top 10 PGs of all time & they have @iamisiahthomas ranked 5th. 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. He has no All-Defensive team accolades, because those werent introduced until the 1968-1969 season. While hes able to keep himself from getting pushed around when point guards, or even shooting guards, try and post up on him, hes not able to dig through picks the way the other three are. The undisputed first great point guard, Cousy remains the only guard in NBA history to be named First-Team All-NBA in 10 straight seasons. OPER is the Opponents Player Efficiency Rating and has been tracked by 82games.com since 2008. Not only is Damian Lillard one of the most exciting players in the game today, he makes a strong case as one of the best point guards in NBA history. Alex Caruso. 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. Hes controlled in how he plays hard. 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. He might physically play below the rim, but few can touch how he plays above the neck. After watching Paul play defense for a while, what stands out over everything else is that he just never stops movingliterally. He weighs in at only 175 pounds. And, there are also times when he does the bailing out. He falls into his rotations smoothly. 14.3 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 8.5 APG, .428 3P%, The player Players like Deron Williams, Kyrie Irving and John Wall blew by him fairly consistently. Eric Bledsoe has a reputation as being both quick and fast, even for a point guard, but he rarely shows it on defense. Of course having book smarts doesnt preclude you from knowing what youre doing on the court either. More explosive and athletic point guards focus on scoring as opposed to play-making, forgoing assists and ball-movement, and often defense, for higher scoring numbers. When hes coming off screens, hes especially horrible, giving up 1.15 points per play. 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. Magic Johnson. If someone goes past him, hell usually just wave goodbye. If a player tends to be the helper, he gets a better score. He is easily one of the physically weaker players in the league, even for his position. Oscar Robertson 3. 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. 13.1 PPG, 10.5 APG, 2.2 SPG, .384 3P%, The player Not to mention that he is an elite finisher around the rim, shooting 61.5 per cent on 5-foot attempts. Parker is a seasoned point guard who plays the game like a pro. Aside from the centre, having the best point guard is critical to improving your game because every play starts with him. All pre-draft measurements were obtained from the database hosted on Draft Express. As previously stated, he gets the help from Green and Leonard to guard the top point guards. The foundation (the facts or stats) needs to be laid first, and then the house (opinions about how, or why, something is) is built on top of it. Brandon Knight has work intelligence. One of the most famous point guards of all time, Jason Kidd, could make a dazzling pass or a simple play with the finest in the game while also adoring to hightail it in transition to wear opponents down. Its still possible for him to make another All-Star squad, and it seems like hes on the path to doing so. Meanwhile, another player has his numbers go up because he is capable. Kyle Lowry has exceptional speed and athleticism. He wont even try and fight over a pick if he gets caught in one, but just quits on the play. I considered both their actual measurables and how well they used them. While he does benefit from help defense, its not as often as you might think. His quickness and slim frame allow him to slip through gaps in the defence and create more opportunities for himself. The average score by point guards was 16.1. 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. As previously discussed, it is true that purely objective analysis does not, and cannot, tell the whole story, especially when it comes to something as dynamic as defense. Despite making it to the Western Conference Finals last season, he is yet to make an appearance in the NBA Finals. One of the best -- and quickest -- lob passers the game has ever seen. Big Shot, is one of the finest point guard leaders in the NBA. His foot speed is as good as anyone's in the league, and you cant measure that. The list of the best defensive NBA point guards for 2022-23 starts off with two of the elite perimeter defenders overall. 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. 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. Nash is the answer. For this reason, a small penalty was exacted for every minute under 30 minutes, and a small bonus was provided over 30 minutes. Still, hes one of the best point guards of all time, and his stats show that hes a deserved All-Star. That all-around game made Kidd one of the league's top point guards for nearly 20 years. But one in 20 is egregiously bad.). Does he know when to help and not to help? He lacks the strength to effectively go over screens consistently, so he has to go under them. According to Hoops Stats, in his MVP season, the Bulls gave up the fewest points to opposing point guards. 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. He was a giant of a guard, but he had all the necessary talents, including the ability to dribble and pass. In the NBA, point guards generally range from 6ft 1in (1.85m) to 6ft 4in (1.93m) whereas in the WNBA, point guards are usually 5ft 9in (1.75m) or shorter. The American former professional basketball player was born on August 9, 1928, and played point guard for the Boston Celtics from 1950 to 1963 and shortly for the Cincinnati Royals during the 196970 season. Interpreted as: best point guard defensive rating with a minimum of 2000 minutes played per 82 team games 2022 However, when the game is on the line, he makes the right decision. All-Time #NBArank continues with a countdown of the best shooting guards in NBA history. In the MVP vote for the 1967-1968 season, he finished second behind the unstoppable Wilt Chamberlain. New York Knicks (1967-1977), Cleveland Cavaliers (1977-1980), Honors: Bing, despite having one of his eyes injured, was an attacking force to be reckoned with. The other metrics help alleviate the extremes because they also indicate what a players personal defense does. After all, as his name implies, Billups was known for taking and making huge shots in order to help his team win. 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). Not Paul. 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. To create All-Time #NBArank, we put together a ballot with the 150 greatest players ever. Two-time MVP (2004-05, 2005-06), eight-time All-Star, seven-time All-NBA selection, Career stats 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. Per NBA.com/STATS, the Clippers were almost 10 points per 100 possessions better defensively while Lamar Odom was on the court instead of DeAndre Jordan, yet Paul was on the court three times as much with Jordan as Odom. Average players struggled, though. In the last entry, we focused on the five best defensive NBA point guards of all time. When it comes to intangibles, Chris Paul is the elite point guard in the league. Despite the fact that hes just 35, he has a limited amount of time left. Aware of his predilections, theyll pass the ball out to the perimeter, and simultaneous to the ball-handler catching it, theyll set a pick on Westbrook. His high rebound rate, while partly indicative of his speed is also a result of positioning, which relates to his IQ. The game has been graced by several incredible players whose names live on even after they retire. He secures first place in the top 10 NBA point guards of all time. To create All-Time #NBArank, we put together a ballot with the 150 greatest players ever. There arent a lot of players that could lock down Michael Jordan, the greatest player of all time. -- Doolittle, Cousy was an And-1 mix tape in black-and-white. Hes the closest thing in the world to Kevin Garnetts Mini-Me. With his athleticism and speed, there is no way that Rose should get beaten off the dribble as often as he does. -- Pelton, So precise with his passes and timely with his shots. 10-time All-Star, six-time All-NBA selection, nine-time All-D selection, co-Rookie of the Year (1994-95), Career stats Several sites track this, each in its slightly unique way, depending on its formula to calculate possessions. The official cause of death of Flashdance singer Irene Cara has been determined. After the All-Star break, when Rose hardly played, that number fell to 17.8 and the Bulls dropped to ninth. 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). 2. He also used his incredible basketball IQ to steal the ball and defend at a high level. The .72 points per play he gives up in isolation is elite-level defense. Notably, several modern point guards have used a successful style of post play, a tactic usually practiced by much larger centers and forwards. Jrue Holiday is making . On those, there is no link available. Since elite offensive players tend to have a higher usage rate, players that guard elite offensive players should also have more defensive plays. He always picks up on the switch. He was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, on February 7, 1974, to a Welsh mother, Jean, and an English father, John. As a Golden State Warrior and Miami Heat legend, Tim Hardaway may have the best crossover in basketball history. Miami Heat and Dwyane Wade won the NBA championship in 2006 with him as a member of the Seattle SuperSonics. As one of the elite point guards in the NBA, you would expect him to have elite athleticism, but he actually doesnt. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 13. Dallas Mavericks (1994-96, 2008-12), Phoenix Suns (1996-2001), New Jersey Nets (2001-08), New York Knicks (2012-13), Honors You need to build something on it. Whether you like him or not (and I personally dont), you have to respect that he plays the game as hard as it can be played. Also, he was disliked for flopping feigning a foul to get the ball back, yet he proved to be a key ingredient to the Spurs championship-winning formula. In his first season, he specialized in defense and could stop almost every point guard in the league on a regular basis. Michael Cooper was a great defensive guard, evident when he won the Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) award in 1987, and James Worthy is a top-ten Small Forward of all-time and was one of the . MVP (2014-15), two-time All-Star, two-time All-NBA selection, Career stats 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. On defense, the point guard is tasked with making the opposing point guard as ineffective as possible. He also only has a 65 wingspan, which is short of the other bigger point guards, but what he has, he uses well. Our booby prize winner is pictured above. It only looks at the data. It might not seem like much, but for most players, this covered around 30-40 games' worth of defense. Some players defined their positions. Lowry just seems to be lost on defense much of the time. This is what I mean by ubiquity. 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 led the league in total steals this year and did so without playing a lot of gambling defense. 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. They must also be able to adapt to what the defense is allowing and must control the pace of the game. Therefore, with a few exceptions, players were only considered if they played at least 1,200 minutes last season (which comes out to around 30 percent of possible minutes). His stellar pick-and-roll defensive score has more to do with being backed up by Omer Asik than it does his own play. He was also an outstanding playmaker and a solid scorer with a strong mid-range game. 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. He is suitable at keeping most players out on the perimeter, but against elite point guards he has more problems. He could launch it from 30 feet or more with ease. He gets crossed over pretty easily, and not just by the Associations elite point guards. Sometimes hell even rush to defend the wrong guy while his man is draining a wide-open three. That has more to do with the second-string frontcourt, led by Lamar Odom, backing him up than it does his team defense. His Synergy scores are worse than expected, but that appears to be from players just shooting over him more than getting past him. There arent many point guards in the league who can match Roses pure size and strength. Averaging 1.5 steals per game, Wade could block transition shots as well with the best of them. Lee Rose has described a point guard as a coach on the floor, who can handle and distribute the ball to teammates. The second-highest regulation scoring output of the 3-point era was the culmination . Hes able to stay in front of all but the quickest point guards in the league. In fact, Rondo gives more help than he getscontrary to my previous opinion. 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. What he offers goes beyond the court. ALL-TIME #NBARANK, 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11-15 | 16-20 | 21-25, The player Dennis Rodman 4. In many cases, I looked at their combine results. -- 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. 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. 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. Defensive rebounds are generally undervalued, although its also true that all defensive rebounds arent the same. Adapting your system to every opponent and knowing their nuances is understandable. Sportbrief has published an article about James Harden's age: stats, contract, family, dating, net worth in 2022 and more. However, he tends to play soft at times against the pick-and-roll, tending to rely on his quickness when he could muscle through a pick quicker. The next three slides will tell how this particular sausage was made. Top 50 Point Guards of All-Time: Magic, The Big O and Curry top the List By Jeff McDaniel | Jul 16, 2020, 5:35pm 1. 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. Rose had it all, including speed, explosiveness, and the ability to score when it mattered most. While Rose is slightly faster, Westbrook is slightly bigger. He arguably powers through picks better than any point guard in the league. But will he listen enough to a player he was just playing against to make that shift? Parker applies himself defensively in bursts, and this appears to be by design. If he tends to be the helped, he gets a worse score. There are a number of different types of metrics available from various websites.