best defensive point guards of all time best defensive point guards of all time

Its still possible for him to make another All-Star squad, and it seems like hes on the path to doing so. Jrue Holiday is making . 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. West became synonymous with brilliant basketball during his 14-year playing career with the Los Angeles Lakers. 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. He literally may be the least athletic guard in the Association. Then again, the limited number of plays may be, in part, due to the fact that hes so hard to post up. He lifted the Lakers, and transition basketball, to ethereal levels. The NBA is a point guard's paradise these days, so let's start All-Time #NBArank with our pantheon points. Players Stats: 24.0 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 6.5 APG, 1.0 SPG, 0.3 BPG, Honors: 5x All-Stars, 4x All-NBA Selection, 2012-2013 Rookie of the Year. He has all the tools to be one: great reflexes and speed, and those long arms with big mitts on the end. The best shooter ever not just in terms of accuracy but also in creatively getting looks with but a sliver's opening and with unlimited range. While no one always guards the best player, some players are much more likely to be guarding the other teams elite players, which makes them appear weaker defensively. His net defensive rating of minus-7.7, combined with his lack of a defensively-solid backup big, is a strong indication of his value as a help defender. He was an All-Star every year of his career and led the Lakers to nine NBA Finals appearances. -- Kevin Pelton, NBA Insider, May be the strongest point guard ever and consistently made everyone around him better. Rose is arguably the most athletic point guard in the league, though Russell Westbrook could present a challenge. Why not a normal scale of one to 10? He stands third among the top 10 point guards of all time. For the purpose of this study, 82games was used because the net defensive rating was also easily available and it made for consistency. For a position that was highly valued at the time, he brought a lot of sparkle, style, scoring, and domination to the court. 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. When he applies it, he does so effectively, especially in isolation and the pick-and-roll. Closing out on shooters, hell go sailing past them. 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. He uses his feet and body well, steering his man into the help defense when he knows hes not able to keep up. Honors: 1978-1979 Finals MVP, 5x All-Star, 9x All-Defense Selection, 2x All-NBA Team Selection, Hall of Famer. 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. Why did you choose such a weird number scale? He made everything go for those Lakers teams. With Doc Rivers in charge, things should turn around shortly, and next year his WAM score will be among the best in the league. Its why Williams gives up .92 points per play in isolation, one of the worst averages among point guards. His quick feet give him tremendous lateral movement. New Orleans Hornets (2005-11), Los Angeles Clippers, (2011-present), Honors One way of offsetting the problems of defensive rating is looking at on/off stats, meaning how many points does the defense give up while a player is on the court versus when he is off the court? One of the great conundrums in rating defense is that teammates factor into it. Lets say a perimeter defender gets beaten and then his center blocks the shot. Because he is the one who touches the basketball first on every possession, the NBAs point guard has long been considered its most vital position. The best way to track how effective a player is on the defensive end is by looking at their cumulative defensive win shares. Starter from the VCT lockin. He gave up 1.01 points per play on the spot-up last year. He leaves talented shooters alone to go double-team bad shooters. 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. As the primary decision-maker for a team, a point guard's passing ability determines how well a point guard is able to put their decision into play. For example, the Spurs absolutely ate him alive in the playoffs with Tony Parker, who averaged 24.5 points for the series. A point guard will often use their ability to score in order to augment their effectiveness as a decision-maker and playmaker. Jumping ability, body control and agility were all considered as well. This is what I mean by ubiquity. Dennis Johnson. There arent many point guards who can do it all, but Kidd is one of them. Second, having a five-point range on a 22-point scale prevents any one statistic from overly dominating the others. 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. Defensive Rating (DRtg) is the average number of points per 100 possessions a players team surrenders while he is on the court. His lateral quickness is exceptional, making it hard for people to get around him, and thats a big part of why he is tied with Derrick Rose for the fewest points per play among qualified point guards. A defensive point guard will also pressure opponents in passing lanes in an attempt to generate steals and scoring opportunities for their own team. Steph's ball-handling abilities make him a lethal ball-handler, as he can shake a defender at any time. 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 could play any spot on the court as well. He never stops moving. He might physically play below the rim, but few can touch how he plays above the neck. 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. He bulls through picks well and is not afraid to go over them. The classic definition of a point guard, orchestrating offense and shooting when necessary. -- Adande, He led the NBA in assists nine straight seasons from 1987 to 1996. MVP (1963-64), 12-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA selection, Rookie of the Year (1960-61), Hall of Fame, Career stats Best Defenders in NBA History: Top 50 Best Defensive Players By Clark Boinis | Jul 12, 2021, 4:05pm 1. Since I always get asked "Where's ___________?" If the team gives up more points while hes on the court, thats bad. The Glove is hands down the best defender a the point guard position. Moncrief is well known for his defensive prowess. The following are the five categories and what was considered for each of them: How fast players are from end to end is only a part of speed. Del Negro just worried about the matchup without ever developing a true defensive system or identity with the Clippers. Like last time . Nevertheless, its just as important. Teams He also has such superior court awareness that most picks dont catch him squarely, and he just glides over them. [2], Learn how and when to remove this template message, National Basketball Association Most Valuable Player Award, "The Olympic history of UConn's Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi", "Top 10 point guards in the NBA right now", FOXSports.com - Best all-time point guards, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Point_guard&oldid=1142307492, This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 17:58. There are few players on this list who can match his incredible scoring, rebounding, and playmaking prowess. On the other hand, hes not tremendously athletic. 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. His Synergy numbers compared to some of his team numbers validate that. 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. He was transcendent. -- Adams, Honors That earned him the nickname Mr. Neither of those is really a criticism of Parker, but its a reality. The defensive stats arent a good way to determine the totality of defense, but they are a factor and shouldnt be ignored. He has the most assists and steals of any player in NBA history and is a master of the pick & roll. He compensates for his diminutive size by fighting hard and using that aforementioned quickness. With his record of successes and pioneering point guard talents, Magic is at the top of the list. He also uses his quick hands to steal the dribble, and he does so without taking risks. While he does benefit from help defense, its not as often as you might think. Boston Celtics (1950-1963), Cincinnati Royals (1969-70), Honors He applies himself and stays committed, but when hes beaten on a play, hell relax waiting for his bigs to pick up the slack. His issues related to intelligence, detailed later, compound this problem. Teams Does he know when to go over the pick, and when to go under it? -- Peterson, Teams 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. Thats 20th all-time, with Kidd being the only other guard above him. He yields a whopping 41.5 three-point percentage on the spot-up, which is just not good. Defensively, Stockton had 3,265 steals the most all time during his 19-year career, helping him get 64.9 DWS. This is especially true when closing out on defenders. You just dont see him make the wrong plays. 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. But what kind of suit was he wearing on the last episode? The point guard is positioned on the perimeter of the play, so as to have the best view of the action. -- 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. 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. If you just look at his measurables, Chris Paul is not impressive. Though he had a relatively short career he only played 13 seasons his 50.4 DWS is 44th overall. Stats dont make a good argument, they make a good foundation for a good argument. Most players will take a little on-court breather now and then. Perhaps he just grew weary of Doug Collins' act. One of the most innovative offensive players, San Antonio Spurs legend Manu Ginobili was a very unique player. 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. In many cases, I looked at their combine results. You also can follow along @ESPNNBA and on Facebook. -- Adande, Possessed incredible court vision and creativity, all while orchestrating the frenetic game pace of his era. Its because Griffin and Jordan were on the bench next to him. Whats remarkable is how quickly he gets to the shooter and gets a hand in his face, even if its all the way to the corner three and the shooter is setting when Rose takes off. Stockton embodied a true point guard: an extension of the coach that ran the teams offense seamlessly. Exceptions were made for Derrick Rose, Danny Granger, Andrew Bynum and Kevin Love because they have all been All-Star players, and all are still, at least by age, in their prime. Who are the best defensive point guards in the NBA, and how are they determined? 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. 5 (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988), Career stats People that just do their job dont usually pitch in and help their co-workers. Humility can often be a sign of intelligence at work, and it is with Hinrich. -- Doolittle, Over the past season and a half, Curry has played point guard as well as anyone else in NBA history. Jason Kidd 9. The other metrics help alleviate the extremes because they also indicate what a players personal defense does. As previously stated, he gets the help from Green and Leonard to guard the top point guards. Sometimes it doesnt. For his career, Jordan averaged 2.3 steals (third all-time) and 4.2 DWS per year. Some players get caught out of place, but they know theyre out of place. This is also manifested in his spot-up defense. In fact, hes a bit of a bull on the court and tries to intimidate his counterpart. He cant be faulted for not being taller or longer, but he could use the length he has better. When the pick gets set, he just hurls into it and uses the momentum of the bounce to send him in the right direction. 76ers vs. He has decent size for a point guard, at 63 but he doesnt have much of a vertical: 28.5.. Triple Double and for good reason: hes fourth all-time in triple-doubles with 107. Average players struggled, though. Follow Sports Brief on Twitter for more trending and breaking news! He gets crossed over pretty easily, and not just by the Associations elite point guards. There was always that kid in high school or college who tried so hard to get decent grades. When Gibson played with the starters, the Bulls gave up 10 fewer points per 100 possessions. On defense, the point guard is tasked with making the opposing point guard as ineffective as possible. Getting paired with Tom Thibodeau has made it even better. 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. Last season, when Rose was healthy early on, they gave up the thirdmost, 16.3 points. Walt Frazier 10. Chalmers is 62 and 190 pounds, which is about average size for a point guard. The greatest point guard in NBA history. OPER is the Opponents Player Efficiency Rating and has been tracked by 82games.com since 2008. Wilt Chamberlain 14. Hes listed at 62 which seems about right, and hes broad-shouldered and strong for his height, but he also seems to have shorter limbs, although I cant find his wingspan listed on Draft Express. Hall of Famer was an impressive defensive player in his own right, Latest Jonathan Isaac injury may signal end of his Magic career, Seven Cubs pitchers combine for spring no-hitter vs. Padres, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones comments on Tony Pollard rumor, Ben Simmons suffers back injury while rehabilitating, Insider: It's Packers, Jets 'or bust' for Aaron Rodgers, QB Anthony Richardson doesn't understand his 'project' label, Vikings HC reveals 'crazy' thoughts about star WR, XFL player released for giving another team plays from own playbook. 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. The Glove was a nine-time All-Defensive Team selection, making the 1st team all nine times. Holiday has ample size for a point guard, standing a shade over 64 in shoes, and weighing in at 205 pounds. By combining them, we can get a better picture of the whole elephant of a players defense. Previously, Id had the impression that Rondo was beaten more often than he actually is and that Kevin Garnett just constantly bailed him out, which made his numbers look better than they are. Now hes in Phoenix, and well see how both he and Jeff Hornacek develop in their new roles. Oscar Robertson 3. He also knew when he needed to score, as evidenced by his 42-point performance in Game 6 of the 1980 NBA Finals for a Lakers team missing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.