The best in the NBA -- at everything
by Randy Hill
With another month to burn before NBA players roll into training camp, it seems like a swell time to indulge in a little subjective enterprise.
Well, statistics may be used in order to underscore an opinion or point of view, but we hope they won't sidetrack what could be some interesting debates.
Quite simply, we're digging into which NBA players rank as the very best at what they do. And what they do is shoot, dribble, pass, talk and defend ballhandlers.
It should be noted that every player listed as the "best" in each category is considered by me (with assistance, now and then, from NBA scouts, personnel watchdogs or coaches) to be the best at that particular activity right now.
The following categories are presented in the order they happened to dawn upon the writer:
* Best Pure Shooter: Before using numbers to make the case for Phoenix Suns point guard Steve Nash, please understand that my weeding-out process includes the combined factors of field-goal shooting, free-throw shooting and 3-point shooting.
So, how is Nash superior to Ray Allen, Dirk Nowitzki, Michael Redd, Jason Kapono and Kyle Korver? Well, a look at their career numbers indicates that none of the players listed in the previous sentence has a success-rate percentage that combines those three categories and adds up to more than 175.
Nash's career total after adding field-goal, 3-point and free-throw percentages is 181. He checked in at 186 last season. It also should be be pointed out that unlike some of the other players he's compared with, Nash rarely is the beneficiary of a wide-open shot created through dribble penetration from someone else.
* Best Athlete: Using the eye test, this one's easy. Before proceeding, I'll admit that defining what makes a great athlete is an extremely subjective exercise. Let's go back to Nash, who isn't considered to be among the league's best athletes unless manual dexterity, footwork and other specialized skills are included. And perhaps they should be.
But if we're looking at strength, speed, quickness, leaping prowess and the ability to maintain these levels for extended periods, LeBron James not only is the NBA's best ... he's one of the best athletes in the history of mankind.
* Best Trash-Talker: Since the retirement of Gary Payton, this has become a tough category to judge. The name Ron Artest springs to mind, but league insiders list him as the creepiest trash-talker, not necessarily the best. Kevin Garnett also seems to be an excellent candidate, but he may not even be the best trash-talker on the Boston Celtics.
That honor goes to teammate Paul Pierce, who — after consultation with experts — registers as the best on-court woofer in the NBA.
* Best Little-Guy Rebounder: I really wanted to go with Dallas Mavericks point guard Jason Kidd, who has dominated rebounding statistics at his position for years. But at about 6-foot-4, J-Kidd's 6.2 rebounds per game last season weren't as impressive as the 5.5 averaged by New Orleans Hornet Chris Paul, who may be about a whisker taller than 6 feet.
* Best Big-Guy Shooter: If we just went by the numbers, the names Tim Thomas and Rashard Lewis would be really high on the list. But based on what he's accomplished despite having defenders draped all over him, I'm going with 7-foot Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki. Others may have slightly better shooting percentages, but I'd take Dirk over the other bigs in a game of H-O-R-S-E.
* Best On-Ball Defender: Los Angeles Laker Kobe Bryant may be the choice if you want to pick one guy to make one stop at the end of the game. Other strong candidates are Houston's Shane Battier and former San Antonio Spurs stopper Bruce Bowen. But much of the work done by Battier and Bowen is done defending off the ball and I'm looking for one guy who makes it extremely risky every time his man puts the ball on the floor.
And that guy is crusty veteran guard Lindsey Hunter, who (if he continues to play) is considered a one-man, full-court press.
* Best Moving Without the Ball: Based on personal observation and consultations with several NBA insiders, nobody comes close to Detroit Pistons guard Rip Hamilton.
* Best Little Guy Finisher: We're looking for point-guard-sized players here, with Paul and Allen Iverson certainly ranking high up on the list. But for his ability to get to the rim and score without rising up and throwing it down, let's go with Tony Parker of the San Antonio Spurs. I'd also go with Parker as the best at going from Point A to Point B while dribbling the ball.
* Best Dribbler: New Jersey Nets guard Rafer Alston would earn the nod here if his And-I-style would be permitted to trump efficiency off the bounce. But since it isn't, the NBA's best dribbler — in my opinion — is Paul. Very high up on the not-exactly-slouches list are Iverson and Nash.
* Best Passing-Lane Defender: Fresh off his disruption of the Denver Nuggets' sideline out-of-bounds plays, I'm going with brand-new Houston Rocket Trevor Ariza.
* Best Big-Man Passer: Los Angeles Laker Pau Gasol certainly is a willing and clever passer, but his 3.5 dimes per game puts him in a dead heat with San Antonio Spurs superstar Tim Duncan. I'll go with Duncan because he's at least as good as Gasol right now and has been passing at this high level for a longer period of time.
* Best Help Defender: Duncan is right there with Boston's Garnett, but I'm going with KG because in the event of a required switch, he has a far better chance of staying in front of a smaller ballhandler.
* Best Dunker: For his ability to bang one down on another player's dome from seemingly anywhere, I'll go with LeBron.
* Best Closer: With a game on the line, I'll go with Kobe, who can close several games in a row without worrying about a pitch count.
* Best Big-Man Passer: Fabricio Oberto, no joke. I know you can't put him on the list 'cause he barely plays anymore and 'cause he didn't have the chance to show that aspect of his game very much on the NBA but I've saw him make lots of Magic like passes in his career.
Best sexual: Richard Jefferson
lolBest sexual: Richard Jefferson
Good thing Dirk has proven himself to be such a manly man.Best sexual: Richard Jefferson
Reading the best passing lane defender made me sad and Ron Artest hasn't even had a 2-19 game yet
"The name Ron Artest springs to mind, but league insiders list him as the creepiest trash-talker, not necessarily the best."
That's only because he's a Laker now.
Good one
Haven't heard a comeback like that from a Spur fan before.
Ariza ??????????????? WTF ???????????????????????????
The Nuggets threw the ball in his hands; Lamar was all over tiny Anthony Carter
Oh, and I agree with Lebron being the best athlete; the man is so fast and agile he can leave the court without shaking hands, incognito.
Swoosh!
At least Dirk impregnated someone... errr who looks like a man.
FIFYBest sexual: Ghazi
Best-tiality: Dirk Nowitzki
If they make a Thundercats movie, she could play Lion-O.
Don't think so. LionO was a good looking cat. Dirk's girl is uglier than Moonra
That must be because you don't spend enough of your time on a Spurs board.Good one
Haven't heard a comeback like that from a Spur fan before.
You spur fans crack me the up
Getting OWN3D by a crack means no such thing.
That broad is almost as ugly as dirk4mvp's game on Madden.
He won't ever play me anymore...he's always so busy watching Dexter...even when he is playing Madden, I message him and he ignores me.
Nash's assist number has been the most highlighted and credited till the very present days, so I have to argue that Nash isn't a "pure" shooter. Indeed, Nash has many other works to do on court besides shoot the ball. Literally the "pure" shooter refers to someone who can't do crap other than shooting, in this case, Nash is definitely not even close to this le and easily gets overwhelmed by the names like Jason Kapono, Daquean Cook etc...
When a player has to creat his own shots but not pick the cheap ones from your up-doubled teamates, then he isn't actually a "pure" shooter but an all-round key role for his team. I concede Dirk doesn't shoot as wonderfully as Nash does presently, but it's undeniable that Dirk is better than Nash in terms of all-round skills, which include defensive skills.
Agreed. Before nominating someone for the le of "best athlete", we have to clarify the different meanings of athlete and athleticism. Athlete refers to a group of people working in the area relating to sports, say, a chess pro is an athlete even if he's crappy as .
* Best Athlete: Using the eye test, this one's easy. Before proceeding, I'll admit that defining what makes a great athlete is an extremely subjective exercise. Let's go back to Nash, who isn't considered to be among the league's best athletes unless manual dexterity, footwork and other specialized skills are included. And perhaps they should be.
But if we're looking at strength, speed, quickness, leaping prowess and the ability to maintain these levels for extended periods, LeBron James not only is the NBA's best ... he's one of the best athletes in the history of mankind.
In comparison, athleticism only a component of what a good athlete requires. Some athletes, like the chess pro mentioned above, can be athletes despite their lack of athleticism. Comparably, athleticism isn't bound to make someone a good athlete if he only has athleticism. Stromile Swift is a typical example for this case.
The amount and variaty of trashy words shouldn't be all measurements when you're estimating the pro in this area, superbly the effects and impacts of trash talking are also essential elements. In addtion, dirty words aren't very necessary ingredients in trash talking, that said, some naive words can very well be wrapped up into classic trash talks.* Best Trash-Talker: Since the retirement of Gary Payton, this has become a tough category to judge. The name Ron Artest springs to mind, but league insiders list him as the creepiest trash-talker, not necessarily the best. Kevin Garnett also seems to be an excellent candidate, but he may not even be the best trash-talker on the Boston Celtics.
That honor goes to teammate Paul Pierce, who — after consultation with experts — registers as the best on-court woofer in the NBA.
Meanwhile, the le of "best trash talker" isn't guaranteed for the players grown up in ghettos, like Ron Artest or Baron Davis, or Paul Pierce who usually ambles inside-out in those areas.
Matchable to his superb skills, Kobe Bryant's trash talk are also among the top class in NBA, even if it's not THE best. Even the notorious trash-talker Shaq O'Neal was outcompeted by him in 04 and ultimately got expelled from LA, which concretely depicted the efforts of Kobe's remarkable off-basketball skills. Besides, his trash talking was even developed and upgraded to an unprecedented level after shaq's departure, especially after Kobe achieved the bite at shaq's laid legacy, which made his mouth even more trashy than ever before.
If the size is considered before stats, then I argue Nate Ronbinson is a better rebounder than Chris Paul by any means. While on the opposite other end, Kidd prevails over Chris Paul. I admit Chris Paul is rebounding good for his size, but the 6-foot guy isn't worth this le since he doesn't touch either side of "little" or "best rebounder".* Best Little-Guy Rebounder: I really wanted to go with Dallas Mavericks point guard Jason Kidd, who has dominated rebounding statistics at his position for years. But at about 6-foot-4, J-Kidd's 6.2 rebounds per game last season weren't as impressive as the 5.5 averaged by New Orleans Hornet Chris Paul, who may be about a whisker taller than 6 feet.
Agreed, additionally Dirk's also superb in other categories among the big guys, probably the only where where Dirk isn't a top is just the clumsiness. Oh yeah, and the taste of females as well.
* Best Big-Guy Shooter: If we just went by the numbers, the names Tim Thomas and Rashard Lewis would be really high on the list. But based on what he's accomplished despite having defenders draped all over him, I'm going with 7-foot Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki. Others may have slightly better shooting percentages, but I'd take Dirk over the other bigs in a game of H-O-R-S-E.
Battier, Bowen and Kobe are all excellent team defenders, specially Shane Battier who is almost the best help-defender in the league. But none of them is as good in one-on-one defense as Ron Artest is.* Best On-Ball Defender: Los Angeles Laker Kobe Bryant may be the choice if you want to pick one guy to make one stop at the end of the game. Other strong candidates are Houston's Shane Battier and former San Antonio Spurs stopper Bruce Bowen. But much of the work done by Battier and Bowen is done defending off the ball and I'm looking for one guy who makes it extremely risky every time his man puts the ball on the floor.
And that guy is crusty veteran guard Lindsey Hunter, who (if he continues to play) is considered a one-man, full-court press.
Agreed, closely followed by Shawn Marion.* Best Moving Without the Ball: Based on personal observation and consultations with several NBA insiders, nobody comes close to Detroit Pistons guard Rip Hamilton.
Tony Longoria is undebatably a wonderful attacker, and more preciously, he usually gets scores in the paint dispite his below-average size. But I doubt he's got such a big heart to fulfill some big shots, like the "Fisher 0.4 second".
* Best Little Guy Finisher: We're looking for point-guard-sized players here, with Paul and Allen Iverson certainly ranking high up on the list. But for his ability to get to the rim and score without rising up and throwing it down, let's go with Tony Parker of the San Antonio Spurs. I'd also go with Parker as the best at going from Point A to Point B while dribbling the ball.
Rafer has always been the best dribbler since he became a pro in NBA, and it's almost impossible even for a prime-version Gary Payton to get a steal from Rafer's hands. Rafer's dribbling is the only piece of wood that he's grabbed to stay afloat in NBA sea, I mean, his shooting is even worse than a 's.
* Best Dribbler: New Jersey Nets guard Rafer Alston would earn the nod here if his And-I-style would be permitted to trump efficiency off the bounce. But since it isn't, the NBA's best dribbler — in my opinion — is Paul. Very high up on the not-exactly-slouches list are Iverson and Nash.
Leaving alone the thoughts of athleticism, I honestly can't find any spot shining on Ariza's 6-8 body. Dude was just lucky enough to play with some superstars who draws most of opponent attention, what he was requested was just picking some easy wide-open shots.
* Best Passing-Lane Defender: Fresh off his disruption of the Denver Nuggets' sideline out-of-bounds plays, I'm going with brand-new Houston Rocket Trevor Ariza.
Brad Miller would have done a better assisting job if he had also got some nice surroundings like Manu and Longoria in subs ution for the craps of Hinrich, Deng etc...
* Best Big-Man Passer: Los Angeles Laker Pau Gasol certainly is a willing and clever passer, but his 3.5 dimes per game puts him in a dead heat with San Antonio Spurs superstar Tim Duncan. I'll go with Duncan because he's at least as good as Gasol right now and has been passing at this high level for a longer period of time.
Yeah, he ignored mine and ATRAIN's invite today.He won't ever play me anymore...he's always so busy watching Dexter...even when he is playing Madden, I message him and he ignores me.
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