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Pretty good list. You could have a good debate between Deron and Tony over who's number 2 and who's number 3. But either way I think most would agree that those two guys are the 2nd and 3rd best PG's in the league.
http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=13673
1) Chris Paul New Orleans Hornets: An easy call at #1. CP3 is not only the best point guard in the League today, he is quickly working his way up the list of all-time greatest PG's ever. Paul has now put two consecutive seasons of simply mind-boggling numbers. Chris became the first player ever in league history to lead the NBA in both steals and assists in consecutive seasons. In addition, Paul once again finished last season averaging over 20 points and 10 dimes. In the 63-year history of the NBA, there have only been seven players to finish a season with averages of at least 20 points and 10 assists. The other members of this prestigious 20/10 club are Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, Isiah Thomas, Kevin Johnson, Tim Hardaway, Nate "Tiny" Archibald, and, surprisingly, Michael Adams. Before CP3 did it in 2007-2008, no player had accomplished the impressive 20/10 feat in over 15 years. Timmy Hardaway was the last to do so back in 1992-1993. And over the last two seasons, Paul has posted a line of 25 points and 15 assists in the same game on nine different occasions. That is one more 25-point/15-assist game than all other NBA players COMBINED have recorded since the start of the 2007-2008 season. Paul's stats these last two years are basically the equivalent of Steve Nash's MVP-winning numbers on steroids. We could go on and on with the proof, but you get the idea
2) Deron Williams Utah Jazz: Drafted one pick ahead Chris Paul in 2005 draft, Williams has shadowed CP3's rise to greatness. While not quite on Paul's level of statistical absurdity, D-Will is clearly one of the more talented point guards to come into the Association in quite some time. Physically, he has everything you could possibly want in your PG: size, quickness, strength, athleticism, etc. Moreover, he possesses incredible court vision, passing skills, ability to run the break and either dish or finish in traffic. Not to mention he is solid shooter, as his terrific FG and FT percentages attest. Nearly every team in the League would love to have Deron Williams running their offense.
3) Tony Parker San Antonio Spurs: It seems like TP has been in the league for ages, but he actually just turned 27. But because he joined the Spurs as a teenager, Parker has already established an incredibly impressive resume, consisting of multiple NBA All-Star appearances, three NBA les, and one NBA Finals MVP trophy. And, the starling fact is Parker just keeps getting better and better. Last season, TP quietly produced the best statistical season of his career, averaging career-highs in points (22.0) and assists (6.9) while still shooting a remarkable 50.6% from the field. And, as his NBA Finals MVP suggests, Tony tends to play his best in big games.
4) Chauncey Billups - Denver Nuggets: Billups doesn't post the mind-boggling numbers that many others on this list can boast, but he is an undisputed floor general in the truest sense of the phrase. He was the captain and the leader of those great Pistons teams. It is no coincidence that Detroit advanced to AT LEAST the Eastern Conference Finals in each of his six full seasons in MoTown - and the Pistons captured the le in 2004, with Chauncey taking home the NBA Finals MVP award. And Billups picked up right where he left off in Denver. Under Billups' stewardship, the Nuggets finished the regular season with a 54-28 record, which earned then the second overall seed in the Western Conference playoffs. And then Denver advanced all the way to the WCF, before bowing out the eventual champion Los Angeles Lakers. It was the first time the Nuggets had made it out of the first round since 1994. Billups, who was credited with bringing stability and leadership to his new organization, was hailed in many circles as a deserving MVP candidate.
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5) Steve Nash - Phoenix Suns: I went back and fourth on this one. Nash's resume speaks for itself. Not only is he the only active PG - and the first PG since Magic Johnson - to take home a regular season MVP trophy, he won the award back-to-back in '04-'05 and '05-'06. (Nash joined Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Moses Malone, Larry Bird, Magic, Michael Jordan and Tim Duncan as the only players to ever accomplish that feat.) And although his overall production has decreased a bit over the past two seasons, he remains one of the league preeminent playmakers. He's a guy that everyone in the NBA wants to play with because of his propensity to make teammates better. When critics look to discredit Nash's statistical achievements, they claim that he is merely a byproduct of Phoenix's up-tempo system. However, Nash not only puts up big numbers, he is also incredibly efficient - shooting over 50% from the floor, 93% from the free-throw line, and 44% from behind-the-arc. The main knock on Nash is his defense. He was never a good defender, and has recently gone from bad to worse. There were whispers last season that Nash has lost a lot off his fastball and was on the slippery down slope of his career. Well, Mark Cuban and the Dallas Mavericks thought something similar when the y refused to match Phoenix's mammoth offer back in 2004 and Nash joined the Suns as a free agent. Nash responded with consecutive MVP performances. Phoenix still has plenty of faith in his 35-year-old body, as evidenced by the $22 million dollar extension they gave him this summer...
Honorable Mentions
Derrick Rose - Chicago Bulls: Leaving Rose out of the top five was difficult. From a strictly physical talent and skill-set perspective, Rose is off the charts. D-Rose possesses other-worldly athleticism. His quickness is blinding; he can jump through the roof; and he is also a terrific passer who constantly makes plays. He is not a great shooter, but his jumper has improved, and can score from anywhere due to his slashing ability. But, at just 20 years old, he currently lacks the intangibles and leadership skills of veterans like Nash and Billups. There is very little doubt in my mind that Rose will quickly crack the upper-echelon of players at his position, and in the NBA in general; but he is still a pup matching up against wily old bulldogs.
Rajon Rondo - Boston Celtics: Rondo played very well back in 2007-2008, when some doubters believed the only thing that stood between the Celtics and their franchise's 17th le was a reliable point guard. Well, after lending a hand in the C's championship run in 2008, Rondo took his game to the next level this past spring. Rajon's performance during the playoffs this year was simply incredible. He helped lead the undermanned Celtics past the Bulls in an epic seven-game series, and then extended the eventual Eastern Conference Champion Orlando Magic to a seventh and deciding game in the semi-finals. The C's exceeded expectations and Rondo was a major reason why. The Celtics played 14 games last postseason, and in those contests Rondo averaged 16.9 points, 9.8 assists (versus just 2.7 turnovers), 9.7 rebounds, and 2.5 steals. Those are mind-boggling numbers for any point guard, let alone one who won't turn 24 until next February. Yes, there are certainly flaws in his game - Rondo will never win any "prettiest jump shot" awards - but he still has managed to shoot over 50% from the floor last season and, most importantly, his playoff production speaks for itself; as does the championship ring on his finger.
Baron Davis - Los Angeles Clippers: When he is healthy, and motivated, and in shape, B-Diddy is pretty much un-guardable. (If you're looking for proof - check out game tapes of the Warriors 2007 playoff run). The problem is you are not sure what you are going to get from Davis at any given time. For instance, last year a complete lost season for Baron. Dealing with an assortment nagging injuries and general apathy, Davis played in just 65 games - which marked the seventh time over the past eight seasons in which he missed at least 15 contests. And in those 65 games that he suited up for the Clippers, he averaged a pedestrian 14.9 PPG, while shooting just 37% from the field and a career-low 30.2% from three-point land. With Blake Griffin in town and the excitement around the Clippers mounting, Baron could very well respond with a great bounce-back season. Or, maybe he gets hurt or becomes disinterested...? We shall see.
Devin Harris - New Jersey Nets: Like Rose and Rondo, Harris is another player that will be looking to secure a spot amongst the league's best PG's in another year or two. At 26 years of age, Harris is entering his prime and has already shown he is a special talent. During his first full season in New Jersey last year, Harris was one of the league's true breakout stars. He got off to an extremely hot start, averaging over 26 points and nearly 7 assists per game in November. He ended up missing some time with an assortment of minor injuries, but he still made his first All-Star appearance and finished the season with career-highs across the board: Points (21.3 PPG), assists (6.9), steals (1.7), and rebounds (3.4).
Jason Kidd - Dallas Mavericks: Yes, he is a little long in the tooth at 36, but he has shown he still has gas left in the tank by putting together a solid 2008-2009 campaign. He averaged a career-low 9.0 PPG, but dished out copious amounts of assists and rebounded as well as any PG in the NBA. Surprisingly, he also led the Mavs in three-point FG%. Of course he isn't the elite player he once was, and he probably couldn't guard Mark Cuban at this point; but Kidd can still run a beautiful fast break and he makes the Mavs a better team when he is on the floor.
Gilbert Arenas - Washington Wizards: Obviously, the biggest question surrounding Gillie the Gangster is the health of his surgically-repaired knee. However, some tend to forget just how dominant Arenas was before the injury bug bit. During his last full season (2006-2007), he averaged 28.5 points, 6.0 assists, 4.6 rebounds, 2.8 three-balls, and 1.9 steals. The year before, he averaged 29.3 points (on 44.7% shooting) and 6.1 assists. Of course that was two years and three knee surgeries ago. But word out of D.C. is that Gilbert has been balling all summer long and apparently he looks great and is moving extremely well - which is bad news for the rest of the Eastern Conference.
Jose Calderon - Toronto Raptors: Calderon has shown flashes, but he has yet to take that 'next step' towards becoming a great PG.
Other notable names that missed the cut: Jameer Nelson, Monta Ellis (will Nellie have him playing PG?), Andre Miller, Mo Williams, Russell Westbrook (unlimited upside), Kirk Hinrich.
Pretty good list. You could have a good debate between Deron and Tony over who's number 2 and who's number 3. But either way I think most would agree that those two guys are the 2nd and 3rd best PG's in the league.
no dwyane wade?
I agree. We know who the number 1 is for sure. Depending on what you prefer, you could argue D-Will and TP all day long.
SG.
He's not a point guard silly!!
pretty much bull , Parker >>>> Deron.
I'd take Devin over Nash.
i think i can agree with this list; i love tony parker, but POINT GUARD-wise, paul and williams are better than him that way.
I am a Spurs fan and I approve this list
No way it should be Calderon at 1.
Just kidding, Cp3 is an obvious 1, Deron Williams and Obvious 2 and Parker at 3.
to be No. 1 D-Will has to show that he is not just a product of J.Sloan's offensive system. For Parker to be No.1 he has to run more plays to get his teammates involved.
I would take Parker at number 2, but I can see how some would argue Deron.
Funny how #5 Billups easily outplayed CPaul head to head in the playoffs. Stats and PER is one thing, but in playoff matchups Parker play CP3 to a draw in 2008, and Billups outplayed him in 2009. So even though his stats are clearly the best, I'm not sure he's really the best PG. One reason, his defense is nothing special, probably the weakest of the top 3. Also, he is shut down by certain players, while there really is no one who can stop Parker. Parker and Billups have Finals MVP's.
Billups is on the downside of his career. He is still effective, but CP3 is clearly better. CP3 did not have the bullets last year to fight with. His team was very weak.
tony at 3 seems about right
CP3 was pretty ing weak himself.
Not bad.
True, CP3 did come up lame, but still....
cp3 flops
he is no way number one
no homecourt advance he losses 2 assist a game
no chandler he loses 2 more a game
If you go off career accolades, TParks is the best of all the other 4. Parker 3 les, 1 Finals MVP and has the better shooting percentage of all the guards. TParks usually outplays C3P0 or whatever, but not by a large margin. Last season when LA played Naw-lins C3P0 made several game-changing mental errors for the worse for his team. They had a lead in the last 1-2 minutes but C3P0 had mental meltdown after mental meltdown against LA. Derek Fisher never outplays TParks.
CP3 is #1, but not by as wide a margin as some would have you believe. His assists total is inflated by big time homecourt score keeping. It will be interesting to see how his assists go now that he has a more traditional post scoring option that scores in a manner that won't register an assist. Also, with all of Tony's accomplishments I don't see how you can rate DWill ahead of him. But overall can't argue too much.
Hey, it's you again!
Tony Parker - 2008-2009 Season - 6.9 assists per game.
You're one of the worst trolls on ST. But you're still fun to call out when you make ignorant posts devoid of fact.
Last edited by Cry Havoc; 08-27-2009 at 11:27 AM.
Parker is probably a lot closer to CP3 than people give him credit for. And I'd put him ahead of Williams.
Billups makes good teams great, and average teams good. That makes him pretty darn impressive as a point.
I would also put Tony ahead of Williams, but still put Billups at #2. his overall impact just can't be ignored and I also don't see him on the downside. he will deliver 2 or 3 more impressive seasons.
Are you ing kidding? While no player wins the Finals alone, and Tim is the foundation of the team, Tony was CLEARLY the Alpha player in that Finals. It's not even really debatable. Tony was unstoppable. Mike Brown was SCREAMING at his team to keep him out of the paint, and they couldn't. He shot 57% from the field and 57% from beyond the arc.
I think the list is pretty solid, pretty fair. I don't think there is a perfect point guard in the game, so each of the guys on the list has his own share of flaws. I pretty much agree with the top 3, and they're all fairly close to one another. On any given night, one of the top three could out-perform the other two. But, it's the same for all three.
I think perhaps the distinction between Paul and Parker might be the question of if you were to switch their roles and teams, how would each fare? If you put Chris Paul on the Spurs and asked him to focus on scoring, could he excel at that? And, if you put Tony Parker on the Hornets and asked him to make all the decisions in the sets, push the ball when he could, and consistently get his teammates involved, could he excel at that? I think both could likely do well in the others' shoes, but I think Chris Paul could probably handle Tony Parker's role better than Tony could handle Chris' role. Both still great point guards and both deserving of high praise as point guards, but I can see why many think Chris Paul is the better point guard. Not to mention, Paul is the more traditional point guard.
Between Tony and Deron Williams, I think again it's close. But, I can definitely see why many would believe Deron is better. He's a better playmaker as it pertains to setting up his teammates and does a good job in both the half-court set and in transition with controlling the tempo of the game.
I think if there were a list of best "scoring" point guards, Tony could easily top it. But, if we're talking in general, the point guard position, I would take into consideration point guard duties and abilities as very important in the analysis and ranking.
As for the argument that Tony Parker has the better career accolades, then listing 3 les and shooting percentage, I don't think it's really a congruent point. Championships are team awards and field goal percentage is not really a gauge in evaluating point guards. If we go by career accolades, Steve Nash probably should be first on the list.
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