The list of the best defensive NBA point guards for 2022-23 starts off with two of the elite perimeter defenders overall. Players Stats: 17.9 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 9.1 APG, 1.5 SPG, 0.2 BPG, Honors: 3x All-Star, 5x All-NBA Selection, 1988-1989 Most Improved Player. He has decent size for a point guard, at 63 but he doesnt have much of a vertical: 28.5.. He appears to communicate the wisdom hes accrued to his teammates. Triple Double and for good reason: hes fourth all-time in triple-doubles with 107. With Doc Rivers in charge, things should turn around shortly, and next year his WAM score will be among the best in the league. He always seems to know exactly where everyone is. He was second among point guards in defensive rebounds per 36 minutes. His Synergy numbers tell the story. Its more than that. Bledsoe runs through his rotations, but he rounds them off or overruns them. Hes able to use that size advantage by being physical, playing close and aggressive, often forcing shooters into shots they arent comfortable taking. If you just look at his measurables, Chris Paul is not impressive. -- Adande, Teams Because Derrick Rose was the NBAs youngest MVP in 2009, its unfortunate that the guy isnt higher on this list. Coming off one of the best offensive seasons in NBA history, Curry takes the top spot on our list of the league's best point guards, followed closely by 22-year-old wunderkind Luka Doncic, who may . He gambles too much, and that often gets him caught out of the play. Mar 6, 2020; New York, New York, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Chris Paul (3) reacts during the second half against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. That earned him the nickname Mr. 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. Coaches are responsible for developing young players, and it would have been fun to watch him grow under Doc Rivers. You can almost rate Chalmers improving basketball intelligence by how many times per game he gets yelled at by his superstar teammates. LeBron James, the best player in the NBA, is also the league's best point guard. With the increased emphasis on the deep three, point guards account for a large portion of the league's top scorers. This is especially true when closing out on defenders. 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. The facts need to come first. In the last entry, we focused on the five best defensive NBA point guards of all time. WAM is purely objective. Pauls been an All-Defensive Team selection nine times, being selected to the First Team seven times and the Second Team twice. Not everything about a players value can be seen even through advanced stats, or even while hes on the court. Its what separates him from being a valuable, slightly overrated defender, and an elite defender. He also uses that length to be one of the best shot-blocking point guards in the league. Do players go under picks when they should go over them? 43 views, 0 likes, 0 loves, 0 comments, 0 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from BabyYo: NRG VS KOI Highlights. Then again, the limited number of plays may be, in part, due to the fact that hes so hard to post up. -- Pelton, Today's children will ask, "Who was the Steph Curry before Steph Curry?" He needs more of the former and less of the latter. As a result, he rarely gets tangled up with the pick-setter. There's no way Stockton & Curry are better than Isiah. The Cleveland Cavaliers 2016 championship run would not have been possible without Kyrie Irving, who is a two-time NBA champion. Players Stats: 12.6 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 8.7 APG, 1.9 SPG, 0.3 BPG, Honors: 10x All-Star, 6x All-NBA Selection, 1994-1995 Rookie of the Year, 9x All-Defensive Team Selection, Hall of Famer. Players Stats: 18.9 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 6.1 APG, 1.9 SPG, 0.2 BPG, Honors: 7x All-Stars, 6x All-NBA Selection, 7x All-Defensive Team Selection, Hall of Famer. Chris Paul had the awkward situation this year of being smarter than his head coach, Vinny Del Negro. Johnson is widely recognized as one of the all-time great point guards, particularly for his defense. Michael Jordan 10. When he went up and challenged DeAndre Jordan, and then got blown up, the entire basketball world acted like theyd just seen the greatest basketball play ever. He was the league's Rookie of the Year in 1966-67 and was named to the All-NBA First Team twice and the Second Team once, and he appeared in seven NBA All-Star Games. Point guards are expected to be vocal floor leaders. With both, its the combination of their size and speed that makes them so phenomenal. Players Stats: 25.7 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 9.5 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.1 BPG, Honors: 1963-1964 MVP, 12x All-Star, 11x All-NBA Selection, 1960-1961 Rookie of the Year, Hall of Famer. That Paul was able to keep the Clippers on track through much of the season with the ever-changing defensive schemes the team had is pretty miraculous. READ ALSO: James Harden's age: stats, contract, family, dating, net worth in 2022 and more. Anyways, we hope you enjoyed going through the rankings with Magic Johnson securing first place in the Top 10 NBA point guards of all time. We compiled a list of the top 15 point guards of all time using wholly subjective metrics from the list of active players and a few other legends. You cant build a house first, and then pour the foundation underneath it. And his athleticism gives him a leg up, which helps him dominate. Nate Archibald 14. At 61 and 171 pounds, Rondo is pretty small by NBA standards, but he plays much tougher than his size. This is a necessity because of the point guard's many leadership obligations. A point guard specializes in certain skills, like other player positions in basketball. If someone goes past him, hell usually just wave goodbye. 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. Sometimes his teammates bailed him out; sometimes the shot just didnt go in. Penny Hardaway was well recognized for his relationship with Shaquille ONeal when he was only a kid. Although Stockton accumulated numerous All-NBA nods, he only made the All-Defensive 2nd Team five times. He had absolutely no help backing him up, and that inflates his objective numbers. The Glove was a nine-time All-Defensive Team selection, making the 1st team all nine times. 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. How hard do they fight through them? Conley also has crazy hops, measuring a 40.5-inch vertical at the combine, and he is one of the quickest point guards in the league. In addition to the traditional role of the point guard, modern teams have found new ways to utilize the position. Greg Monroe has talent on the offensive side of the ball but not a whole lot on the defensive side. Adande, His Game 6 in the 1980 Finals, while jumping center as a 20-year-old rookie, has to be on the Mt. His score would be much worse if it werent for help defense from Chris Bosh, LeBron James and Chris Andersen frequently coming to his aid. His record and effect on the game, particularly offensively, are legendary, and its easy to see why. While he does benefit from help defense, its not as often as you might think. Los Angeles Lakers (1979-91, 1995-96), Honors From there, hes playing catch up. Simply put, defensive win shares (DWS) are defined by how many wins a player produces based on his defensive ability. Despite the fact that hes just 35, he has a limited amount of time left. 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. He closed out on jump-shooters half-heartedly, which is bad enough, but when you combine that with the way he played pick-and-roll plays, it was even worse. DJ, standing 6'4, started playing point for Boston in the second half of his basketball career and was often tasked with shutting down . Jack has good but not great effort. He picked up a complicated system almost immediately, and the Bulls were consistently a better defense with Hinrich on the court, in large part because of how well he understood the system. As one of the elite point guards in the NBA, you would expect him to have elite athleticism, but he actually doesnt. Kyrie Irving is unquestionably one of the greatest point guards of all time. He had the best peak for any point guard in NBA history, hands down. He didnt have an eye-popping number, but he was in the top 25 percent of players there. 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. Our booby prize winner is pictured above. Bledsoe is not a great help defender, in spite of boasting a -4.9 net defensive rating. He gets a ton of help from his teammates and isnt asked to give a lot back. Sometimes that works, such as his quick darts under picks. He fights through picks, going over them when he can and under them when he cant. Scouting isnt the same as just watching games. Its like hes just punching the clock and collecting his wages. It seems so much of Conley is either there or not there; you get it or you dont get it. This is one of those cases where scouting helps. -- Adams, For nine consecutive years, Nash's teams led the NBA in offensive rating. Watching him rotate was watching perfection. In case you missed it, Jason Kidd was tops on the list with 75.1 DWS, good for 11th all-time. The official cause of death of Flashdance singer Irene Cara has been determined. Players like Deron Williams, Kyrie Irving and John Wall blew by him fairly consistently. Does he know when to go over the pick, and when to go under it? During each of his five NBA championship rings, he was one of the finest players in the league. He doesnt just bring effort to every game; he brings it in all the right ways. When it came to size, the main flaw in his game was that he was very fast and explosive with his handles. Finals MVP, 12-time All-Star, five-time All-NBA selection, Hall of Fame, Career stats On the other hand, no matter how solid the foundation is, you cant move into it. What are you crying about lmfao 03 Mar 2023 00:55:09 He weighs in at only 175 pounds. A point guard that has enough ball-handling skill and quickness to be able to drive to the basket in a half-court set is also very valuable and considered by some to be a must for a successful offense. Its why Williams gives up .92 points per play in isolation, one of the worst averages among point guards. Their primary job is to facilitate scoring opportunities for their team, or sometimes for themselves. Normally this would be a list of FAQs, but no one has ever asked any questions (since no one has ever seen it). Top NBA point guards for 2022-23: Ranking all 30 starters | Sporting News TMGNNS LEBRON Sun, 4:30p DEN CLE 2/23, 4:00p BOS IND 2/23, 4:00p DET ORL 2/23, 4:00p MEM PHI 2/23, 4:30p NOP TOR. When he lets it go, though, it seems calculated. Johnson will go down as one of the top 25 all-time point guards because of his defensive presence. 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. Paul, who was born on May 6, 1985, has long been regarded as one of the game's greatest point guards, a fact reinforced by his selection to the 75th Anniversary Team. Other stats were determined by using my trusty sidekick, MS Excel, loaded up with standard stats available on most websites. Allen Iverson 11. Top 10 Point Guards of All Time Best NBA Point Guards, NBA and other Best Basketball Leagues in the World, Facebook and Twitter takedown hackers targeting Ukraine political figures and military officials via fake accounts, Britney Spears called out Fans that She felt Sick to her stomach after Family plans Intervention, Stephen tWitch Boss passed away intestate, wife Allison Holker has filed Estate Control. Big O is widely regarded as one of the best offensive point guards of all time. Follow Sports Brief on Twitter for more trending and breaking news! Dubs' Curry (leg) could return as soon as Sun. Hes fearless, and no matter how large the big setting the pick is, he wont back down. Lowry looks around like he just woke up from a nap in a foreign city, and hes trying to figure out where hes supposed to be. Chris Paul fell into the same kind of trap last season. Russell Westbrook and Derrick Rose are the two most physically gifted point guards of their generation, and, as a result, are constantly going to be compared to one another. With his athleticism and speed, there is no way that Rose should get beaten off the dribble as often as he does. (Most defenders let the opponent by more than half the time. -- Doolittle, Cousy was an And-1 mix tape in black-and-white. Right now, Westbrook's 11.2 assists and 47.5% assist rate leads the league this season. It is a testament to Jarrett Jack that he makes this list. Sometimes hell even rush to defend the wrong guy while his man is draining a wide-open three. After the All-Star break, when Rose hardly played, that number fell to 17.8 and the Bulls dropped to ninth. In order to answer that, we introduce Weighted Averaged Metrics (WAM) and WAM with Scouting (WAMS), a pair of advanced defensive metrics which combine other stats and metrics, weight them so that each represents an equal relative value, and then use them all to derive a final score. -- Rob Peterson, One can only imagine how impressive his career totals might have been if not for the HIV virus. The other metrics help alleviate the extremes because they also indicate what a players personal defense does. Does he rotate on time? For a full game, Moncrief was capable of shutting down almost any guard in NBA history. 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. This is to avoid confusion if you want to go to the original source.). Even though hes been injured a lot, Paul is averaging over two steals a game for his career. -- Adande, Nash is the only player in history to go 50-40-90 while averaging 10 assists per game. The only time hell go under a pick is when hes supposed to. There arent many point guards who can do it all, but Kidd is one of them. ALL-TIME #NBARANK, 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11-15 | 16-20 | 21-25, The player Whenever anyone imagines a point guard, chances are theyre thinking of Utah Jazz legend John Stockton. 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. That said, hes 61st all-time in steals with 1392 and he had six seasons in the top-20 in steals. Occasionally hell chase the play after hes been beaten, but not always. Its safe to say that Kidd is one of the greatest guards to ever play on the basketball floor. He applies himself and stays committed, but when hes beaten on a play, hell relax waiting for his bigs to pick up the slack. 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. 10-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA selection, five-time All-D selection, Hall of Fame, Career stats Nash was never known as a strong defender, but he was capable of bothering opposing point guards to some extent. Kevin Garnett 8. Then, over 10,000 video clips were viewed and players were evaluated based on subjective criteria. Ranking 50 Greatest Point Guards in NBA History Photo Gallery | NBA.com Teams G League WNBA BAL NBA 2K NBA Store NBA League Pass Tickets Schedule Team News Gameday Youth Basketball Shop. 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. He has become one of the hardest working point guards in the league on both ends. He was transcendent. He secures first place in the top 10 NBA point guards of all time. Robertson's offensive ability transformed the point guard stereotype from a passer and floor general to a scorer and offensive weapon. Closing out on jumpers is an issue, especially when coming off screens, where he yields a 46.7 shooting percentage from the three-point line. James is well-known for his incredible skill and ability to score big points, which frequently help his team win crucial games. If it gives up fewer points, thats good. His contributions won him a spot on the NBA All-Time 50th Anniversary Team. The players listed below are our picks for the best point guards in NBA history. Bing, despite having one of his eyes injured, was an attacking force to be reckoned with. He may be the finest defensive guard ever because of his awareness and abilities on the defensive end. If you are a basketball freak, you might be interested in knowing about NBA and other Best Basketball Leagues in the World. He also plays through to the end of the play when his man doesnt have the ball, which is not something you see all point guards do. 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. Although Stockton accumulated numerous All-NBA nods, he only made the All-Defensive Second Team five times. At the very least, he could stab those quick hands of his at some more balls and disrupt the dribble from behind. 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. Marcus Smart. Similarly, while each of the advanced and/or traditional metrics has value, each also misses something. Even his athletic scores dont indicate greatness. He could create at an elite level while also scoring off the dribble from the midrange. He arguably powers through picks better than any point guard in the league. He always picks up on the switch. Young players who are relatively short are now developing the scoring aspects of their skill-sets, whereas previously these players would find it difficult to enter the NBA without true point guard skills. -- Haberstroh, Honors One of the greatest rebounding guards of all time. Lin plays with consistent effort on defense, but hes stuck in fourth gear. 1. Magic had unparalleled vision; he could see players get open and deliver the ball before they even realized they were open. He could launch it from 30 feet or more with ease. In the MVP vote for the 1967-1968 season, he finished second behind the unstoppable Wilt Chamberlain. Additionally, the 10-time All-Star and Hall of Famer was an impressive defensive player in his own right. In fact, hes a bit of a bull on the court and tries to intimidate his counterpart. He also used his incredible basketball IQ to steal the ball and defend at a high level. Players Stats: 18.5 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 9.5 APG, 2.2 SPG, 0.1 BPG, Honors: 10x All-Stars, 8x All-NBA Selection, 2005-2006 Rookie of the Year, 9x All-Defensive Team Selection. -- 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. And I never saw him go in the wrong direction, not once. In his 20 seasons, Bryant. Holiday has ample size for a point guard, standing a shade over 64 in shoes, and weighing in at 205 pounds. When the pick gets set, he just hurls into it and uses the momentum of the bounce to send him in the right direction. In all, Jordans 64.1 DWS rank him 21st all-time. Probably no point guard in the league does a better job of recovering defensively than Rose does. Cincinnati Royals (1960-70), Milwaukee Bucks (1970-74), Honors He is tremendous at using that muscle to his advantage, too. Sometimes even when hes being smart, he gets a little dumb. I suspect that some of this might be by design, as Holiday bore a leading part of the burden on both ends of the court for his team, so its understandable to a point, but not to the extent I saw. 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. 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. On defense, the point guard is tasked with making the opposing point guard as ineffective as possible. He was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, on February 7, 1974, to a Welsh mother, Jean, and an English father, John. However, when the game is on the line, he makes the right decision. Williams tends to play defense, but he only seems to do the minimum. However, the other side of the ball cant be overlooked because as the saying goes: defense wins championships.. He is not a guy you would single out as an NBA player in a crowded room. Boston Celtics (1950-1963), Cincinnati Royals (1969-70), Honors Even though hes been injured a lot, Paul is averaging over two steals a game for his career. Defensively, Stockton had 3,265 steals the most all time during his 19-year. He benefits tremendously from help defense as previously mentioned, but that doesnt mean he doesnt also provide help defense. The NBA is flush with dominant point guards. Tony Parker is one of the fastest players in the league if youre going by pure speed. He applies his energy smartly. The corresponding WAM or WAMS scores indicate how many points a group of like-skilled players on the court would theoretically give up in 100 possessions. All-Time #NBArank continues with a countdown of the best shooting guards in NBA history. Last season, when Rose was healthy early on, they gave up the thirdmost, 16.3 points. Phoenix Suns (1996-98, 2004-12), Dallas Mavericks (1998-2004), Los Angeles Lakers (2012-15), Honors Brandon Knight has exceptional speed and quickness. Eric Bledsoe has a reputation as being both quick and fast, even for a point guard, but he rarely shows it on defense. The best way to track how effective a player is on the defensive end is by looking at their cumulative defensive win shares. SHOCKING one of the best defensive point guards of all time played great defense on a 20 year project old player. Now hes in Phoenix, and well see how both he and Jeff Hornacek develop in their new roles. Curry has won three NBA championships and cemented his status as the finest shooter in NBA history since becoming a superstar and two-time MVP. If youre a fan of the TV show Suits, you might agree that Harvey Specter dresses well. He could be better than he is, but its hard to blame only him. He has a real grasp of the game, and he helps convey that to his teammates. My guess is that it has something to do with that. Please check your email for a confirmation. 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. Defense is one of the more oft-overlooked aspects of basketball because it isnt as pretty as what happens on the offensive end. But hes just not very strong. For each player, I watched between one and two hours of footage of defense, taking account of specific things and grading them in five different areas. Whatever else you want to say about Brandon Knight, just dont say he never tries.