Hello, guys. I am back with another format I want to try.
I am going to talk about my top 5 players at every position: I am going to start off with Point Guards and work my way up to the Centers.

I hope you enjoy it. If you do, follows and RTs are greatly appreciated!
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My honorable mentions for the top 5 PGs ever are the two legends Steve Nash and Walt Frazier. Nash is one of the most impactful offensive players ever, leading many of the best offensive teams, while Frazier is arguably the best guard defender ever. Closely, did not make the cut.
My honorable mentions for the top 5 PGs ever are the two legends Steve Nash and Walt Frazier. Nash is one of the most impactful offensive players ever, leading many of the best offensive teams, while Frazier is arguably the best guard defender ever. Closely, did not make the cut.
My honorable mentions for the top 5 PGs ever are the two legends Steve Nash and Walt Frazier. Nash is one of the most impactful offensive players ever, leading many of the best offensive teams, while Frazier is arguably the best guard defender ever. Closely, did not make the cut.
Let’s start off with the, in my opinion, 5th best PG ever: The Point God. His all-time playmaking mixed with very good defense and all-around scoring make him the player he is. Chris Paul is highly rated by every impact metric and shows all-time great impact on the court.
CP3’s 3-year peak takes place in the time span of the 2014/15 – 2016/17 seasons. His On-Off OffRtg lays at a whopping 15.6, with his On-Off DefRtg averaging -3.6. The Point God’s On-Off NetRtg, during that stretch, is at 19.2. Incredible numbers!
Other statistics surrounding Chris Paul’s peak are his Backpicks BPM, during his 3-year peak CP’s overall BPM was an insane 6.2 (OBPM = 4.4, DBPM = 1.7). His 4-year peak RAPM lays at around 7.41 (2014/15 – 2017/18), which is 2nd, from 2014/15 to 2017/18.
According to PIPM, Chris Paul played 11 seasons at an All-NBA level or better, with 6 of those seasons being at an MVP-level, and him being the best player in the world for one season (CP’s 2016/17 PIPM is 7.7). This shows his great longevity, just like Ben Taylor’s graphic does.
According to PIPM, Chris Paul played 11 seasons at an All-NBA level or better, with 6 of those seasons being at an MVP-level, and him being the best player in the world for one season (CP’s 2016/17 PIPM is 7.7). This shows his great longevity, just like Ben Taylor’s graphic does.
According to PIPM, Chris Paul played 11 seasons at an All-NBA level or better, with 6 of those seasons being at an MVP-level, and him being the best player in the world for one season (CP’s 2016/17 PIPM is 7.7). This shows his great longevity, just like Ben Taylor’s graphic does.
My #4 PG of all time is Stephen Curry. The greatest shooting of all time, godly off-ball movement, and his insane efficiency represent Curry. His peak can be seen as the greatest peak by any PG ever. Why I only have him at #4, though, is going to be explained in the following.
The reasoning is quite simple: Longevity. According to PIPM, Steph has only played at an All-NBA level for 7 seasons and played 5 games during one of them. During the 2017/18 season, Steph has played 51 games, which is only about 62% of the total games possible, that year.
Steph’s 3-year peak starts in 2014/15 and ends in the 2016/17 season. His immense impact is showcased by his incredible On-Off numbers: During that stretch, Curry’s On-Off OffRtg is at 15.8, while his On-Off DefRtg lays at an average of -4.36, and his On-Off NetRtg being at 20.1.
Steph’s 3-year peak PIPM and 4-year peak RAPM look like the following: 7.7 PIPM (2014/15 – 2016/17) and 12.2 RAPM (2013/14 – 2016/17), which is insane! Every available impact metric shows that Steph has one of the greatest peaks by any player in NBA history.
Steph’s 3-year peak PIPM and 4-year peak RAPM look like the following: 7.7 PIPM (2014/15 – 2016/17) and 12.2 RAPM (2013/14 – 2016/17), which is insane! Every available impact metric shows that Steph has one of the greatest peaks by any player in NBA history.
Steph’s 3-year peak PIPM and 4-year peak RAPM look like the following: 7.7 PIPM (2014/15 – 2016/17) and 12.2 RAPM (2013/14 – 2016/17), which is insane! Every available impact metric shows that Steph has one of the greatest peaks by any player in NBA history.
The crazy thing is, I have not even talked about Steph’s best trait: His superb efficient scoring and overall efficiency. The following graph shows that Stephen Curry is one of the most efficient scorers to ever play the game of basketball.
The crazy thing is, I have not even talked about Steph’s best trait: His superb efficient scoring and overall efficiency. The following graph shows that Stephen Curry is one of the most efficient scorers to ever play the game of basketball.
The crazy thing is, I have not even talked about Steph’s best trait: His superb efficient scoring and overall efficiency. The following graph shows that Stephen Curry is one of the most efficient scorers to ever play the game of basketball.
His career average of 115 TS+ and 7.9% rTS show how efficient Stephen Curry scores over the course of his career. The efficiency during his prime is almost unmatched, especially with his scoring volume: 119 TS+ and 10.1% rTS, while leading the league in PPG and TS, in 2015/16.
The following 2 best PGs ever, Oscar Robertson and Jerry West, are going to be discussed together. Who I rank higher is going to be said after I talked about them. They are both ahead of Curry, due to longevity, but I am quite sure that Steph is going to retire ahead of them.
The following 2 best PGs ever, Oscar Robertson and Jerry West, are going to be discussed together. Who I rank higher is going to be said after I talked about them. They are both ahead of Curry, due to longevity, but I am quite sure that Steph is going to retire ahead of them.
The following 2 best PGs ever, Oscar Robertson and Jerry West, are going to be discussed together. Who I rank higher is going to be said after I talked about them. They are both ahead of Curry, due to longevity, but I am quite sure that Steph is going to retire ahead of them.
Both are arguably the best scorers pre 3pt-line and both scored on very high volume and all-time great adjusted efficiency. Additionally, both players peaked during the stretch of the 1963/64 - 1965/66 seasons, but they greatly differ in playing style and role on their team.
Let’s talk about their scoring and efficiency, over the course of their 3-year peaks. Oscar averaged 31.0 points on 117 TS+ and 8.3% rTS, in the rs, while leading the league in assists. Come po-time, he averages 29.7 points on -1.8 pTS% (pTS = difference from po-TS% to rs-TS%).
Jerry West, on the other hand, averaged 30.0 PPG on 118 TS+ and 8.6% rTS, in the rs. In his prime, Jerry elevated his scoring numbers and averaged a whopping *36.1* PPG on -1.1 pTS%, in the po. Opposingly to Oscar, Jerry excelled in the po, which is very rare for a superstar.
Inarguably, Robertson is the better playmaker, although West’s scoring is, in my opinion, better because it is more sustainable in the po. Overall, Oscar is the better floor raiser and rs-player. Jerry is the better ceiling raiser, po-performer and defender.
This is shown by their WOWYR (With Or Without You Rating) and CORP% (Championship Over Replacement Player Percentage). Oscar beats Jerry in WOWYR: 8.4 - 7.4. West beats the Big O in CORP%: 19.3% - 18.5%. This supports my thinking of their fits as floor/ceiling raisers.
From my perspective, Jerry leads Oscar in elite po-runs (8 to 5) but is equal, when it comes to elite rs years played (both around 10). In summary, I prefer Jerry West over Oscar Robertson, hence why Oscar is my #3 PG ever, and Jerry is the #2 on my greatest PGs of all-time list.
Now, let’s get to the, in my opinion, GOAT Point Guard: Earvin “Magic” Johnson. The all-time great is the best passer and playmaker in NBA history. He led the “Show-Time”-Lakers to great success and is one of the most influential/impactful players to ever play the game.
Magic peaked during the stretch of the 1986/87 - 1988/1989 seasons. Over the course of his 3-year peak, Johnson averaged a PIPM of 5.2 and the best WOWYR in NBA history with 10.1, which shows his immense impact without having On-Off-numbers available.
Earvin led his teams to all-time great offenses, during his prime. The following graph shows the 1984/85 - 1989/90 Lakers (relative) Offensive Ratings compared to other all-time offenses, post 3pt-era.
His peak playoff Passer Rating is the best in the league’s history, with his Box Creation being 32nd all-time. In the rs, Magic shot at a 112 TS+ and 6.5% rTS, while averaging 19.7 points per 75. Come po-time, Johnson’s TS% remained almost the same, with a 0.02 pTS%.
According to PIPM, Magic has played at an All-NBA level for 11 seasons. 10 of those seasons were at an MVP level, which shows how many elite seasons Johnson has played, over the course of his career (PIPM during: 87’ = 5.6, 90’ = 5.7, 91’ = 5.7).
Simply put: The greatest PG ever.
This concludes my thread about the top 5 greatest Point Guards ever.
I hope you enjoyed it! If you did, please lob me a follow, because the thread took a long time to make.
Big thanks to @liamkerr0 and @ReturnOfHV for providing some of the stats!

End of thread
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