CB32's Positional Rankings (Merged)

[CelticBalla32]

I'm getting back into NBA writing/blogging, and just posted my first article of the year. It's a detailed breakdown of the top point guards in the league.

Teaser:

Most of the NBA’s top scoring options come in the form of a wing or big man. In fact, the only qualified point guards to lead their respective clubs in scoring last season were Golden State’s Monta Ellis (25.5 PPG), Chicago’s Derrick Rose (20.8 PPG) and Houston’s Aaron Brooks (19.6 PPG). Only three of the league’s 30 teams rely on their point guard for premier scoring production, but any coach or team executive will tell you that you need a quality, competent point guard to run the show if you want to advance in the playoffs. It isn’t imperative for a contending team to take the floor with an elite-level floor general, but if you can’t rely on your point guard to remain on the same page with the coaching staff, get the team into its sets and display a certain level of leadership, you’re probably going to have a tough time hoisting up the annually coveted Larry O’Brien trophy.

Think about the NBA champions of the last three decades. The Lakers of 2000-2002, 2009 and 2010 had the reliable and clutch Derek Fisher. The San Antonio Spurs, who have won four titles since 1999, were led by Avery “The Little General” Johnson and 2007 NBA Finals MVP Tony Parker. The 2008 Boston Celtics ran with a young, yet rising and very capable Rajon Rondo. Chauncey Billups took home the 2004 Finals MVP trophy for the Detroit Pistons. Dwyane Wade may have taken over the 2006 NBA Finals, but a more mature Jason Williams and savvy veteran Gary Payton held down the point guard position nicely for the Heat and made multiple crucial plays down the stretch of those games. The ’94 and ’95 Houston Rockets may not have won back-to-back championships had it not been for the sharpshooting Kenny Smith and steady play from the up-and-coming Sam Cassell. And don’t tell me that you haven’t watched hundreds of highlight reruns of those sweet game-winning threes from John Paxson and Steve Kerr to help push those dominant Chicago Bulls teams over the top in the 90′s. Isiah Thomas, anyone? Magic Johnson? Dennis Johnson? You get the picture.

From 19-year-old No. 1 overall draft picks destined for stardom to 36-year-old former two-time MVPs, the NBA’s diverse mix of established veterans and rising youngsters leave many offenses in good hands across the league. Let’s take a look at some of the top names and discuss who sets themselves apart from whom, shall we?

View the rankings and read the rest of the article here.

[mgent]

Dude, you nailed the rankings.  Exact same as mine, except I have no problem putting Chris Paul second behind Deron Williams.  Good writing too.

[Celtics4ever]

PGs should lead their teams in assists.  If they lead their team in scoring one could have problems and a potentially bad team.  Golden state isn't that good.  Chicago is a perenially lose in the early playoff and Houston is the same.

[Larry Pistol]

PGs should lead their teams in assists.  If they lead their team in scoring one could have problems and a potentially bad team.  Golden state isn't that good.  Chicago is a perenially lose in the early playoff and Houston is the same.

I agree with this. While a high-scoring player is excellent, you don't necessarily want that production to come from a PG. You want your PG to have the pass-first mentality, to be the floor general as was quoted several times in this article.

Now to the article... I thought it was really good. Lots of good points and even though I might not agree 100% with your rankings of the top 5, those guys are definitely the top 5 in the league no questions asked. You made a great point about why Deron Williams was 1a and Chris Paul 1b. Normally I'd put CP3 above Williams, but CP3 was hurt for most of the season and Williams might have been the best PG. So those guys are definitely head and shoulders above the rest. I would then rate Nash at number 3 however. I think he still has "it" and can play at such a high level despite his age. He's only becoming wiser with age and does not appear to have lost a step. Then I would go Rondo and Billups. And we already know what Rondo is capable of. I have had this ranking in my head  since last year and while others usually agree, I'd say 90% of people write off Billups and say he's not even a top 10 PG anymore, which could not be more off. He's still a good perimeter shooter, still makes the smart choices, extremely high basketball IQ, and I mean, his nickname is: "Mr. Big Shot." Enough said. I love the Tony Parker reference too. He's still extremely good and he is another player people have written off just because he wasn't as relevant as in previous years.

I don't understand why Mo Williams was "on the bubble." I just don't think he's that good. He is most definitely NOT a true PG but is more of an undersized SG. And when you look at all the shooting guards in the league, he might not be in that top 10 either...

All in all, I like the list. You had good points for everyone up there and you did a good job on the article. Keep up the good work! TP

[CelticBalla32]

PGs should lead their teams in assists.  If they lead their team in scoring one could have problems and a potentially bad team.  Golden state isn't that good.  Chicago is a perenially lose in the early playoff and Houston is the same.

Yeah, that was my point. Only three PG's lead their team in scoring, it's not imperative for you to have an elite scorer at the point, but you're not winning anything without a competent/reliable point guard. The introductory paragraphs were just stressing the importance of the position.

PGs should lead their teams in assists.  If they lead their team in scoring one could have problems and a potentially bad team.  Golden state isn't that good.  Chicago is a perenially lose in the early playoff and Houston is the same.

I agree with this. While a high-scoring player is excellent, you don't necessarily want that production to come from a PG. You want your PG to have the pass-first mentality, to be the floor general as was quoted several times in this article.

Now to the article... I thought it was really good. Lots of good points and even though I might not agree 100% with your rankings of the top 5, those guys are definitely the top 5 in the league no questions asked. You made a great point about why Deron Williams was 1a and Chris Paul 1b. Normally I'd put CP3 above Williams, but CP3 was hurt for most of the season and Williams might have been the best PG. So those guys are definitely head and shoulders above the rest. I would then rate Nash at number 3 however. I think he still has "it" and can play at such a high level despite his age. He's only becoming wiser with age and does not appear to have lost a step. Then I would go Rondo and Billups. And we already know what Rondo is capable of. I have had this ranking in my head  since last year and while others usually agree, I'd say 90% of people write off Billups and say he's not even a top 10 PG anymore, which could not be more off. He's still a good perimeter shooter, still makes the smart choices, extremely high basketball IQ, and I mean, his nickname is: "Mr. Big Shot." Enough said. I love the Tony Parker reference too. He's still extremely good and he is another player people have written off just because he wasn't as relevant as in previous years.

I don't understand why Mo Williams was "on the bubble." I just don't think he's that good. He is most definitely NOT a true PG but is more of an undersized SG. And when you look at all the shooting guards in the league, he might not be in that top 10 either...

All in all, I like the list. You had good points for everyone up there and you did a good job on the article. Keep up the good work! TP

On the Rondo/Nash front: respect your opinion, but the thing that sets Rondo apart to me is his ability to control the game on both ends of the floor. Nash is somewhat of a defensive liability, and while what he does offensively more than makes up for some of his weaknesses, Rondo is a more complete player and is right up there with Nash at the top of the list as a floor general. I'll also argue that while Nash is an elite perimeter shooter, Rondo is elite off penetration and led all guards in FG% despite his weaknesses as a shooter.

But hey, if you want to put a two-time MVP and future Hall of Famer up one more spot on the list, I ain't mad at ya.

Mo Williams... like his style or not, he's still a very good player. He's a terrific perimeter shooter, I like his motor, he's very good in pick n' roll situations (Mike Brown did NOT take advantage of this) and he is very capable of going off. He isn't a true point guard, he isn't the best guy out there to run your sets, but he can play. If he could run an offense, I'd probably have him higher on my list, much like the story of Jason Terry's career. But I'd also rather have Mo on my team right now than some of the other guys I left off the list completely.

Appreciate the comments, guys.

[CelticBalla32]

Bump 

[CelticBalla32]

My second article from my "Positional Rankings" project.

Teaser:

The thing that sets him apart from everyone else, however, has nothing to do with his god-given talents. It is his cut-throat, absolute killer instinct that puts him in a class of his own. He doesn’t come to the arena just looking for a W, he steps foot on the hardwood looking for blood. In the offseason and on off-days, he works harder than any player on the planet to fine-tune his skills, maintain tip-top physical condition and solidify his top-notch basketball IQ with his out-of-this-world workout regimen and addiction to film.

Once upon a time, Kobe’s biggest enemy was himself. His own agenda put himself before the team at times throughout his development, and he was far from the ideal teammate. Once he realized that he wasn’t going to win a title by his lonesome, he made the necessary changes to become a better teammate and step up as a leader. Ever since, he has been impossible to bet against. There are a few guys across the league that can challenge Kobe’s per-game production on the stat sheet, but nobody is on his level. He will go down as one of the greatest players to ever play the game, and his legacy still has years to go before it is officially cemented.

View the rankings and read the rest of the article here

I greatly appreciate everybody's comments and feedback from my point guard piece . In case you missed it, click here to add to the CelticsBlog discussion.

[PosImpos]

Dwyane Wade is better than Kobe at this point.

Also, I'd take Kevin Martin or Andre Iguodala over Jason Richardson, Monta Ellis, John Salmons and probably even Stephen Jackson or our own Ray Allen.

[Who]

Dwyane Wade is better than Kobe at this point.

Also, I'd take Kevin Martin or Andre Iguodala over Jason Richardson, Monta Ellis, John Salmons and probably even Stephen Jackson or our own Ray Allen.

Agreed -- Wade should be #1 + I would also put Ginobili over Joe Johnson + place Tyreke Evans at #6.

Those six players are the only all-star caliber guys at the two guard position at the moment. Kevin Martin can crack that list if he improves his defense.

I prefer Monta Ellis as a point guard. He'd be nowhere near my top ten as a two guard but he could sneak in (top ten) as a point guard.

[CelticBalla32]

Yeah, but Ellis plays mostly at the 2 in Golden State so I had to take him off the point guards list and stick him in this one.

The thing about Ellis, though, as talented as he is... I'm not sure I like him anywhere on an ideal team. Obviously in Golden State he can get away with a lot, hell Nellie has played him at the 3 at times. But I would not want him running my team or defending wings in the playoffs. I'll take him on my fantasy team all day but he isn't my ideal type of player.

[Celticsfan336]

I like it, very nice read. but i think by years end a lot of the young pgs [curry, brooks, etc.] will pass the likes of j kidd and parker. great read though you plan on doing more like this?

[CelticBalla32]

I like it, very nice read. but i think by years end a lot of the young pgs [curry, brooks, etc.] will pass the likes of j kidd and parker. great read though you plan on doing more like this?

Yessir, I've already done PG and SG. Within the next couple of days I'll probably have the SF one up and after that I will eventually cover the 4 and 5. I might take a break for a week or so though after the SF article, because I'm going on vacation this coming Saturday.

Thanks for your comment, appreciate it.

[action781]

PGs should lead their teams in assists.  If they lead their team in scoring one could have problems and a potentially bad team.  Golden state isn't that good.  Chicago is a perenially lose in the early playoff and Houston is the same.

Yeah, that was my point. Only three PG's lead their team in scoring, it's not imperative for you to have an elite scorer at the point, but you're not winning anything without a competent/reliable point guard. The introductory paragraphs were just stressing the importance of the position.

PGs should lead their teams in assists.  If they lead their team in scoring one could have problems and a potentially bad team.  Golden state isn't that good.  Chicago is a perenially lose in the early playoff and Houston is the same.

I agree with this. While a high-scoring player is excellent, you don't necessarily want that production to come from a PG. You want your PG to have the pass-first mentality, to be the floor general as was quoted several times in this article.

Now to the article... I thought it was really good. Lots of good points and even though I might not agree 100% with your rankings of the top 5, those guys are definitely the top 5 in the league no questions asked. You made a great point about why Deron Williams was 1a and Chris Paul 1b. Normally I'd put CP3 above Williams, but CP3 was hurt for most of the season and Williams might have been the best PG. So those guys are definitely head and shoulders above the rest. I would then rate Nash at number 3 however. I think he still has "it" and can play at such a high level despite his age. He's only becoming wiser with age and does not appear to have lost a step. Then I would go Rondo and Billups. And we already know what Rondo is capable of. I have had this ranking in my head  since last year and while others usually agree, I'd say 90% of people write off Billups and say he's not even a top 10 PG anymore, which could not be more off. He's still a good perimeter shooter, still makes the smart choices, extremely high basketball IQ, and I mean, his nickname is: "Mr. Big Shot." Enough said. I love the Tony Parker reference too. He's still extremely good and he is another player people have written off just because he wasn't as relevant as in previous years.

I don't understand why Mo Williams was "on the bubble." I just don't think he's that good. He is most definitely NOT a true PG but is more of an undersized SG. And when you look at all the shooting guards in the league, he might not be in that top 10 either...

All in all, I like the list. You had good points for everyone up there and you did a good job on the article. Keep up the good work! TP

On the Rondo/Nash front: respect your opinion, but the thing that sets Rondo apart to me is his ability to control the game on both ends of the floor. Nash is somewhat of a defensive liability, and while what he does offensively more than makes up for some of his weaknesses, Rondo is a more complete player and is right up there with Nash at the top of the list as a floor general. I'll also argue that while Nash is an elite perimeter shooter, Rondo is elite off penetration and led all guards in FG% despite his weaknesses as a shooter.

But hey, if you want to put a two-time MVP and future Hall of Famer up one more spot on the list, I ain't mad at ya.

Think about this:
Replace Rondo with Nash on the Celtics of last season.  Does it make the celtics better?  I say no.

Replace Nash with Rondo on the Suns of last season.  Does it make the suns better?  I say no.

Just an interesting thought that came into my mind.  Then I think about putting either of them on a random team as their pg.  I'd say about half would be better with Nash and half would be better with Rondo.  Nash has the ability like none I've ever seen before to make all of his teammates better.  Rondo has game changing defensive tenacity that I've never seen before from a point guard.  If I'm deadset on taking a pg with a late first round pick in the CB draft and I have to choose between the 2 of them, man, I'd have absolutely no clue who to take.

[Witch-King]

400th post

Deron Williams and Chris Paul over Rondo and Nash??

Nash is a two-time league MVP and Rondo has been to the NBA Finals twice, something neither of the other three point guards I mentioned have done. Though, as of right now Paul and Williams are definitely the more prominent point guards as far as offensive production is concerned, though as you mentioned near the beginning of your article neither of those two even lead their own team in scoring. Nash and Rondo can easily match them in assists on a nightly basis.