Great playoff performers (non All-Stars)

giordunk · Post #1 » by **giordunk** » Sat May 13, 2023 3:05 pm

Guys who have either made an All-Star/All-NBA or was really far removed from their All-Star level (Late Warriors Iguodala and Phoenix Grant Hill) but consistently quite dependable in the playoffs.

Robert Horry obviously the main one.

Current players (a bit of recency bias here)

PJ Tucker
Dennis Schroeder
Danny Green

Others

Trevor Ariza
Nate Robinson has had a couple of iconic games
Celtics Bill Walton
Warriors Andrew Bogut
Shane Battier

SilentA · Post #2 » by **SilentA** » Sat May 13, 2023 3:21 pm

Jamal Murray hasn't made an all-star, no?

FuShengTHEGreat · Post #3 » by **FuShengTHEGreat** » Sat May 13, 2023 7:55 pm

Derek Harper was a very good playoff performer for the few times he was there but most of his prime was spent on doormat Mavs teams. He never made a all star team his entire career.

He was the Knicks' best offensive performer in the 94 Finals. He alone outperformed both Cassell/Smith combined in the series.

Also Xavier McDaniels in his sole season in NY. He gave Scottie Pippen a lot of trouble h2h in that series.

Colbinii · Post #4 » by **Colbinii** » Sat May 13, 2023 8:45 pm

Jalen Brunson

Owly · Post #5 » by **Owly** » Sat May 13, 2023 9:54 pm

Depends what sample you want and if you're looking for individual years/short spans or career.

At the absurdly tiny sample end John Stoeder was quite the playoff raiser : https://www.basketball-reference.com/players/s/stroejo01.html

At 500 playoff minutes all these guys rose pretty well by PER and WS/48
Pep Saul
Bob Gross
George Johnson
Tim Thomas
Bismack Biyombo (based on career through 2019)
Jameer Nelson
Johnny Moore

As ever caveats about sample size, noise, luck etc ... This is rising from RS baseline rather than absolute goodness.
[edit: also this is comparing career with playoff career so if you just happen to make the playoffs in your best years and not in worse ones it will make you look artificially good and the inverse is true if you make it in lower performing years).

LA Bird · Post #6 » by **LA Bird** » Sun May 14, 2023 4:01 am

For a single season, probably 1959 Frank Ramsey.

RS: 15.4 ppg on 45.9% TS, 15.7 PER, 0.142 WS/48
PO: 23.2 ppg on 56.0% TS, 23.4 PER, 0.322 WS/48

Went from a slightly above average player in the RS to #1 playoffs WS and historic WS/48 as the leading scorer on a title team.
His numbers also improved considerably in the 1957 playoffs (#2 WS, #1 WS/48) and by a small degree too in 55, 60, 61.

Fun fact: Jordan, Shaq, Mikan, and Ramsey are the only players to lead the playoffs in WS/48 on multiple title teams.

TheGOATRises007 · Post #7 » by **TheGOATRises007** » Sun May 14, 2023 4:04 am

LA Bird wrote:For a single season, probably 1959 Frank Ramsey.

RS: 15.4 ppg on 45.9% TS, 15.7 PER, 0.142 WS/48
PO: 23.2 ppg on 56.0% TS, 23.4 PER, 0.322 WS/48

Went from a slightly above average player in the RS to #1 playoffs WS and historic WS/48 as the leading scorer on a title team.
His numbers also improved considerably in the 1957 playoffs (#2 WS, #1 WS/48) and by a small degree too in 55, 60, 61.

Fun fact: Jordan, Shaq, Mikan, and Ramsey are the only players to lead the playoffs in WS/48 on multiple title teams.

LeBron never did this? How?

rk2023 · Post #8 » by **rk2023** » Sun May 14, 2023 4:28 am

TheGOATRises007 wrote:
LA Bird wrote:For a single season, probably 1959 Frank Ramsey.

RS: 15.4 ppg on 45.9% TS, 15.7 PER, 0.142 WS/48
PO: 23.2 ppg on 56.0% TS, 23.4 PER, 0.322 WS/48

Went from a slightly above average player in the RS to #1 playoffs WS and historic WS/48 as the leading scorer on a title team.
His numbers also improved considerably in the 1957 playoffs (#2 WS, #1 WS/48) and by a small degree too in 55, 60, 61.

Fun fact: Jordan, Shaq, Mikan, and Ramsey are the only players to lead the playoffs in WS/48 on multiple title teams.

LeBron never did this? How?

2012: .284
2013: .260 (3rd to Bird-man and CP3)
2016: .274 (3rd to George and Whiteside)
2020: .269 (2nd to Davis)

TheGOATRises007 · Post #9 » by **TheGOATRises007** » Sun May 14, 2023 8:12 am

rk2023 wrote:
TheGOATRises007 wrote:
LA Bird wrote:For a single season, probably 1959 Frank Ramsey.

RS: 15.4 ppg on 45.9% TS, 15.7 PER, 0.142 WS/48
PO: 23.2 ppg on 56.0% TS, 23.4 PER, 0.322 WS/48

Went from a slightly above average player in the RS to #1 playoffs WS and historic WS/48 as the leading scorer on a title team.
His numbers also improved considerably in the 1957 playoffs (#2 WS, #1 WS/48) and by a small degree too in 55, 60, 61.

Fun fact: Jordan, Shaq, Mikan, and Ramsey are the only players to lead the playoffs in WS/48 on multiple title teams.

LeBron never did this? How?

2012: .284
2013: .260 (3rd to Bird-man and CP3)
2016: .274 (3rd to George and Whiteside)
2020: .269 (2nd to Davis)

Odd, but that stat is probably noisy anyways.