Top 15 Players at every position. Ranked.

[mdonnelly1989]

Quite a few guys are interchangeble

Point Guard


1.) Magic
2.) Oscar
3.) Curry
4.) West
5.) CP3
6.) Walt Frazier
7.) Stockton
8.) Nash
9.) Kidd
10.) Isiah Thomas
11.) Gary Payton
12.) Russell Westbrook
13.) Bob Cousey
14.) Tony Parker
15. Chauncey Billups

Shooting Guard


1.) Michael Jordan
2.) Kobe Bryant
3.) D-Wade
4.) Clyde Drexler
5.) James Harden
6.) Allen Iverson
7.) George Gervin
8.) T-Mac
9.) Ray Allen
10.) Reggie Miller
11.) Manu
12.) Joe Dumars
13.) Sam Jones
14.) Vince Carter
15.) Mitch Richmond

Small Forward

1.) Lebron James
2.) Larry Bird
3.) Dr. J
4.) Kevin Durant
5.) Elgin Baylor
6.) Scottie Pippen
7.) Kawhi Leonard
8.) Dominique Wilkins
9.) James Worthy
10.) Rick Barry
11.) Paul Pierce
12.) Carmelo Anthony
13.) Alex English
14.) Grant Hill
15.) Chris Mullin

Power Forward


1.) Tim Duncan
2.) KG
3.) Karl Malone
4.) Dirk
5.) Charles Barkley
6.) Bob Pettit
7.) Giannis
8.) Kevin McHale
9.) Elvin Hayes
10.) Pau Gasol
11.) Chris Webber
12.) Dennis Rodman
13.) Jerry Lucas
14.) Chris Bosh
15.) Shawn Kemp

Center


1.) Kareem
2.) Wilt Chamberlain
3.) Bill Russell
4.) Shaq
5.) Hakeem
6.) Admiral
7.) Moses Malone
8.) Patrick Ewing
9.) George Mikan
10.) Nikola Jokic
11.) Bill Walton
12.) Willis Reed
13.) Wes Unseld
14.) Artis Gilmore
15.) Dwight Howard/Mourning/Mutombo/

[penbeast0]

Not terrrible:

I have the following players significantly lower than you do: Iverson, Nique, Carmelo. You value pure scoring more than I do.
I have Pettit and Giannis above Barkley, Russell above Wilt and Kareem, Walton just didn't play enough to be on any of my lists, but not a bad list overall.

[mdonnelly1989]

Not terrrible:

I have the following players significantly lower than you do: Iverson, Nique, Carmelo. You value pure scoring more than I do.
I have Pettit and Giannis above Barkley, Russell above Wilt and Kareem, Walton just didn't play enough to be on any of my lists, but not a bad list overall.

I suppose you're right. Scoring is pretty high on my list.

[Dutchball97]

Did you forget Havlicek? Whether you'd have him at SF or SG, he'd be a pretty easy top 10 in either one.

[LAL1947]

Not a bad list.

A couple of comments...

I think of Jerry West as an SG rather than a PG. If Jerry is ranked as an SG, he should be #3 on that list.

Anthony Davis and Draymond Green are missing from the PF list. I feel both have done enough to be ranked among the Top 15 PFs. Not sure of ranking but both should be over Pau. I'd probably have AD somewhere between #8-10?

Chris Webber and Chris Bosh should also be over Pau Gasol. The way I see it... Webber > Bosh > Pau. I think of Webber as a low tier #1 option but a GREAT 2nd option. Pau was a low tier 2nd option but a GREAT 3rd option. Chris Bosh is somewhere in the middle between Webber and Pau. At some point in their careers, Webber has been Top 5 in MVP voting, Bosh has been Top 10 in MVP Voting... while Pau has never received a single MVP vote. Well, this is my humble 2 cents anyway. Other Lakers fans, Pau fans, and Lebron-Duncan-Dirk-Wade fans are going to disagree with me because it won't fit their desired narratives.

I'm also not fully sure about Pau Gasol over Shawn Kemp TBH. With Pau instead of Kemp on the 1996 Sonics, do they even get out of the 1st round instead of reaching the finals and taking the Bulls to 6? Highly doubt it. I can see arguments for Pau because of longevity though and fat Kemp sucked, so I guess it's fine to have Pau over him.

[Stalwart]

Not bad but Id change the following:

PGs: Curry should be over Oscar by now. CP3 and Walt Frazier are too high. Isiah is too low. Isiah is just getting completely dismissed as time goes on. I know Cousy is from the 50s but his resume, like Russells, is too strong to ignore. He should be much higher.

SGs: TMac is too high imo. And Sam Jones should be over both Dumars and Manu.

SFs: Pippen is way too high. He sells be behind proven #1 options who won titles. So that's Rick Barry and John Havlicek. Also, needs more Paul Arizin.

PF: Not sure about Webber at 11. Might be a bit high. Id also have Malone over KG.

C: Ewing is too high imo. Probably Jokic also. Willis Reed should be in the top 10 given his career accomplishments.

Other than that not a bad list.

[Jaivl]

Okay, I'm gonna try and do the same

PGs
1) Magic Johnson
2) Oscar Robertson
3) Jerry West
4) Chris Paul (2021)
5) Stephen Curry (2021)
6) Steve Nash
7) John Stockton
8) Jason Kidd
9) Russell Westbrook
10) Walt Frazier
11) Isiah Thomas
12) Gary Payton
13) Kevin Johnson
14) Damian Lillard (2022)
15) Tony Parker

HMs: Chauncey Billups, Terry Porter, Mark Price. Curry is most definitely rising to #3 or #4 after this year for me.

SGs
1) Michael Jordan
2) Kobe Bryant
3) Dwyane Wade
4) James Harden (2022)
5) Reggie Miller
6) Clyde Drexler
7) George Gervin
8) Tracy McGrady
9) Vince Carter
10) Manu Ginóbili
11) Allen Iverson
12) Sidney Moncrief
13) Jeff Hornacek
14) Hal Greer
15) Sam Jones

HMs: Joe Dumars, Paul Westphal, god SGs kinda suck

SFs
1) LeBron James (2022)
2) Larry Bird
3) Julius Erving
4) Kevin Durant (2022)
5) Rick Barry
6) Scottie Pippen
7) Elgin Baylor
8) John Havlicek
9) Paul Pierce
10) Kawhi Leonard (2022)
11) Dominique Wilkins
12) Adrian Dantley
13) Alex English
14) James Worthy
15) Paul George (2022)

HMs: Billy Cunningham, Grant Hill and Jimmy Butler, who is most definitely rising to Worthy or English level after this year is over.

PFs
1) Tim Duncan
2) Kevin Garnett
3) Dirk Nowitzki
4) Karl Malone
5) Charles Barkley
6) Bob Pettit
7) Kevin McHale
8) Dolph Schayes
9) Giannis Antetokounmpo (2021)
10) Pau Gasol
11) Anthony Davis (2022)
12) Elvin Hayes
13) Rasheed Wallace
14) Draymond Green (2021)
15) Bobby Jones

HMs: Dennis Rodman, Larry Nance. Again, Giannis and Green are rising a few spots after their season ends.

Cs
1) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
2) Bill Russell
3) Hakeem Olajuwon
4) Shaquille O'Neal
5) Wilt Chamberlain
6) David Robinson
7) Moses Malone
8) Patrick Ewing
9) George Mikan
10) Artis Gilmore
11) Dave Cowens
12) Nikola Jokic (2022)
13) Dwight Howard
14) Bob Lanier
15) Alonzo Mourning

HMs: Dikembe Mutombo, Nate Thurmond.

[70sFan]

My list:

PGs
1) Magic Johnson
2) Oscar Robertson
3) Jerry West
4) Steph Curry
5) Chris Paul
6) Steve Nash
7) John Stockton
8) Walt Frazier
9) Jason Kidd
10) Russell Westbrook
11) Gary Payton
12) Isiah Thomas
13) Bob Cousy
14) Kevin Johnson
15) Tony Parker

HM: Chauncey Billups, Bob Davies, Gus Williams, Damian Lillard

SGs
1) Michael Jordan
2) Kobe Bryant
3) Dwyane Wade
4) James Harden
5) George Gervin
6) Reggie Miller
7) Clyde Drexler
8) Ray Allen
9) Tracy McGrady
10) Hal Greer
11) Sam Jones
12) Allen Iverson
13) Bill Sharman
14) Vince Carter
15) Manu Ginóbili

HM: Arnie Risen, Paul Westphal, Sidney Moncrief

SFs
1) LeBron James
2) Larry Bird
3) Julius Erving
4) Kevin Durant
5) Elgin Baylor
6) John Havlicek
7) Rick Barry
8) Scottie Pippen
9) Paul Pierce
10) Kawhi Leonard
11) Paul Arizin
12) Alex English
13) Adrian Dantley
14) Cliff Hagan
15) Jimmy Butler

HM: Dominique Wilkins, James Worthy, Paul George

PFs
1) Kevin Garnett
2) Karl Malone
3) Dirk Nowitzki
4) Charles Barkley
5) Bob Pettit
6) Giannis Antetokounmpo
7) Dolph Schayes
8) Pau Gasol
9) Kevin McHale
10) Elvin Hayes
11) Anthony Davis
12) Draymond Green
13) Billy Cunningham
14) Dave DeBusschere
15) Bobby Jones

HM: Bailey Howell, Dennis Rodman, Buck Williams, Larry Nance

Cs
1) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
2) Bill Russell
3) Tim Duncan
4) Wilt Chamberlain
5) Hakeem Olajuwon
6) Shaquille O'Neal
7) David Robinson
8) Moses Malone
9) George Mikan
10) Patrick Ewing
11) Artis Gilmore
12) Bob Lanier
13) Dave Cowens
14) Dwight Howard
15) Nate Thurmond

HM: Dikembe Mutombo, Nikola Jokic, Willis Reed, Alonzo Mourning

[falcolombardi]

honest question, how do we separate shooting guards from wings? is there a height threeshold?

i would go even further:what makes magic a point guard but someone like luka doncic or lebron james a wing?

is a power forward defined as a big who plays with a bigger big regardless of role?

[wojoaderge]

Cs
1) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
2) Bill Russell
3) Tim Duncan
4) Wilt Chamberlain
5) Hakeem Olajuwon
6) Shaquille O'Neal
7) David Robinson
8) Moses Malone
9) Patrick Ewing
10) Artis Gilmore
11) Bob Lanier
12) Dave Cowens
13) Dwight Howard
14) Nate Thurmond
15) Dikembe Mutombo

HM: Nikola Jokic, Willis Reed, Alonzo Mourning, Rudy Gobert

You forgot somebody

[70sFan]

Cs
1) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
2) Bill Russell
3) Tim Duncan
4) Wilt Chamberlain
5) Hakeem Olajuwon
6) Shaquille O'Neal
7) David Robinson
8) Moses Malone
9) Patrick Ewing
10) Artis Gilmore
11) Bob Lanier
12) Dave Cowens
13) Dwight Howard
14) Nate Thurmond
15) Dikembe Mutombo

HM: Nikola Jokic, Willis Reed, Alonzo Mourning, Rudy Gobert

You forgot somebody

Mikan? Sorry, I should say that I'm still in process of reevaluating his career. For now, I'd have him around 8th or 9th spot.

[dygaction]

Giannis has a chance to move to 2nd if Bucks win it all this year.

PFs:

1.) Tim Duncan
2.) Dirk
3.) Giannis
4.) Karl Malone
5.) KG
6.) Charles Barkley
7.) Bob Pettit
8.) Kevin McHale
9.) Pau Gasol
10.) Elvin Hayes
11.) Chris Webber
12.) Dennis Rodman
13.) Jerry Lucas
14.) Anthony Davis
15.) Shawn Kemp

[Narigo]

PG:
1.Magic Johnson
2.Oscar Robertson
3.Jerry West
4.Chris Paul
5.Stephen Curry
6.John Stockton
7.Jason Kidd
8.Steve Nash
9.Walt Frazier
10.Isiah Thomas
11.Gary Payton
12. Russell Westbrook
13.Chauncey Billups
14.Bob Cousy
15.Kevin Johnson

SG:
1.Michael Jordan
2.Kobe Bryant
3.Dwyane Wade
4.James Harden
5.Clyde Drexler
6.Reggie Miller
7.George Gervin
8.Ray Allen
9.Tracy McGrady
10.Vince Carter
11.Allen Iverspn
12.Manu Ginobili
13.Sidney Moncrief
14.Sam Jones
15.Hal Greer

SF:
1.LeBron James
2.Larry Bird
3.Julius Erving
4.Kevin Durant
5.John Havichek
6.Scottie Pippen
7.Rick Barry
8.Paul Pierce
9.Elgin Baylor
10.Dominique Wilkens
11.Adrian Dantley
12.Kawhi Leonard
13. Grant Hill
14.Alex English
15.Billy Cunningham


PF:
1.Tim Duncan
2.Karl Malone
3.Kevin Garnett
4.Dirk Nowitzki
5.Charles BArkley
6.Bob Pettit
7.Dolph Schayes
8.Pau Gasol
9 Giannis
10.Kevin Mchale
11.Elvin Hayes
12. Anthony Davis
13.Larry Nance
14.Chris Webber
15.Rasheed Wallace



C:
1.Kareem Abdul Jabbar
2.Wilt Chamberlain
3.Shaquille O'Neal
4.Hakeem Olajuwon
5.Bill Russell
6.David Robinson
7.Moses Malone
8.Patirck Ewing
9.George Mikan
10..Artis Gilmore
11.Bob Lanier
12.Robert Parish
13.Dikembe Mutombo
14.Dwight Howard
15.Alonzo Mourning

[maxwellcu]

No one, and I mean no one, in NBA front office history is taking Mutumbo over Jokic. As a Nuggets fan, just no.

[falcolombardi]

No one, and I mean no one, in NBA front office history is taking Mutumbo over Jokic. As a Nuggets fan, just no.

this is not necesarrily a 15 best players project as much as a 15 best careers project

[DQuinn1575]

My list:

PGs
1) Magic Johnson
2) Oscar Robertson
3) Jerry West
4) Steph Curry
5) Chris Paul
6) Steve Nash
7) John Stockton
8) Walt Frazier
9) Jason Kidd
10) Russell Westbrook
11) Gary Payton
12) Isiah Thomas
13) Bob Cousy
14) Kevin Johnson
15) Tony Parker

HM: Chauncey Billups, Bob Davies, Gus Williams, Damian Lillard

SGs
1) Michael Jordan
2) Kobe Bryant
3) Dwyane Wade
4) James Harden
5) George Gervin
6) Reggie Miller
7) Clyde Drexler
8) Tracy McGrady
9) Hal Greer
10) Sam Jones
11) Allen Iverson
12) Bill Sharman
13) Vince Carter
14) Manu Ginóbili
15) Sidney Moncrief

HM: Arnie Risen, Paul Westphal, Earl Monroe

SFs
1) LeBron James
2) Larry Bird
3) Julius Erving
4) Kevin Durant
5) Elgin Baylor
6) John Havlicek
7) Rick Barry
8) Scottie Pippen
9) Paul Pierce
10) Kawhi Leonard
11) Paul Arizin
12) Alex English
13) Adrian Dantley
14) Cliff Hagan
15) Jimmy Butler

HM: Dominique Wilkins, James Worthy, Paul George

PFs
1) Kevin Garnett
2) Karl Malone
3) Dirk Nowitzki
4) Charles Barkley
5) Bob Pettit
6) Giannis Antetokounmpo
7) Dolph Schayes
8) Pau Gasol
9) Kevin McHale
10) Elvin Hayes
11) Anthony Davis
12) Draymond Green
13) Billy Cunningham
14) Dave DeBusschere
15) Bobby Jones

HM: Bailey Howell, Dennis Rodman, Buck Williams, Larry Nance

Cs
1) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
2) Bill Russell
3) Tim Duncan
4) Wilt Chamberlain
5) Hakeem Olajuwon
6) Shaquille O'Neal
7) David Robinson
8) Moses Malone
9) Patrick Ewing
10) Artis Gilmore
11) Bob Lanier
12) Dave Cowens
13) Dwight Howard
14) Nate Thurmond
15) Dikembe Mutombo

HM: Nikola Jokic, Willis Reed, Alonzo Mourning, Rudy Gobert

Thanks = don't think I've ever seen you do a ranking; I could nitpick a little, but think it is really good one.

[Heat4lyf]

My list:

PGs
1) Magic Johnson
2)Steph Curry
3) Oscar Robertson
4) Jerry West
5) Isiah Thomas
6) Nash
7) CP3
8) John Stockton
9) Jason Kidd
10) Bob Cousy
11) Gary Payton
12) Russell Westbrook
13) Damian Lillard
14) Walt Frazier
15) Tony Parker

HM: KJ Chauncey Billups, Bob Davies, Gus Williams,

SGs
1) Michael Jordan
2) Kobe Bryant
3) Dwyane Wade
4) James Harden
5) Clyde Drexler
6) George Gervin
7) Tracy McGrady
8) Allen Iverson
9) Reggie Miller
10) Sam Jones
11) Hal Greer
12) Bill Sharman
13) Vince Carter
14) Ray Allen
15) Sidney Moncrief


SFs
1) LeBron James
2) Larry Bird
3) Kevin Durant
4) Dr J
5) Elgin Baylor
6) John Havlicek
7) Rick Barry
8) Kawhi Leonard
9) Scottie Pippen
10) Bernard King
11) Paul Pierce
12) Wilkins
13) Alex English
14) Adrian Dantley
15) James Worthy

PFs
1) Duncan
2) Giannis
3) Bob pettit
4) Karl Malone
5) Barkley
6) Dirk nowitzki
7) KG
8) Kevin McHale
9) Pau Gasol
10) Dolph Schayes
11) Elvin Hayes
12) Anthony Davis
13) Rodman
14) Draymond Green
15) Billy Cunningham

Cs
1) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
2) Wilt Chamberlain
3) Bill Russell
4) Shaquille O'Neal
5) Hakeem Olajuwon
6) Moses Malone
7) David Robinson
8) Jokic
9) Patrick Ewing
10)alonzo Mourning
11) Artis Gilmore
12) Dave Cowens
13) Bob Lanier
14) Nate Thurmond
15) D12

[SickMother]

Fun thread. I'll start off with my PGs...

A few notes on my methodology. Tiers are more important than ordinal ranking for me. I favor peak & postseason success over career length, but try to use a mixture of both (combined with personal preference for individual play style) when determining the placements. The pWS and pWS/48 are five year peak with cWS and cWS/48 for the career totals.

01 Magic (pWS: 74.8 | pWS/48: .251 | cWS: 155.8 | cWS/48: .225 | 5 RNGZ)

02 Curry (pWS: 68.6 | pWS/48: .265 | cWS: 120.2 | cWS/48: .202 | 3 RNGZ)
03 Oscar (pWS: 88.7 | pWS/48: .244 | cWS: 189.2 | cWS/48: .207 | 1 RNGZ)
04 West (pWS: 69.2 | pWS/48: .241 | cWS: 162.6 | cWS/48: .213 | 1 RNGZ)
05 Paul (pWS: 69.9 | pWS/48: .263 | cWS: 198.9 | cWS/48: .239 | 0 RNGZ)

06 Stockton (pWS: 71.6 | pWS/48: .229 | cWS: 207.7 | cWS/48: .209 | 0 RNGZ)
07 Frazier (pWS: 70.8 | pWS/48: .216 | cWS: 113.5 | cWS/48: .176 | 2 RNGZ)
08 Chauncey (pWS: 63.8 | pWS/48: .225 | cWS: 120.8 | cWS/48: .176 | 1 RNGZ)

09 Nash (pWS: 56.2 | pWS/48: .202 | cWS: 129.7 | cWS/48: .164 | 0 RNGZ)
10 Payton (pWS: 55.8 | pWS/48: .184 | cWS: 145.5 | cWS/48: .148 | 1 RNGZ)
11 Kidd (pWS: 45.2 | pWS/48: .157 | cWS: 138.6 | cWS/48: .133 | 1 RNGZ)
12 Isiah (pWS: 44.1 | pWS/48: .143 | cWS: 80.7 | cWS/48: .109 | 2 RNGZ)
13 Parker (pWS: 42.9 | pWS/48: .162 | cWS: 111.3 | cWS/48: .140 | 4 RNGZ)
14 Cousy (pWS: 37.9 | pWS/48: .151 | cWS: 91.1 | cWS/48: .139 | 6 RNGZ)
15 Russ (pWS: 54.7 | pWS/48: .216 | cWS: 106.5 | cWS/48: .165 | 0 RNGZ)

[Fencer reregistered]

I think of Jerry West as an SG rather than a PG. If Jerry is ranked as an SG, he should be #3 on that list.

I believe West played the same position Steph Curry does. I think that's PG.

For example, West was the assists leader most years for the Lakers. And Curry is usually second in assists on his team behind Draymond.

Goodrich was the SG of West/Goodrich just as Klay is the SG of Steph/Klay, even if the positional gap isn't as extreme for the Laker pair.

I think those considerations outweigh the fact that West and Curry are thought of as scorers above all.

[70sFan]

My list:

PGs
1) Magic Johnson
2) Oscar Robertson
3) Jerry West
4) Steph Curry
5) Chris Paul
6) Steve Nash
7) John Stockton
8) Walt Frazier
9) Jason Kidd
10) Russell Westbrook
11) Gary Payton
12) Isiah Thomas
13) Bob Cousy
14) Kevin Johnson
15) Tony Parker

HM: Chauncey Billups, Bob Davies, Gus Williams, Damian Lillard

SGs
1) Michael Jordan
2) Kobe Bryant
3) Dwyane Wade
4) James Harden
5) George Gervin
6) Reggie Miller
7) Clyde Drexler
8) Tracy McGrady
9) Hal Greer
10) Sam Jones
11) Allen Iverson
12) Bill Sharman
13) Vince Carter
14) Manu Ginóbili
15) Sidney Moncrief

HM: Arnie Risen, Paul Westphal, Earl Monroe

SFs
1) LeBron James
2) Larry Bird
3) Julius Erving
4) Kevin Durant
5) Elgin Baylor
6) John Havlicek
7) Rick Barry
8) Scottie Pippen
9) Paul Pierce
10) Kawhi Leonard
11) Paul Arizin
12) Alex English
13) Adrian Dantley
14) Cliff Hagan
15) Jimmy Butler

HM: Dominique Wilkins, James Worthy, Paul George

PFs
1) Kevin Garnett
2) Karl Malone
3) Dirk Nowitzki
4) Charles Barkley
5) Bob Pettit
6) Giannis Antetokounmpo
7) Dolph Schayes
8) Pau Gasol
9) Kevin McHale
10) Elvin Hayes
11) Anthony Davis
12) Draymond Green
13) Billy Cunningham
14) Dave DeBusschere
15) Bobby Jones

HM: Bailey Howell, Dennis Rodman, Buck Williams, Larry Nance

Cs
1) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
2) Bill Russell
3) Tim Duncan
4) Wilt Chamberlain
5) Hakeem Olajuwon
6) Shaquille O'Neal
7) David Robinson
8) Moses Malone
9) Patrick Ewing
10) Artis Gilmore
11) Bob Lanier
12) Dave Cowens
13) Dwight Howard
14) Nate Thurmond
15) Dikembe Mutombo

HM: Nikola Jokic, Willis Reed, Alonzo Mourning, Rudy Gobert

Thanks = don't think I've ever seen you do a ranking; I could nitpick a little, but think it is really good one.

Thank you and I don't mind nitpicking from you at all, so feel free to post them!