Even 7’4″ Wemby has a tough time defending KD.

In my book “The G.O.A.T.: The Quest to Find the Best” I spent the first chapter, twenty-four pages, laying out and defining my 10 criteria for picking the top 75 greatest basketball players of all time. As a former high school and college coach for 22 years I developed objective and thoughtful criteria for what, I think, defines greatness on the basketball court. It is difficult to be totally objective and not let prejudices toward favorite players interfere with the choices. (I think for older fans it is very difficult to not let favoritism and “hero worship” interfere with good, sound judgement.)

One of my 10 criteria was “the yardstick test”. I began watching college and the NBA in the early 1950’s. I have also had the privilege of coaching and playing against several players that played in the NBA. Just like all fans I have compared one player to another, and just like all fans I have said “he is good but not as good as ?”. (XYZ is a great shooter BUT not as good as ABC!) There are a few generational players that set the standards for everyone else. In golf, that player is Tiger Woods (some would say Jack Nicklaus), in hockey that player is Wayne Gretzky, in baseball Babe Ruth, and in basketball it has been Michael Jordan for the last 25 years. (It is still MJ to many basketball fans but to others it may be someone else.) These athletes are “the yardstick” by which everyone else gets measured.

I thought it would be fun, and I hope it is interesting, to look at the 5 categories of basketball; scorer, shooter, rebounder, defender, passer/ballhandler, and pick the “yardstick” for each category. I will pick ONE player that based on statistics, research, and the “eye test”, I believe is the best player in each category. The picks are not limited by era, officiating, game rules, competition, etc. so in evaluating how the older players would perform in today’s game I will need to project and use a bit of imagination. For example, Oscar Robertson was a great scorer without a 3-point shot so how would he do in today’s NBA even if his game was a back down mid-range jumper.

Who is the best scorer of all time? Who is the “yardstick” for this category? Obviously, there have been several players who one could make a good argument to be #1. Players like Chamberlain, Jabbar, O’Neal, Jordan, Bryant, West, Robertson, Iverson, Gervin, Barry, Baylor, Maravich, Bird, Harden, James, Curry, Jokic, and Doncic.

Before I get to my pick for my #1 scorer in the history of the game, I am going to give you the reasons why I didn’t pick the players listed above. I didn’t pick Wilt, Kareem, and Shaq because they needed someone to get them the ball. They were easier to double-team, and they all scored inside. They were not good free-throw shooters.

I did not pick Kobe, MJ, LeBron, Oscar, Elgin, and Barry because they are not as efficient perimeter shooters as my pick. Remember, my pick is based on the NBA today. (The 3-point shot is such a big part of the offensive scheme of teams today.)

Curry and Harden rely on the 3-pointer and are limited by their size to get to the basket and score. Iverson did not shoot a lot of 3s, his FG% was .448 and .780% from the free throw line.

West and Maravich played when there was no 3-point arc so it is difficult to project what they would have done. Gervin and Bird played when the 3-point shot was not utilized. (West, Bird, and Maravich would have scored more points in the NBA today than when they played.)

Jokic and Doncic are phenomenal young basketball players. They still have too much “tread left on the tires”. They can score inside and outside but I think it is a little premature to choose them in this group of the all time great scorers.

Gervin, Bird, and MJ were the three players who were the most difficult to eliminate as #1. All were outstanding free throw shooters, outstanding mid-range shooters, and could get to the rim and finish. The 3-point shot, and the spread offense was not nearly as dominant as it has become in the last 10 years.

So, my pick for the greatest SCORER of all time is Kevin Durant. He has no weakness as a scorer. He can handle the ball, create his own shot, finish at the basket or shoot the 3, and with his size, he is a match-up nightmare for the defense. He has a 27.3 points per game career average, .501 FG%, .387 3P%, .884 FT%. NEXT POST: SHOOTER