Tuesday, September 28th, 2010 at 1:00 pm  |  68 responses

Top 50: Andre Iguodala, no. 26

The definitive ranking of the NBA’s best players.

by Doobie Okon

Over the last couple days, new rumors have sprouted that the 76ers entered into the Carmelo Anthony sweepstakes, with Andre Iguodala being the main trade bait. One of my friends, a fellow Sixers fan, said yesterday that if Sixers GM Ed Stefanski pulled this deal off, he’d anoint the oft-criticized Stefanski “King of Philadelphia.”

In fact, he said Stefanski would warrant the regal moniker even if he made the trade and ‘Melo only played one minute in a Sixers uniform. Yes, that’s how much Philly fans love thAndre Iguodalaeir Iggy…the majority just want him gone at this point.

On paper, Iguodala’s numbers are fine. Matter of fact — they’re pretty damn good. Since Allen Iverson jettisoned Philly for Denver back in December of 2006, Iggy has averaged 18.5 points, 5.8 rebounds and 5.4 assists. And there’s no doubt that the former ‘Zona Wildcat has immense talent to go along with his incredible leaping ability, as Nate Robinson surely knows.

It’s quite amazing how much national perception can differ from the local feel, though. On the outside looking in, many will look at Iggy’s well-rounded statistics and be comfortable putting him as the 26th best player in the League. But trust me when I say that many Philadelphians are going to disagree.

So, what’s the problem with Andre and the city of not so brotherly love?

Defense? Nah. Iguodala is regarded as an above-average defender around the League, and his size (6-6, 207 pounds) and speed allows him to cover the likes of Kobe, LeBron, Durant and usually any other team’s best player on a nightly basis. Many Philly fans know and appreciate this defensive effort.

Durability? Not even close. Andre has only missed six games his entire career, all at the end of the ’06-07 season.

The jump shot? Well, it certainly isn’t pretty and it certainly isn’t great. Iggy’s 44.3 percent field goal percentage last season was the worst of his career, and his career mark of 32.1 percent from beyond the arc is not very good at all. But when you consider Kobe’s marks of 45.6 FG% and 32.9 3P% from last year, Iggy’s numbers don’t look so awful. And lord knows Allen Iverson didn’t shoot very well when he was shining in a Sixers uni, either.

The problem with Iggy dates back to that gloomy winter day when the little guy left, when Andre Iguodala became the primary ‘AI’ in the locker room. The Sixers never intended to draft Iguodala as a replacement for Allen Iverson, but that’s the position Iguodala had to assume simply because he was the next best player on the team. And because of that, Philadelphia has been mired in mediocrity and inconsistency the last four seasons until this past year when they thankfully lost enough games to land the No. 2 draft pick.

So, it’s not all Iggy’s fault. He’s a good guy, a sick dunker, a great talent, but frankly, Andre Iguodala is not a franchise player. Tools abound, he’s not the leader that LeBron is. He’s not the winner that Kobe is. He doesn’t have the heart that AI played with every game.

Some nights, he puts up fantastic numbers. Others, he disappears. Although his shooting percentages are decent, Iguodala often settles for the jumper instead of driving the lane, where he can thrive. And the worst attribute — he’s not the type to take over the game in the waning minutes. He’s just not that guy.

The point is, Iguodala’s had to be that guy since Iverson left. Sure, Iggy’s numbers greatly increased when the Answer exited Philly, and maybe they would diminish again if he was on another team, but I believe he’d flourish much more as a big impact role player than as a franchise guy. And maybe with Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner emerging for the 76ers this year, Iggy might play down into more of a successful role, but that’s to be seen.

However you view Iggy’s career so far, either as a success or an enigma, the people have spoken…and I say kudos to you, Andre Iguodala, on your No. 26 ranking.

SLAMonline TOP 50 PLAYERS OVERALL RANK POSITION RANK
Player Team Position 2010 2009 2010 2009
Ray Allen Celtics SG 50 36 11 10
Gilbert Arenas Wizards SG 49 34 10 9
Lamar Odom Lakers PF 48 33 14 10
John Wall Wizards PG 47 NR 13 NR
OJ Mayo Grizzlies SG 46 46 9 12
Al Horford Hawks C 45 NR 6 NR
Jason Kidd Mavs PG 44 45 12 10
Joakim Noah Bulls C 43 NR 5 NR
LaMarcus Aldridge Blazers PF 42 39 13 12
David West Hornets PF 41 31 12 8
Monta Ellis Warriors SG 40 NR 8 NR
Andrew Bogut Bucks C 39 NR 4 NR
Yao Ming Rockets C 38 NR 3 NR
Brandon Jennings Bucks PG 37 NR 11 NR
Zach Randolph Grizzlies PF 36 NR 11 NR
Stephen Curry Warriors PG 35 NR 10 NR
David Lee Warriors PF 34 NR 10 NR
Brook Lopez Nets C 33 NR 2 NR
Gerald Wallace Bobcats SF 32 NR 6 NR
Manu Ginobili Spurs SG 31 29 7 8
Tony Parker Spurs PG 30 15 9 3
Kevin Garnett Celtics PF 29 13 9 3
Rudy Gay Grizzlies SF 28 44 5 9
Josh Smith Hawks PF 27 40 8 13
Andre Iguodala 76ers SG 26 26 6 7

Notes
• Rankings are based solely on projected ’10-11 performance.
• Contributors to this list include: Jeremy Bauman, Maurice Bobb, Erildas Budraitis, Sean Ceglinsky, Ben Collins, Bryan Crawford, Sandy Dover, Adam Figman, Manny Maduakolam, Eddie Maisonet, Ryne Nelson, Doobie Okon, Ben Osborne, Charles Peach, Branden Peters, Quinn Peterson, David Schnur, Todd Spehr, Kyle Stack, Adam Sweeney, Dennis Tarwood, Tracy Weissenberg, Lang Whitaker, Eric Woodyard, and Nima Zarrabi.
• Want more of the SLAMonline Top 50? Check out the archive.

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  • http://slamonline.com nbk

    JTaylor slow your role stop calling me bra and stop spitting out ignorance and callin me pathetic. You have no idea what in the world your talking about, you don’t read what is said coherently and just come out talking crazy. First the MVP award is the “most valuable player,” not “the best player.” Both seasons Nash won phoenix had the best record in the west. One season without their best scorer. And MVP is a regular season award. And despite Nash’s defensive issues he managed to make plays on the defensive end. He is always top 5 or so in Charges, he makes a difference, and….again his teams win. Plus for you if you read this, don’t talk or make claims until you are 100% certain what your saying is not ignorant or stupid, The suns were not “terrible” defensively, they gave up a lot of points and played at a ridiculously high pace. In 2004-05 (Nash’s 1st MVP season) the suns were 17th in defensive rating, 05-06 (MVP season number 2) the suns had the 16th best defensive rating. There are 30 teams in the NBA, 17th is right in the middle, average, not even close to terrible. The last 3 teams Zach Randolph has played for in his career have finished with the 19th (last season w/ memphis) 27th (clippers)/ 23rd (Knicks – 2 years ago) – 29th (Knicks 3 years ago) – 26th (Portland 2006-07 – which featured Zach Randolph as their go to guy just like every team i’m have and am about to list) – 28th (Portland – same situation except they didn’t have brandon roy or lamarcus aldridge). I can keep going back until he came off the bench and didn’t have any major defensive responsibilities. I know I know he played for less talented teams, well its pretty damn consistent, if Zach Randolph is your starting PF even if you have a defensively solid lineup (Memphis last season has a very strong lineup defensively, except Gasol but only against more agile centers…well and randolph. duh) your team will not be any good defensively. You can argue all you want but the proofs in the pudding. Zach Randolph puts up great stats…for losers. Which makes him good, not great. OH and if you do read this, which you probably won’t since its SOOOO many words, I would also like to point out that Iguodala (who you claim is the one who is overrated, on a number of erroneous and ignant fronts) has seen more of the playoffs then Zach Randolph, in 3 less years. Again Winning Matters, stats don’t!

  • stever54

    JT
    You put way too much value on individual defensive statistics. Guys who take chances on steals and block shots out of bounds are not always great defenders. Do you think Iverson should have won defensive player of the year 3 straight years? Good defenders are the ones who take away shots and force bad ones. Thats a championship defender, and if you forgot…the goal is to win.

    Sorry those type of numbers arnt too easy for you to find. I guess your gonna have to actually start watching the game and not just look up stats to make your ignorant arguments.

  • http://Myspace Shanoooooo

    Dang…… All this arguing over Andre Iguodala

  • http://slamonline.com Allenp

    There is no criteria for MVP, NBK, and I’m not sure your argument about the name makes sense.
    Yes, it’s most valuable, but exactly what does valuable have to do with the fact that the Suns had the best record in league for those two years?
    The truth is, Mvp has been awarded to different players for vastly different reasons. In the early days of the League, it was solely about winning championships or being a serious contender which is how Bill Russell could win it without even being first team all nba. Later, it was about individual dominance and brilliance, which is what led to Moses Malone’s wins despite playing for a sub .500 team.
    During the Bird and Magic years it was about who sportwriters loved the most, not who was winning the most rings, or even who was the best player on the best team, or who was the individual best player. During Jordan’s heyday it was often about who was the best player in the league, but exceptions would be made if another great player had an outstanding year and his team was really successful.
    Really, valuable depends on who is asking and the current mood in the NBA.
    There is a legitimate argument to be had about whether Kobe or Lebron or even Shaq were more valuable to their individual teams than Nash was to his considering hte ridiculous talent surrounding him even after Amare went down. But, it can also be argued that the Phoenix Suns would have had no success without a dynmaic point guard, and Nash fit the bill perfectly. Then again, you could argue that with a point guard who played more defense, the suns would have been far more formidable and able to deal with teams like San Antonio when the tempo slowed in the postseason. After all, how important is regular season success when the only real measure of achievement in the NBA is a ring?
    I think Nash fans sometimes make ridiculous arguments to try to defend his MVPs when they should just say that the MVP is a subjective award and it’s no biggie if people don’t think Nash deserved two of them.

  • http://thetroyblog.com Teddy-the-Bear

    Allenp, why in the world would it matter that the suns didn’t play as well in the postseason, if the MVP is for the REGULAR season?

  • clayton

    whole article basically convincing us that iggy is just a really good role player, shouldnt be the best player on a team…how does that justify a 26th ranking

  • http://slamonline.com nbk

    Allen i am not arguing that he did or didn’t deserve MVP, I am arguing why he got MVP. The name of the award does matter in the context i’m using it, “best player” and “most valuable” are different, thats all i am saying. And what adoes what happened in the past matter? Steve Nash the person we are talking about didn’t win it in 1966 or any year in the era’s you described. I was not talking about criteria either, I was explaining why he won it, when he won it) not what it takes/took in the past or future. His role as the Suns best player, captain, and undisputed leader and the fact that they had so much success were (in those years, and arguably now) more important to winning the award then statistics or weaknesses. I was also only referring to what makes his defensive issues less damning then a guy like Zach Randolph by using his win totals and team defensive ranking as examples.

  • http://slamonline.com nbk

    Allen I also said on here and Zach Randolph’s post, I only agree with one of Nash’s awards, or would/could argue for. The first year Shaq should have won the award IMO, he went from Kobe (“best player of this generation”) to Dwyane (most STILL think Kobe is better). and won the East, Shaq was absolutely dominant. His stats weren’t “amazing” for his standards but he took so much attention from opposing teams his worth to the Heat was incalcuable (priceless per say). But for Nash’s second award I would be content with Nash, Kobe or LeBron winning that year, all of which were immensley important to their team. But the fact that Phoenix didn’t have Amar’e, the Suns play in the West (especially in 2005-06 when the west was heads and tails more competitive then the east) and finished with the best record IMO there was no one more important to their teams success then Nash.

  • Seven Duece

    I think this will be the year that is most pivotal to AI9. He’s still young yet, and has probably really had a chance to look at what he does well and could improve upon after spending the summer with the Olympic team. He’s obviously not a franchise player, but he’s also far from one of those “3rd option at best” types as well. If he were in Cleveland, LBJ might have stayed, since Andre would have been his most talented teammate BY FAR. Put him on any other team and he dramatically improves them (even if it doesn’t show statistically) because of his versatility and unselfishness. At 18+ ppg, most people feel he’s a role player; 23+, and people will say he needs help.

  • http://www.nba.com Gman

    This guy needs an MJ cuz hes def Pippen material.

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  • kos87

    Not a bad player,but he should be ranked lower,maybe around 40 or something.He could be a very useful role player in a contending team and I hope he ands up in a role like the one he had in team USA.The Sixers ask him to be their go-to-guy, but he can’t be that kind of player and he looks worse trying with all the bad offensive choices he makes.

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  • Gary Gibson

    Pretty Cool Blog Page . Andre Iguodala is a great dunker but the sixers need a leader on there team. I really miss Andre Miller. He made the sixers a playoff-out team when Iverson left.

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