Top 50: Deron Williams, no. 8

The definitive ranking of the NBA’s best players.

by Kenny Masenda

When people see the story of Deron Williams, it’s a story that’s littered with him making each and everyone around him better. It has come at the expense of his potential accomplishments and accolades, which is perfectly fine and, maybe, according to the script.

It’s a story that started in high school, flourished in college, and continues in the pros. When he ran the point for The Colony High School, there was another player on his team (Bracey Wright) who got a majority of the accolades. W Deron Williams hen he took his abilities to The Fighting Illini, he took a backseat to two other guards (Dee Brown and Luther Head). And when he was drafted by the Utah Jazz, he was brought along slowly, almost like he was being hazed in an attempt to test the man’s character, by The Great Jerry Sloan.

The thing is when you looked back at those days, you could speak reverently about everyone else at that time, but when you look at October of 2010, there is still one man standing; one man who is now the best point guard in basketball, and did it in a way that should be applauded and appreciated…and that man is Deron Williams.

You may be taken aback when you see the words, “Deron Williams is the best point guard in basketball,” but for me, there’s a different take than what other basketball fans have of the man. It’s one that’s more reflective, more personal, and one that’s not so much rooted solely in what he’s done in the NBA.

It’s one that I’ve been able to witness for the past nine years, well before he put on an NBA uniform.

The story of him is truly about team and truly about doing whatever it takes to win. The man knows how to lead, plain and simple. When you look at what Utah has done with him at the point, it’s truly remarkable. Rarely do you see a franchise lose two legends, two immortals, two Hall of Famers, and have (at least) one fall in your lap so soon and watch him grow before your very eyes. It also helps that he has John Stockton’s seal of approval, and if Utah is able to continue to put players around him, the Jazz will continue to contend in the West for quite some time.

They’ve already made a Western Conference Final and two semi-final appearances with Deron running the show. To take it a step further, in the four years he’s played in the postseason, the teams that beat the Jazz went on to either win or represent the West in the NBA Finals. There’s a reason why some fans aren’t too concerned with Carlos Boozer leaving town and being replaced by Big Al Jefferson, and it’s because of the maestro of their symphony. Williams told Jefferson, as soon as he arrived, that he would make him an All-Star. Once again, it’s all about making others better.

Here’s Williams, someone who finally made the All-Star team for the first time last season, an act of irresponsibility by fans and coaches that should be a first-degree felony for taking so long, talking about how he would give someone else that same feeling of playing in the second weekend in February for the first time in their career. It’s always been about others, and never about self. Maybe that’s part of the reason why some don’t fully understand why the man is so great — his impact will never be fully reflective in the numbers.

When the Jazz need a bucket, he’ll get it. When they need him to make the right pass, he’ll make it. When they need him to make the right basketball play, he will deliver it. It will always be about the imprint he leaves on his teams, and for that reason, here’s hoping the man has an opportunity to someday soon experience basketball immortality, and win an NBA championship. That’s probably what it will take for the masses to realize what some of us have known about him for a long time.

For now, dubbing Deron the best point guard in basketball (and a top-10 player in the L) will have to suffice.

SLAMonline TOP 50 PLAYERS			OVERALL RANK		POSITION RANK
Player	Team	Position	2010	2009	2010	2009
Ray Allen	Celtics	SG	50	36	10	9
Gilbert Arenas	Wizards	SG	49	34	9	8
Lamar Odom	Lakers	PF	48	33	14	10
John Wall	Wizards	PG	47	NR	13	NR
OJ Mayo	Grizzlies	SG	46	46	8	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	7	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	7	NR
Manu Ginobili	Spurs	SG	31	29	6	7
Tony Parker	Spurs	PG	30	15	9	3
Kevin Garnett	Celtics	PF	29	13	9	3
Rudy Gay	Grizzlies	SF	28	44	6	9
Josh Smith	Hawks	PF	27	40	8	13
Andre Iguodala	76ers	SG	26	26	5	6
Al Jefferson	Jazz	PF	25	23	7	7
Russell Westbrook	Thunder	PG	24	NR	8	NR
Chauncey Billups	Nuggets	PG	23	19	7	5
Tyreke Evans	Kings	PG	22	NR	6	NR
Danny Granger	Pacers	SF	21	21	5	5
Carlos Boozer	Bulls	PF	20	32	6	9
Paul Pierce	Celtics	SF	19	17	4	4
Joe Johnson	Hawks	SG	18	20	4	4
Rajon Rondo	Celtics	PG	17	27	5	8
Amar’e Stoudemire	Knicks	PF	16	16	5	6
Steve Nash	Suns	PG	15	22	4	6
Tim Duncan	Spurs	PF	14	6	4	1
Chris Bosh	Heat	PF	13	13	3	4
Derrick Rose	Bulls	PG	12	18	3	4
Brandon Roy	Blazers	SG	11	10	3	3
Pau Gasol	Lakers	PF	10	14	2	5
Dirk Nowiztki	Mavs	PF	9	9	1	2
Deron Williams	Jazz	PG	8	11	2	2

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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Tags: Deron Williams, Feature Too, SLAMonline Top 50, Utah Jazz

Read the SLAMonline Discussion Rules before posting.

BBaller

@JT21,good to see bball as your topic of discussion, hey the Jazz are not my team though, it was the whole short shorts thing, no slur against the city or its people,it’s actually San Antonio, but when Tony Parker had his name in the trade rumours i could only think of D. Will or Chris Paul as the only ones I’d like to see in a spurs uniform. D.Will may fit better with the Spurs current line up but CP3 would do nicely.That’s IF the Spurs even decide to move TP, i hope not.
The Philosopher

Jimmy:
I’m your idol.
Your highest idol.
JTaylor21

Co-sign Ben point on CP being on the same level as Kb/Bron/Wade and he’s BETTER than KD. @Hursty, I already gave you the reasons why he’s better than DWill, read my 8:18am post if you suddenly developed a bad case of amnesia.
BBaller

And a bigger IF, that Utah would want to trade!
The Spurs cannot get nothing for TP like when we they let Rodman go to the Bulls for Purdue, i still can’t forgive, drafts like Manu and Tony have made me forget.
http://www.slamonline.com J

Taylor:
Boozer is career 17/10 and 51%
West is career 16 /8 and 48% and a better FT%. Boozer is better on boards obviously. But he’s more of inside -mid low post guy and had Okur at center so he had to do more on boards. West is more 17 feet guy and had Chandler and Okafor at center. That to me means Boozer is just better by an inch. And West is “as good” as Boozer.
JTaylor21

J, fair point but when has DWest ever ever come close to avg. 20/10? NEVER. That’s what I look at when gauging just how good a PF is and can be. Do you think that the Bulls would be considered chip contenders if they had West instead of Booz? Food for thought.
Petar

Dirk is better than Deron, sorry…
http://twitter.com/soulonice6 Kenny

Appreciate the commentary, y’all; even the amateur line. I’m always tryna get better, and if ‘ol buddy can show where it’s contradictory and amateur, I’ll use the constructive criticism for future reference.

Thanks again.
http://slamonline.com SpaceJam

CP3 is the best pg in the world. Best handles in the league, best passer, best thief, arguably the best rebounding pg in the league. He took a very mediocre team in 08 to 55 wins. Are we really that far removed from when he took the league by storm with 22 12 6 and 3.
http://Yahoo.com Eboyhater

Deron Williams is the best point guard in the league BOOK IT!!!
http://Slamonline.com Caboose

@Jtaylor on david west’s stats:
07-08: 20.6 ppg, 8.9 rpg
08-09: 21.0 ppg, 8.5 rpg
I believe those numbers are pretty close to the 20/10 you believe west has never never come close to averaging. Get your stats and facts straight before you upchuck online.
Ben Flook

Boozer would average a lot better than that if he played with CP3. I don’k think anyone can argue CP3 is the best pick and roll PG in the L right now, he turned Tyson Chandler into a force for two years! (sort of)
JTaylor21

Caboose, those numbers are close but NO cigars. Either you put up 20/10 or you don’t NONE of that pretty close crap matters. Booz on the other hand put up 21/12, 20/10, and 19.5/11 last year, so stick it where the sun don’t shine. Trying to question my b-ball knowledge, how dare you. Are you going to answer my question or beat around the bush; would the Bulls be considered contenders if they had gotten DWest instead of CBooz?
Blackphantom

I think I’d rather have D-Will on my squad than CP3, though they’re both incredible point guards
derby

still understand how Al didn’t make the list…
derby

sorry ,i looked up for it again,no 25!!
TSmoove

Love this spot for him…still between him and Jamal Crawford for best crossover in the League
Josh

Love the top 50, but I have to comment on this. The piece is all about Deron being the best pg in the L, and yet you do not have him ranked number 1. Same think with Dirk and Pau, you say Pau is the best with no mention of Dirk, but Dirk is ranked number 1. I don’t like that. Writers need to understand what they are writing about, and in the case of Deron and Gasol, it is apparently not the best in their position.
EJ

Damn I thought it was gonna be Melo at 8, well
7. Melo
6. Dwight
5. CP3
4. Wade
3. Lebron
2. Kobe
1. KD
is how the SLAM top 50 is gonna end. And TSmoove, the best crossovers in the league come from Jamal and Derrick Rose.
http://www.slamonline.com AllDayEveryDay

First, I agree these write-ups have been bad..
Second, I can’t believe someone is saying DWest is as good as CBooz..
Third, CP3>Deron
Big E

Deron Williams hasn’t made anyone better.
slick ric

To me its Chris Paul and then every other point guard. No disrespect to deron because he the second best point but it’s a gap between him and Paul when Paul is healthy. They both equal as far as offense is concerned but I think the impact Paul makes on the defensive end is what separates him when compared to other guards because he’s great at playing the passing lanes and he’s a good defender.
http://www.slamonline.com James the Balla

Kenny, not to be rude, but a lot of these write ups have been terrible. They try and be to philosophical, when they should just say why they are ranked where they are. And it is contradicting to say he is the best pg in basketball and put him second on this list for pg’s. Unless Chris Paul is not on this list? It is the same with saying Pau is the best pf in the league and than ranking Dirk higher. And YES, I spelled Amateur wrong, I spelled it Amature… maybe I watch to much p0rn. Barry still hasn’t told me who Collinson is!
http://slamonline.com Anton

@AllDayEveryDay – I will defend to the death that Delonte West is as good as Boozer.
bashmo

Thats right! He’s the best point guard in ball? Nope..people seemed to have forgotten who Chris Paul is. After missing less than half the season, people wrote him off. CP3 is the better PG, but D-Will is a bonafide beast, real talk.
http://thetroyblog.com Teddy-the-Bear

Should be ahead of Carmelo Anthony, as we saw by last playoffs when the undermanned Jazz owned the Nuggets.
All net

There will be 6 centers on this list, and Horford isn’t even a real C. Says a lot about todays game..
http://www.facebook.com B-Moore

Damn it Slam! I don’t ask for a lot. I’ve been faithful to the Slam fam, buying up the mags and getting online when I can. I haven’t complained as much as I could have.. All I’ve asked for is a little bit of honesty. Deron Williams >>> Chris Paul. Regular Season statistics be damned. The one stat worth paying attention to, is wins. Williams is just a winner.

Noteworthy : Williams gets the better of Paul each time they play.. I’m just sayin…
T-Sizzle

Is it not significant to anyone else that Deron is always the number two (or three) assist man in the league while playing on the NUMBER ONE assisting team in the league? The Jazz flex offense demands that the ball continually moves and everyone racks up assists, not just Deron. Deron/Ninja is #1.
agentJ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3isS0H_Em4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmK0fMEnKEA

See the difference? Feel the difference? End of discussion, everyone?
Jer Dawg

Check the intangibles. Many claim Kobe is best because he hits game winners and has intangibles not just measured by statistics. Many claim Lebron is best because of sheer numbers and power. Was Shaq better than Kobe because of skill or dominance during the Laker championships?
Deron Williams has intangibles not measured by numbers that Chris Paul is clearly more accomplished in. The article clearly states he look backseats to all these other players either not in the NBA or are bench players. I do believe that if Deron Williams was on Hornets he would do as good if not better than CP3. But i can’t really buy into if it was the other way around. Head to head, I only see dominance by Williams over Paul. If ever Williams went to another bigger market….
Shifty

How can you call him the best point gaurd in the league when his position rank is number 2 in this?
http://www.stonesthrow.com Michael NZ

Anthony ahead of Williams: a joke.
http://www.slamonline.com Pardeep

So hes the best PG in the league but CP3 is ahead of him?
Avery

ahahah look @ brandon roy’s page i’m 3/3 on the prediction of the top 10!!!!
http://nicekicks.com meloman2.0

@teddy: no he shouldnt… Because the Jazz have much better all around team than the nuggets… plus the Jazz had one of the best coaches in NBA history coaching, while the nuggets had… gulp… DANTLEY!… i do think he shud be ahead of chris paul and Kd though
KB2412345

SpaceJam: Kidd
http://www.slamonline.com J

Taylor: Bulls are not title contenders now even with Boozer. East? Sure. Title? No.
http://www.slamonline.com J

Taylor: Also based on YOUR judgement on how good a PF should be, (you said he must be 20/10 consistently) then you must be thinking that Boozer is better than Amare then? Geez..
shan

Number 8…how perfect.
http://twitter.com/soulonice6 Kenny

@ James the Balla

Thanks for the feedback. I can’t really speak for any else’s write-ups, but in terms of mine, I really wanted to make it a point to highlight Deron and his impact, intangibles, and the reasons why he is where he is. There’s no mention of any other PG in my post, because it isn’t about them, which led to me saying he’s the best, even though he’s ranked number two, according to SLAM. Which is cool, IMO, but I can understand how it causes conflict for others.
Hopefully, that clears any confusion up. Thanks again, brother..
rob

ok guys idk how your showing all these videos and saying that deron is better than cp3 cuz he’s not. Im a season ticket holder for the spurs and everytime i see the hornets or jazz live i always analyze how cp3 or deron does. if you are talking about how individually one player is better than the other then it is CLEARLY CP3! deron is more of a team oriented player and fits a role in the offence. CP3 does 95% of the handling and makes sure his team runs, so he clearly HAS to do more which makes for better stats(look up the amount of times cp has dropped a triple dub compared to DWill).deron could put up those numbers IF he had as good intangible qualities CP has. raw speed, vision, etc.. And please dont talk about the playoffs, neither has won a ring so it doesnt matter how far they got, either u win or u dont. People are biased when it comes to these 2 but their games speak for themselves and obviously CP3 stands above the crowd.
http://slamonline.com tealish

Guys, there’s really no contradiction here.
The writer thinks Deron is the best PG in the game. (As do I)
The AVERAGE ranking of all the SLAMheads who voted, put Deron at #2.
That’s OK.
It really is.
agentJ

@rob: That’s right, except that Hornets SUCKS. You just proved that CP3 is the same type of player as Allen Iverson, but while Iverson still carried 76ers on his shoulder in his 30′s, CP3 is talking about quitting already.
http://Slamonline.com Caboose

I still proved your point wrong jtaylor, you said dwest never came close to 20/10 at first yet you just said the stats were “pretty close.” And if you MUST get 20/10, then I guess that’s not boozer anymore cause he didn’t average 20/10 last year. And that’s by your own logic, not mine. And to answer your question, it’s a faulty question because your assumption is wrong: nobody outside of Chicago genuinely believes the bulls can win a chip this this year.
arjae828

I think D-WIll is better offensively. CP3 is definitely a better passer and defender but D-Will is better offensively. He’s got the mid-range, the pull up, the catch & shoot, the three ball, post game, finishing at the rim,and he can pass the ball better than most in the league. Problem I have with CP3 is that he’s not a go to player. You can’t put the ball in his hands with the game on the line and ask him to get a bucket. He’s got no jumper. I’ve watched plenty of NO games when he just couldn’t produce. They play off him and he passes to Peja or D-West and they end up with a bad shot. He’s as much a part of their loses as their wins. Everyone compares him to Isiah, people seem to forget that Isiah was one of the coldest scorers the League has ever seen (especially from the guard spot). Another issue I have is that Chris Paul doesn’t push the ball the way people claim. He has this half speed trot. He doesn’t push enough. Uptempo gives his team the best chance to win. IDK, i think he’s good but not effective in every situation. Lastly, I think D-Williams being so multifaceted makes him effective in any style. He could be effective in Phoenix, L.A…anywhere. If you were to put him in N.O. and CP3 in Utah, who’d suffer more? I don’t think Deron’s game would hurt at all. CP3 would be rendered pretty ineffective in Utah’s system. That’s just my opinion.
KB8toSG8

There are lies, damned lies and stats……LOL
KB8toSG8

1.LeBron (since they always take LeBron for whatever reason…..I’d rather have Kobe swap places with him….)

2.Kobe.

3.Wade

4.Durant ( If he goes higher than this, that’s ridiculous.)

5.Melo

6.Paul

7.
Furious

Dirk’s never gone 20/10 either. Guess Boozer’s better than him too. He’s got close, but that does not matter at all.
thegfunk

Sick crossover

Top 50: Deron Williams, no. 8

The definitive ranking of the NBA’s best players.

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