The definitive ranking of the NBA’s best players.
by Matt Lawyue / @mlawyue
Let’s just cut to the chase because it will inevitably spill over in the comments section – why Dwight Howard does or doesn’t deserve the five spot in this ranking, deja vu from last years.
Spoiler, there will be no mention of his multiple extracurricular activities or his
nice guy persona because they’re irrelevant on the court. I don’t care if he graced our latest cover, or serenaded us with Ken Jeong. I won’t have it.
First, let’s start with his strengths. He’s an excellent defender with great instincts. Dwight takes advantage of his athletic frame better than anyone in the League, aside from LeBron. His rebounding, blocking out, weak-side defense, shot blocking prowess are all feared and revered. Sorry, had to go Clyde on you there. Two consecutive Defensive Player of the Year awards to boot, there’s no stopping him on this front.
Offensively, well, he’s getting there. But can you blame him if he chooses to live off athleticism rather than (limited) developed skill? In six seasons, he’s averaged 17.5 ppg on 57.5 fg percentage, with an assortment of putbacks, dunks and straight bullying. He’s led the Magic to one Finals and two Eastern Conference Finals appearances off of athleticism and defense. He’s led the league in rebounding and blocked shots for two consecutive seasons at the tender age of 24-years-old. With LeBron (theoretically) eliminating himself from MVP contention (unless he drops a ridiculous triple-double for the season and gets to the Finals), it will be a dogfight between Durant, Dwight and Kobe (cue bickering over upcoming MVP race).
Dwight’s the ultimate intimidator, a link to a bygone era of big men who actually challenged you at the rim. We should cherish him now, before the likes of soft-serve Bargnani devour us all. I’ve seen a cone play better defense than Bargnani. Clearly, I’m not a fan of Bargnani. I can’t stand typing his name, too. Sorry. Continuing.
So what’s missing from his game?
Low-post moves for starters. We’ve seen the clip of him working out with Hakeem, but he’s had Ewing as his mentor and his jump shot is still broke. It’s also easy to spin baseline and jam when nobody’s guarding you. Yet, there’s no doubt over time, with focus and confidence, we’ll see the low-post game we crave from Dwight. And when that happens, the Magic will be on their way to a championship parade.
It’s more or less a give and take with his free throw shooting. The last three seasons he’s gotten to the stripe at least ten times per game, hitting a little more than half. I’m less inclined to believe this will ever improve to a respectable number, but the fact he draws so many fouls and has the opportunity for easy buckets is encouraging, and effective, for Stan Van Gundy.
Dwight has always averaged more turnovers than assists, even more troubling when you consider all of his damn teammates are capable of knocking down threes, save for Gortat, the perfect Dwight backup. Add passing out of the post as a bullet point in his lack of low-post confidence list.
Now what have we learned? It’s easy to deduce the final four in our Top 50 list, so I’ll say that this is a perfect spot for Dwight. Is he better than Melo, CP3 and Deron? It’s arguable, for sure, but so is any position within a top 10. It’s scary to think what might be if he develops a low-post game, much the way we dreamed of rookie LeBron with a jump shot. Clearly, he’s the best center in the League, and an unfinished product at that. Sky’s the limit for Dwight.
And did I mention he’s dropping an album? Wait, I forgot. Not having this. Sorry.
| 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 |
| Chris Paul | Hornets | PG | 7 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| Carmelo Anthony | Nuggets | SF | 6 | 7 | 3 | 2 |
| Dwight Howard | Magic | C | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 |
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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4.Durant 3.Wade 2.Mamba 1.Lebron
but I have a feeling you guys will put KD over Wade, which would be very very wrong
Good placing for Dwight. Even though his offensive game isn’t there, he still changes the game. He is a force on defense. I am more interested in the next 4 spots though.
THERE, now we can stay on Dwight for the rest of the conversation today!
http://nba.fanhouse.com/2010/10/16/magic-dont-lose-the-games-that-dont-count/
Why am I even comparing the two? Well, cuz both of them were here in India this summer.
This is my argument: http://hoopistani.blogspot.com/2010/09/dwight-howard-vs-pau-gasol-battle-of.html
3.Wade
2.Lebron
1.Kobe Durant a great player and will get better.
Wade still great
Lebron his last two games(talking playoff) were just…. well not good.
Kobe not the most athletic og physical but he gets the job done. He can still play great D and his is a leader and a figher.
Ben Wallace was a great defender, and if he had a good night you could get 9 points out of him. But most of the time you were lucky to get 6. Not only is Dwight getting almost 20 with no offensive game, but if he gets a move or two and gets a little better at ft’s he could be in the 70 percent range for ft’s (his form isn’t that bad for a bulky big man), and he could average above 20 ppg. Howard is the ONLY reason the Magic have any defense what so ever… the whole defensive scheme is filter through the top and let Dwight swat at it! And 16 rpg? The Dream averaged like, 13. something once I think… so is The Dream not that great at rebounding?
3. Durant
2. Kobe
1. James
2 kobe
3 durant
4 wade(cause of his lack of good teammates last year)
maybe should be higher though. Bet everybody gets angry if lebron is nr 1 on this list: Haters!
5. Howard !
4. Wade
3. Durant
2. James
1. Bryant
2. Wade
3. Kobe
4. Durant
Burqa? 50? Soulja? Shirtless… what the hell!
Mostly he’s obnoxious, but sometimes he makes me chuckle.
Just saying.
The game has changed. Ticky-tac fouls, the restricted area and greater attention towards drawing charges has taken away from one’s ability to block shots and grab rebounds. Centers also defend farther away from the basket because of the craze of more skilled midrange/three point shooters.
So it’s a bit unfair to say Dwight doesn’t put up the numbers of 90s centers, who didn’t have to deal with all that crap.
In the 90s, Dwight would be putting up 16rpg/5bpg himself.
He’d probably score 4 points a game, but he’d be getting his defensive numbers, that’s for sure.
4 DWAYNE WADE
3 KEVIN DURANT
2 LEBRON JAMES
1 KING KOBE BRYANT!
One of my guys.
Now, JTaylor, would you agree with me, that if Howard had come into the league ten years earlier, there is no way he would have been an all-star by now?
I’m pretty sure Howard woulda been an all-star in the 90s. He just wouldn’t make a SLAM top-5 list.
The Cavs are only 3 years removed from a Finals appearance!
Yes Howard would be an all-star. Not an every year all-start, but probably every other year all-star. And yes, Howard is as good of a defender as Olajuwon and Robinson and Shaq. Rule changes have stunted exactly how much of an impact a center can have.
Just, like, learn actual basketball or something.
@Gabe, I was being sarcastic dude!
4.Durant
3.Wade
2.LBJ
1.Kobe If kobe isn’t number 1 and wins his 6th does that mean he’s number one for sure next year? GTFOH if kobe aint number 1
He probably already is among them.
And I wont even brush on anything NBk already said, which is common sense.
You see, charges and the restricted area are killin today’s center. Back in the day, if you ran into a giant massive seven foot tall monster and he took that ball and swatted that out of the park, it was a block. That’s changed today, and that mostly revolves around the mindset of the restricted area. If there is contact in the restricted area during a drive, no matter how ticky-tac, the refs call it a foul. This has caused two things:
1) Lowered the amount of blocks a center can get because there are more fouls called, since the refs are calling more contact fouls
2) causing centers to leave outside the restricted area so they don’t get cause on drives
If an offensive player plows into a center at full speed with his head down and shoulders out OUTSIDE of the restricted area, it’s an offensive foul. If it’s inside, even if the person is just sitting there and the offensive player lowers his shoulder and football tackles the guy, it’s 50/50. Actually, it’s more probably a personal foul.
It’s forcing centers to play farther out. The farther out one goes, the less rebounds they can get and the less blocks they can get.
Not to mention, many blocks Robinson and Olajuwon got in the past would be called fouls now.
Not to mention, with more refs calling offensive fouls, Howard can step out of the restricted zone and draw charges. Isn’t there a defensive benefit for him to do that?
Once again, I wont even touch on what NBK said how centers like Love and Whiteside and Okur now love to play ridiculously far away from the basket to draw other centers out. Oh, and 3-second violations are actually CALLED nowadays, unlike in the time of Shaq. There are so many obvious reasons why Howard’s numbers aren’t the same as the 90s HOFers.
But when you factor the five or so reasons I gave you in this post, you realize that his numbers are ridiculous for this day and age. Who else puts up the numbers he does while providing the same great man-to-man post defense? Answer: No one.
I’m not making excuses for his offense. It’s awful, and in the days of HOF 90s centers, dude would be lucky to break 15 points a game on 50% shooting. He’d be locked shut.
But his defense is top notch.
And if you want to quantify, I’d take Howard defensively over Olajuwon and young Shaq, and I’d take David Robinson JUST SLIGHTLY over Howard.
Thanks for playing.
I haven’t noticed it b4 but JT is right, his rbds and blcks pg are kinda low, but that’s the best in the league, so it is the rules as Juks (who usually has good points) suggested or is it just that there’s no great rebounders and shot blockers in the league nowadays…
Anyway, Shout out @ JT21, Philo (my main men) & AllenP (can’t wait 2 read ur next post).
He used to pick point guards’ pockets.
Howard is still high echelon, though.
It’s not that it’s easier to foul so Howard gets more fouls. It’s that it’s easier to foul so the centers of today have adjusted for that to foul less. It’s the way of things bro. Accept it.
@Nicolas Fleming: All I’m saying is that Howard is on the same defensive level as the rest of those HOF centers. The only centers I’d take defensively over Howard are Russell, Robinson, Mutombo, Chamberlain… Gosh, maybe Mourning, but that’s it. I’d even take Howard over other defensive STUDS like Eaton and Wallace.
Howard is a top-ALL TIME defender.
He just sucks offensively.
In the 90s, Howard would be an athletic but shorter Mutombo. A super fantastic defensive threat with no offensive skills to go to.
But yeah, Olajuwon would still beast him.
@God in Basketball Shoes: Agree to disagree. Maybe it’s cause Olajuwon’s masterful offense blinded me from his defense, but I have memories of him straying too far on switches and biting on a lot of fakes. You could be right, Olajuwon was a champ, a LUDICROUS ball thief for a center and he holds so many defensive records it’s mind boogling. But going from what I’ve seen, I don’t think he’d make it in my top-5 all-time defensive centers.
Sorry.
Not saying that Eaton isn’t a top-5/top-10 defensive guard. But using him as a shining example of defense isn’t… the best thing.
I had to.
JTaylor: Josh Smith started out as a better shot blocker than Dwight Howard. It simply has to do with developing defensive skills faster. That wont last. It could very well be next season that they switch places. Plus, Josh Smith is one of the best shot blockers in the GAME right now, but Dwight’s killed him the last two years. Killed.
Nance came into the league three and a half years older than Dwight and didn’t take as long to start averaging two blocks a game. Start counting Dwight at 22 till 24, and Dwight averages WAY more blocks than Nance does. Plus Nance played in the same error where getting blocks were easier. The Larry Nance comparison was a very bad example. Josh Smith was better, but that’s just because Josh Smith came into the L blocking better at a young age than Dwight did. Right now, it’s not even comparable.
Howard: 13.2 rebounds, 1 steal, 2.8 blocks
Hakeem: 11.4 rebounds, 2 steals, 3.4 blocks
DavidR: 12.0 rebounds, 1.7 steals, 3.9 blocks
So Howard, at the same age as Hakeem and DavidR, is getting about a block less in an age which is VERY HARD TO GET BLOCK SHOTS… but still out rebounding them.
Hmmmmm.
Waiting on you buddy.
Calm down, “Guns of The Navarone.
I was answering JT’s question on how Nance and Smith had more blocks, or whatever.
I said, “because they come in on the weak side more than Howard does”.
That is supporting Jukai’s argument, not JTaylor’s.
Look, you are exposing yourself as one who lacks reading comprehension, and more greatly, one who does not know basketball well enough, for you would have been able to better decipher my comment. Jukai did.
And Jukai, he can defend himself like he is doing just fine. He does not need you to back him up on anything.
Finally, JTaylor has his moments, and he is holding his own, right now.
Hater.
Notice how a lot more block shots today either come from behind or come from weakside help. Very few block shots are blocked straight on. Gone are the days of Eaton blocking Jordan straight up, or Chamberlain jumping straight up in the air and stopping Gus Johnson’s dunk with such force that it throws out a disk in Gus’ back.
You would argue that it is because centers are worse shot blocks. I get that.
I am saying that centers no longer do that because that’s a foul. If a center goes straight up and blocks a shot straight on, but causes some body contact, a ref sees the contact and sees the restricted area and calls a foul. You just can’t clank bodies to get blocks anymore.
You never see Howard try to block shots like that. I bet if Howard played in the 90s, he’d CONSTANTLY try to block shots like that. In this day and age, you can’t. You gotta gather distance and jump at the ball, away from the person.
I get that there’s a legit argument saying that floaters are more common and athletes jump higher and faster so there is more contact… but I really feel that it’s a lot about the rules.
Also, if David Robinson improved his rebounding the next season at 25, why can’t Dwight improve his shot blocking at 25 and be closer to David Robinson?
My point was, Dwight was outrebounding Hakeem and DRob at the same age. Rebounding is a defensive stat, see: Rodman.
HELL let’s look at Dwight Howard and Hakeem Olajuwon at 23:
Howard: 13.8 rebounds, 1 steal, 2.9 blocks
Hakeem: 11.5 rebounds, 2 steal, 3.4 blocks
I really don’t see much of a difference. Half a block more, a steal more, more than two rebounds less. Both provided the same man-to-man defense. But Howard was in an age where it was harder to get rebounds and blocks.
That’s all I’m saying.
But Howard’s on par. He really, really, really, really is one of the greatest defensive fives we have ever seen in the league. He takes a crappy defensive team and makes them top-5 in the league. Howard would get by on his defense alone in the 90s. No, he wouldn’t he making the NBA at 50, but expect to see him representing a few all-star games and swatting shots into the stands.
It’s really hard to gauge how great of a post defender Howard is, because quite frankly, there’s no one to challenge him in the post. He lock down guys like Perkins and an increpid AARP Shaq, but that’s really nothing to write home about. Howard is constantly drawn out of the paint to guard the likes of Camby and Big Z and Horford, it’s hard to talk about playing straight-up post defense anymore. Even guys like Brook Lopez and Chris Kaman, classic post defenders, they’re more ‘old reliables’ than offensive spark plugs.
So, yeah, it’s hard to really say how great of a post defender Howard would be, and it’s impossible to plant him square in the 90s where the post-play warriors ran free.
I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt. If you don’t, it’s all cool, I’m just happy you sat down and backed it up with fact and respectable opinion rather than caplock and curse words. Hat tip to you, JTaylor. You’re fun to debate with every once in a while.
I’ll fully admit I may be underrating Hakeem defensively, so I’ll keep that in mind, maybe go back and watch a few Rockets games of the 90s.
Gotta proof read.
3. LeBron
2. Durant
1. Kobe
Dwight will NEVER develop post moves or a serviceable jumper. Never.
1)LEBRON: Im 100% sure on this one, he’s in his prime and has been the best player in the league for 2 years. (plus, if i remembered correctly, SLAM ranked him #1 last yr as well)
2)KOBE: Kobe is getting older, but still the best sg in the league
3)WADE: Because theres four players left, and hes the 2nd best sg
4)DURANT: Tough call between Wade and Durant, but im taking experience and a championship over potential.
WTF
Do people really believe Hakeem was on the same defensive level as Russell and Mutombo and Mourning and DHow and Chamberlain? Because if they do, they better believe Hakeem is a top-7 player all-time.
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