ESPN's All-Time #NBArank is underway, with the top 10 point guards leading off. Our NBA Insiders weigh in on the rankings and how different they might look when Stephen Curry and Russell Westbrook play a few more seasons.
1. Which top-10 point guard is ranked too low?
J.A. Adande, ESPN.com: Isiah Thomas. Even though he was considered an early version of a scoring point guard, he led the league in total assists twice. And he also could claim playoff series victories against Larry Bird, Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson (although Magic missed most of the 1989 Finals with a hamstring injury).
Amin Elhassan, ESPN Insider: Jason Kidd. While he didn't shoot as well as Steve Nash, Chris Paul or Curry, Kidd excelled at almost every other facet of the game, and in his twilight he became a much improved shooter. One of the greatest rebounding guards of all time, an elite defender and an underrated back-to-the-basket player.
Tom Haberstroh, ESPN Insider: Nash. The guy they call "Two-Time" for earning a pair of MVP trophies is a couple of slots higher on my list. He was basically a career member of the 50/40/90 club (with field goal, 3-point and free throw percentages of .490/.428/.904) and was the league's assist leader for five seasons. He revolutionized the sport with unthinkable efficiency and playmaking.
Bradford Doolittle, ESPN Insider: Bob Cousy has got to be top five. He set the template for how we've thought of point guards for 60 years, led the league in assists for eight straight years and helped six Celtics teams to championships. And he did it with panache.
Kevin Pelton, ESPN Insider: Kidd has a strong combination of peak value and incredible longevity. He's second all time in both assists and steals, as well as one of the greatest rebounding point guards ever. He shouldn't have to sneak into the top 10.
2. Which top-10 point guard is ranked too high?
Adande: Curry. This might simply be a matter of time, because he hasn't been around long enough to rack up the accomplishments of the rest of the guys in the top five -- guys who either held the all-time assists record or won multiple championships. Check back later (and see below).
Elhassan: Curry. It pains me to say it, as he's one of my favorite players to watch and he's having an all-time great season, but he just doesn't have the longevity to compete with several of the names ahead of him at this time. Honorable mention: Bob Cousy, whose talents wouldn't time-travel well.
Haberstroh: Frazier. Keenest eye for fashion? No one is, was or will be better than Clyde. But I'd slot Bob Cousy ahead of Frazier, who was never top three in the MVP vote and had half as many All-Star appearances as the Celtic. There is no outrage here on my part, but if I had to choose one switch, that's my pick.
Doolittle: There's no way to answer this without nitpicking the feats of a bona fide Hall of Famer, but Isiah Thomas is overrated here. Great player who won a couple of titles. But though Thomas was the headliner, the Pistons took off when he became more a member of an ensemble that won with balance and defense.
Pelton: Even if we give him full credit for winning another MVP this season, Curry still belongs toward the bottom of the list. He has only been an All-Star twice! Kidd was an All-NBA first team pick five times. He needs to add more to his résumé -- which I fully expect he will.
3. Where will Stephen Curry be ranked at the end of his career?
Adande: He could get to third. He already has won more championships than John Stockton. He won't match the assist numbers but will blow him away on 3-pointers. But the reverence I have for Magic Johnson -- and in turn the reverence he has for Oscar Robertson -- make it hard for me to picture anyone supplanting those two. They controlled entire games, where Curry takes over for scintillating stretches.
Elhassan: If he continues with this elevated level of play for several more years, Curry should end up where he's ranked right now (4th). He probably won't reach Magic's track record of success, Robertson's dominance or Stockton's combination of excellence and longevity, but Curry's first in line for the rest.
Haberstroh: Third. He's not even halfway through his career, so this admittedly feels premature. As crazy as it sounds, he could own a pair of titles and MVPs at age-28 and Robertson only owns one of each. Curry wields an all-time skill set that doesn't age (his handle and 3-point shooting), but a delayed entry to superstardom hurts his all-time stock. For now.
Doolittle: We're a little ahead of ourselves with Curry. He's in only his seventh season! But I'll predict he ends up right where we have him, at No. 4. Maybe he gets past Stockton for No. 3, but that would mean he has remained elite for another eight or nine years. That could happen, but so could lots of other things. I mean, if we were doing these rankings 40 years ago, we would have put Nate Archibald in the top five.
Pelton: Given what I just said, it's hard for Curry to move up the point guard rankings too much. He's likely to jump Stockton and battle Robertson for second on the list behind Magic.
4. Where will Russell Westbrook be ranked at the end of his career?
Adande: Just outside the top 10. Westbrook could end up like Charles Barkley or Bo Jackson, with more indelible memories than lasting achievements -- one of those players whose actions you had to see more than whose numbers you need to look up. Rankings are typically based on statistics, and there's no statistical category for most athletic player at the position.
Elhassan: I don't know if he cracks the top 10 unless he has an epiphany and becomes a much more cerebral player over the second half of his career. He's the most athletic player to ever play the position, and I definitely have him over Cousy. But I struggle to see him surpassing the likes of Gary Payton, Walt Frazier, Jason Kidd, et al.
Haberstroh: Top 10. I'd love to put him higher, but his game is so dependent on ruthless athleticism that I can't see a dominant second half of his career, when his wheels start to go flat. He ranks first among point guards in points per 100 possessions through age 27, but he can't be this explosive forever. Right? RIGHT?
Doolittle: He'll end up lower than we have him now. He's a freak of nature and all, but as soon as his athleticism declines, we're looking at years of high-volume, low-efficiency production. I just don't see him as having an extended peak.
Pelton: Maybe eighth or ninth. I don't see Westbrook winning an MVP, and he'd probably need that or a title to jump guys such as Paul and Nash. I wouldn't be stunned if Westbrook ends up peaking early.
5. Which current NBA PGs will make the top 10 eventually?
Not including Curry, Westbrook and Chris Paul.
Adande: At some point we're going to have to account for Tony Parker and his four (at least) championships. In this Golden Era of Point Guards he's the only one of the current crop who has a Finals MVP, yet he's constantly left out of the discussion. Tim Duncan was the foundation of the Spurs, but they often were only as successful as Parker made them.
Elhassan: John Wall? Damian Lillard? Kyrie Irving? Really, I don't think any current player not named Curry, Paul or Westbrook has a legitimate chance. Then again, three current top-10 players (Curry, Nash and Stockton) had slow starts to their respective careers and ended up among the game's greats.
Haberstroh: For me, Irving has the best chance of cracking the top 10, but I still don't think it's likely. Irving's just 23 years old and on his way to becoming one of the best scoring point guards ever. That is, if he can stay healthy. That's a big if. Wall and Lillard enter their primes as some of the best point guards today, but I'd project them in a tier with Tim Hardaway and Kevin Johnson.
Doolittle: None of them, with the most likely candidates being Irving (who already has injury problems piling up) and Wall. Part of the problem is that with the pick-and-roll taking over as the default NBA play, efficiency and productivity at the point guard position have become the norm.
Pelton: Westbrook is the only one not currently in the top 10 I'd give a good chance of getting there. Irving is probably the next best candidate but that's a long ways off.