[llperez]

Who was better?

John Stockton or Isaiah Thomas? Two all time greats. Thomas was a two time champ who could offensively carry a team. Stockton has the longevity and some amazing stats on his side and had basically zero weaknesses as a player. So who was better?

best seasons statistically:

stockton: 1990: 17.2ppg…14.5apg…2.7stls…51%fg…42%3pt…82%ft…3.5to’s

thomas: 1985: 21.2ppg…13.9apg…2.3stls…46%fg…26%3pt…81%ft…3.6to’s

Hakeem Olajuwon or Tim Duncan? Both great champions who were two of the very best on both ends of the court. Olajuwon had more moves and was more versatile at both ends but duncan is argubaly the most consistent and rock solid big of all time who just always handled his business and rarely made mistakes while playing within a team concept.

best seasons statistically:

olajuwon: 1993: 26.1ppg…13rpg…4.2blcks…3.6apg…52%fg…78%ft’s

duncan: 2002: 25.5ppg…12.7rpg…2.5blcks…3.7apg…51%fg…80%ft’s

 

Scottie Pippen or Clyde Drexler? Both played the wing positions and went back and forth between sf and sg and were amazingly versatile. Drexler the better scorer while pippen the better defender and passer. Drexler was asked to carry teams while pippen had jordan, but during the 1993-94 season, pip showed the world he could lead a team on his own as he took the bulls to 55 wins without jordan and advanced in the playoffs.

best seasons statistically:

pippen: 1994: 22ppg…8.7rpg…5.6apg…2.9stls…49%fg…32%3pt…66%ft…3.2to’s

drexler: 1989: 27.2ppg…7.9rpg…5.8apg…2.7stls…50%fg…26%3pt…80%ft…3.2to’s

Gary Payton or Steve Nash:

Payton was an all time elite defensive gaurd and had a very crafty offensive game with post ups and mid range moves. Nash is one of the best shooters, passers and unselfish team players ever who made everyone around him better especially after his return to phoenix where he got in better shape and came into his own.

best season’s statistically:

payton: 2000: 24.2ppg…8.9apg…6.5rpg…1.9stls…45%fg…34%3pt…74%ft…2.7to’s

nash: 2007: 18.6ppg…11.6apg…3.5rpg…0.8stls…53%fg’…46%3pt…90%ft…3.8to’s

Im adding best seasons just for reference although i dont necessarily mean who had the better individual season, i want to know who you think in their prime was better. And by prime i would say their top 6-8 seasons. Also feel free to add any other compariosns you would like to add to the discussion.

[RUDEBOY_Participant]

1.Thomas-You can build your team around him..And he was 1 of the most competitive players in league history…3rd best point guard in nba history behind only Magic & Oscar….I’d take a young Jason Kidd over Stockton…

2.This is tough-EVEN

3.Pippen-Loved his playmaking skills and ability to guard alot of positions…

4.Payton-Nobody ever talks about his post skills for a point guard…

[llperez]

my picks, although i obviously choose examples that are very close and hard to seperate:

stockton vs thomas: i would take stockton. It kinda goes iwth my feeling about chris paul. Stockton might not make as many individual plays. He might not carry a team on his back as much as thomas was able to . But stockton is flat out gonna make good decisions and run the team smoothly every single night on the court similar to how i see cp3. Stockton just had no weaknesses and allowed his teammates the opportunity to win games by simply doing their jobs and making the simple play. Thomas was more of a go and takeover type, but he could also cost his team for stretches as he tried to be the man.

duncan vs olajuwon: wow, i honestly dont know about this one. I would probably take olajuwon based on the fact he gaurded pick and rolls better, was better at gauding in transition and on switches with quicker players.

pippen vs drexler: i would take drexler by a hair. I feel like pippen was afforded a lot of freedom by playing with jordan and on great defensive teams that could withstand the occasional stretches of offensive struggles that pippen would go through. Drexler put more pressure on the defenses with his ability to attack the rim and get out and run.

payton vs nash. I dont mean any disrespect to nash. I have said that i didnt think nash deserved his two mvp’s in the past, but it honestly wasnt a knock on steve as he was great. BUt htis choice is the easist for me. Payton was often times the best player on both ends the court. ANd his post game was one of the best of any pg ever.

[sammybuckeye13Participant]

Stockton vs. Thomas: Stockton. Though Isiah won two titles and had more gaudy scoring numbers, Stockton to me IS the point guard position. He has about 33% more assists than any player ever, the most steals, and he missed 22 games over 18 seasons. Those Jazz teams were essentially emtpy besides him and Malone and Stockton did not pretend to be a scorer; he played his role as any player in history after only Bill Russell in my opinion.

Olajuwon vs. Duncan: Duncan. Goddam, haha…Olajuwon is the best overall C of the last 20 years after Shaq, but Duncan is the best PF ever. Head-to-head, Duncan has 2x as many titles, 1 more all-star appearance, 2 more All-Defense honors (3 more first team), and 3 more All-NBA 1st team honors, and Olajuwon played 18 years while Duncan is in year 14. And I hold Duncan as the best of his era.

Pipper vs. Drexler: Drexler. I respect Pippen as a player but he was not on Clyde’s level…amazing defender, good enough 2nd option to Jordan, a champion, but Clyde averaged 20-5-5 and 2 steals for his career, was the best player on one finals team (Blazers) and the 2nd best on a winner (Rockets). I just could never use the adjectives — "stunning," "showstopping," "dominant" — for Pippen that I can confidently use for Clyde.

Payton vs. Nash: Payton. I want to give this to Nash, though Nash never reached the finals in a the incredibly weak 2000s whereas Payton not only brought the Sonics past the likes of Olajuwon’s Rockets and the Stockton-Malone Jazz but actually beat Jordan on the defensive end in the Finals and damn near won it. Oh, and he’s the best defensive pg ever, and it isn’t close.

 

 

 

[GrandmamaParticipant]

I’d take Isaiah, Hakeem, Pippen, and Payton.

[Tongue-Out-Like-23Participant]

Stockton – Thomas

I’m going with Thomas.  Although Stock is a great player, Thomas was a winner.  Hell, Thomas never played with anybody as good as Karl Malone and he was still able to win some titles.  

Olajuwon – Duncan

Honestly, I’m going with Olajuwon.  The only reason is because I’m a Rockets fan so I’m biased but you can’t go wrong with either.  Both are incredible players and there aren’t many players that were as good as these two with their back to the basket.  Throw in their defensive capabilities and they’re arguably 2 of the top 5 big-men of all time.

Pippen – Drexler

Pippen.  I really like 6’9" point forwards and defensive monsters.  Pippen was both of those and his athleticism and tenacity were near the top of the league.  Simpy his tenacity, defense, and point-forward skills are admirable and the combination of those makes him a truly unique player.

Payton – Nash

Payton.  One of my favorite all-time players.  One of the few guys, if not the only guy, that wasn’t afraid to talk trash to Jordan and back it up at the same time.  There aren’t many people like him, even less basketball players like him.

[PulseGlazerParticipant]

I like this game – great post!

 

Stockton vs. Thomas: I watched both in their primes. I’ll take Thomas.  He just had this indomitable will and was always the man on his team.  Stockton was great, but wasn’t the crunch time player Thomas was, especially with Zeke fighting through injury to dominate.  With modern medical practice, Zeke plays longer, too.  Still, peak Zeke is perhaps the second best 1 ever after Magic, while for Stockton… just no.  Again, Stock was incredible, but Zeke was just… beyond.  I’d LOVE to hear someone old enough claim otherwise. 

Olajuwon vs. Duncan: Duncan is a 5.  That said, Tim has 4 rings, a similar impact, similar numbers when you consider zones, and a longer period of dominance.  He’s just better.

 

Pipper vs. Drexler: Pipp is the best help defender ever. Drexler was obviously better offensively, but there’s two sides to the game, and yes, this will come up again.  Pippen was clearly capable of leading a team to the finals, just as Drexler did, and clearly not quite good enough to be the man on those teams, just like Drexler.  Pippen, however, dominated the defensive end more than any non big I’ve ever seen. He, thanks to practice, never ever gets enough credit for what Jordan became. The end.

Payton vs. Nash: Ugh, I want Payton here so badly, but his prime barely existed. In their prime, it’s no contest. Payton was goddamn near unstoppable on D, second only to Pippen really, though near tied with Mike, as a defensive force.  (Bowen probably belongs here as well).  Still, just a beast on defense who was essentially uncoverable. Bulls vs. Sonics goes 7 if Gary was on Mike the whole time… but it was a like 2-4 year real peak.  Nash was great for years, dominant for years, then great again, along with being a top 5 passer in league history and a top 5 shooter in league history.  For 1 season?  Payton… but as a career, I’d take Nash.

[thparadoxParticipant]

 

Stockton. Stockton was far more efficient. Isiah Thomas was a primary scorer, so that accounts for some of the difference. But I think the truth is that Stockton’s focus on passing was more valuable. Even after considering the fact that stockton’s assists totals are inflated.

Duncan. It’s close, but I think Duncan is better passer, and he played elite defense for a longer period of time.

Pippen. Drexler is good. I’d take the better D.

Nash. Yes, Payton’s D advantage is huge. But I think Nash’s elite passing + shooting combination trumps it. Nash is such a great shooter and captain of the offense that I think he adds more value to a team. 

[TheBigEasyParticipant]

Stockton: Just one of my alltime favorite players. Too biased to make an objective call on this one.

Duncan: But just by a bit. I think he´s a bit more consistent than The Dream.

Drexler: A better scorer and underrated defender

Nash: Makes his teammates better and in my opinion this is one of the most important tasks of a point guard

Nice post by the way!

[capecodderParticipant]

 Hate to say this as Thomas was one of the top ten A-holes ever in the NBA, but Stockton had Malone (and of course vice-versa) which made each statistically better…..Thomas had Dantley….

[PulseGlazerParticipant]

Zeke also had crazy good passing numbers.  Let’s not act like he was Iverson.

[tdc320Participant]

Isiah because he carried a team full of role players.

Hakeem.

Pippen was the total package. You can put Pippen on any of the those teams from the 90’s and he’d make them better. Imagine a prime Pip with the Pacers, Sonics, Knicks, or Utah?

I have to go with Nash. At a time nash brought the best out of teamates(Tim Thomas, Q. Rich, J. Rich, James Jones, Diaw)

[llperez]

I can’t argue with anyone picking Thomas over Stockton, but I wouldn’t use talent around them to justify it. Zeke had very deep an talented squads with good bigs in laimbeer, rodman, Aguirre, and a top 5 sg in dinars who was the best player on the court during the 1989 NBA finals.

[Author]

Posts