4 thoughts on “The 100 Greatest Basketball Players of All-Time”

1. 

   WHAT DO THE INITIALS PG, PF, C SF ETC MEAN?

   1. 

      Hey Bernard, they are the primary basketball positions. Since the NBA is moving more towards position-less basketball, many of today’s players don’t really play a single position. However, the five traditional positions in basketball are PG (point guard), SG (shooting guard), SF (small forward), PF (power forward), and C (center).

2. 

   How do you have Dantley higher than guys like Scottie and Drexler?

   1. 

      Hey Dan, I addressed Dantley’s brilliance in the methodology section linked at the top:

      “Switching to True Shooting Percentage, we see many of the same names with the notable addition of perhaps the most underrated player of all-time: Adrian Dantley. Dantley is rarely in the discussion of all-time greats. He was nowhere to be found on the list of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History released by the league in 1996, and he’s even more of an afterthought today. Despite the snubs, Dantley’s True Shooting Percentage tells a different story, revealing a brilliance that has been hiding in plain sight for four decades. Dantley is the only player in NBA history to post consecutive seasons of at least 30 points per game and a True Shooting Percentage of at least .620, and he did it four years in a row. Dantley is the only player in NBA history with a career average of at least 24 points per game and a True Shooting Percentage of at least .616. There have been three seasons in NBA history that have produced 30 points per game with a True Shooting Percentage greater than .651, Dantley has two of them (Steph Curry is the other). Dantley is clearly one of the most, if not the most, efficient high-volume scorers in NBA history, even if it takes relying on tools like eFG% and True Shooting Percentage to let us know.”

      Dantley is one of the most underrated players in NBA history and, arguably, the most efficient scorer of all-time. Since the 1974-75 season, Dantley’s 3,109.6 TS Added (extra points added due to True Shooting % compared to the league average) are more than any other player. In fact, only Kareem and Wilt have more in the history of the league. As amazing as LeBron and Steph are from an efficiency standpoint, they have nothing on AD. Dantley’s also one of the unluckiest players to ever suit-up as he was traded from Detroit just four months before they won the first of back-to-back championships. Even still, Dantley’s Pistons went toe-to-toe in the playoffs with two of the greatest dynasties of all-time: Bird’s Celtics in 86-87 and Magic’s Lakers in 87-88. The Pistons probably should’ve won both series based on win-probability but, nonetheless, Dantley was Detroit’s leading scorer in both 7-game-series, so his playoff cupboard is hardly bare. Dantley beats out Drexler pretty handily, IMO. If you want to heavily weigh Pippen’s playoff success, I could understand putting him ahead. Pippen was obviously a very strong all-around player, but Jordan and all. Dantley was an offensive juggernaut who gets the nod, IMO.