Yesterday, I was scrolling through the panelists who voted on the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team, and stumbled upon a list made by Larry Berger of USA Today. Berger had a few semi-controversial opinions, putting Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ahead of LeBron James, Allen Iverson over Stephen Curry, and Ray Allen a spot above Dwyane Wade. The second half of Berger’s NBA 75 list was very agreeable, and I was ready to say that of the 15 panelists, his rankings were the best that I had seen. Until I saw the player he ranked 75th.
That's the problem with "best player" rankings... Basketball is a team sport. There's no doubting that both Curry and Lillard are outstanding players, but one has more/better team support than the other. Every once in a long while you get a player like Jordan or James who breaks the rules (i.e., is individually good enough to carry a whole team through a whole season). But for everyone else, there are so many different variables that can define "greatness" that a list like the Top 75 might as well be a list of the author's favorite players. If that's the case, my list would start with Pritchard at #1 -- because who doesn't love Pritch?!
That's the problem with "best player" rankings... Basketball is a team sport. There's no doubting that both Curry and Lillard are outstanding players, but one has more/better team support than the other. Every once in a long while you get a player like Jordan or James who breaks the rules (i.e., is individually good enough to carry a whole team through a whole season). But for everyone else, there are so many different variables that can define "greatness" that a list like the Top 75 might as well be a list of the author's favorite players. If that's the case, my list would start with Pritchard at #1 -- because who doesn't love Pritch?!