Analyzing the 10 most skilled offensive players of post-merger NBA originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
I love watching Anthony Edwards play, but when he claimed Michael Jordan was the only NBA player “that really had skill” prior to Kobe Bryant’s arrival in the late 1990s, he was being impetuous or ignorant. Or both.
Magic Johnson, who carefully picks and chooses his public battles, was offended enough to pour a shot of 100-proof enlightenment and hand it to Edwards.
“I never respond to a guy that’s never won a championship,” Johnson said.
Burn. There is an abundance of skill in today’s NBA, and deep shooting is better than ever. But there was plenty of skill in yesteryear’s NBA. What follows is a list of the 10 most skilled players of the league’s post-merger era, which began in 1976.
Half of those on our list were All-Stars before Kobe Bryant ever suited up.
It’s alphabetized, so no ranking. We lean heavily toward offense because, honestly, that’s where most stars are born.
The 10:
The husky 6-foot-6 power forward had a masterful handle and the goods to fill the role of small-ball center. His 54.1-percent shooting from the field on high volume is the highest among non-centers. His rebounding average (11.7) is the highest of the era among those under 6-foot-7. He had 20 triple-doubles. There is a reason he had eight top-six finishes in MVP voting and won it in 1993.
One of the most exciting technicians of any basketball era, Bird shot like the small forward he was (24.3 points on 49.6-percent shooting, including 37.6 from deep), rebounded like a power forward (10 per game) and made plays most point guards only could dream about. He averaged 6.3 assists and posted 59 triple-doubles. He won three MVP awards and finished among the top four six other times.
Shooting? Very good. Ball handling. Very good. Passing? Terrific when beneficial. Scoring ability? Off all charts. No player then or now has a deeper arsenal of ways to put the ball through the hoop. Despite his reputation of being a buckets-first player, he averaged at least five assists in 11 seasons. He wasn’t Michael Jordan, but Kobe was by far the best of those to follow that blueprint.
Long established as the most proficient deep shooter in league history, his scoring package also includes bits of magic from midrange and in the paint – everything but the dunk. His floor game finesses. His ball-handling bamboozles. The NBA’s only unanimous MVP is No. 1 in career free-throw percentage, No. 1 in career 3-pointers is and more productively efficient than anyone 6-foot-3 or under.
He claims to be 6-foot-9 but stands 6-foot-11 and ranks among the most comprehensive scorers – 54 percent from two, 39 percent from three – ever seen. He’s a wing whose field-goal percentage is higher than Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame paint soldier Moses Malone. We’ve never seen someone with this kind of length exhibit such marvelous ballhandling and befuddling footwork. He ought to be illegal.
Underneath the cartoonish athleticism and brute strength, this is a man who has the disparate skills required to keep the scoreboards busy. He’s the No. 1 scorer of all time but ranks fourth in careers assists. He averaged 30 points in one season, 10.2 assists in another and shot 41 percent from distance in another. The numbers attest to his longevity, but the eye test reveals his artistry.
The 6-foot-9 point guard’s “bag” could fill a truck bed. His game brought us the phrase “triple-double” and he ranks No. 3 on the list with 138. Maybe three or four of players in NBA history could excel at all five positions. He earned his way in 1980, starting at center in the NBA Finals and producing 42 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists to clinch the series. He was 20.
He’s a 7-foot bear of a man who somehow combines the quickness of a tortoise with the footwork of a doe. Joker is weirdly graceful, which explains his ability to outmaneuver larger and smaller opponents. He owns every skill necessary for excellence, which makes him impossible to stop. He owns three MVP trophies and deserves to be the favorite entering the 2024-25 NBA season.
Revere him or not, any objective discussion has him among the top five players of all time, with most putting him on top. His exquisite athleticism was enhanced by tremendous scoring ability and remarkable ballhandling, which overshadowed his impressive passing/playmaking. Jordan was the full package, often idolized and occasionally imitated, but never duplicated. If will were a measurable skill, he’d rank No. 1.
At 6-foot-10 – not 7 feet – he’s the only center on this list because he best expanded his game beyond artless dunking and basic scoring. His touch, agility and creativity were fantastic. His footwork, born during his soccer-playing youth, was mesmerizing, magical enough to make fools of his “peers.” His coaches and teammates called him “Dream” because they’d never experienced his like while awake.
That’s it. There can be arguments for many others, certainly the likes of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, James Harden, Kyrie Irving, Allen Iverson and Isiah Thomas. But none could crack the top 10.
Edwards, to his credit, acknowledged he didn’t pay much attention to those who came before Bryant. For if he had, would have known better than to disparage an entire generation.
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