The Top 15 Point Guards in the NBA

The NBA is quickly becoming a point guard driven league.

Having the best big man in the league led to success in the past, but recent years have shown that having a great floor general may be even more important. No disrespect to Dwight Howard and Andrew Bynum, but it's true.

In three of the past four NBA drafts, a point guard has been selected first overall: Kyrie Irving in 2011, John Wall in 2010 and Derrick Rose in 2008.

Ranking the NBA’s best point guards is undoubtedly a subjective process, but I will break down the top 15 in the league today.

The criteria are basically as follows.

1. How much does he mean to his team’s success?

2. Does he make his teammates better?

3. Can he score, shoot a high percentage and also set up teammates?

4. Is durability an issue?

5. How do they play on both ends of the court?

So without further delay, here are the top 15 point guards in the NBA right now.

15. Jose Calderon, PG, Toronto Raptors

Jose Calderon does just about everything you want in a point guard. He scores when needed, shoots a solid percentage (45 percent from the field, 36 percent from three this season), knocks down his free throws and sets up teammates with assists (8.9 assists per game this season, good for fourth in the league).

The knock on Calderon is he has durability issues. In the three seasons before this year, Calderon only played in 68 games all three times. Ironically, Calderon has only missed six games so far during the grueling shortened schedule.

Also, Calderon plays on a bad Toronto Raptors team and it's difficult to project how many wins his presence accounts for.

He gets the nod over other deserving point guards: Darren Collison, Jrue Holiday and Jeff Teague for a couple reasons.

While not as flashy athletically as any of the above mentioned guards, Calderon is more of a floor general.

Collison, Holiday and Teague are unfortunate in this department because they play in offenses that utilize isolation and the post game of their big men.

Even so, the assist numbers from these three are disappointing.

Collison and Teague lead the pack of three with 4.9 assists per game. That’s lower than Andre Iguodala and Monta Ellis, neither player is a point guard.

The numbers are worse for Holiday, who averages 4.3 assists per game. That's lower than Kobe Bryant (who may not even have the word “pass” in his vocabulary).

Additionally, having had Holiday on my fantasy basketball team this season, I can tell you that his consistency needs a lot of work. He's thrown up his fair share of 5-for-17 shooting nights. He's truly an enigma.

One night he'll score 20 points on 8-for-13 shooting and go 0-for-9 in another game. He will develop into a solid player, but he just doesn't crack the top 15 yet in my opinion.

Don’t get me wrong, these three guys are solid point guards in the NBA and they all play far better defense than Calderon. Nevertheless, as point guards, they don’t play the role as well as Calderon does, so the Spaniard gets the spot at No. 15.

14. John Wall, PG, Washington Wizards

I will admit that John Wall has a ton of potential. His dunks in the Rookie-Sophomore game this year were eye-popping and I do love this song.

However, Wall seems content playing at the same level he did his rookie year, which is not a good sign.

When you consider the hype surrounding Wall coming out of college, it wasn't absurd to think he'd have the Wizards competing to be at least a .500 team. But at 14-44 that certainly has not happened.

Not only has Wall not improved in his sophomore season, he's actually regressed in a lot of statistics.

His assists are down from last season (8.3 per game compared to 7.8 this season), his steals are down (1.8 per game compared to 1.3 this season), and his turnovers per game have stayed just about the same at 3.9 per game.

With 7.8 assists per game and 3.9 turnovers per game, not a very good assist/turnover ratio.

Wall is also shooting a mind-numbing 8.1 percent from three point range. Wait, what?

Just eight percent from three point range? While Wall wasn't great last year, shooting threes at just 29.6 percent, 8.1 percent is just nutty. Statistically speaking, if Wall were to shoot 100 three pointers, he'd only cash eight of them.

When you compare Wall's numbers in his first two years with other elite point guards, it's pretty disturbing. The jump in production from one year to the next simply is not there.

He still has a lot of time to mature and grow into himself as a player, but showing so little improvement is a bad sign, even if he does play for a putrid Washington Wizards team.

This may sound like a hate fest, but I believe that Wall will be a great player down the road. He'll need more role players around him other than Nene though...

13. Kyle Lowry, PG, Houston Rockets

Kyle Lowry is a very solid point guard in the NBA. Statistically speaking, Lowry gets better every year.

There are some durability issues with Lowry, who has missed 15 games this season, but when he’s on the court he’s very consistent.

Averaging 15.4 points, seven assists, 5.1 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game, Lowry can influence the outcome of a game in many ways.

On the negative side this season, Lowry’s turnovers have spiked to 3.1 per game compared to 2.1 per game a season ago. Limiting turnovers to 2.1 per game is impressive for a point guard who always has the ball in his hands. The jump to 3.1 per game is somewhat of a red flag.

Nevertheless, Lowry is developing into one of the elite point guards in the NBA.

Should Lowry be ranked higher than John Wall? In my opinion, yes he should.

There’s something to be said about the Houston Rockets competing in the loaded Western Conference (currently the No. 7 seed tied with the Dallas Mavericks and Denver Nuggets).

As for Wall’s Wizards, they’re far closer to competing for the No. 1 pick in the 2012 NBA Draft than making it to the playoffs.

Lowry obviously has a far better supporting cast, but the Rockets play in a tougher conference and have more than double the amount of wins the Wizards have.

12. Ty Lawson, PG, Denver Nuggets

Ty Lawson came into the league as the third point guard drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves (and no, not third overall point guard taken, the third just by Minnesota after Ricky Rubio and Jonny Flynn).

Lawson was selected 18th overall in the 2009 draft, and after getting traded it was clear that Lawson had a chip on his shoulder.

On draft day in 2009, Jonny Flynn looked to be a homerun prospect. Although Lawson was coming out of a blue-collar school like North Carolina and played extremely well, for reasons unknown he was passed on 17 different times.

Instead teams went with names like Hasheem Thabeet, Earl Clark and Austin Daye.

Since the start of these two point guards' careers however, Lawson has outplayed Flynn in every aspect.

Lawson is arguably the quickest player in the NBA and he has no trouble getting to the basket. As a result, Lawson shoots a very high percentage from the field.

In his first two NBA seasons, Lawson eclipsed 50 percent shooting. He's taking more shots this year, but 47.9 percent from the field is still impressive.

He doesn't turn the ball over on a regularly basis, he makes his teammates better and he's extremely explosive.

11. Mike Conley, PG, Memphis Grizzlies

When I set out to write this piece, I was going to narrow it down to the top 10 point guards in the NBA. Mike Conley changed my mind.

He makes a strong case for being higher on this list, but I think No. 11 is a solid fit for the former Ohio State Buckeye.

After an up-and-down start to his career, Conley has really gotten it together as a top 15 NBA point guard.

The former No. 4 overall selection is building off a season ago by having another great year. Conley is one of the best defensive point guards in the league averaging a very impressive 2.3 steals per contest.

Conley also averages 12.9 points, 6.8 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game.

He's consistent, plays within himself and, above all, he understands what role he needs to play on his team.

I think that the Grizzlies will be a major threat come playoff time. Their size with Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph will be a major reason for that, but don't underestimate the leadership qualities of Conley.

10. Brandon Jennings, PG, Milwaukee Bucks

Again, I really toiled over the No. 10 spot on my list. Should I go with a more all-around player with (arguably) better leadership skills in Conley, or bump down a player you’ll see shortly?

As a University of Arizona student and fan, I was not happy when Brandon Jennings made the decision to play in Italy instead of attending “Point Guard U” for a one-and-done season.

However, I think the move to play overseas humbled Jennings. He didn’t play much in Europe and I think that allowed him to understand how lucky he is to be an NBA caliber talent.

Anyway, anecdote aside, Jennings comes in at No. 10 for his gaudy offensive stats.

This season Jennings is averaging 18.7 points, 5.5 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game.

Miraculously for an aggressive point guard like Jennings, he’s only averaging 2.2 turnovers per game. The 22-year-old has also never averaged more than 2.4 turnovers per game in his career (I almost had another "Wait, what?" moment).

The knock on Jennings has always been his shooting percentage, shooting under 40 percent from the field in his first two professional seasons. Oddly enough, this season Jennings is taking and making more shots and has raised his field goal percentage to 41.9 percent. Obviously that’s still not great, but it’s an improvement.

As Jennings matures even more as a player, I think his shot selection will improve, and as a result, so will his shooting percentage.

9. Ricky Rubio, PG, Minnesota Timberwolves

I’ll be honest, I was skeptical of how Ricky Rubio’s game would translate to the NBA.

I thought that bigger, stronger guards would have a field day against him.

I’m not afraid to admit that Rubio bested all of my expectations before his injury. In fact, I’m glad to be able to say it, because I truly enjoy watching Rubio play.

Some stats are great: 10.6 points, 8.2 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game.

Other stats are not: 35.7 percent field goal shooting, 34 percent three point shooting and 3.2 turnovers per game.

But rarely do stats tell the entire story.

When Rubio is on the court, you can feel his presence. You can’t peel your eyes away from the game because you’re constantly expecting the amazing pass that only Rubio (or maybe Steve Nash) can make.

His shooting numbers were up-and-down, but mostly pretty bad. The good news? That’s an easy part of his game to work on. In contrast, you can’t teach court vision, instincts or the ability to control all eyes in the room.

Not only that, but Rubio’s game makes his team better. The basketball IQ and passing ability are off the charts with this guy.

Grantland’s Bill Simmons wasn’t on the Rubio bandwagon initially, but gushed about the Spaniard in a January column.

His passing ability and love for the game are contagious, and honestly I think it has formed Kevin Love into a better player.

There’s certainly a lot of room to improve for Rubio, but if he didn’t get injured this year, I’d argue that the Timberwolves would have made the playoffs.

Without him, they’ve struggled.

I think that says a lot about the kind of player Rubio is and will be in the future.

8. Kyrie Irving, PG, Cleveland Cavaliers

I was way off leading up to last year’s NBA draft.

I thought that the Cleveland Cavaliers would be making a mistake by taking Kyrie Irving over University of Arizona forward Derrick Williams.

I convinced myself that it wasn’t just my inner Arizona Wildcat talking. Despite my bias, I believed that Williams would be the better NBA player.

I’ve been eating my words all season.

Williams hasn’t been bad this season in limited minutes, but had the Cavs passed up Irving in favor of Williams with the hindsight we have now… Wow it would have been disastrous.

Irving has been a stud this season for the Cavs and is a lock to win this season’s Rookie of the Year Award (I think Rubio was a distant second even before his injury).

This season, Irving is averaging 18.8 points, 5.7 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game.

As if those numbers aren’t impressive enough, Irving’s percentages have been just as remarkable: 46.8 percent field goal shooting, 41.4 percent three-point shooting and 87.3 percent free throw shooting.

Are you kidding me? Irving is putting up those shooting percentages as a rookie in the NBA... Are you ready for the kicker?

He’s just 20 years old!

If these are the numbers he’s putting up in his rookie season with a less than average supporting cast, I can’t wait to see how Irving improves in the future (especially if he gets a more talented group of players around him).

Watch out for Irving, this guy is the real deal.

7. Tony Parker, PG, San Antonio Spurs

The wily old veteran… wait… he’s still only 29 years old?

Tony Parker has been in the NBA for 10 seasons already.

It feels like this guy is the same age as his teammate Tim Duncan, but he’s still relatively young and has a lot of years left despite having a lot of miles on the odometer.

It seems like every year, pundits and experts write off the San Antonio Spurs as contenders. “They’re too old” or “too slow.”

News flash: the Spurs are the No. 2 seed right now in the Western Conference. Gregg Popovich deserves strong consideration for Coach of the Year this season in the Western Conference.

Despite Tim Duncan playing limited minutes to preserve his body for the playoffs and Manu Ginobili’s recurring injury troubles, the Spurs are one of the best teams in the west. Parker is a huge reason why.

Parker is having arguably his best season ever this year. He’s averaging 18.8 points, 7.7 assists and 2.8 rebounds per game in the lockout-shortened season.

While Duncan is the unquestioned leader on this Spurs team, Parker has been the floor general and one of the best leaders by way of his stellar play.

Really the only negative aspect of Parker’s game is his poor three point shooting, just 31.2 percent for his career. Honestly though, it hasn’t influenced Parker’s lofty career performances. He has a high enough basketball IQ to know that he shouldn’t be shooting them because it is his one weakness (he averages about one attempt per game).

Parker understands what it takes to be a point guard in the NBA, and plays his role extremely well.

6. Russell Westbrook, PG, Oklahoma City Thunder

Russell Westbrook is explosive, exciting, a great isolation scorer and he’s helping to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to the best seed in the Western Conference. So why is he ranked at No. 6?

Well, I think it’s because Westbrook still has some maturity issues.

Something that really stood out to me about Westbrook may have you scratching your head as well. In his second NBA season, Westbrook averaged eight assists per game. Last year he averaged 8.2 assists per game.

This year: 5.4 assists per game.

That’s a pretty massive regression in assist totals and I can’t figure out a reason why.

The numbers for Westbrook are still solid: 24.2 points, 5.4 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game, but I don't understand the former UCLA Bruin's dip in assists.

Also, Westbrook is shooting just 32.8 percent from three point land. That number is not great, and yet Westbrook is hoisting up 3.1 three point attempts per game.

Why?

Why would Westbrook choose to shoot nearly three times more threes than in any of his first three seasons? Especially when he hasn’t made a significant improvement in shooting them?

He is so much more effective driving to the basket or dishing the ball off to open teammates. I can’t wrap my head around why Westbrook would rather shoot threes. That will be an interesting stat to take note of when the playoffs role around. Hopefully for Thunder fans, it won't sink this team in a tough playoff series.

Despite his sometimes questionable decision making though, Westbrook is still an elite talent.

5. Steve Nash, PG, Phoenix Suns

Even at 38 years old, Steve Nash has not slowed down at all this season. The former two-time MVP Award winner is averaging 12.8 points, 11.1 assists and 3.1 rebounds per game.

Nash has used those numbers to lead a very mediocre Phoenix Suns team to a 30-28 record. The fact that he has this Suns team fighting for a playoff spot is nothing short of amazing.

If you put Russell Westbrook on the Suns instead of Nash to start the season, would the Suns have 30 wins to this point? I say no chance.

Nash is the definition of a point guard who makes his teammates better. “The Nash Effect” benefited Boris Diaw and Amar’e Stoudemire greatly, both on the court and in their wallets. Marcin Gortat appears to be the next candidate to get a big contract after his performance alongside Nash.

Nash, even at 38, continues to be one of the most consistent shooters in the league. His percentages, 53.8 percent from the field, 40.2 percent from three and 88.1 percent from the free throw line have been stellar once again.

The former Santa Clara standout is certainly not one of the top point guards on the defensive end, but his fantastic offense and his ability to get the best out of teammates makes up for his defensive shortcomings.

Without Nash on the roster, I don't think that the Suns would even have 20 wins to this point.

This offseason, Nash will be one of the most sought after free agents despite his age. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Nash play at high level until he’s 45.

4. Deron Williams, PG, New Jersey Nets

Deron Williams is one of the most difficult point guards on this list to place.

His stats are great, there's certainly no denying that. He's averaging 21.3 points, 8.6 assists and 3.4 rebounds per game this season.

In addition to his great game-to-game numbers, Williams' 57-point game earlier this year against the Charlotte Bobcats (with 21-for-21 shooting from the free throw line) was one of the best performances all year.

I wouldn't argue with you if you thought that Williams deserves to be in the top three, but I think there are some factors working against him.

First of all, was his tumultuous relationship with former coach (and coaching legend) Jerry Sloan.

Rumors swirled when Sloan decided to retire that Williams was the reason for his departure after several altercations between the two stressed their coach/player relationship.

Williams denied that he was reason for Sloan's sudden departure, but you have to wonder if the superstar point guard is responsible for the end of Sloan's highly respected coaching career. 

Williams was eventually traded to the New Jersey Nets before the trade deadline, which leads me to my second point.

D-Will is harmed by playing for a bad Nets team. As unfair as it is, I have to pick nits when ranking the top four point guards in the NBA.

Steve Nash has a better supporting cast when compared with Williams' New Jersey teammates, but Nash has led the Suns to nine more wins in a tougher conference. I think this works against Williams.

In addition, the Utah Jazz are still playing good basketball without Williams. They may not make the playoffs, but they're better than the Nets.

Finally, and again I'm picking nits, Williams is the oldest of the top four (only by a year in two of the three cases, but still). So, logically speaking, he has less years in the tank when compared to our next three stars.

I'd be willing to rank Williams as high as No. 2 on the list, but for some pretty petty reasons I locked him in at No. 4.

To be honest, I think that's a fair assessment when compared with the final three.

3. Derrick Rose, PG, Chicago Bulls

I know what you're thinking: "What? Derrick Rose was last year's MVP! And you have him at No. 3 on your list? Blasphemy! I'm going to write an angry comment before I even read the first sentence of this slide!"

Let me be clear, I've thought about this list a lot. There's a method to my madness, so bear with me.

Yes, Derrick Rose was last season's Most Valuable Player. Yes, he is one of the best point guards in the NBA. Yes, he still has a ton of potential at age 23. So why does he land at No. 3?

As far as this season is concerned, the main reason is durability.

Rose has missed 23 games this season for the Bulls. His inability to stay healthy should be a big red flag for any Bulls fan (looking at you Mike Wilbon).

But should his injury woes this season be that much of a concern?

The Bulls overall record points to no. Right now, the Bulls are 45-14 with a comfortable grasp on the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. Again, Rose has missed 23 games, so what's the deal?

Well, the underlying factor behind Rose's injury troubles is the team's success without him.

The Bulls record to this point without Rose in the lineup is 16-7. They're nine games over .500 when their best player doesn't play a single minute. Maybe Rose isn't as valuable to the Bulls as people think.

Now obviously that's an exaggeration, the Bulls are highly dependent upon Rose moving forward toward the playoffs, but it's an interesting stat to look at.

Without Rose, the Bulls aren't just beating bad teams either. Without their floor general, the Bulls have beaten the Miami Heat, Boston Celtics (twice), Atlanta Hawks, Orlando Magic, Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks.

All of those are Eastern Conference playoff teams.

You could even argue that the Roseless Bulls beat the Heat twice considering last night's putrid performance by Rose. He only played in 25 minutes, logged three turnovers (although he did have eight assists) and went 1-for-13 shooting.

C.J. Watson and John Lucas III have played admirably in Rose's numerous absences. The team's success without last year's MVP speaks volumes about their depth and talent.

Could Derrick Rose be No. 2 or even No. 1 on this list? Absolutely, but his injury troubles hinder him greatly.

2. Rajon Rondo, PG, Boston Celtics

Rajon Rondo is an absolute machine.

Danny Ainge should be embarrassed that he entertained the idea of trading his star point guard earlier this season.

Some players mail it in when they hear their name thrown around in trade rumors. Rondo, however, did the complete opposite.

On March 4, days before the March 15 NBA trade deadline when the Rondo rumors were at their strongest, Rondo shredded the New York Knicks for 18 points, 17 rebounds and 20 assists in a masterful performance. He answered the Celtics' question for them: you are not trading me.

In the Celtics’ most recent win against the Atlanta Hawks, Rondo recorded yet another triple double. He notched 10 points, 10 rebounds and 20 assists.

This was Rondo’s fourth career triple double where he recorded 20 assists. That ties Magic Johnson for the most such triple doubles in history… and Rondo is only 26 years old!

Rondo is a leader, he defends, he penetrates to the bucket as well as any other point guard, he rebounds incredibly well for a point guard and he has the uncanny ability to set up teammates to score.

The negative for the former Kentucky Wildcat is that he can’t shoot.

He’s slowly improving, but he’s still a bad free throw shooter at 61.9 percent this season and he’s a poor three point shooter (although he only attempts a little over one per game).

Despite needing to improve his outside shooting as well as his performance at the charity stripe, Rondo is a work horse averaging 38.6 minutes per game. He is also one of the tougher athletes in basketball.

When I think about Rondo and toughness in the same sentence, I think about last year’s playoff performance.

In Game 3 against the Miami Heat, Rondo got tangled up with Dwyane Wade, fell to the court and dislocated his left elbow trying to brace his fall. The gruesome injury was very hard to watch.

Again, just to reiterate, he dislocated his elbow.

Rondo, however, came back to play in the same game! He played better at the end of Game 3 using only his right arm than most NBA point guards play with both arms at their disposal. The Celtics went on to win the game 97-81.

Rondo’s tenacity, toughness and his will to win games at any cost are what hoist him to No. 2 on my list.

Yes, Rondo has a huge hole in his game by being a bad outside shooter, but he still has time to improve that part of his game.

Rondo may get overshadowed at times because of the Celtics big three of Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. However, he always finds a way to thrust himself to the forefront and prove that he should not be underrated.

1. Chris Paul, PG, Los Angeles Clippers

It's very difficult to argue that Chris Paul isn't the best point guard in the NBA. In fact, let's go back to the original grading criteria to assess Paul.

How much does he mean to his team’s success?

If you try and tell me that the old New Orleans Hornets teams would still make the playoffs with David West, Tyson Chandler and James Posey, while being a legitimate threat in the playoffs, I will laugh in your face.

Paul meant as much to those Hornets teams as Kobe Bryant meant to the Los Angeles Lakers roster that included Smush Parker and Kwame Brown.

In addition, last year without Paul, the Los Angeles Clippers finished 32-50, not even close to a playoff spot. This year with Paul, the Clips are 36-23 with a firm hold on the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference.

This guy is a huge reason for his team's success. 

Does he make his teammates better?

The short answer is a resounding yes. The easiest way to express how Paul makes his teammates better is to show David West's stats before and after Paul. West was an All-Star caliber player with Paul, but as a member of the Indiana Pacers, his numbers leave a lot to be desired.

Can he score, shoot a high percentage and also set up teammates?

This year, Paul is averaging 19.3 points, 8.9 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game. His assist/turnover ratio is very impressive at 4.33. He's also shooting 47.9 percent from the field, 36.8 percent from three point land and 85.6 percent from the free throw line.

So it's a yes on all accounts.

Is durability an issue?

Well, yes and no. He has had durability issues, but you have to go back before last season to the '09-'10 season with the Hornets to see them. During that season, Paul played in only 45 games.

Recently though, Paul has been able to stay on the court (please knock on wood Clippers fans).

How do they play on both ends of the court?

Unlike Steve Nash who is amazing offensively and lackluster defensively. Unlike Rajon Rondo who has a very mediocre outside shot, but makes up for it with his great defense, Chris Paul has put it all together.

For his career, Paul is averaging 18.7 points per game (offense, check) and 2.4 steals per game (defense, check). He's also leading all NBA players this season in steals, just ahead of Mike Conley.

Paul comes in at No. 1 because of his all-around game.

He is a huge reason why, from last season to this season, the Clippers have gone from laughing stock/highlight reel to a competitive playoff team. In contrast, the Hornets went from good, to pathetic (16-42, last place in the Western Conference).

When you think of a player who means the most to his team's success, Paul has to be in that conversation.