Bleacher Report: Philadelphia Edition

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The NBA's All Clutch Team

By (Contributor) on June 19, 2010

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You know who they are.

The guys who are willing to take the last shot.

The guys who will their team to victory in the final three minutes. The guy who can be counted on every time down the stretch.

These guys have all hit game winners, buzzer beaters, game tiers. But what all these guys do is win. They are winners, and they know how to and when to unleash their offensive or defensive fury.

A clutch play can be an assist, a rebound, a basket, a block, a steal, a defensive play. These guys are best at doing that.

Point Guard: Derek Fisher

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Derek Fisher is a winner.

He's hit plenty of clutch shots through out his career, and he is very dependable in the final three minutes.

He had a lot of buzzer beaters, with his most famous one probably being 0.4 second shot in San Antonio in the Western Conference Finals.

He had a clutch game tying three-pointer in the 2009 NBA Finals to send the game into overtime, then in overtime he scored on another three-pointer to take a lead that the Lakers wouldn't relinquish.

Fisher is the epitome of clutch point guard play.

He is currently tied in most championships for an active player with five championships with...

Shooting Guard: Kobe Bryant

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Kobe Bryant has been the most clutch performer since Michael Jordan retired.

Kobe has numerous game winners, and is currently has the most for active players, with 29.

Kobe and winning go together like peanut butter and jelly, and it's no surprise that he has five championships, currently tied with his running mate Fisher for most for any active player.

Kobe always seems to know when to start to take over, and it's usually in the fourth quarter that he puts his stamp on a game. Be it with points, rebounds, or assists.

This season, he had seven game winners and three buzzer beaters. To put that into perspective, that is more than what Lebron James has in his whole career.

Kobe has been a model of clutch play since 2000, hitting multiple game winners, game tiers, and buzzer beaters to win it for his team. One of his most memorable ones was when he put one into Rip Hamilton's eye during the 2004 NBA Finals, a three-pointer that tied the game up and sent it to OT, where the Lakers eventually won (the only game for that series).

Bryant is a lock for the Hall of Fame, as very few players have his resume. He very well could be the second greatest shooting guard of all time.

Small Forward: Paul Pierce

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Paul "The Truth" Pierce is probably one of the most underrated players in the clutch.

A lot of people seem to forget that he has had multiple game winners through out his storied NBA Career.

He has a title so you know he can win too. And that's what being clutch is about, winning.

Pierce had a memorable buzzer beater game winner, against the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs, enabling the Boston Celtics to get the Heat into a choke hold in that series.

He always seems to bring it during the final minutes of the game, and you can count him in for at least one clutch play a game.

That is why he's The Truth.

Power Forward: Dirk Nowitzki

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This pick might be controversial.

Dirk, in my opinion, is vastly underrated as a clutch performer. His team choked away the 2006 NBA Finals, not just him.

Nowitzki has the record for most points scored in the fourth quarter with a whopping 32 points in a Mavericks win.

Dirk is the only person on his team who will take the fourth quarter shots. He doesn't shy away from the clutch spotlight.

Although he may have some questionable nights, he certainly delivers most of the time. There is no other power forward I would rather have shoot the ball in the clutch than Nowitzki.

Center: Tim Duncan

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Timmy D.

The man with three Finals MVP's, the man who build his career off of winning. One of the best power forwards/centers of all time.

This guy can just win. The crazy thing is, he has multiple game winners from outside of the paint. Come crunch time, Tim Duncan can score on you any way, whatever you give him. Timmy will make you pay.

Just ask the Suns two years ago. They gave him a three-pointer and he gladly drained it in their faces to tie the game up, eventually sending it to double OT and a Spurs victory.

Duncan can just flat out win. I think he's rather underrated, people say his game is boring. I think the opposite. I just love watching his game, it's like poetry in motion, an efficiency machine.

Duncan is the most clutch center/power forward not named Robert Horry.

Duncan is the best big man in the final three minutes. I don't think anybody can dispute that.

All Clutch Second Team

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Point Guard: Chauncey Billups: There is a reason he's called Mr. Big Shot.

Shooting Guard: Manu Ginobili: He goes perfectly with Duncan in final minutes, and can drain the big shot.

Small Forward: Hedo Turkoglu: There was a reason the ball was always in his hands during crunch time in Orlando's improbable Finals run last year.

Power Forward: Pau Gasol: He really stepped it up in the Finals, although he clanked a lot of free throws.

Center: Dwight Howard: Set defensive records in the playoffs. I'd say that that is fairly clutch.

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