NBA Rankings: Ranking the Best 'Pure Scorers' in the League This Season

There are some players in the NBA who just plain know how to score, earning the title of "pure scorer."

Whether it's done by getting into the paint, hitting mid-range jump shots or lighting it up from beyond the arc, the pure scorers of the league know how to get the ball in the net at an impressive rate.

A pure scorer is a player who has the ability to score at any time in the game and no matter who's trying to stop him.

Here is a ranking of the top pure scorers in the NBA this season.

Los Angeles Clippers PF Blake Griffin

No, this list isn't the best "pure shooters" in the league.  This list is all about scoring, and that is why the list starts off with freakishly athletic power forward Blake Griffin.  It's amazing that Griffin is able to put up the points-per-game production that he does, 21.2 points per game this year, without a solidified and polished jump shot.

What makes Griffin's pure ability to score so impressive is that he does so by shooting 51.7 percent from the field.  The efficiency that Griffin scores with is mainly based on his ability to run in the transition game, and to get to the rim with ease.

Sure, Griffin needs to add polish to his mid- to long-range jump shot, but even without that Griffin is one of the purest scorers in the league today.  Once Griffin develops into a more complete offensive threat, he's going to truly be one of the most dangerous players in the NBA.

Golden State Warriors SG Monta Ellis

Monta Ellis is a poor man's Allen Iverson; he's never really developed into quite the caliber of player Iverson was, but Ellis sure knows how to score just like Iverson always did.  Ellis has never been able to help the Golden State Warriors reach that level of serious playoff contention, but he's still one of the purest scorers in the league today.

The one thing holding Ellis back from being higher on this list—and in all honesty, being a better overall player—is his field-goal percentage.  Ellis is currently shooting 40.6 percent from the field on the year, which is the lowest among players to make this list.  While that field-goal percentage doesn't hold him back from scoring, it does hold him back from taking his game to the next level and becoming a legitimate All-Star in the league.

In spite of the Warriors' lack of success over the past few years, Ellis has still managed to do one thing extremely well, and that is getting the ball through the net.  Ellis will never turn the corner until he becomes a more efficient and effective player, but there's no doubting his pure ability to score the ball ranks up there with the best in the league. 

New York Knicks SF Carmelo Anthony

The New York Knicks have been one of the biggest disappointments of the young 2011-12 NBA season, with Carmelo Anthony proving that he can't carry a team by himself like other stars can.  One thing is for sure though: In spite of the Knicks' inability to win games, Anthony still knows how to be one of the best pure scorers in the NBA.

Like another player on this list named Monta Ellis, Anthony is held back by his inability to score at an efficient and effective rate.  Anthony's field-goal percentage this year of 41.4 percent is the second lowest on this list and is almost five percent lower than his overall career average.  Carmelo has never reached the same level of players like LeBron James or Kobe Bryant, and he has his inefficient shooting percentage to thank for that.

Whether it is Anthony's ability to hit long-range jumpers with ease or hit fadeaway jumpers with the best of them in the league, there's no doubting that Anthony is one of the purest scorers in the league.  What would make Anthony that much better is if he could figure out how to use his ability to score to help the Knicks actually win games. 

Minnesota Timberwolves PF Kevin Love

Over the span of this season and last season there hasn't been a player at the power forward position who has played more consistently and more dominantly night in and night out than Kevin Love.  Since the beginning of the 201-11 season Love has averaged 22.7 points and 14.9 rebounds per game, all while shooting an above-average 45.2 percent from the field.

Love is the best pure scorer on the Minnesota Timberwolves roster, and he just so happens to be one of the best pure scores in the entire NBA.  What is holding Love back is that the Timberwolves lack serious depth on their roster, which puts more pressure on his offensive performance, resulting in him shooting more three-pointers and more field goals overall than at any other point in his career.  Love averages 18-plus field-goal attempts per game, as compared to last year's average of 14.1.

Love is a truly rare talent, with the size and strength to play in the paint and the touch from long range that makes him one of the most versatile players in the league.  Just imagine how good Love would look if he was on a playoff-contending team, with more talent than Ricky Rubio around him.  

Love is absolutely one of the purest scorers in the league, and if he plays at a more efficient level he will continue to move his way up on this list.

Oklahoma City Thunder SF Kevin Durant

If there's one thing that Kevin Durant knows how to do, it is score.  Durant has won the NBA scoring title each of the last two years, with 30.1 and 27.7 points per game respectively.  While Durant isn't playing at quite those levels this year, with an average of 26.5 points per game, there's no doubt that he's still one of the best pure scorers in the NBA today.

In addition to Durant's ability to score with ease, he has also shown a tendency to hit clutch, game-winning shots on a very consistent basis.  While Durant's scoring average is slightly down from the past two years, his field-goal percentage is way up.  Durant is shooting the ball at a much more efficient rate this year, with a field-goal percentage of 49.8 percent, which just so happens to be the best of his young career.

There's no doubt that Durant is one of the best pure scorers that the NBA has ever seen, and if he continues to score the way he has in his young career, there's no telling how many scoring titles and All-Star appearances he can earn.  The one thing that Durant needs to improve if he wants to be more than just a scorer, though, is his play on the defensive side of the ball.  If Durant manages to do that, the Oklahoma City Thunder can truly be the team to beat in the entire NBA. 

Miami Heat SF LeBron James

The Miami Heat are 5-0 without Dwyane Wade in the starting lineup, and that is in large part due to the offensive dominance of none other than LeBron James.  All James has done in his four games without Wade is average 32.3 points per game while shooting 55.8 percent from the field.  The point is that no matter who is on the floor with LeBron, he's one of the purest scorers in the league, in addition to being one of the most complete players as well.

This season he's averaging 29.9 points per game, while shooting 56.3 percent from the field and 47.4 percent from beyond the arc.  That's a pretty impressive feat when you consider that LeBron is also ranked in the top 10 when it comes to assists per game, the top 30 in rebounds per game and he leads the NBA in PER with a rating of 34.58, which is 7.3 above the next-closest player, Kevin Durant.

There's no doubting that LeBron is the most complete player in the NBA, but he also has to be considered one of the purest scorers in the NBA as well, based on his incredible offensive production this season.  LeBron's average of 29.9 points per game comes in at second in the NBA, behind none other than the "Black Mamba" himself and No. 1 player on this list, Kobe Bryant.  

LeBron is one of the purest scorers in the entire NBA—that's a fact.

Los Angeles Lakers SG Kobe Bryant

If there's one thing that has defined Kobe Bryant's career, other than his five NBA championships, it's his absolutely insane ability to score, even in the face of the most difficult defenses in the league.  This season Kobe is once again leading the league in scoring, being the only player in the NBA with an average of above 30.0 points per game.  Kobe has already totaled 40 or more points in a game four times this season, and I'm sure we haven't seen the last of that.

The one thing that must be noted about Kobe's offensive performance this year is that he's done so by attempting a ridiculous 394 field goals, which is 117 more than the next closest player, Kevin Durant, who's attempted 277 field goals in as many games as Kobe.  Kobe's averaging a ridiculous 24.9 field-goal attempts per game, which has surely helped him earn his NBA-best 30.4 points per game.

No matter how many shots Kobe has to put up to reach his absurd totals, there's no doubting the fact that Kobe has one of the purest jump shots in the game, which makes him the purest scoring threat in the entire NBA.  Kobe better watch out though; there are players like LeBron James and Durant who are right on his heels when it comes to being the purest scorer in the NBA.