Kevin Durant and the Smoothest Pure Scorers of All-Time

There's nothing as good as watching an NBA scorer do their thing, especially the smooth guys.

I'm talking about the scorers that make things look easy on a nightly basis. The guys that can finish at the rim but can also take their games out to the perimeter and do everything in between.

So I've taken it upon myself to find the 10 smoothest scorers of all-time. Notice I didn't say best scorers, but smoothest.

I'm not talking about power here, so most of the big men who dominated the paint don't make the list. A smooth-looking jumper is a necessity here, but so is the ability to pretty much score from anywhere on the floor.

These are the guys that make, or made, scoring look effortless.

I found out as I went along that I could extend this list out to 50 or 60 players, so some difficult cuts had to be made.

With that being said, here's a look at Kevin Durant and the 10 smoothest scorers of all-time.

Players Who Missed the Cut

Here's just a few of the guys who missed the Top 10, giving you an idea how difficult this list was to cut down.

Dirk Nowitzki:  One of the first true seven-footer's with the ability to extend defenses to the perimeter. His fade-away jumper is near unblockable.

Ray Allen:  The NBA’s all-time leader in three-point shooting, Allen has one of the smoothest jumpers in the history of the game.

Reggie Miller:  Miller could shoot the rock, that’s for sure. When he was going well, there were none better.

Alex English:  One of the smoothest scorers in league history, English’s style of play was effortless, as few have made the game look so easy. He’s one of the top two left off the list.

David Thompson:  A freakish athlete who controlled the game with the ball in his hands.

Adrian Dantley:  Dantley had the natural ability to score the ball and was very efficient doing so.

Kevin Garnett:  A long power forward with range, Garnett’s smooth game was unique when he came into the NBA.

Paul Pierce: Pierce is a smooth and versatile offensive player, who can score from any level on the floor.

Clyde Drexler: Drexler was the toughest to leave off the list as he’s the last cut. “The Glyde” could float through the air with ease and also could get it done with his jumper.

John Havlicek:  The legendary Celtic was productive and unshakeable in the clutch.

Dominique Wilkens:  "The Human Highlight Film" was an unstoppable offensive player in his prime. He didn’t make the cut though because later in his career his game got pretty ugly.

Rick Barry:  Top 20 in points per game and who could ever forget the underhand free-throws.

Tim Duncan: Fundamentally sound as any big man has ever been. When Duncan got the ball he knew what to do with it.

Hakeem Olajuwon:  "The Dream" was a finesse big man, and a joy to watch. He had moves on top of moves and an unstoppable fade-away jumper.

Pete Maravich:  "Pistol Pete" was one of the most entertaining players to ever grace a basketball court. Maravich was shifty, fancy, and electric and could slice through an entire defense.

Jerry West:  An outstanding all-around threat, “The Logo,” may have been the best pure shooter the game has ever seen.

Oscar Robertson:  There was absolutely nothing “The Big O,” couldn’t do on a basketball court.

Carmelo Anthony: Hard to leave Melo off the list because he's as smooth as any player in the game today, but only the Top 10 make the cut.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: The most difficult cut was Kareem as he's one of the top three left out.  His sky hook alone makes his game very smooth.

10. LeBron James

Speaking of making scoring look easy, no player in today's game does that as well as LeBron does.

It's very easy to knock LeBron's perimeter shot or call him out for fourth-quarter performances, but in reality, James can do it all. His offensive game is very smooth.

Especially when LeBron spends more time inside the arc like he has this season, it makes his perimeter shooting even better. On talent alone, he's the best we've seen since Jordan.

Throughout his nine-year NBA career, he's averaged 27.9 points per game while shooting 48 percent from the floor. Despite occasional struggles from behind the arc, James is still a 33-percent shooter from long-range.

9. Allen Iverson

For a guy so small in stature, Iverson was one of the smoothest scorers we've seen in the NBA.

He's sixth all time in points per game with 26.7 ppg, and his patented crossover allowed him to score on just about anyone.

When he was in his prime, Iverson certainly made scoring look easy and took a beating doing so.

8. Kobe Bryant

One of the greatest scorers of all-time, Bryant has also been one of the smoothest as well.

His career went through stages. He was more explosive when he was younger but became a very good jump shooter as well.

In the post, his size and strength gave him a decided advantage over most defenders.

He's the closest thing we've seen to Michael Jordan as far as mannerisms, style of play, staying calm under pressure and producing in the fourth quarter. Kobe has a career scoring average of 25.4 points per game and is fifth on the NBA's all-time scoring list.

When Kobe has all facets of his game going well, there have been very few smoother scorers in the history of the NBA.

7. Kevin Durant

Durant is the epitome of smooth.

He's long, so he has a smooth release on his jumper, which is nearly un-blockable. He's also athletic enough to get to the rim with ease as well.

He's only been in the NBA a short five years now, but he may be the smoothest player in the NBA today.

Durant's posted career averages of 26.3 points while shooting 47 percent from the floor and 36 percent from beyond the arc.

He's simply a fun player to watch with the ball in his hands.

6. Larry Bird

No disrespect to the great shooters of recent years, such as Ray Allen and Reggie Miller, but Bird's jumper was the smoothest thing in the world when "Larry Legend" was in his prime.

Bird was relentless as a scorer and effective when the stakes were at their highest. 

He averaged 24.3 points per game throughout his career, and despite the bad back he suffered throughout, there was no smoother shooter in the history of the game than Bird.

5. Bernard King

It's a shame King suffered injuries throughout his career, because he had the talent to be one of the Top 20 players of all time.

King was one of the most prolific scorers in the history of the game. When he got hot, there was no stopping him. He could elevate above his defender to get off a clean look as easily as he could put the ball on the floor and get to the rim.

I love watching highlights of King to this day, as he was just an all-around smooth player.

4. Elgin Baylor

Baylor was one of the most explosive and unstoppable offensive players. He was comfortable scoring around the rim, in the mid-range and from distance. There was little to nothing the opposition could do to contain him.

His game was as smooth as there was during the time period, and he became the premier small forward in the NBA.

Baylor's numbers were outstanding as well, averaging 27.4 points per game, good for fourth in NBA history.

He paved the way for a lot of the other players on this list as many emulated Baylor's all-around smooth offensive game.

3. George Gervin

You can't talk about smooth scorers without including "the Iceman" on the list.

"The Iceman" was as slick as they come on the court, with his patented finger roll. Gervin slashed to the rim and finished as well as any other, but for him, it wasn't "slashing"—it was much smoother and cooler than that. Thus the nickname. 

As for statistics, he averaged 26.2 points per game, good for eighth all time.

2. Julius Erving

Erving was one of the smoothest and most stylish players the NBA has ever seen.

As far as soaring through the air and astonishing fans, "Dr. J" was Jordan long before Michael ever was. 

Many of us can picture that legendary underhand scoop shot of his where he glided in the air, using the rim as a shield and finishing on the opposite side, all with one hand. 

He was as smooth as they came and averaged 22.0 points per game during his NBA career. He also played in the ABA four seasons, bumping his total scoring average up to 24.2 per game.

1. Michael Jordan

Jordan wasn't a basketball player at times—he was almost like a superhero with the ball in his hands.

He could do it all, inside or outside, and make it look so easy.

While he will be remembered for his high-flying dunks, people almost forget that he was a very good jump shooter as well.

He is the premier clutch player in the history of the game and finished his career averaging 30.1 points per game. He ranks third on the all-time NBA scoring list behind only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone.

Everything about Jordan's game said smooth.