Ranking the NBA's Top 10 International Players Ever
Prepare to get lost in your own NBA nostalgia.
Blame Dirk Nowitzki if you cannot find your way back.
After putting up 23 points in the Dallas Mavericks' victory over the Sacramento Kings, Nowitzki is now the most prolific international point-totaler in league history—a distinction previously held by Hakeem Olajuwon.
"It's an honor," Nowitzki said afterward, per ESPN Dallas' Tim MacMahon. "To do it at home, it was even more special. Getting a standing ovation, it was great."
Feel that? It's your sentimental side demanding you reminisce. Or else.
Plenty of great international talents have passed through the NBA aside from Nowitzki and Olajuwon. History is awash with prospects who journeyed stateside and left—or are still leaving—lasting imprints on this great game of basketball. It's only right we acknowledge the best of the best in the wake of Nowitzki's latest feat.
Most of this is an exercise in subjectivity, so hopefully you're wearing your debating long johns. Statistics, individual accolades, team accomplishments and longevity all come into play, but there is no one formula for ranking these international studs.
Agree or disagree—there is only appreciating the players who follow as some of the greatest overseas products to ever grace NBA hardwood.
*Note: Players must have grown up outside the United States to be considered for this list. Those like Patrick Ewing (born in Jamaica) and Dominique Williams (France) do not qualify as international players.
Honorable Mentions
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Drazen Petrovic, Croatia
Had a fatal car crash not cut Drazen Petrovic's life and career short, he almost assuredly would have made this list.
While he appeared in just 290 games over five seasons, he still totaled more than 4,400 points. The man could flat-out shoot and score, and his perimeter-oriented offensive attack would have aged well, ensuring him a spot among the top 10 international players ever.
Arvydas Sabonis, Lithuania
Arvydas Sabonis didn't play in the NBA until he was 31, at which point he was neither as fast nor dominant. But he was still productive.
Through seven seasons, he averaged 12 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game. That's something only 15 other players have managed to do between the ages of 31 and 38. The only thing tethering him to the "Honorable Mentions," then, is timing.
Too bad the NBA didn't get to enjoy his talents earlier.
10. Peja Stojakovic
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Born in: Croatia
Years Pro: 13
Career Stats: 17.0 points, 4.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 45 percent shooting, 40.1 percent three-point shooting, 17.1 player efficiency rating, 82.6 win shares
Peja Stojakovic was a shooter and scorer ahead of his time. Three-pointers weren't the bread and butter of offenses during his prime, but that didn't stop him from firing away early and often. When he walked away following his 2010-11 championship run with the Mavericks, he did so as one of the game's greatest shooters ever.
Only once in his career did he fail to shoot 37.5 percent or better from behind the arc. He's one of just eight qualified players in league history to eclipse that success rate at least 11 times, and he remains the only player to ever retire with benchmarks of 17 points and 4.5 rebounds per game while connecting on 40 percent of his deep balls.
Equally important, Stojakovic is still one of the poster boys for those relevant Sacramento Kings teams. He helped the organization secure seven consecutive playoff berths between 1998 and 2005, and he was the second-leading scorer on the winningest team in franchise history (61 victories) during the 2001-02 crusade.
In today's NBA, his game might seem par for the small forward course. He was neither a talented playmaker nor elite defender, and his three All-Star appearances fail to astound. But the timing of his performance matters more than anything.
Stojakovic's play was a symbol of today, the day before yesterday.
9. Detlef Schrempf
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Born in: Germany
Years Pro: 16
Career Stats: 13.9 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 49.1 percent shooting, 17.2 PER, 109.5 win shares
Holy understated longevity.
Detlef Schrempf spent 16 years in the NBA, establishing himself as one of the game's most reliable rotation players ever. He won two Sixth Man of the Year awards while doing modern-day dirty work. He rebounded and passed. When he needed to, he scored.
Everything about his game was efficient. Though he averaged less than 30 minutes per night for his career, he still made a historical impact. He's one of only four players to retire averaging at least 13.5 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists while logging less than 30 minutes per game. His 109.5 win shares also rank third among all players who averaged less than 30 minutes for their career, behind only Terry Porter (110.4) and Robert Parish (147).
Although Schrempf's diligence has always received due recognition, his value tends to be glossed over or fall by the wayside. He isn't a Hall of Famer, but he is a three-time All-Star and, most importantly, an all-time great.
Consider that he's one of just 15 players in league history to amass at least 15,500 points, 7,000 rebounds and 3,500 assists. Nine of the other 14 are Hall of Famers: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, Karl Malone, Oscar Robertson, Charles Barkley, Larry Bird, John Havlicek, Scottie Pippen and Elgin Baylor. Four of the remaining five are inevitable Hall of Famers: Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, Jason Kidd and Tim Duncan. The other player is Chris Webber, a fringe Hall of Famer.
That's elite company for an undervalued elite player.
8. Yao Ming
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Born in: China
Years Pro: 8
Career Stats: 19.0 points, 9.2 rebounds, 1.9 blocks, 52.4 percent shooting, 23.0 PER, 65.9 win shares
Imagine where Yao Ming's place in history would be if he played in more than 486 regular-season contests. Actually, don't. It's refreshingly high enough, all things considered. Playing the "What If..." game could get depressing.
Injuries tainted and derailed what should have been one of the best careers ever. After making 80 appearances in each of his first three seasons, Yao would play in more than 60 games just once through his final five.
Limited availability didn't prevent him from making his mark, though. He still eclipsed 9,200 points, 4,400 rebounds and 900 blocks for his career. Of the 17 other players who reached those touchstones through their first eight seasons, 13 of them are or will inevitably be in the Hall of fame.
Yao is the only one to have played in fewer than 530 games.
A healthier body and longer career would have catapulted this global icon up the list. The 7'6" center was a unique specimen who, when healthy, could run the floor, post up, face up, dunk, hit jumpers and guard the rim while making everyone else look like helpless ants. And though the NBA would have benefited from a more fortunate fate, Yao did enough with the time he had to leave an indestructible legacy.
Instead of lamenting what could have been, that's what we should remember.
7. Dikembe Mutombo
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Born in: Congo
Years Pro: 18
Career Stats: 9.8 points, 10.3 rebounds, 2.8 blocks, 51.8 percent shooting, 17.2 PER, 117 win shares
Dikembe Mutombo made volume shot-swatting cool before it was actually cool. We relish in prolific rim-policers like Serge Ibaka and Anthony Davis now largely because of how seriously Mutombo took iron protection.
Over the course of his 18-year career, he sent back 3,289 shots, second only to Olajuwon's ridiculous 3,830. His longevity also helped him join more well-rounded company. Mutombo is still one of only five players to register at least 10,000 points, 12,000 rebounds and 2,500 blocks for his career, pinning him to the likes of Shaquille O'Neal, Olajuwon, Duncan and Abdul-Jabbar.
Stat-hoarding was only part of Mutombo's trade, though. His popularity surged thanks to his plucky demeanor and finger-wagging notoriety. That bubbly reputation has since stuck and lives on through finger-wagging enthusiasts and viral commercials.
“Back then, I would shake my head when I used to block shots,” Mutombo told Buzz Feed's Max Blau this past June. “I really didn’t have a signature...I had to come up with something [for when] I was dominating a game.
“[The wag] gave me an identity."
An identity that has proved both lasting and infectious—and therefore indelible.
6. Pau Gasol
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Born in: Spain
Years Pro: 14
Career Stats: 18.3 points, 9.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.6 blocks, 51.5 percent shooting, 21.5 PER, 113.9 win shares
Befriending the tough-to-love Kobe Bryant makes Pau Gasol easy to like. What he's done on the basketball court makes him great.
Gasol has helped change the way we look at NBA towers. He hasn't developed into a stretch power forward or center, but he has offensive range, along with the court vision to rival most point guards.
As it stands, the two-time champion is one of four players to maintain averages of at least 18 points, nine rebounds, three assists and 1.5 blocks while shooting 50 percent or better from the floor. Bob Lanier, Duncan and Abdul-Jabbar are the only other players who can say the same.
The illustrious 7-footer is also on pace to join more elite company in 2014-15. By season's end, assuming he stays healthy, he'll have surpassed 17,000 points, 8,500 rebounds, 3,000 assists and 1,500 blocks for his career. Only David Robinson, Moses Malone, Elvin Hayes, Patrick Ewing and Parish have accomplished such a feat thus far.
It's easy to get lost in Gasol's place among international talents, along with all he did with the Los Angeles Lakers. He's been as dominant as anyone who perfected his craft overseas. But the former Rookie of the Year and four-time All-Star is more than an international great.
When you talk about the game's best bigs, he's there. When discussing which active players are Hall of Fame-bound, he's there. And when looking for innovative all-time greats with the play style, accolades and hardware to prove it, he's there too.
5. Manu Ginobili
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Born in: Argentina
Years Pro: 12
Career Stats: 14.7 points, 3.8 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 1.4 steals, 45.1 percent shooting, 37.0 percent three-point shooting, 21.4 PER, 94.2 win shares
Manu Ginobili is not receiving special treatment because he's a San Antonio Spurs prodigy. Inevitable first-ballot Hall of Famers deserve this type of treatment.
You read that last part right. Ginobili will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Andrew McNeill penned an interesting piece for 48 Minutes of Hell a couple of years back on this matter—the crux of which holds true today, so we'll defer to him for a second:
"There’s long been discussion about Manu’s Hall of Fame worthiness. And with that, I think there are two different camps. There are the hardcore basketball, detail-oriented camps on one end. And on the other are the more casual fans. The hardcore guys, folks like Thorpe, can appreciate the subtlety to Manu’s game. They can pinpoint the things he does to control, alter and win games. The casual fans are the ones who watch every fifth or sixth game, get most of their news from highlight shows and take too much stock in box scores.
"
Perception of Ginobili's career is skewed and manipulated and distorted by the role Gregg Popovich has asked him to play. Almost 70 percent of his regular-season appearances (801) have come as a bench player, and he's averaged more than 30 minutes per game just once in his career. Yet he's still placed himself within pre-eminent ranks.
Of the 55 players who topped 11,000 points, 3,000 rebounds, 3,000 assists and 1,000 steals for their career, Ginobili boasts the lowest minutes average. There's something to be said about someone who can do that—who can be an integral part of four championship squads and an indomitable dynasty without getting caught up in when or how much he's playing.
In the case of this someone—a former Sixth Man of the Year and two-time All-Star—there's a whole lot to say. All of it points toward an immediate Hall of Fame induction (once he's eligible).
4. Tony Parker
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Born in: Belgium
Years Pro: 13
Career Stats: 17.1 points, 3.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 49.5 percent shooting, 19.1 PER, 96.6 win shares
If there was ever a lifelong Spur who looked like he might leave the Spurs, it was Tony Parker. Duncan, Ginobili, Robinson and so many others avoided the spotlight. Parker has embraced it. He's the closest thing to a headline-hoarding playboy they've ever had. When it's counted, though, he's been a Spur through and through.
This six-time All-Star has not sought a bigger, brighter stage elsewhere. He's stayed in San Antonio, won four championships beside Duncan, Ginobili and Popovich and solidified his place among the best.
Seven players have mustered career averages of 17 points and six assists while banging in 49 percent of their shots: Walt Frazier, Magic Johnson, Kevin Johnson, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Bird and Parker. That's incredible company for someone like Parker, who—similar to Ginobili—hasn't played extensive minutes. He's the only player on that list to log less than 33 per game for his career.
Additionally incredible company is within reach, too. If Parker can stay relatively healthy to finish out his career—which, considering San Antonio's minutes-managing magnificence, isn't a stretch—he has a real shot at notching 20,000 points and 7,500 assists. Those touchstones have only been reached by Gary Payton and Robertson.
Greatness—even international greatness—is a San Antonio staple. Parker's is still unfolding. His standing among the best overseas talents is secure, but there's still more to come.
Plenty more.
3. Steve Nash
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Born in: South Africa
Years Pro: 18
Career Stats: 14.3 points, 3.0 rebounds, 8.5 assists, 49.0 percent shooting, 42.8 percent three-point shooting, 20.0 PER, 129.7 win shares
Late-career injuries can neither smear nor ruin Steve Nash's reputation. His lack of defense curbs it slightly but not enough. The absence of a title does little to damage it, too.
His legacy is that strong.
Recurring bouts with nerve damage probably mean Nash has played his last game. If that's true, he leaves the NBA as a top-three international player and one of the best point guards to ever walk this Earth.
Having steered six of the top-12 offenses in NBA history, Nash ranks third on the all-time assist list, behind only Jason Kidd and John Stockton. He also ranks fourth in effective field-goal percentage (55.6)—which takes into account the difference between two-pointers and three-pointers—trailing only Abdul-Jabbar, O'Neal and Barkley.
Nash is basically a guard with the efficiency of a center. He consistently flirted with 50/40/90 seasons and remains the only player to have registered said marks more than twice. There wasn't anything he couldn't do on offense. He would shoot, score, pass and cut through the heart of defenses every night. His brand of basketball—that of a pure point guard—is nearly extinct. For almost two decades, he ensured it lived on.
"If it really is the end for Steve Nash...this—all of it—is how we’ll remember him," Bleacher Report's Jim Cavan wrote. "A singular maestro who defied age, angles and odds to become one of the greatest pure point guards the game has ever seen."
The ending, however it's ultimately written, isn't ideal. But Nash's career remains befitting of the historically great legacy he will leave behind.
2. Dirk Nowitzki
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Born in: Germany
Years Pro: 16
Career Stats: 22.5 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 47.7 percent shooting, 38.4 percent three-point shooting, 23.5 PER, 185.9 win shares
Enjoy Nowitzki's dominant stylings while they last. The 36-year-old superstar won't be around forever, despite what his sustained twilight production implies.
Nowitzki has long been an international and all-time great. He didn't need to usurp Olajuwon's point totals to hold down this spot. He's been here. He'll stay here. He might even climb higher over the next few years. But because he's been here for so long, everything he does from now on is just gravy.
Championships? He has one. All-Star selections? He has 12. Points? He's made a habit of stockpiling them; he has nearly 27,000.
Forget Olajuwon's record. Nowitzki is now the ninth-most potent scorer in NBA history. If his health holds up over the life of his three-year deal, he'll leave the 30,000-point plateau in the rear view, something only five other players have been able to do: Michael Jordan, Malone, Bryant, Chamberlain and Abdul-Jabbar. This is all in addition to becoming the first player who pumped in 25,000 points and 9,000 rebounds while making more than 175 three-pointers.
But it's not solely the stats and championship that make Nowitzki so great. It's his longevity, his loyalty to the Mavericks, his sacrifices (see: Chandler Parsons' bank account).
It's everything.
"Passing the Big O and knowing that only nine guys ever in this league scored more than me, that's crazy to think," Nowitzki said, per the Star-Telegram's Dwain Price. "From where I came from—a little dump in Wurzburg, Germany—it's been an amazing ride."
And it's not over yet.
1. Hakeem Olajuwon
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Born in: Nigeria
Years Pro: 18
Career Stats: 21.8 points, 11.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.7 steals, 3.1 blocks, 51.2 percent shooting, 23.6 PER, 162.8 win shares
Olajuwon's place atop the international ranks could come under siege as Nowitzki inches closer toward 30,000-point celebrity. But even then, chances are his crown, throne and scepter will be safe.
Calling him an all-time great almost feels like an insult. He was so incredibly versatile. There isn't a word or combination of words that properly portray a 7-footer who could shoot, post up, put the ball on the floor, force steals, create scoring opportunities for his teammates, protect the rim and move with the intricate grace and precision of an otherworldly being.
No one else has registered 20,000 points, 10,000 rebounds, 3,000 assists, 2,000 steals and 3,000 blocks. Just Olajuwon. Abdul-Jabbar is the only player who comes slightly close, and he's still 800-plus steals shy.
Current players have tried to model their games after Olajuwon, a two-time champion and 12-time All-Star. Dwight Howard has tried to replicate his defensive prowess. (Some of) Amar'e Stoudemire's post moves are ripped right from Olajuwon's repertoire. Rookie Joel Embiid, assuming health, figures to rival his two-way dominance.
Most attempts to emulate him, like the aforementioned, have been admirable. They, along with those fated to follow, are also futile—because there will never be another Hakeem Olajuwon.
*Stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference unless otherwise cited.
