Allen Iverson: Where Does He Rank Among NBA's Most Prolific Scorers Ever?
Allen Iverson, who was wrapping up his basketball career in Turkey, is reported to need ankle surgery and has reportedly retired from basketball as a result. Allen Iverson leaves the NBA currently ranked sixth all time in points per game and was one of the most prolific scorers of his era.
Over the course of the history of the NBA, we've had many great shooters, from Michael Jordan to Wilt Chamberlain and everyone in between. Who were the most prolific scorers of all time, and where does Allen Iverson rank in this group of NBA elites?
(Note that active players who still have much of their career left will not be included on the list.)
20. David Thompson
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It's a shame his career was so short, but for the time he was active, he was incredibly prolific. He had over 25 points per game in his first three seasons, wrapping up with a 27.2 PPG year. His worst season of his first six, by a lot, was a 21.5 PPG effort in his fifth year. Problems with injuries and drugs cut his career short, but for awhile, he was the best shooter in the game.
19. Paul Arizin
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One of the game's first prolific scorers, Arizin burst onto the scene with the Philadelphia Warriors and led the league in his second year with 25.4 PPG, later topping that with a 25.6 PPG season. His only season with fewer than 20 points a game was his rookie season. He was even a force in college, scoring 25 points a game at Villanova as well.
He's also one of the only people in history to score 100 points in a basketball game (accomplished in college).
18. Pete Maravich
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Pistol Pete Maravich was one of the most exciting players to watch in the 1970s. He emerged with Atlanta in his third and fourth seasons, averaging 26.1 and 27.7 PPG. He had a career year with the New Orleans Jazz in the 1976-77 season, where he put up 31.1 points per game in over 40 minutes per.
17. Larry Bird
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Larry Bird was the key piece of the Celtics' dynasty of the 1980s. He averaged 21.3 PPG in his rookie year for the Celtics and never looked back, leading them to three NBA titles. His career high was in the 1987-88 NBA season, where he averaged just under 30 points a game.
16. Shaquille O'Neal
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His ranking is hurt slightly on the list by the fact that he hasn't been dominant on the scoring end since 2006. However, any basketball player who can average 20 points per game for 14 seasons is certainly one of the most prolific. Perhaps even more impressive is his streak of nine seasons with 26 PPG or more.
15. Dominique Wilkins
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Before there was Blake Griffin, there was the original Human Highlight Film, Dominique Wilkins.
Wilkins, who turns 51 today, had a long and exciting tenure with the Atlanta Hawks. In 12 seasons, he scored over 21 points a game all but once, and in the 1985-86 season he scored 30.3 PPG.
14. Adrian Dantley
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Perhaps the all-time greatest scorer that everyone forgets, Dantley was a machine for the Utah Jazz in the 1980s. After playing for three teams in three seasons, he joined the Jazz in 1979. From there, he was unstoppable, averaging 30 points per game in four straight seasons. When he went to Detroit at 30, he could still put up 20 a game.
13. Julius Erving
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The ABA's second-leading scorer in points per game, Erving went from averaging 27 a night, minimum, in the ABA to averaging 24 a night in the NBA. Dr. J was great to watch during his time in Philadelphia, and while he never led the NBA in scoring like he did multiple times in the ABA, he did hit a peak of 26.9 points a game.
12. Rick Berry
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Rick Berry was one of the ABA's top stars, and PPG wise, is the ABA's all-time scoring leader. When he joined the NBA, he was still great. It took him a couple seasons to reach his ABA level of excellence, starting at about 22 PPG and rising to 30.6 one year. Beyond that, we'll always remember that style of free throw shooting.
11. George Gervin
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George Gervin, like Erving and Barry, came from the ABA. Unlike them, he went from being a good scorer in the ABA to a fantastic scorer in the NBA. He eclipsed 30 points per game twice and led the league in scoring four times. He was also efficient, making over half his shots when he led the league in scoring.
10. Bob Pettit
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Paul Arizin may have been the game's first great shooter, but Pettit was the second, and likely the superior of the two. He averaged 20 points a game in every season he played and had a peak of 31.1 in the 1961-62 season. He led the league in scoring twice and was a force throughout his career. Surprisingly, he did not lead the league with 31.1. That legend comes later.
Oh, and he was the same height and even skinnier than Kevin Durant was; looks like both turned out just fine.
9. Karl Malone
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The Mailman was a force for Utah for many years, even when not in his prime. He had a three year stretch of 29.1, 31, and 29 PPG and ended his career with the second most points all time, though a lot of that could be attributed to longevity.
8. Elgin Baylor
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His peak was so incredibly dominant that it's a shame it didn't last too long. In his peak three seasons, he had 35, 38, and 34 PPG, but faded relatively quickly after that. He could still manage 25 points a game, but it wasn't nearly the same. In my mind, probably the most underrated player of all time.
7. Kobe Bryant
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If Bryant maintains his dominance for another few years, then he could launch himself into the top five. He didn't average 20 points a game until his fourth season, but once he hit that, he hasn't turned off the gas since. In his prime, he had back-to-back seasons of 35.4 PPG and 31.6 PPG. He is now attempting fewer shots, which he why his point total is decreasing, but he still has that shot.
6. Allen Iverson
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It was only six to seven years ago that Allen Iverson was perhaps the most prolific shooter in the game. During his time with the Philadelphia 76ers, Iverson led the league in scoring four times and had four instances of 30 or more points per game. Unfortunately, his skills diminished rapidly, and he now seems to be done as a player. He'll be a hall of famer like everyone else on this list, though.
5. Oscar Robertson
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Oscar Robertson was an all-around amazing player, though he was also a great shooter. With the Cincinnati Royals, he had six seasons of 30 or more points a game, including one where he averaged a triple-double. His stats dipped when he was traded to Milwaukee, but then again, they had another target..
4. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
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How does the NBA's all-time scoring leader only finish fourth here? That's due to his longevity, having played 20 full seasons. In his prime, he was amazing, averaging over 30 points for Milwaukee without a problem. His point totals went down when he was part of the Lakers, but he was still great, thanks to his near-60 percent efficiency.
3. Jerry West
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The most prolific Lakers scorer is not Kobe, or Baylor, or even Kareem. It's the man who's on the NBA logo, Jerry West. He was great in his 14 seasons for the Lakers, topping 30 points four times and finishing his career third all-time in points per game. He still managed over 20 points a game in his last year as a pro, so he could have played another few.
2. Wilt Chamberlain
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The top two were easy to pick, but it was hard to choose who was first and who was second; the difference is that one maintained a high PPG a whole career, while the other was unstoppable but peaked. In a controversial move, I'm taking the more dominant but slightly less efficient Wilt Chamberlain.
As a member of the Warriors, in those six and a half years, Chamberlain was the most prolific scorer of all time, and it's not even close. He averaged 50.4 and 44.8 in two seasons, and his lowest was 36.9. After joining Philadelphia, and later the Lakers, he only got over the 25 points hump in two seasons of eight, though he was still great. His 30.1 career PPG is second all-time.
1. Michael Jordan
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Jordan gets the edge over Wilt because he was prolific throughout his entire career, even after two retirements.
Jordan burst onto the scene in 1984, averaging 28.2 points a game. After missing most of the 85-86 season, here were his next seasons: 37.1, 35.0, 32.5, 33.6, 31.5, 30.1, 32.6 before his first retirement, all of which led the league. He had three more seasons of 28+ PPG after returning, and still managed 20+ points with the Washington Wizards. Most prolific scorer of all time.
