50 Sickest YouTube Highlight Reels of NBA Stars

There are a few things out there to keep the everyday NBA fan sane in a period of basketball turmoil like what we are experiencing right now.

Fans have been held hostage by the lockout for over two months now, and all us basketball fans have to live on are random highlights of a summer streetball game, the hope that the league meets with player representatives and do more than just stare at each other for four hours and of course, YouTube mixes.

Mixes made by fans and professional (or at least professional looking) editors whose love of basketball or a certain player compelled them to put together highlight reels of their favorite players, set them to some slammin' beats (yea, I'm about the whitest dude you can meet) and unleash it on the world.

The NBA has basically taken the liberty of putting every bit of video they possibly can online, allowing people to put these mixes together, thereby creating a bit of a cult following on the internet, with people passing around these videos like STDs, only with a much happier ending.

These mix tapes are not only helping people like me get basketball fixes, but also are going to help the legacies of current players live on in a way that was never thought possible even just 15 years ago.

50. Brian Scalabrine

What is something I write without a shout out to my main man Brian Scalabrine? Some dedicated fan threw together a mix of Scalabrine's greatest moments, and I felt the need to pass it on along to you.

My Favorite Part: The best part of this whole mix is the fact that it is four minutes long.

Honestly, if you were to tell me that someone threw together a four-minute long highlight reel from his career, I would say that's about three minutes too long.

49. Derek Fisher

When I think of Derek Fisher, the first thing I think of is a defensive minded point guard who has more championship rings than highlights.

Fisher however, in this short mix just over a minute long, shows off some impressive skills.

My Favorite Part: At 0:38 Fisher dunks on Shawn Bradley, the bit from this clip that encouraged me to include it in this list.

Bradley seems to realize mid-dunk that he is in the process of getting dunked on by a 6'1" point guard.  You can literally see his self-esteem drop.

48. Ron Artest

Someone could probably throw together a mix of the craziest moments of Ron Artest's career, as in moments where he literally went crazy, but this mix will have to do.

My Favorite Part: At 0:30, something happens that sums up Ron Artest's career in two seconds worth of video.

Artest crouches down like he is unsure of whether he should shoot it or pass it, you can almost hear his thoughts, (calm yet crazy voice) "What should I do here? Shoot it? Yea, I think I'll just shoot it." From there he puts the shot up, hops on one foot as if he's trying to shake the floor to help it drop and as it falls his reaction says, "yep, just like I planned it."

47. Rodney Carney

This mix of the untapped talent of Rodney Carney embodies everything that is great in modern day YouTube mixes.

Besides the obvious amazing athleticism that Carney displays, the cheesy graphics where Carney glows, gets struck by lightning and the ball turns into a burning orb make the mix as good as it is.

My Favorite Part: At 3:47 Carney slices through the lane, splits two defenders and slams it home, displaying amazing body control in the process.

46. Manu Ginobili

We will see a thousand "Next Michael Jordans," five hundred "Next Tim Duncans" and a hundred "Next Shaqs" before we see one more Manu Ginobili.

There isn't a player in the game that can control his body in the way that Ginobili does, and there isn't another player that plays with such nonathletic grace that Ginobili has, and all of that is displayed in this mix.

My Favorite Part: This mix has the worst music combination, by far going from Bon Jovi's "It's My Life" to Daddy Yankee's "Gasolina. " How you just jam those two songs together and say, "Well that'll do fine," is beyond me. However, at 5:30 we see his amazing buzzer beater against Serbia and Montenegro in the 2004 Olympics where he sinks the shot while parallel with the ground.

45. Jason Williams

Jason Williams has always reminded me of that guy in a rec league who knows he can dribble better than anyone else there, and almost ends up overdoing it to the point of dribbling up the floor in an overcomplicated way instead of just bringing it up.

This mix does nothing to change my opinion of him from that, but it's still a cool compilations of highlights from the blackest white dude on the court.

My Favorite Part: At 0:49, Williams has a crazy behind the back flip where he wraps his arm around his back as if to pass it to the right, but then flicks his wrist at the last second to pass it to the left.  Pure artistry.

44. Ray Allen

For all you young'uns out there these days who think all Ray Allen is is a three-point shooter who can throw himself into defense quite well, take a look at this mix of Ray Allen in his younger days.

There once was a time when Allen was an athletic young man who could fly to the rim just as well as he could drain a three.

My Favorite Part: At 0:50 there is a perfect reminder of just how athletic Ray was in his heyday.

43. OJ Mayo

The title of this mix is "Smooth as Silk" which, to me seems a bit ironic because Mayo's career has been anything but smooth as silk up to this point.  In just three short years he was deemed ineligible at USC for receiving improper benefits, he got in a fight with Tony Allen over a card game, tested positive for steroids and was nearly traded.

However, watching this mix, you can see that Mayo's game is truly smooth as silk.

My Favorite Part: At 0:22 Mayo streaks to the hole and overshoots the basket a bit, then without even looking up he flips the ball up in the general direction of the basket and drains it like he was trying to do it that way in the first place.

42. JaVale McGee

One of the most athletic and impressive young centers in the NBA, we already know that JaVale McGee is a highlight machine after this year's dunk contest.

I fell in love with McGee's athleticism after last year's summer league where he put on his best attempt to impersonate Michael Jordan.

My Favorite Part: At 0:55 of course is my favorite part that I mentioned one sentence ago, his rock-the-cradle dunk gives off shades of MJ.

41. John Wall

The Washington Wizards' young point guard is looking like a great draft pick after his successful season, and this mix should do plenty to prove that point.

My Favorite Part: At 2:32, Wall runs into some contact against the Spurs and starts tumbling forward, his face is looking directly at the ground and he flips the ball up, easily draining it.

40. Gerald Wallace

Gerald Wallace is one of my favorite players of the last decade with the style of play that he exhibits night in and night out.  Wallace has never been afraid to put his body on the line, sometimes to his peril as he has incurred an injury or two throughout his career.

This mix shows off nicely both the athleticism and devil-may-care attitude that Wallace has.

My Favorite Part: At 1:55, Wallace puts his body on the line, flying backward on defense, blocks a shot and falls into the crowd. The best part about the block?  Wallace adjusts his body and twists his hand so that the power of his swat pushes the ball off to a teammate, rather than a Dwight Howard-esq block that inevitably sends the ball out of bounds.

39. Kevin Martin

If this were solely an offensive game, the likes of Kevin Martin (and Monta Ellis for that matter) would be right up there with Kobe Bryant and LeBron James as the best players in the league.

Fortunately for Martin, when it comes to YouTube mixes, the most important part of the game that is on display is the offensive end.

My Favorite Part: At 0:39, Kevin Martin pulls off what in soccer is known as a nutmeg, where he passes the ball through Brent Barry's legs to Darius Songaila. In one fell swoop he does the impossible, making one white guy look bad and another white guy look good in the span of about one second.

38. Ricky Rubio

There is a lot of difference in opinion when it comes to Ricky Rubio and his future, but there is one thing that you can't argue, when he looks good (against European basketball players mind you), he looks very good.

Here's the Spanish Pistola showing off his skills against some non-NBA talent.

My Favorite Part: At 2:52, Rubio pulls off a move where he has to have traveled, and if he didn't then there is some kind of witchcraft involved.

37. Dwight Howard

Dwight Howard has some extreme athleticism for a man his size, and he has shown it off over the years, which means there is plenty of fodder for a Dwight Howard mix.

My Favorite Part:  From 1:45-1:55 comes my favorite sequence, you guys know I can't overlook a block montage, but when it's followed by Pau Gasol hacking at Dwight like a small child at his little brother, then it's all just too good.

36. Carmelo Anthony

People call Carmelo Anthony the best scorer in the NBA, and I would be inclined to agree with them to a point. When you have a mix like this thrown together, you can find plenty of evidence for that opinion.

My Favorite Part: At 2:08, Carmelo goes behind his back to get around a defender at the three-point line and then goes up and under another defender for a seemingly easy two points.

35. Shane Battier

When you hear the name Shane Battier, odds are you aren't thinking about a ton of highlight reel dunks and awe-inspiring plays that leave you with your mouth agape for an extra 15 seconds.

However, there have been plenty of moments in Battier's career, who is an underrated athlete and an exciting defender if there ever was one.

My Favorite Part:  At 1:56 Battier blocks a shot, but still gets posterized in the process, something I that I thought was impossible until I saw this.

34. Paul George

Paul George is easily my favorite player from the 2010 draft class. He is an exciting young player with buckets of potential, and if he gets to his full potential then he is going to be a great player, possibly the best from that draft class.

Here we see him show off some of his raw athleticism and basketball know-how.

My Favorite Part: At 0:41, George pulls off the classic crossover to shake his defender, at which point he drives to the hole, induces contact, puts up his shot, sinks it and draws a foul.

33. Steve Nash in High School

If there is one thing that makes me as giddy as a 12-year-old girl at a Justin Bieber concert, it's watching Steve Nash make people look like little kids.

The only thing that makes it better is when he is embarrassingly short, white Canadians in short shorts.

My Favorite Part: At 1:25, Nash breaks down poor Canadian dude and unleashes a nasty pass that would make Pistol Pete proud.

32. Thaddeus Young

As an athlete and a smart basketball player, there are few guys in the league that are as underrated as Thaddeus Young.

Buried on a Philadelphia team that hasn't gotten much attention until recently since he came into the NBA, Young has had chances to prove himself a good player, and he has take advantage of some of those opportunities.

My Favorite Part: At 1:30, Young exhibits extreme body control when he gets his initial defender off his feet, blows by him while going up for a layup, draws full-body contact, yet still controls himself enough to get a shot off and get it in.

31. Paul Pierce

Paul Pierce has done some pretty amazing things in his many years in the NBA, and here we have just a few of them boiled down into a mix just over four minutes long.

My Favorite Part: At 1:08 Pierce stops dead and fakes a fade-away to get his defender off his feet, leans forward and jumps toward the basket, going up and under another defender to score with his body fully extended.

30. Amar'e Stoudemire

The athletic big man is a great option for a mix, he can shoot, dunk, he has incredible body control so he can do things that most big men shouldn't be able to do, plus he is a seven-footer, so he is able to block shots every now and then.

My Favorite Part: Like I said, I can't resist a block party, and at 2:08 we see just that as Amar'e violently blocks two shots on one play.

29. Andre Iguodala

There have been few players to transform as much as Andre Iguodala has in the past few years for better and worse.

Iggy went from a number two with amazing athleticism and endless amounts of shock and awe, to a too young leader of a mediocre team, to an efficient and smart scorer and leader, to an elite defender in just seven years.

My Favorite Part: At 2:44, Andre Iguodala goes up for a dunk and basically just says, "Excuse me Gary Payton, you're in my way."

28. Grant Hill

Remember the good old days ladies and gentlemen?  The days back when Grant Hill still had working legs and he was still the "Next Michael Jordan" were good days, so let's relive them with this mix.

My Favorite Part: At 3:41, Hill breaks down Gary Payton off the dribble, runs in for an easy two points and turns around as if to say, "You mad bro?"

27. Derrick Rose

After his MVP campaign this year, Derrick Rose has pretty much arrived as the best thing since Michael Jordan to play basketball in Chicago, and along with that has come the jaw-dropping highlights that populate this mix.

My Favorite Part: At 0:32 Rose excuses Rajon Rondo from playing defense on that particular play as he shakes him off, blows by him, splits Big Baby and Nenad Krstic for his two points.

26. Chris Paul

As the best point guard in the league (yea, the best), Chris Paul has enough highlights to fill up one of those hour-long tapes that the NBA used to put out in the 90s that I would get for Christmas every year.

Paul has it all, he can pass, he can dribble, score, defend.  You name it, he can do it.

My Favorite Part:  At 2:20 CP3 goes in about five different directions against Tony Parker to get his two points the hard way.

25. Kevin Durant

The new golden boy of the NBA (and I say that with the utmost respect), Kevin Durant has turned from a skinny kid out of college who could barely lift Nate Robinson over his head to a full-fledged superstar.

This mix shows a great compilation of his best moments over the past few years.

My Favorite Part: At 3:00, Kevin Durant gets the ball around the three point line, sprints down the baseline, spins into the lane around his defender and reverses it home for two points that he made look too easy.

24. Kevin Garnett

These are my favorite types of mixes.  They tell a story, they are well made and edited with professional software, and it shows.  That's not to say I don't enjoy the homemade iMovie compilations, there is just more substance to these mixes that look like they should be a preview to a movie, not just a mix on Youtube.

My Favorite Part: 2:33, how often do you see a block off the backboard when the defender is in front of the dude shooting the ball?

23. DeMar DeRozan

One of the up-and-comers in the NBA, DeMar DeRozan has been a standout enough in the previous two years to be invited to the dunk contest, both times he was robbed.

DeRozan is a no frills type player, and that reflected in the dunk contest where he used his body as his only prop, where his opponents used cars, multiple baskets and multiple balls to win the attention of the judges.

No matter what you like, it's hard to deny that DeRozan is a spectacular talent.

My Favorite Part: The Raptors play-by-play man makes this mix for me, at 8:40, DeRozan, streaking to basket, catches an alley-oop in mid-air as the announcer alludes to his beef with the dunk contest with an emphatic, “No props needed!”

22. Shaquille O'Neal

Sometimes it's hard to remember the past when it happened so long ago, but really we should almost look at Shaq's time with the Suns, Cavaliers and Celtics as we look at Michael Jordan's time with the Wizards, like it never should have happened.

That's why I like to go back in the time machine for this one and get some Magic and Lakers Shaq highlights.

This is the first of a few guys who are retired that I have on here, and all of them are on here because they are some of my personal favorites.

My Favorite Part:  Right out of the gate at 0:15, Shaq starts to remind me of when he wasn't a fat load.

21. Rudy Gay

He may be overpaid, but boy is Rudy Gay athletic.  Gay is a guy who can jump out of the gym, to use the somewhat old cliche, and it shows in this mix.

My Favorite Part: At 2:22 I'm not sure exactly what happens, but it's pretty awesome.

20. Russell Westbrook

With the new wave of athletic point guards coming into the game, nobody but defenses are suffering, because they have the unenviable task of guarding these guys.

Russell Westbrook is the cream of the crop when it comes to these new style guards, which is definitely on display in this mix.

My Favorite Part: Russell Westbrook steals the ball at 1:54 dunks it on Chris Andersen and then stares him down to show that his creepy mohawk and neck tattoo don't intimidate him.

19. Blake Griffin

The new darling of the NBA is without a doubt Blake Griffin.  After his rookie season in which you could make a mix for each month, Griffin is almost universally liked by NBA fans, the only exception being those who think he was undeserving of winning the dunk contest.

My Favorite Part: At 1:08, Griffin has the sense of where he is on the floor and flow of the game to slip behind the defense, call for the alley-oop and slam it home as he contorts his body like a wild man.

18. Deron Williams

If there was an award for the point guard who makes the crowd shout "ooh!" or "aaahh!" the most times throughout the season, Deron Williams would undoubtedly win it.

This mix is a perfect example of his ability to take a defender out of any given possession just with his crossover.

My Favorite Part:  At 3:01, Williams' crossover allows for a smooth breakdown of Ty Lawson, making Lawson look like a fool in the process.

17. Gilbert Arenas

It's already getting hard to remember Gilbert Arenas before the whole gun scandal in Washington, and for that reason I felt compelled to include a mix from one of the league's most exciting players for a span of three or four years in the mid-2000s.

My Favorite Part: At 3:17 Gilbert wiggles and waggles his way into the lane around one defender and through two others without missing a beat.

16. Josh Smith

Probably one of the most unheralded players in the NBA because of his status as a 'tweener and the fact that he plays on a team that is the third best in their division, Josh Smith is something of a human highlight reel.

In fact, I found myself sitting in a bit of a trance for two or three minutes just deciding whether to go with a block or a dunk as my favorite play.

My Favorite Part: At 0:36 we see Smith's powerful chasedown blocks. LeBron may have popularized the chasedown, but for my money nobody does it better than Josh Smith.

15. Charles Barkley

This may very well be my favorite mix of an NBA legend.

We sit here today and see Charles Barkley sit behind a desk, make funny little jokes, call Ernie Johnson, "Ruhdiculiss" or "Turrible" and you forget just how dominant old Chuck was.  Well this mix is a little reminder.

My Favorite Part: At 0:51 we see a block montage (and I start drooling) as Barkley looks like Hakeem Olajuwan flying through the air, swatting at balls like most people swat at mosquitoes with a rolled up newspaper.

14. Jason Richardson

Now that he has lost the spring in his step and turned into a jump shooter for the most part these days, Jason Richardson doesn't end up on the Sportscenter Top 10, but this mix of his top 100 dunks sure do bring me back to the days when that was a nightly occurrence.

My Favorite Part: You guys probably could have picked this out yourselves, but at 6:05, he dunks on Shawn Bradley so of course it's my favorite part.

13. Rajon Rondo

He may not be as smooth as Deron Williams, as athletic as Russell Westbrook or as well-balanced as Chris Paul, but there isn't another point guard in the game quite like Rajon Rondo.

He plays the game with an attitude where he throws caution to the wind, and some of the things he does just seem damn near impossible.

My Favorite Part: At 0:59 Rondo gets past Brandon Jennings with a nasty little head fake and then a ball fake, then he deals with Andrew Bogut by going right at him and slipping the ball behind his back to Kevin Garnett for two points.

12. LeBron James in High School

Sometimes seeing a men amongst boys is funny, other times, it's sad, and still other times it's jaw dropping, and then there is LeBron James' mix from his high school days.

Seeing James as he was then (basically the same build as he is now, maybe a pound or two skinnier) is shocking in comparison to the other kids on the court, almost making him look like a guy in his mid-20s playing with a bunch of 14-year-olds.

My Favorite Part: At 0:42 LeBron blocks a shot from this poor white kid about 14 rows into the crowd, at which point the kid just stands looking dejected. 

11. Allen Iverson

Allen Iverson is the king of providing mixtape fodder.  He constantly put his body on the line for the highlight reel play, he had the best crossover of all-time (sorry Tim Hardaway), so he was constantly making defenders look like children, and he was just an amazing scorer.

I had to include an Iverson mix, it would be a travesty not to show you guys this to make your day a little better.

My Favorite Part: At 1:21, Iverson dives for a pass intended for Derek Fisher, poking the ball up to his teammate, keeps his footing well enough so that he is able to stay ahead of the pack of players streaking behind him, gets the ball back and puts the shot up while putting a body into a young Kobe Bryant, just for good measure.

10. Dwyane Wade

Few guys in the NBA these days are as talented as Dwyane Wade when it comes to complete basketball skills.

He is a shooting guard, but can defend like a power forward, he can dribble and pass like a point guard, shoot from a distance and dunk like some of the better athletes in the game.  He is a perfect guy to make a mix of.

My Favorite Part: It happens very quickly, as this is a mix with very quick edits, but at 4:29, as Wade is going up for a layup a defender gets under him, quickly turning him parallel to the floor.  No worries though, Wade adjusts his shot and gets it to dribble through the net for two points that looked so much easier than they actually were to get.

9. Arvydas Sabonis

I put this in because I like to remind people of the past and open up their eyes to something they may have never known before.

This is by far my favorite mix on Youtube, having watched it time and time again.  It features a young Arvydas Sabonis looking both not fat and extremely athletic, showing you why people had such high hopes for him before playing in the USSR decimated his body.

My Favorite Part: At 1:22 some poor Slav thinks he has an easy bunny lay-up, but Sabonis says, "no sir," as he swats the shot out of the air.  Also, you can't hate that it is set to a variation of the Rocky theme.

8. Kobe Bryant in High School

LeBron's high school highlights might be more jaw-dropping in terms of athleticism on display, but sometimes you just can't beat the original.  And when it comes to a basketball player making high schoolers look like fools, Kobe Bryant is the true original.

My Favorite Part: Just a short bit into the video, at 0:35, Kobe blocks a shot while the camera man is cowering on the ground below him, making him seem to be an 11-foot tall monster.

7. Tracy McGrady

Throughout the course of the 2000s, there were two elite dunkers that reigned over everyone else.  They may not have encountered much success in the playoffs, but they did bring down the house on a nightly basis.

I'm talking, of course, about cousins Tracy McGrady and Vince Carter, and this is an example of McGrady's best.

My Favorite Part: Early on at 0:40 T-Mac breaks down Kobe off the dribble, pro hops, runs full-body into Shaq, at which point most would be doomed, instead McGrady just goes around him and drains his shot.

6. J.R. Smith

If there is a player out there who has gained a kind of cult following for his ability to dunk (and almost for no other reason) it's J.R. Smith, and this mix shows you why.

He isn't an excellent basketball player (although he is good), but the things he is able to do because of his athleticism are just amazing.

My Favorite Part: The best part about this for me isn't even one of Smith's off-the-wall dunks, it comes at 1:20 with Kenyon Martin's ridiculous reaction to a Smith dunk.  He looks like Fat Albert strutting down an alley-way.

5. Monta Ellis

Few players these days get more beef than Monta Ellis for being offensive specialists (and therefore defensive liabilities), even though Steve Nash just made a career out of it.

Nonetheless, being a scorer has allowed for many mixes to be compiled and thrown on Youtube, like this one here.

My Favorite Part: At 3:56 Monta spins off one defender, then splits two more, throws the ball over his head which somehow ends up tickling the twine for two.

4. Kobe Bryant

You already saw him tear apart some high-schoolers, it's just all the more impressive when he is doing some of the same things to professional basketball players, like he does in this mix.

My Favorite Part: At 5:29 you basically see Kobe go mental as his body does a full 180 degree turn as he floats across the lane in mid-air, contorts his body to get around the leaping Dwight Howard, and switches the ball from hand to hand about five times before he finally shoots the ball.

3. LeBron James

This LeBron James mix came at the peak of LeBron's "Good Teammate Phase" in Cleveland when he was stuck with the likes of Larry Hughes as his second option and Drew Gooden wearing a ducktail at the base of his skull.

For me, that is my favorite version of LeBron James.  I think he will continue to get better than that and lead to some more amazing mixes, but this is the absolute best at this moment.

My Favorite Part: From 2:37-2:57 there is a montage of passes from LeBron where he makes drew Gooden look like an actual NBA player on three occasions.  That's talent.

2. Vince Carter

Who better to make a mix of than Half-Man/Half-Amazing?  Honestly looking back on some of the things he was able to do make me wonder if he was something more then man.  Possibly some machine designed by the government to infiltrate the NBA and dunk on each and every player possible.

Whatever he is, there is no doubt that as you go along in this mix, it just keeps getting better and better, culminating with the dunk where he jumps over Frédéric Weis in the Olympics.

My Favorite Part: Honestly guys, I tried to find something I liked better than the dunk over Weis, because so many of you say all he did was jump over a guy who was standing still, but for Pete's sake the guy who was standing still was still 7'2"!

1. Michael Jordan

My favorite thing about mixes is how they can make you reminisce about the days when basketball was different.

Honestly, I have watched an endless number of mixes on Youtube, and more than I would like to admit researching this article, and it just felt like a disservice to pick anyone but Michael Jordan for the number one slot.

I wasted over an hour just watching Jordan float through the air in slow-motion like a cloud drifting through the sky.  Almost effortless.

There are more athletic guys in the NBA today, and there are better shooters, defenders, dribblers and passers, but nobody has ever put it together quite like Jordan, and nobody has made it look so good since Jordan.

Is it possible that with the over-saturation of basketball these days that Jordan has become underrated?  I have been told over the past few months to be less of a "Jordan Homer," and I'm still not sure what that means.  It honestly baffles my mind when someone tries to make an argument that anyone today is on the same level as Jordan.

Just go to Youtube and waste half your day watching Jordan mixes and tell me that there is anyone that can compare with him in this day.

My Favorite Part: Every. Single. Bit.

If you are one of those twitterers, you can follow me @JDorsey33.