All-time NBA Players #49 - #38. MVPs vs rings: Tony Parker and Steve Nash vie to top this tier

Relax, this is just to honor past greats

Eric Apricot says: This is an original series written by a friend of DubNationHQ.com. This analyzes and ranks the Top 75ish NBA players of all time. Some of you will be angered, some will think you can do better, but hopefully everyone can find something to enjoy in this journey appreciating the great historical achievements by past and present players.

• The Top 75ish NBA Players series index with full details on the ranking process

We intend for the series pieces to come out each week, covering approximately 10 players per piece.

Notation: * Means active player. 77= means tied for #77.

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49 Ray Allen (162 BEAST points) 

Honors

• 2x Championships (Miami not top 3 player) (40) 

• 2x Runner up ( Miami not top 3) (8)

• 2x All NBA (4)

• All Star (10)

• 3x three point season leader (6)

• Olympic Gold (3)

Individual career stats

• top 40 total points (5)

• top 5 threes (20)

• top 10 Finals threes (10)

• top 30 steals Finals (3)

• top 20 threes per game regular season (2)

• top 20 threes per game playoffs (3)

• top 10 threes per game Finals (5)

• top 30 TS% playoffs (5)

• top 5 TS% finals (20)

• top 50 Win Shares regular season (2)

• top 50 Win Shares playoffs (10)

• top 50 RAPM (3)

Bonus points

• 50 point game playoffs (first round) (1)

• 27-win streak (not top 3) (2)

As we all know, Ray Allen was the three point king in between Reggie and Steph. After a career with some success as the primary option on the Bucks and then the Sonics, he got a trade to a genuine contender and served as the third wheel of the 2008 Celtics champions, the somewhat forgotten original “big three” of the super-team era. Loyalty, schmoyalty, he bolted for an even bigger big three super-team in Miami where he delivered another championship there with the shot. 

 

Despite being the bridge to the modern three-point era he is still at the top of the charts, so his exploits from beyond the arc are pretty fairly recognised.

48 Sam Jones (164 BEAST points) 

Honors

• 10x Championships (4x early era main player (60); 2 early era contributor (6); 1 emerging era main player (25); 1 emerging era contributor (5)) (96) 

• 2x Threepeats (20)

• 1x Repeat (5)

• 3x All NBA (6)

• All Star (5)

Individual career stats

• top 10 Finals points (10)

• top 20 Finals rebounds (5)

• top 20 Finals assists (5)

• top 50 Win Shares playoffs (10)

Bonus points

• 50 point game in playoffs (3)

From one sharp shooting Celtics guard to another. Someone had to score those points for Bill Russell’s Celtics, and that someone was often Sam Jones. Officially he has ten rings though our beast struggled to calculate exactly which Celtic should get how much credit for each ring, especially in Jones’ case where his run stretched into the “emerging era”. It’s on a scrap of paper somewhere. Please don’t make me find it.

Even accounting for a smaller league and fewer playoff rounds, it’s pretty difficult to argue against a 5-time All Star, 3-time All NBA, ten-time champ who hit a lot of big shots on the big stage. Win Shares agrees thankfully.

 

47 Robert Parish (175 BEAST points) 

Honors

• 3x Championships (1981 not top 3) 65)

• 2x Runner-up (10)

• MVP Runner-up point (1)

• four consecutive Finals (10)

• 2x All NBA (4)

• All Star (9)

Individual career statistics

• top 40 total points (5)

• top 10 total rebounds (15)

• top 10 total blocks (15)

• top 20 total rebounds Finals (5)

• top 5 total blocks Finals (15)

• top 20 total steals Finals (5)

• top 20 blocks per game Finals (3)

• top 30 Win Shares regular season (3)

• top 50 Win Shares playoffs (10)

What is this, a list of Celtics? Other teams are allowed you know beastie. Anyway here’s the Chief. Over the course of a 20-year career, starting with the Warriors and finishing as a locker room vet on the 1997 Chicago Bulls, Parish racked up some pretty meaty statistical totals to go with his dynastic exploits as one of the 1980s Celtics big three. That level of consistency and durability over such a long period on some many winning teams tickles the Beast’s tummy.

Beast doesn’t award bonus points for extracurriculars, but if it did, lamping Bill Laimbeer might qualify for some.

46 George Mikan (176 BEAST points) 

Honors

• 5x NBA Championships early era (75)

• Threepeat early era (10)

• Repeat early era (5)

• 6x All NBA (all First Team) (18)

• All Star (4)

• 3x Scoring Champion (15)

• Rebounding season leader (2)

• 2 x NBL championships (10)

• NBL MVP (5)

• NBL Scoring Champion (2)

• 2x NBL First Team (2)

• 2 x NCAA Scoring Champion (2)

• NIT Championship (1)

• NIT MVP (1)

Individual career stats

• top 10 rebounds per game playoffs (5)

• top 20 points per game Finals (3)

• top 20 total points in Finals (5)

• top 50 Win Shares playoffs (10)

Bonus points

• 60-point game (1)

Ooh a non-Celtic! Ok it’s a Laker, albeit a Minneapolis one. As we all know Mikan was the original superstar of the NBA, so dominant they had to introduce multiple rule changes such as widening the paint, adding the goal-tending rule, and eventually the shot clock to stop teams just holding onto the ball so he couldn’t have it. A different era to say the least. But his dominance in every competition he played in likely justified such extreme tactical ends.

43 (tied) Bob Pettit (179 BEAST points) 

Honors

• NBA Champion early era (15)

• 3x Runner-up early era (9)

• 2x MVP (1 under 50 wins) (30)

• MVP runner up points (8)

• 11x All NBA (10x First Team) (32)

• All Star (11)

• 2x Scoring Champion (10)

• rebounding season leader (2)

• Rookie of the Year (1)

Individual career stats

• top 50 total points (3)

• top 20 total rebounds (5)

• top 20 points Finals (5)

• top 10 rebounds Finals (10)

• top 10 points per game (3)

• top 20 points per game playoffs (3)

• top 10 points per game Finals (5)

• top 5 rebounds per game (5)

• top 5 rebounds per game playoffs (5)

• top 5 rebounds per game Finals (5)

• top 50 Win Shares regular season (2)

• top 75 Win Shares playoffs (5)

Bonus points

• 50 point game in Finals (5)

Bob Pettit was the other big star of the 1950s NBA before the Celtics swept away all before them.  Famously he was the league’s first MVP and his St Louis Hawks championship marked the only time Bill Russell lost in the NBA Finals. In the close-out Game 6 Pettit had 50, something no one else matched until Giannis did it in the 2021 Finals.

Pettit had entered the league as a center but got moved to power forward where he had to develop a jump shot. He did so very effectively and he became the first player to reach 20,000 points. He also hauled down over 14,000 rebounds over his career as well, demonstrating his toughness in the physical early NBA. It’s a remarkable achievement that even after all these years he’s still at the top of the scoring and rebounding charts.

43 (tied) Pau Gasol (179 BEAST points) 

Honors

• 2x Championship (60)

• Repeat Championship (15)

• Runner-up (5)

• three consecutive Finals (5)

• 4x All NBA (8)

• All Star (6)

• Rookie of the Year (1)

• 2x Olympics silvers (2)

• Olympic bronze (1)

• 2x Olympic top scorer (4)

• FIBA World Cup Gold (2)

• FIBA World Cup MVP (1)

• 2x FIBA World Cup All Tournament team (2)

• 3x Eurobasket champion (3)

• Eurobasket MVP (2)

• 3x ACB champion (6)

• ACB Finals MVP (1)

• Spanish cup (1)

Individual career stats

• top 50 total points (3)

• top 30 total rebounds (3)

• top 20 total blocks (5)

• 3 top categories (5)

• top 20 total blocks Finals (5)

• top 20 blocks per game Finals (3)

• top 20 rebounds per game Finals (3)

• top 10 TS% Finals (15)

• top 50 Win Shares regular season (2)

• top 50 Win Shares playoffs (10)

Pau Gasol generally gets a bit overlooked in these discussions. With size, skill, two-way play in the post, and front court passing chops, Gasol was the vital co-star Kobe needed for his second act. I still don’t know how the Lakers stole him from Memphis. No way Kobe has 5 rings without Pau or that daylight robbery of a trade.

Pau is one of the NBA’s most underrated overseas players. He absolutely was one of the great international players, leading a Spain team that gave two absolutely stacked USA teams a decent run for their money at the Olympics. His exploits in Spain dominating in arguably the second best league in the world before joining the NBA, and in international competitions do give him a bit of a boost but that reflects the growing globalization of the game over the last 30 years. Win Shares has him in the top 50 too.

43 (tied) Rick Barry (179 BEAST points)

Honors

• NBA champion (25)

• Finals MVP (15)

• Runner-up expansion era (5)

• Runner-up ABA (3)

• 6x All NBA (5x First Team) (17)

• NBA Scoring Champion (5)

• NBA season steals leader (2)

• All star NBA (8)

• ABA scoring champion (5)

• 4x All ABA team (4)

• Rookie of the Year (1)

• NCAA scoring champion (1)

Individual career stats

• top 30 total points (10)

• top 20 points per game regular season (2)

• top ten points per game playoffs (5)

• Top points per game Finals (15) 

• top 20 steals per game regular season (2)

• top 5 steals per game playoffs (10)

• top 50 Win Shares regular season (2)

• top 75 Win Shares playoffs (5)

Bonus points

• 50 point game in Finals (5)

• 60-point game (1)

• 2nd points per game in a Finals series (10)

• top steals per game in a Finals series (10)

• ABA all-time leader points per game (3)

• ABA all-time leader playoff points per game (5)

• 50 in ABA playoff game 7 (3)

Now we’re talking! A star in two leagues, Barry was a scoring machine wherever he played. He began by lighting up the NBA Finals with a 55-point effort en route to becoming the all time leader in points per game in the NBA Finals. 

He then hopped to the ABA where became the all time leader in ABA per game scoring for both the regular season and playoffs. 

Obviously he then returned to the NBA and led the Warriors to the 1975 championship, capping off a remarkable NBA career in the Bay Area.

Barry was an all-around small forward who could do it all - smooth shots, silky passes, nice handles. He’d be a surefire hit in any era but somehow his game fits nicely with some ‘70s funky music so let’s roll one more tape.

42 James Worthy (180 BEAST points) 

Honors

• 3x Champion (not top 3 in 85) (70)

• 3x Runner-up (1 not top 3) (13)

• Finals MVP(20)

• Repeat Champion (10)

• three consecutive Finals (5)

• 2x All NBA (4)

• All Star (7)

• NCAA Champion (2)

• NCAA Final Four MVP (1)

Individual career stats

• top 20 total points in Finals (5)

• top 30 total assists in Finals (3)

• top 20 total steals in Finals (5)

• top 30 total blocks Finals (3)

• 4 Finals top categories (5)

• top 30 points per game Finals (2)

• top 30 TS% playoffs (5)

• top 20 TS% Finals (10)

• top 50 Win Shares playoffs (10)

Big Game James was a winner who lifted his play when the pressure was on. The third wheel of those later Showtime Laker teams, Worthy was a perfect fit as an athletic finisher who could get out on the break. He had the size and plenty of moves in the post to operate in the half court. 

His efficiency and Win Shares jump up when the lights are brightest, he stuffed the stat charts in the Finals and he won the Finals MVP in 1988. All tasty fuel for our beast.

41 Kevin McHale (183 BEAST points) 

• 2x Champion (60)

• 2x Runner-up (10)

• MVP runner up point (1)

• 1x All NBA (3)

• 6x All Defense (12)

• All Star (7)

• 4 consecutive Finals (10)

• 2x 6th Man of the Year (2)

Individual career stats

• top 30 total blocks (3)

• top 30 total points in Finals (3)

• top 30 total rebounds in Finals (3)

• top 10 blocks Finals (10)

• top 20 blocks per game Finals (3)

• top 20 TS% regular season (5)

• top 5 TS% playoffs (20)

• top 10 TS% finals (15)

• top 30 Win shares playoffs (15)

• top 75 Win Shares regular season (1)

Having McHale marginally over Worthy would probably start a fight in a 1980s themed bar. Anyway, lots of post moves. Then some more. I hope you like ‘em because search Kevin McHale on Youtube and that’s what you’ll get.

That fancy footwork basically secures McHale’s place here. Just look at his efficiency in the playoffs and Finals. Combine that with a solid defensive resume, 2 rings and 2 more Finals in which he was a main player, and a nice dose of playoff Win Shares and it’s a strong case for some beastly love.

39 (tied) Steve Nash (188 BEAST points) 

Honors

• 2x MVP (50)

• Repeat MVP (15)

• MVP runner up points (5)

• 7x All NBA (3x First Team) (17)

• 5x assists season leader (10)

• All Star (8)

• 2x Americup MVP (2)

Individual career stats

• top ten total assists (15)

• top 10 assists per game regular season (3)

• top ten assists per game playoffs (5)

• top 20 TS% regular season (5)

• top 20 TS% playoffs (10)

• top 50 Win Shares regular season (2)

• top 75 Win Shares playoffs (5)

• top 30 RAPM (5)

Bonus points

• 4x 50-40-90 club (20)

• 3x consecutive 50-40-90 club (5)

• near miss 50-40-90 (3)

• 2nd all time FT% (3)

Ten years before a certain unheralded revolutionary guard turned double MVP “ruined the game” came another unheralded revolutionary guard turned double MVP. Steve Nash’s Phoenix Suns paved the way for Steph Curry’s revolution, ushering in a new era of pace, three-point shooting, and creativity.

Nash is the disruptive innovator at the heart of todays NBA. He was at his core though a point guard, (too?) often favoring his immense passing wizardry over his pinpoint shooting accuracy (he was one missed free throw away from 5 consecutive 50-40-90 seasons which is absolutely nuts). 

If there’s one lesson that unlocked Steph and the Warriors, it was leaning harder into the revolution that came before them.

What’s easy to forget about Nash though is that it wasn’t until he was 30 that he returned to the Suns to emerge fully into the revolutionary player he became. After originally being drafted by them and playing sparingly behind Kevin Johnson and Jason Kidd he was traded to Dallas where he teamed up with Dirk Nowitzki for 6 years. Mark Cuban allegedly didn’t want to pony up the dough for a 30-year-old Nash when he became a free agent. Nice job Mark! 

But it was the partnership with a more youthful, fresher, and dare I say less jaded Mike D’Antoni and his 7-seconds-or-less system that unlocked Nash to such devastating effect so maybe it was for the best. After all, one of D’Antoni’s greatest strengths is leaning into the talents of his star guards. With Nash this was certainly a much more aesthetically pleasing iteration than others.

They might well have won a ring if it weren’t for Big Shot Bob taking a Big Cheap Shot and hip checking him into the stands, leading to some bush league suspensions from the NBA which effectively killed off the Suns best shot at a ring. Sometimes the NBA really does get in its own way.

Here’s the full tape, complete with surprisingly grainy Mavs footage, for the hardcore among you.

39 (tied) Elgin Baylor (188 BEAST points) 

Honors

• 5x Runner-up early era (15)

• 3x Runner-up expansion era (15)

• three consecutive Finals expansion era (3)

• 10x All NBA (all First Team) (30)

• MVP Runner-up points (9)

• All Star (11)

• Rookie of the Year (1)

• NCAA Final Four MVP (1)

Individual career stats

• top 40 total points (5) 

• top 30 total rebounds (3)

• Top 5 points in Finals (15)

• Top 5 most rebounds Finals (15)

• top 20 total assists in finals (5)

• top 5 points per game regular season (5)

• top 20 points per game playoffs (3)

• top 20 points per game Finals (2)

• top ten rebounds per game regular season (3)

• top 20 rebounds per game playoffs (3)

• top ten career average rebounds per game Finals (5)

• top 50 Win Shares playoffs (10)

Bonus points

• Finals scoring record (61 in a finals game) (10)

• 70 point game (3)

• multiple 60 point games (2)

• 5 championship contributor

• 3rd most points per game in a Finals series (8)

To call Elgin Baylor an innovator is to do him a disservice. He was the originator of the modern NBA, a player whose style was to set the table for so many greats that came after him. Take a look at the tape and tell me you don’t see a prototype of  Dr J, Jordan, Kobe, Durant etc etc.

The league he came into was radically different to the one he left, and that’s in large part down to his unique and entertaining style of play. The effects of nagging injuries conspired to see him retire early into the 1971-72 season, the year the Lakers finally got over the hump and won the title, robbing him of the closure he deserved after 8 Finals losses, several of them agonisingly close Game 7 heartbreakers. He was technically on the roster at seasons end so in theory he has a ring. In the strictest beastly sense he shouldn’t get any points for it but I’m going to go ahead and give him the contributor points as he was part of that core that came so close for so long. 

Amazingly he still holds the record for most points in a Finals game more than 60 years after setting it. An absolute legend of the game.

38 Tony Parker (190 BEAST points) 

Honors

• 4x Champion (120)

• Finals MVP (20)

• Finals Runner-up (5)

• MVP runner up point (1)

• 4x All NBA (8)

• All Star (6)

• Eurobasket champion (1)

• Eurobasket MVP (1)

Individual career stats

• top 50 total points (3)

• top 20 total assists (5)

• top 30 total points in Finals (3)

• top 30 total threes Finals (3)

• 30 total assists in Finals (3)

• top 75 Win Shares regular season (1)

• top 75 Win Shares playoffs (5)

Bonus points

• most consecutive seasons making playoffs (5)

Zut alors! Parker over Nash? Ce n’est pas possible! 

A Gallic shrug from our beast. Deceptive quickness, nifty handles, surgical precision in the paint, a killer in the mid range, Tony Parker was in the engine room for four championships. Winning counts.

It might have been Duncan’s team and Manu was right there with him, but Parker delivered plenty of his own clutch moments too. His creativity was always purposeful and was a core reason for the Spurs being one of the most consistently excellent teams in league history.

He’s got some individual accolades to boot, such as that Finals MVP which vaults him up the list a bit. I’ve no problem with this ranking.