Who ya got for the best pure passer of all time? ....now defend your choice! Should be an interesting topic because the best all did things a little differently from the rest - Steve Nash's razzle dazzle was a little different than Jason Kidd's who was different from Magic's. Also, don't leave out those guys who pull off less fancy but just as technically difficult passes like prime Lebron throwing pinpoint lasers across his body through traffic to 3pt shooters on the opposite side of the court.
I started watching basketball in 2001, I would say from what I've watched, it's between Nash and CP3.
Magic was the best pure passer ever. If it wasn't for HIV, his assists numbers would be like Kareems points numbers. 7.3 assist per game as a 19 year old rookie playing power forward. NBA All-Time Assists Leaders: Career Per Game Average in the Regular Season - Top 50 Player Assists Total_Assists Seasons Games 1. Magic Johnson 11.19 10,141 13 906 2. John Stockton 10.51 15,806 19 1,504 3. Chris Paul 9.76 8,708 13 892 4. Oscar Robertson 9.51 9,887 14 1,040 5. Isiah Thomas 9.26 9,061 13 979 6. John Wall 9.25 5,003 8 541 7. Kevin Johnson 9.13 6,711 12 735 8. Jason Kidd 8.69 12,091 19 1,391 9. Steve Nash 8.49 10,335 18 1,217 10. Rajon Rondo 8.48 6,608 12 779
Rick Barry (Warriors). If you were his teammate you had to be always looking for the pass or you'd get one in the face. Best passing forward. Bill Walton. Arvydas Sabonis. Wes Unseld. Tough to choose the best passing center. Pete Maravich. Best passing guard.
For a 10 year period stockton 12.8 assists a year. The best 10 year stretch of magic's career was about 12 assists/game. I think Stockton assist record is probably one of the most unbreakable records there is. Bill Russel is within 10% of Wilts rebound record. No one is withing 20% of stocktons assist record.
This is a really tough list ... I'd say as far as point guards go, it's between Magic, Kidd, Cp3, Nash, Stockton, Big O, Zeke, with KJ, Penny Hardaway, Mark Jackson, and Wall, not tailing to far behind. If I have to choose, I'm going Magic, all day and all night. If I have say amongst shooting guards, it's between West, MJ, Pistol Pete, and Fat Lever, if I have to choose...I probably would lean towards West or Pistol Pete, with MJ trailing. For small forwards, it's definitely between LeBron, Bird, Lamar Odom (who is also more of power forward), Grant Hill, and Pippen. It's a pretty tough choice between Bird and LeBron. If we go through power forwards, there's quite a few guys to list, but Webber would be my top pick. My runner ups would be Sampson, Green, McHale The center position might be the toughest one, even with respect to the point guards...Wilt and Russell set the standard, then came Bill Walton AND Unseld, then you have more modern centers, like Sabonis, Divac, and even Shaq/Yao who are both pretty good. Sabonis and Divac are absolute marvels to watch. Then, you have the new generation with likes of Davis, Cousins, Towns, and Jokic, who are all really good passing big men. I think Jokic might be the best of the youngsters. -- For big men, I think I am going to take Wilt for the win edging out Walton, Sabonis, and Russell. All-Pure Passer team PG - Magic SG - West SF - Bird or LeBron PF - Webber C - Wilt
Stockton's assist record was slightly inflated because Utah pretty much ran one play which lead to pretty much one pass that made Karl Malone the second highest scoring leader of all time. Stockton was great, no doubt but he was not as good as Magic.
Great topic... I suppose we should agree on what is meant by 'pure'. Growing up in the 70s/80s, my bias leans heavily to Earvin Magic Johnson. Watching that fast break develop, with lanes filling in and Magic pushing the ball was 'pure' artistry. He was incredibly sound, so much so that his patented 'no-look' passes were laser-like in timing and precision. It's hard to imagine another with such flawless vision and calibrated instincts. (Bird comes to mind.) The Lakers would coast for 3 quarters, then dial it up and post a quick 10-15 pts in the early minutes of the 4th and everyone knew it was over, including the opposing bench. What's more fascinating is Magic's domination in the postseason with this 'Showtime' style of play. That's a rare distinction that shouldn't be overlooked when comparing all-time greats. Nice thread.
I would agree here. Stockton might have gotten the stats but I don't think his vision was on par with any of the players above.
If it's worth anything Wilt Chamberlain talks up Stockton as the best point guard in the game at the time and would start team with him (over other Pg) -- Bob Lanier looks at him, like he is sick.
Magic is my guy. He saw ridiculous angles that even his teammates couldn’t see when he first started playing. There were lots of instances of magic surprising his teammates with crisp passes to the face or chest (until they started expecting those passes from magic). He has countless highlights of him threading the needle perfectly and hitting his guy in stride. Full court passes, through defender’s legs, around the back, no look, over the head - you name it. He made it look super easy. He wasn’t even a great shooter. His man could sag off him for help defense and magic STILL would find a way to rack up assists. The dude was unreal. The other names that come to mind are Kidd, Nash, and CP3. That’s my tier 2.
I still can't imagine anyone surpassing magic with this rookie performance in a final. He was the best scorer, rebounder and passer on the court with a bunch of all time greats and he was 19 years old.
I think I agree - Stockton wasn't as talented as some of the others, but there's something to be said about his durability/reliability. Dude was an iron man. 20 seasons of consistent 10 assists per game. Barely missed a game throughout his entire 2-decade career.