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18th August, 2008 - 7:55 pm
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| Current Features |
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TEAM RANKINGS: The RealGM Team Rankings For The Week Of December 1st
How do the Cavaliers respond to the flood of 2010 talk? They keep winning and winning in dominant fashion, climbing to first in our rankings.
SCOOP DU JOUR: Marbury, Pietrus, Pie, Plaxico And Leafs!
Perhaps the last of the Stephon Marbury saga, the Magic lose Mickael Pietrus, the Orioles looking at Felix Pie, Plaxico Burress shoots himself, and no additions for the Leafs?
PLAYER RANKINGS: The NBA Player Rankings For The Week Of November 25th
The current top-five players in the NBA according to RealGM's FIC, Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, and Chris Bosh, were all on Team USA's 2008 Gold Medal team. How does the rest of the NBA rank?
LOCKER TALK: Monta: I Was Racing Baron And Elton
Monta Ellis is still at least a full month away from his return to the court for the Warriors, but he recently called RealGM with the full story behind his ankle injury.
MOCK DRAFT: 2008 NBA Mock Draft, Version 13.0 (Draft Day Edition)
Weeks and months of waiting has finally come to an end, and Draft day is officially here.
CLASSICS: Hakeem Vs. Ewing: Who Was The Better Center?
Born within six months of each other in opposite corners of the world, two seven footers who are finalists for the Basketball Hall of Fame this fall are two of the best ever to play the center position.
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By Andrew Perna
It has been more than a month since the latest edition in this series – a result of free agency in the NBA and a personal vacation. As we enter the top five, the players are getting even better with guys like Dwyane Wade, Scottie Pippen, Charles Barkley, and Kevin Garnett appearing on this list.
Without further ado, here are the top ten careers of players that were taken with the fifth overall pick in the NBA Draft.
10. Jason Richardson – No. 5 in 2001 (Golden State)
Richardson is one of the most underrated players in the NBA today, having scored nearly 10,000 points in just 520 career games. He has averaged 18.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.2 assists in his seven-year NBA career. After enjoying six individually successful seasons with the Warriors, he was traded to the Bobcats in the summer of 2007.
He has started all but seven of the games he’s played in the NBA, making an immediate impact in Golden State during his rookie year (14.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.0 assists). That effort landed him on the 2002 All-Rookie First Team, in addition to winning the MVP award in Rookie Challenge during All-Star weekend that same year.
9. Bobby Jones – No. 5 in 1974 (Houston)
Jones took home a silver medal with the U.S. men’s basketball team in Munich (1972) and opted to play in the ABA initially after being drafted with the fifth pick in 1974 by the Rockets. Jones finished his ten-year NBA career (after two seasons in the ABA) with 8,911 points and 4,256 rebounds.
At 6’9” Jones was a very good rebounder, averaging 6.1 boards per game in his professional career. In addition to taking home the Sixth Man of the Year award (the first-ever), with the 76ers, Bobby won an NBA Title with Philadelphia in 1983. He was well-known for his defense, notching 1.4 steals and 1.3 blocks over his 774-game run in the NBA.
8. Sidney Moncrief – No. 5 in 1979 (Milwaukee)
Moncrief thrived as a member of the Bucks in the 1980s, making five All-Star teams in consecutive years (1982 to 1986). He tallied 11,931 points, 3,575 rebounds and 2,793 assists over his eleven-year NBA career.
Milwaukee retired his #4 jersey, honoring the two-time Defensive Player of the Year, who also made one All-NBA First Team, four All-NBA Second Teams, four All-NBA Defensive First Teams and one All-NBA Defensive Second Team.
7. Walt Frazier – No. 5 in 1967 (New York)
Frazier is best known to younger fans as a spokesman for Just for Men hair products and as a poetic commentator for the New York Knicks , but he was enshrined into the Hall of Fame in 1987 as a player. Clyde was a seven-time All-Star and was named to the All-NBA First Team on four occasions.
Frazier averaged at least 16.2 points per game ten times during his thirteen-year career. He finished with 15,581 points, 5,040 assists and 4,830 rebounds. Walt was also known for his defense, averaging 1.9 steals per game in his career and having been named to seven All-NBA Defensive First Teams.
6. Vince Carter – No. 5 in 1998 (Golden State)
Carter kicked his career off by winning the Rookie of the Year award (1999) with the Raptors, and 16,592 points later he’s an eight-time All-Star and remains one of the league’s most explosive players. He burst onto the scene during his second season (2000) by winning the Slam Dunk Contest during All-Star weekend.
He has scored consistently with both Toronto and New Jersey, ranking in the top ten in points per game on six occasions. His career average, 23.5, ranks fifth among all active NBA players. The Warriors selected Carter, and then shipped him to the Raptors for Antawn Jamison, his teammate at North Carolina. Like several other members on this list, he took home a gold medal from the Sydney Olympics in 2000.
5. Ray Allen – No. 5 in 1996 (Minnesota)
Allen has quietly had the best career of any Connecticut product, tallying 18,227 points through his first twelve NBA seasons. Drafted by the Timberwolves, and then traded to the Bucks, Ray is an eight-time All-Star and won his first NBA title as a member of the Celtics this June.
He has also been named to the All-NBA Second and Third Team on one occasion, as well as the All-NBA Rookie Team (1997). Allen also took home a gold medal from Sydney (2000) as a member of the final installment of the “Dream Team”. He ranks second behind Reggie Miller among the league’s most prolific three-point shooters with 2,100 made shots.
4. Dwyane Wade – No. 5 in 2003 (Miami)
Wade took a backseat to LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony following the 2003 NBA Draft but quickly made a name for himself by leading his team to a title before either of his classmates. He stepped in and started right away for the Heat, helping Miami make the postseason just one year removed from a 25-57 campaign.
He has never averaged fewer than 16.2 points in his five-year career, topping out at 27.4 per game in 2007 (fifth in the league). Dwyane is already a four-time All-Star, a three-time All-NBA selection and an NBA Finals MVP. He also took home a bronze medal as a member of the U.S. men’s basketball team in Athens (2004) and could very well take home gold from Beijing later this month.
3. Scottie Pippen – No. 5 in 1987 (Seattle)
A lot of people credit Michael Jordan for Pippen’s success, but there is no discounting how talented a player he was during his prime. He is a six-time NBA champion, a seven-time All-Star, an eight-time All-NBA Defensive First Team member and a three-time All-NBA First Team selection.
He also won a pair of gold medals as a member of the first two “Dream Teams”. Pippen retired with 18,940 points, 7,494 rebounds and 6,135 assists after seventeen seasons, including stints with Houston and Portland after making a name for himself with Chicago. The Sonics infamously traded Pippen to the Bulls for Olden Polynice, the ninth pick in the same draft.
2. Charles Barkley – No. 5 in 1984 (Philadelphia)
Barkley was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006, having accumulated 23,757 points and 12,546 rebounds during an illustrious sixteen-year NBA career. Sir Charles was the league’s MVP in 1993, is an eleven-time All-Star, a five-time All-NBA First Team selection and was the Rookie of the Year in 1985.
He has two gold medals to his credit (1992, 1996) and was a member of the original “Dream Team”. He played much taller than his 6’6” frame, finishing among the league leaders in rebounding on several occasions. He fancied himself as a three-pointer shooter at times during his career, but only made more than 30% of his attempts twice.
1. Kevin Garnett – No. 5 in 1995 (Minnesota)
Garnett added a significant component to his credit this past June when the Celtics took home the NBA title in his first season in Boston. He has already accumulated 20,378 points and 11,197 rebounds, and he’s only 32. He set the table for high school players, becoming the first since Moses Malone (1974) to jump straight to the NBA.
His list of accomplishments is almost unparalleled. He has been an MVP (2004), a Defensive Player of the Year (2008), an All-Star Game MVP (2003) and even took home a gold medal in Sydney (2000). In addition to all that he’s made four All-NBA First Teams, seven All-NBA Defensive First Teams, three All-NBA Second Teams, two All-NBA Defensive Second Teams and a pair of All-NBA Third Teams.
Andrew Perna is a Senior Writer for RealGM.com and would love to hear what you think about this list. Feel free to e-mail him at Andrew.Perna@RealGM.com |
