The Most Prolific Point Guards in NBA History

Image via Complex Original

Stats: 14.3 PPG, 8.5 APG, 3.0 RPG, 0.7 SPG
Accomplishments: 8-time NBA All-Star, 2-time NBA MVP, 3-time All-NBA First Team
Teams: Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers

At this point in his career, Nash's career average is "only" 14.3 ppg. But don't be fooled: The reason that number isn't higher is because Nash only averaged single digits in points during his first four seasons in the league. Since then (with the exception of this season, which featured Nash struggling through a range of injuries), Nash has shown a propensity for being a guy who could score from all over the court while simultaneously scanning the floor and finding the open man. On seven different occasions during his career, he averaged a double-double in points and assists. And he deserves more credit than he gets for helping Mike D'Antoni's high-octane offense work so well in Phoenix.

Stats: 16.3 PPG, 6.7 APG, 3.9 RPG, 1.8 SPG
Accomplishments: 9-time NBA All-Star, 2-time All-NBA First Team, NBA Champion
Teams: Seattle SuperSonics, Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat

GP went by the nickname "The Glove" thanks to his ability to play tight defense on opposing point guards. But that wasn't all that he could do. Legendary NBA guard Gail Goodrich once referred to Payton as "probably as complete a guard as there ever was" because of the way Payton approached the game. He excelled on both sides of the ball and brought a certain swagger and attitude to the court that really helped define the teams that he played for.

Stats: 18.9 PPG, 6.1 APG, 5.9 RPG, 1.9 SPG
Accomplishments: 7-time NBA All-Star, 4-time All-NBA First Team, 2-time NBA Champion
Teams: New York Knicks, Cleveland Cavaliers

What would Knicks fans do to have a guy like Frazier running point for their team? He had a midrange jumper that allowed him to score whenever he wanted to. He played great defense and could shut just about anyone down. While he was more than capable of putting up points, he also realized that he had great players like Willis Reed and Earl Monroe around him, which meant that he couldn't shoot the ball every time down the court. Instead, he helped the Knicks stay in their offense and that resulted in two NBA championships in a span of just four years back in the early 1970s. Like we said, we're sure Knicks fans wouldn't mind a guy like him steering the ship right now.

Stats: 13.1 PPG, 10.5 APG, 2.1 RPG, 2.2 SPG
Accomplishments: 10-time NBA All-Star, 2-time All-NBA First Team, 9-time NBA Assist Leader
Teams: Utah Jazz

Karl Malone and John Stockton didn't invent the pick-and-roll offense. But they did revolutionize it. And in doing so, they led the Jazz to 19 straight playoff appearances and two trips to the NBA Finals. Stockton did more than just dribble the ball around and find ways to get the ball to Malone, too. He also had a pretty solid jumper, the ability to take the ball to the basket, and then there was that defense that frustrated so many opponents and helped Stockton amass so many steals. His game wasn't always pretty but it got the job done and earned him a place in history.

Stats: 18.8 PPG, 7.4 APG, 2.3 RPG, 1.1 SPG
Accomplishments: 6-time NBA All-Star, 3-time All-NBA First Team, 1973 NBA Scoring Champion
Teams: Cincinnati Royals, Kansas City Kings, New York Nets, Boston Celtics, Milwaukee Bucks

During the 1972-73 NBA season, Archibald led the league by averaging 34.0 points per game. And we know you're thinking right now: "That is way too many points for a point guard to be averaging!" Normally, you would be right. But get this. That same year, Archibald also led the league in assists with 11.4 per game. So he became the first and only player ever to lead the NBA in both points and assists in the same year. That's almost unfathomable and speaks to how much Archibald's coaches trusted him with the ball in his hands.

Stats: 18.4 PPG, 7.5 APG, 5.2 RPG, TK SPG
Accomplishments: 13-time NBA All-Star, 10-time All-NBA First Team, NBA MVP, 6-time NBA Champion
Teams: Boston Celtics, Cincinnati Royals

For years, Cousy played alongside Bill Russell. And he made the most of it. He knew how to score the ball, which is why he averaged double-figure points during his first 13 seasons in the league and made 13 consecutive NBA All-Star teams. But because he was running with guys like Russell, he also knew when to distribute the basketball and give other guys the opportunity to score, which helped him lead the league in assists from 1953 through 1960. Russell's unique ability to block shots and pull down rebounds also gave Cousy & Co. plenty of opportunities to run. And in a lot of ways, Cousy helped change the game by fast breaking at every possible opportunity.

Stats: 19.2 PPG, 9.3 APG, 3.6 RPG, 1.9 SPG
Accomplishments: 12-time NBA All-Star, 3-time All-NBA First Team, 2-time NBA Champion, 1990 NBA Finals MVP
Teams: Detroit Pistons

The former member of the infamous "Bad Boys" was every bit as bad as any other point guard in NBA history. He's gotten a bad rap in recent years thanks to his shortcomings as an NBA executive. But back in the 1980s, Thomas was fearless as a player. His numbers speak for themselves, but it was his bold, brash attitude that impressed us the most. It caused fits for other teams, forced his teammates to play extra hard, and cemented his legacy as one of the toughest basketball players ever. He was only 6-foot-1 and about 180 pounds, but you'd never know that when you look at the way he played the game.

Stats: 27.0 PPG, 6.7 APG, 5.8 RPG, 2.6 SPG
Accomplishments: 14-time NBA All-Star, 10-time All-NBA First Team, 1970 NBA Scoring Champion
Teams: Los Angeles Lakers

Back in 1969, designer Alan Siegel was asked to come up with a new logo for the NBA. And when he sat down to start working on it, he knew exactly who he wanted to include in it—Jerry West. The NBA never actually acknowledged that West's image was used to create the logo, but Siegel revealed that he used a photo of West to make the logo, and it's pretty easy to see why. Back in the 1960s and early 1970s, West was a scoring machine. He earned the nicknames "Mr. Clutch" and "Mr. Outside" thanks to his ability to score the basketball, averaging more than 30 points in a season on four different occasions and routinely averaging at least 25 points per game throughout his career. And as if that wasn't impressive enough, he also became a much better passer as the years went on, starting his career with a 4.2 apg average before increasing that as high as 9.7 apg during the 1971-72 NBA season.

Stats: 25.7 PPG, 9.5 APG, 7.5 RPG, 1.1 SPG
Accomplishments: 12-time NBA All-Star, 9-time All-NBA First Team, 1964 NBA MVP
Teams: Cincinnati Royals, Milwaukee Bucks

Putting up a triple-double in a single game is reason for celebration these days. But during the 1961-62 NBA season, The Big O made triple-doubles a regular thing when he averaged a triple-double. That season, he averaged 30.8 points, 11.4 assists, and 12.5 rebounds per game. Couple that with the fact that he averaged at least 30 points per game in six of his first seven seasons in the league and it's no wonder why so many people routinely argue that Robertson is the best player in NBA history. He was basically unguardable.

Stats: 19.5 PPG, 11.2 APG, 5.5 RPG, 1.9 SPG
Accomplishments: 12-time NBA All-Star, 3-time NBA MVP, 10-time All-NBA First Team, 5-time NBA Champion
Teams: Los Angeles Lakers

Standing at 6-foot-9, Magic could have played—and excelled at—any of the five positions on the court. And in one particular instance, when Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was forced to sit out of Game 6 of the 1980 NBA Finals with an injured ankle, he proved it by playing center and finishing the game with 42 points, 15 rebounds, and seven assists. But he most often played point and served as the driving force behind the Lakers' "Showtime" offense. It made him not only one of the best point guards of all time, but also one of the best players in the history of the league. When it comes to great NBA point guards, the conversation starts and ends with Magic Johnson.