i just wanted to know who you guys think is the best passer of all time? A good passer to me has to be a player who is willing to make a pass to sacrifice his own shot. An example of this is if a player were running down court, about to dunk, but then they throw it off the backboard to give an assist to someone trailing behing him. Today in the NBA these kinds of players are often hard to come by, because of the desire to be on the highlight reel Just thought I'd put my two cents in if anyone cares
Magic/Larry Hands down, Magic was the flashy passer, Larry would hit you with a quick no look strike when it seemed as if he had not options open. They are my picks.
If great passing is also the ability to see and get the ball to the open teammate, not only to pass when you can't take your shot, then John Stockton and Magic Johnson.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting The Black Widow:</div><div class="quote_post">Magic Johnson Stock Big O my picks in order</div> 'Nuff said. Magic edges out Stock by a hair because he was just as good of a passer, but had that added stlye and flair. Stock was great too, just not quite as exciting to watch. Glad to see the Big O getting some recognition, too bad he'll never get as much as he deserves. Just one more comes to mind - Maravich.
I'd say its easily Stockton. Easily. Magic was great, but in terms of the way Stockton could get even the worst players invovled in offense, Magic couldn't compare favorably. Stockton has not only the top four seasons in assists in history, but also had the highest assist per game average(which Magic now holds) until his recent assists averages(recorded at an age older than any Magic played at) pulled it down to the 'paltry' ten and change that it is now. And he's head and shoulders above in total assists. Magic isn't even close in terms of total assists. And he wouldn't have been if he had kept on playing either, since his averages would have dropped too. I'll concede that Magic was the flashiest passer, but Stockton sacrificed pizzazz for utility. Simple as that.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting starman85:</div><div class="quote_post">I'd say its easily Stockton. Easily. Magic was great, but in terms of the way Stockton could get even the worst players invovled in offense, Magic couldn't compare favorably. Stockton has not only the top four seasons in assists in history, but also had the highest assist per game average(which Magic now holds) until his recent assists averages(recorded at an age older than any Magic played at) pulled it down to the 'paltry' ten and change that it is now. And he's head and shoulders above in total assists. Magic isn't even close in terms of total assists. And he wouldn't have been if he had kept on playing either, since his averages would have dropped too. I'll concede that Magic was the flashiest passer, but Stockton sacrificed pizzazz for utility. Simple as that.</div> Good breakdown brah,you're right. But I give Magic the slight edge because of the success of his teams. I know they were hella talented but wouldn't have been half as good if Magic wasn't runnin' the show. Stock's teams always seemed to collapse in the postseason. I just Erving the edge because of success. Just my opinion tho'..
John Stockton...I dont think theres any real question...no one was really in his league as a passer...
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Mr_Infante:</div><div class="quote_post">ok how bout this, who is the best passer in the league besides Magic and Stockon?</div> IMO Jason Kidd and Gary Payton. Kidd is the best passer playing right now, but Payton is laser-like too. Out of the post, Vlade Divac. I take Magic slightly over Stockton because he played in more different team makeups and systems than Stock, who pretty much had one system and perfected it. Magic was also flashier, way more entertaining.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">I'd say its easily Stockton. Easily. Magic was great, but in terms of the way Stockton could get even the worst players invovled in offense, Magic couldn't compare favorably. Stockton has not only the top four seasons in assists in history, but also had the highest assist per game average(which Magic now holds) until his recent assists averages(recorded at an age older than any Magic played at) pulled it down to the 'paltry' ten and change that it is now. And he's head and shoulders above in total assists. Magic isn't even close in terms of total assists. And he wouldn't have been if he had kept on playing either, since his averages would have dropped too. I'll concede that Magic was the flashiest passer, but Stockton sacrificed pizzazz for utility. Simple as that.</div> Nope, I strongly disagree that Stockton was easily the best passer. I did see Magic play more than Stockton, being from Los Angeles. But, I have still seen hundreds of Stockton games and from what I saw, Magic was the better passer - just barely. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Magic Johnson was an unbelievable passer with the ability to see the entire court</div> Just another reason, along with the winning of course. Magic knew exactly where every player was on the floor, he also had a freakish knack for anticipating the play 5-10 seconds ahead of time. Magic could fake his opponents out so well with a quick movement of his eyes or shoulders, then whip a pin-point pass straight into the hands of a waiting (but rarely expecting) teammate for the bucket. Stockton did get players into the game, but he also benefited greatly from the pick and roll style offense Utah is known for. Many forget that Stockton also had some other talented players in Utah other than Karl Malone. Not as many as Magic, but that doesn't matter much with passers who are that great. Magic could've got guys like Adrian Dantley, Thurl Baily, Darrell Griffith, Jeff Malone, Jeff Hornacek, Blue Edwards, David Benoit, etc. involved in the offense. Stock's biggest feat in this category is getting Ostertag involved, now for that I will give him ultimate praise. Please remember also that Magic missed four full seasons, then returned for a mere 36 games before retiring for good. Over the course of his 12.5 years, he averaged more than 900 assists per. Adding an even 3,000 to his total would bring him up to 13,100 - Leaving him 3,700 short of Stock - 6.5 years less than John. If Magic had played those 6.5 seasons and averaged a little over 500 assists per game - approximately 6.0 per., he would have caught up. Those are just the numbers, I'm not trying to take anything away from Stockton, just presenting the visual evidence and defending the 2nd best PG the league has ever seen. Magic was the best, for myself and many other Laker fans. Maybe it's a Laker bias, but I consider myself a fairly educated basketball fan with good reasoning to support my claims. Again, just my opinion...you know what they say about those...
I say Magic also. What I remember most is when he came back a fat, slow powerfoward. His game wasn't nearly the same (altho it was pretty good compared to other folk), but his passing and vision was still amazing.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting The Black Widow:</div><div class="quote_post">I think Mark 'Action' Jackson needs at least an honorable mention on any Great passers list.</div> You beat me to it. Can't have this conversation without mentioning Mark. He clearly had an instinct to get guys the ball at the right time and was never a shoot first guy. He never got enough credit for it though. Now if you ever saw him pay pro-am ball in the summer, you wouldn't believe it's the same guy.
I heard that Jackson is playing on the ABA, is that true? With all the NBA teams who could use a solid veteran PG?
