#45-41

#45. Rick Barry

Rick Barry is one of the deadliest offensive juggernauts in history. He averaged over 30 multiple times in his career, and he was an elite, elite shooter. Barry was dominant both in the regular season and in the playoffs. In fact, 2 playoff runs in particular were especially all-time impressive. In ‘67, he led the Warriors through 3 rounds to a finals berth, of which he averaged over 30p, 7r, and 4a to get there. In those finals he averaged 41p, yes 41p, 8r and 3a, but was defeated in 6 games by Wilt Chamberlain. Legendary stuff.

In ‘75, he again led the Warriors back to the finals, this time as massive underdogs to the Washington Bullets. The Bullets were the league’s top team, and finished 12 wins better than the Warriors. Barry swept the heavy-favorites, 4-0, while giving an efficient 30p, 4r, 5a, and nearly 4 steals a game! This is one of the most underrated and underappreciated finals performances and title wins ever, hands down.

Notable Playoff Series

Rings:

• '75 Finals vs Washington Bullets (445.55 Legacy Points)

  • Legendary, -2.0% performance, opponent was +3.67 SRS better, won 4-0. FMVP.

Other notable series:

• '67 Conference Finals vs St Louis Hawks (93.73 Legacy Points)

  • Legendary, -24.3% performance, opponent was -4.02 SRS worse, won 4-2.

• '75 Conference Finals vs Chicago Bulls (90.73 Legacy Points)

  • Legendary,-13.3% performance, opponent was 0.02 SRS better, won 4-3.

• '67 CSF's vs Los Angeles Lakers (71.14 Legacy Points)

  • Legendary, -18.3% performance, opponent was -2.27 SRS worse, won 3-0.

#44. Gary Payton

Payton is nearly inarguably the best defensive PG ever. 9 years in a row he was 1st team all-defense, and he was the only PG ever to win the DPOY award before last season. He was drafted by the SuperSonics in 1990, and played for them for 12 ½ seasons. In ‘96, he led the Sonics to the finals where they would take MJ & the 72-10 Bulls to a game 6. Only in the final 3 games did Coach Karl decide to stick “The Glove” onto MJ, in which he limited Jordan to just 24p, 5r, 3a on 37% from the field and 11% from 3.

Gary was elite on the offensive end as well, averaging 21p and 8a for 10 years (per75). Payton was also notorious for being known as a LEGENDARY trash talker. If you dont know, look it up. After being traded for Ray Allen in ‘03, Gary bounced between 4 different teams in 4 ½ years as a role player, making 2 more finals appearances, and winning one of them with Miami with Wade and Shaq in ‘06.

Notable Playoff Series

Rings:

• '06 Finals vs Dallas Mavericks (11.85 Legacy Points)

  • Role Player, -65.0% performance, opponent was +2.37 SRS better, won 4-2.

Other notable series:

• '96 CSF's vs Houston Rockets (81.17 Legacy Points)

  • Superstar, +19.2% performance, opponent was -5.77 SRS worse, won 4-0.

• '96 Conference Finals vs Utah Jazz (80.99 Legacy Points)

  • Superstar, -11.4% performance, opponent was -1.15 SRS worse, won 4-3.

• '97 First Round vs Phoenix Suns (27.66 Legacy Points)

  • Superstar, +5.6% performance, opponent was -6.70 SRS worse, won 5-2.

#43. Elvin Hayes

“The Big E” has a longevity to his greatness that is nearly unmatched. He has only missed 9 games in his 16-year career, and he finished his career as the 2nd greatest PF ever. Elvin was drafted in ‘68 by the San Diego Rockets and played with them for 4 years before being traded to the Bullets. He was extremely talented and relied on his patented turnaround middy, aggressive defense, and relentlessness on the glass to dominate his opponents for 50,000 minutes, the 3rd most played alltime.

Hayes led the Bullets to 3 finals appearances in 5 years, and in ‘78 his play gave Washington their first and only title in franchise history. He was snubbed of the FMVP as there was a controversy with one of the refs who had a short temper and was quick to give him several fouls, which led him to foul out in the 4th qtr of game 7, and so voters instead gave the award to Unseld.

Notable Playoff Series

Rings:

• '78 Finals vs Seattle SuperSonics (99.05 Legacy Points)

  • Superstar, +9.40% performance, opponent was +0.66 SRS better, won 4-3. FMVP snub.

Other notable series:

• '79 Conference Finals vs San Antonio Spurs (146.81 Legacy Points)

• Superstar, +4.91% performance, opponent was +0.22 SRS better, won 4-3.

• '78 Conference Finals vs Philadelphia 76ers (134.97 Legacy Points)

  • Superstar, +28.2% performance, opponent was +4.05 SRS better, won 4-2.

• '75 CSF's vs Buffalo Braves (42.80 Legacy Points)

  • Superstar, +17.0% performance, opponent was -4.37 SRS worse, won 4-3.

#42. George Gervin

“The Iceman” dominated as a scorer on a level like the league had never before seen since Wilt. Gervin is tied for the 3rd most Scoring Titles (4) in history, only behind MJ and Wilt. He perfected the finger roll as his popular go-to move around the basket. He could pull up a jumper from 25ft, fly through the lane with a sneaky reverse, or even power down a vicious slam over a 7-footer. He was an excellent free throw shooter with a pure form.

George made the Conf Finals 3 times in his career, losing by just 2 in game 7 to Elvin Hayes in ‘79, and the other 2 times losing to the Lakers with KAJ and Magic. Twice also he finished as the runner-up for MVP. He finished his NBA career shooting over 50% from the field, a feat not easy for a guard to achieve, especially when you consider his incredibly difficult shot diet.

Notable Playoff Series

Best Series:

• '83 CSF's vs Denver Nuggets (75.00 Legacy Points)

  • Superstar, +28.3% performance, opponent was -2.83 SRS worse, won 4-1.

• '82 CSF's vs Seattle SuperSonics (69.05 Legacy Points)

  • Legendary, -20.8% performance, opponent was +1.90 SRS better, won 4-1.

Other notable series:

• '79 CSF's vs Philadelphia 76ers (52.05 Legacy Points)

  • Legendary, -12.9% performance, opponent was -3.23 SRS worse, won 4-3.

• '79 Conference Finals vs Washington Bullets (15.82 Legacy Points)

  • Legendary, +9.0% performance, opponent was -0.22 SRS worse, lost 4-3.

#41. Dwight Howard

Dwight has become one of the more underrated and forgotten superstars of the last couple decades, a famous example of this was him being left off of the NBA’s Top-75. He was the most dominant defensive force in the league for nearly half a decade, winning a 3-peat of DPOY’s from ‘09-’11, and was just as commanding on the glass. His dynamic athleticism was through the roof, and made him nearly impossible to account for as a lob threat.

His best moments in the playoffs came in the ‘09 run to the finals when he averaged 22p and 15r on 62% shooting to get through the East, defeating the 76ers, the defending champs in Boston, and arguably the league’s best team and reigning MVP in Cleveland. He struggled more against the Lakers, but still managed to get 4 blocks and nearly 2 steals in those finals.

Notable Playoff Series

Rings:

• '20 Finals vs Miami Heat (3.23 Legacy Points)

  • Bench Warmer, -67.5% performance, opponent was -3.69 SRS worse, won 4-2.

Other notable series:

• '09 Conference Finals vs Cleveland Cavaliers (150.14 Legacy Points)

  • Legendary, +23.1% performance, opponent was +2.20 SRS better, won 4-2.

• '10 CSF’s vs Atlanta Hawks (81.41 Legacy Points)

  • Superstar, +9.5% performance, opponent was -2.69 SRS worse, won 4-0.

• '09 CSF’s vs Boston Celtics (55.25 Legacy Points)

  • Legendary, -17.2% performance, opponent was +0.96 SRS better, won 4-3.