Items20The creator’s order
  1. 1Bob CousyBob CousyBorn 9 Aug 1928Cousy brought behind-the-back dribbles and no-look passes into the NBA of the 1950s, when coaches thought them showboating, and led the league in assists eight seasons running. More importantly, his outlet-to-fast-break game with Bill Russell's rebounding built the Celtics' first titles. Old…0i
  2. 2Pete MaravichPete MaravichBorn 22 Jun 1947Pistol Pete is remembered as a scorer, but his passing was the wilder part: between-the-legs feeds, behind-the-head lobs and passes thrown off the dribble without looking. His teams in Atlanta and New Orleans were rarely good, and team-mates sometimes struggled to catch what he threw, a real…0i
  3. 3Magic JohnsonMagic JohnsonBorn 14 Aug 1959A 6ft 9in point guard who could see over the defence, Magic turned the Showtime Lakers' fast break into five championships. His signature was the no-look pass on the run, released just as a defender committed, to James Worthy or Byron Scott filling the lane. He also started at centre in the 1980…0i
  4. 4Larry BirdLarry BirdA forward who passed like a guard, Bird averaged over six assists a season in his prime from the frontcourt. His best reads came from the high post and on the move: the touch pass before catching fully, the skip pass over a collapsing defence to Danny Ainge or Dennis Johnson. He shows that elite…0i
  5. 5John StocktonJohn StocktonBorn 26 Mar 1962The NBA's career assist leader by a wide margin, Stockton earns his place for something the number hides: the pick-and-roll with Karl Malone, run thousands of times, with Stockton reading whether to hit the roll, the pop or the weak-side shooter. He rarely threw a spectacular pass. If you want to…0i
  6. 6Arvydas SabonisArvydas SabonisBorn 19 Dec 1964Before Jokić, there was Sabonis: a 7ft 3in Lithuanian centre who threw full-court outlets and over-the-shoulder passes to cutters from the post. Injuries meant the NBA saw him only in his thirties with Portland, yet he was still a playmaking hub. His Soviet and Žalgiris years show a big man whose…0i
  7. 7Ticha PenicheiroTicha PenicheiroThe Portuguese point guard led the WNBA in assists seven times with the Sacramento Monarchs and helped win the 2005 title. Penicheiro's passes were flamboyant, behind the back and through traffic, but they were chosen to reach a team-mate in rhythm, and she retired as the league's assist leader at…0i
  8. 8Jason KiddJason KiddBorn 23 Mar 1973Kidd took a New Jersey Nets side that had won 26 games to two straight NBA Finals in his first two seasons there, mainly by pushing the ball and finding runners early. He was also a big rebounder for a guard, which let him start the break himself. Later, at Dallas, he reinvented himself as a…0i
  9. 9Steve NashSteve NashBorn 7 Feb 1974The Canadian won back-to-back MVPs in Phoenix by turning the pick-and-roll into a constant probe: he would keep his dribble alive under the basket, circle back out and wait for a defender to break. Amar'e Stoudemire and a crew of shooters became an offence that led the league in scoring. Every…0i
  10. 10Šarūnas JasikevičiusŠarūnas JasikevičiusBorn 5 Mar 1976Šaras won the EuroLeague with three different clubs, Barcelona, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Panathinaikos, running half-court offences with a shooter's threat and a coach's eye. His pick-and-roll partnerships with big men at Maccabi are classics of European basketball. For NBA-first fans, he is the…0i