David Lee: The NBA's 'Worst' Best Player

First of all, we're going to start out by saying that the mere fact you're on this list means you're a hell of a player. And just because you rank near the bottom, it doesn't necessarily mean it's your fault. No, it's on your GM.

Everyone knows you've got to have a star to win in the NBA, and the teams without one -- or with a lesser one -- usually don't fare very well.

With that in mind, here's one guy's ranking of the each NBA team's best player. The goal: Find the "worst" best player in the league, and unfortunately, for David Lee, it's him.

1. Kobe Bryant, Lakers: No, I'm not a Lakers fan in general, nor a Bryant fan in particular. I just think he's the best player in the game.

2. LeBron James, Cavaliers: He's coming hard and strong, and who knows? Come June, James may be at the top of this list.

3.Dwyane Wade, Heat: Few guards can impact the game defensively on the perimeter like Wade.

4. Deron Williams, Jazz: Some will claim Williams is too high on this list. He's not; he's the best point guard in the NBA, and last we checked point guard was still the most important position on the floor.

5. Chris Paul, Hornets: The second-best point guard in the NBA.

6. Dwight Howard, Magic: There are better players ranked below Howard on this list. But potential has to count for something, and Howard still has loads of it.

7. Tim Duncan, Spurs: Yes, Duncan is on the downside of his career, but his skill and savvy keep him among the elite when it comes to "making teammates better."

8.Kevin Garnett, Celtics: Obviously, Garnett was an integral part in the Celtics championship a year ago. But it says here, that Nos. 1 through 7 on this list -- and perhaps even No. 9 through No. 15 -- would have gotten it done for Boston, too.

9. Yao Ming, Rockets: Yao will continue to slip down this list until his team can get to the second round of the playoffs.

10. Brandon Roy, Blazers: Roy remains the best-kept secret in the NBA.

11.Amare Stoudemire, Suns: Stoudemire's play will suffer when he no longer teams with Steve Nash. But Stoudemire can still dominate the interior for stretches.

12. Dirk Nowitzki, Mavericks: The series against the Warriors might forever scar Nowitzki. But don't forget, he was close to delivering a title for Dallas the year before, and that counts for something.

13. Carmelo Anthony, Nuggets: For all his talent, Anthony is quietly developing a case of Tracy McGrady-itis, defined as a frustrating inability to get to the second round.

14. Kevin Durant, Thunder: He still has a lot to prove, but Durant's growth from his rookie year in 2007-08 to this year has been impressive. Such as going from 43 percent from the field last year to 48 percent this year, and a 3-point improvement from .288 to .426.

15. Chris Bosh, Raptors: The inevitable question: How good can Bosh be if he's your best player and you've won only 26 games?

16. Joe Johnson, Hawks: Johnson is a real nice player and we'd take him on our team anytime. But he leaves a little something to be desired as a No. 1. Now, if he's your No. 3, well then you've got something.

17. Gilbert Arenas, Wizards: We're doing Arenas a favor here because we like him. Bottom line is we're assuming he returns to complete health. Here's rooting for that.

18. Baron Davis, Clippers: This one is tough. If it's the Davis of the past two years, he would rank higher on this list. If we're judging on this year alone, he'd be lower. Like in David Lee territory. So, this is where Davis settles in. Just know he can fluctuate.

19. Derrick Rose, Bulls: Rose has that little something special. You can just tell. Question is, will he enter Deron Williams/Chris Paul category?

20. Al Jefferson, Timberwolves: Poor Al Jefferson. He'll never be as good as Kevin McHale wants him, or needs him, to be.

21. O.J. Mayo, Grizzlies: Mayo might not be Memphis' best player right now (it might be Rudy Gay), but if he's not, he will be soon.

22. Rip Hamilton, Pistons: A year or two ago, there would be three or four Pistons who could claim to be the team's best player. Now, it's just Hamilton, a true professional and proven winner.

23. Devin Harris, Nets: It's always scary when you're star player is wispy.

24.Stephen Jackson, Warriors: Jackson has been asked to do too much, and he's tried everything in his power to oblige. Yes, he's scoring, rebounding and assisting at high rates. But his shooting percentage sits at .414, and he's already shattered his career-high for turnovers in a season.

25. Boris Diaw, Bobcats: Diaw barely nudged out teammate Gerald Wallace as Charlotte's best player.

26. Andre Iguodala, Sixers: We made Iguodala the Sixers' best player instead of Elton Brand because at this point Brand would have ranked lower on the list.

27. Danny Granger, Pacers: If Mike Dunleavy were healthy, would Granger be the Pacers' best player?

28. Kevin Martin, Kings: Needs to bring more to the table than just a 24-point per game average on .418 percent shooting.

29. Michael Redd, Bucks: Don't think that Redd ranks this low because he has been injured most of the year. Truth be told, he'd rank in the bottom five if he were healthy.

30. David Lee, Knicks: As a role player, Lee is terrific. Hard-working and conscientious? Check. But that's not really what you're looking for in a star, is it? The good news for Lee is we deemed him a better player than either Nate Robinson or Al Harrington.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

3-27-2009 @ 6:26PM

Tom said...

Judging Martin by his FG% (ignoring the potency and frequency of his threes, and the potency and frequency of his free throws) is simply wrong. No top scorer but Amare is more efficient with his shots.

To wit, Jax takes an extra shot per game than Martin ... and scores four fewer points. Jackson would need to take 20 FGAs a game to get 24 points. Martin gets those 24 points ... on 16 FGAs.

Think those 4 FGAs matter?

3-27-2009 @ 7:36PM

dodgerbloo15 said...

Not all that sure that Michael Redd is the Bucks best player. They were able to win without him. Now, withought Bogut? That team's been awful. I also think that O.J. Mayo and D Rose are a little too high and Andre Igoudala and Danny Granger are too low. And for the record, Granger is a lot better than Dunleavy. Interesting post and great way to get comments by putting Kobe over Bron and Wade and DWill over Paul.

3-27-2009 @ 11:55PM

cantstopdrinkin said...

Ha Mat thats laughable .... someone claiming to write about basketball and says the Chris Paul is the second best point guard in the league. Lol wants some stats to actually back up that statement - CP is averaging more points, assists, rebounds, steals, less turnovers, shooting better from the field, 3point line, and free throw line. I mean he is even outrebounding Williams and Deron weighs 30 pounds more. please give somethin to back up your ridiculous statement. CP is hands down the best point guard in the world right now and he is the 4th best player in the world just ahead of Howard and right behind Lebron, Kobe, and Wade.

3-28-2009 @ 1:14AM

dess133 said...

i'd like to know on what planet david lee, boris diaw and baron davis are better than paul pierce.

3-30-2009 @ 3:53PM

Laughing said...

Ughh Dess.. i don't think you got the point of the article.. Its one player from each team.. not ranking players in general...

3-28-2009 @ 6:48AM

obamaizadope said...

Gilbert Arenas? Who? You gotta give Antawn Jamison some dap, he shows up every night, and balls. I would say Caron, but I thinks he's thrown in the towel on this whole Wizards thing..

3-28-2009 @ 9:34AM

orlfrd said...

Your Comments on Dwight Howard are laughable.

You said he's not a great player but has some potential.

Why don't you check how many times he's recorded a double double before the end of the first period.

3-28-2009 @ 10:39AM

samchick1 said...

I think it is just plain stupid to say that a guy like Lee, who is the 2nd best rebounder in the entire league, & averaging nearly 17 ppg, (despite being undersized & out of position), is just simply only "hard working & consistent," shows basketball ignorance. Lee this past year, only his first as a starter, broke the N Y Knicks Team franchise record for most double-doubles in a season. And not to admit that Dwight Howard IS the best center in the league, just proves my point. Get real!!!

3-28-2009 @ 11:23AM

my bad, Laughing. my bad. one player from each team. got it...

3-28-2009 @ 1:35PM

mwlx said...

You've heard of the term "volume shooter?" Steinmetz, you're a volume column writer. Many words to nail a few points and miss a lot. DWade impacts the game defensively? Yea, but no comment about his offense? Paul is the #1 PG? Not in this league. Chris Bosh is responsible for his entire team's record? Harris is "wispy?" I guess you're trying to be catty. Grow up.

3-28-2009 @ 2:58PM

Mike Payne said...

You were hired by AOL to write controversial pieces. Got it. However, controversy is much more compelling when it is grounded in fact (in this case, statistics). Your brand of controversy has shown to be reflective of your opinion alone, which makes you more of a "sports pundit" than a "sports reporter". There's a place in the world for that, but lists like this aren't gonna earn you the following needed to get you there.

Declarative statements, like those on the Deron Williams / Chris Paul entries on your list, come off as offensive and condescending. You probably didn't run into this when you're writing for a local team audience. Now that you're national, your declarations are just gonna piss the people off who don't share your opinions.

You don't need some random dude pointing out your mistakes, especially when you likely don't see them that way. Its just not a mistake Ziller or Watson would make as writers...

3-28-2009 @ 3:47PM

hilryshaves said...

steinmetz is right about Wade, he's the only player in the league who can shut Kobe down cold..

3-28-2009 @ 4:32PM

You should ask Kobe how he plays against Richard Hamilton. Historically, Hamilton has been a thorn in the side of Kobe, and one of the unsung reasons that the Pistons defeated the Lakers in the 2004 NBA Finals. Why do the Pistons seem to always have the Lakers number, and consistently beat them in every season series? Richard Hamilton (and of course, Tayshaun Prince doesn't hurt either).

3-29-2009 @ 1:03AM

Stollz3 said...

This list is a joke. Rip Hamilton better than Devin Harris? He's definitely NOT the best player on his team, and if he was, he would definitely be the last player on the list, because I'll take David Lee any day over Rip FUCKING HAMILTON. Not to mention the other fuckups on this list..Diaw's not better than Wallace, and he sure as HELL isn't better than Andre Iguodala or Danny Granger...or Kevin Martin or David Lee, for that matter. And I don't see how you can rank Yao Ming, Kevin Garnett, Amare, Dirk, and Melo ahead of Durant, considering he's only 20 and he's already proving himself to be one of the best players in the NBA...in a couple of years, he'll be a perennial MVP candidate. And Deron isn't even close to being the best Point Guard in the NBA...CP3 wins that contest, hands-down. He's better in almost every category statistically, he's younger, he's more important to the success of his team (Less weapons surrounding him), and he's a better defender, shooter, and leader than D-Will. You have to be the worst excuse for a writer I've ever come across...seriously, just try another sport, you obviously know nothing about basketball.

3-29-2009 @ 2:05AM

Does no one else agree thats its laughable that he said Chris Paul is the 2nd best point guard in the league. Along with all the things i mentioned in my above post , he also is the third ranked player in player efficency and Williams is twentieth. Ill repeat that.... CP averages more points,assist,rebounds,less turnovers, and shoots better from the field,three point line, and free throw line while being the third most effiecent player in the league and a full 9 points ahead of Williams in that catergory . Its no contest , CP is by far the best point guard on the planet and the 4th best player in the league....

3-29-2009 @ 2:13AM

Hey Mike Payne its not even so much that he will piss us off with comments like that about Paul , its just the facts and stats say the complete opposite of what he is saying. I mean im sorry but when someone is beating you in every category statsically (including rebounds , the one stat Williams should straight up be better at then CP) AND doing it much more efficently AND CP is a year younger then Williams. I wouldnt mind him saying something bold like that that will spark controversy but there has to be something supporting his statement instead of him just saying it because he likes one guy more then the other. Now if he says "in my opinion CP is the second best PG" then i have no problem, but he states it like its a fact and its not. Everything proves its not....

3-29-2009 @ 3:49AM

You wanna know somethin real scary ..... in the offseason of 2010 the Thunder only have 13 million on their books while still having Durant, Westbrook, and Green under conract. Im not a Thunder fan or anything but that means they have more then enough room to sign Lebron and Wade and still have those 3!!!!!!!!!! That would not be good for all the other teams , thats a team that would be set up and give Lebron a serious chance at Jordans six rings. Remember now just the other day Lebron joked about maybe practicing with Wade in 2010 ..... aka signing on the same taem. And not only is the Thunder one of the few teams that will realisticly have the amount of money to sign both , they also already have a superstar in Durant and you can bet Lebron and Wade are thinking about that already. You put those three together and they embarass the current big three. Yall might think im crazy by saying Lebron and Wade might sign with damn Oklahoma City but when you think of it like that its really not that far fetched at all.....

3-30-2009 @ 6:07PM

GL said...

you explain some of the controversial choices pretty well actually. but that williams/paul thing. that's booty. you gonna put williams ahead of paul, you should at least give a reason.