NBA All-time Player Tiers: The 20 greatest shooting guards ever, ranked

Who ranks among the best shooting guards ever?

Dwyane Wade, Kobe Bryant
Dwyane Wade, Kobe Bryant | Stephen Dunn/GettyImages
4 of 5

Tier 2) MVP level

7) Allen Iverson

6) George Gervin

5) James Harden

4) Dwayne Wade

3) Jerry West

2) Kobe Bryant

Philadelphia 76ers legend Allen Iverson has been overlooked and underappreciated in recent years as advanced stats have become more used. That hurts his all-time resume with him not being the most efficient scorer on this list.

Even so, AI is also likely the shortest player on this list, yet he was a dominant scorer, even leading the league in scoring twice. Considering some of his teammates, him taking as many shots as possible was a wise decision.

In fact, he is credited for carrying what many consider one of the worst NBA Finals teams with three wins of a championship in 2001. Iverson finished with more than 24,000 career points and the 10th highest scoring average, thus putting the shooting in shooting guard.

George Gervin was one of the premier NBA scorers of the 1970s but started out in the ABA with the Virginia Squires. He was even mentored by then-teammate and fellow Hall of Famer Dr. J before becoming a superstar in his own right with the Spurs.

Without a 3-point line, Gervin relied on pull-up jumpers and his famous finger roll to finish at the rim. His peak numbers of 28.8 points on 51.1% shooting over a seven-year span prove that it worked out quite well for him. He won four scoring titles and made seven all-star teams during that stretch and cemented himself as an all-time great.

James Harden has steadily become underappreciated for his prime thanks to him having burned bridges in several of his NBA stops. Even so, over a nine-year span, Harden arguably had the highest offensive peak of any player since Michael Jordan. In that span, he averaged a shocking 29.6 points per game. He is slowing down now as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers but he has already proven that he is a top-five shooting guard all-time.

Three-time NBA champ Dwyane Wade was one of the best players of the 2000s after breaking out in his second season. Over a nine-year span, his peak was as good as any player on this list, averaging 25.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 6.2 assists, as well as making nine straight all-star teams. Injuries and willingly taking a secondary role to LeBron James derailed his career, preventing him from putting up bigger numbers but he still ranks as one of the greatest shooting guards ever.

NBA icon Jerry West is one of the most decorated players ever, making 14 all-stars and 12 all-NBA teams, winning a championship, and being a Finals MVP despite being on the losing team. He was a dominant scorer, averaging 27 points per game while also being an elite defensive player to. Therefore, few guards were better than West.

NBA legend Kobe Bryant ranks as one of the greatest shooting guards, with him winning five championships over his 20-year career. His best years saw him average 27.8 points over a 14-year span while making an all-star and an all-NBA team every year during that run, proving his dominance.