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

The point guard position has changed dramatically since the league began. Initially, point guards were primarily tasked with bringing the ball up the court, initiating the play, and creating for others. However, nowadays, their roles have expanded and many of the games top scorers are point guards.

That evolution has come as the league has moved away from the post and more toward the perimeter. With so many great players in the NBA today and throughout history, who ranks as the most dominant?

Tier 4) Star level

20) Tim Hardaway

19) Chauncey Billups

18) Lenny Wilkins

17) Nate Archibald

Hall of Fame point guard Tim Hardaway is best remembered for "Run TMC," a trio of former Golden State Warriors that consisted of Hardaway, Mitch Richmond, and Chris Mullin. Hardaway made three all-star teams during his five-and-a-half-season run in Golden State by averaging 19.3 points and 9.3 assists during his prime. While his career was relatively short in terms of games played, career averages of 17.7 points and 8.2 assists, along with five all-star teams, make him deserving of a spot on this list.

Recently inducted Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups wasn't a superstar but often proved to be the best player on great teams. During his eight seasons with the Detroit Pistons, he led them to six straight Eastern Conference Finals, back-to-back NBA Finals, and a championship in 2004.

He was a leading scorer on each of those teams and was key to helping them upset the Los Angeles Lakers in the Finals, with him winning Finals MVP that year. He was later traded to the Denver Nuggets, where he helped Carmelo Anthony lead them to the Western Conference Finals, marking Billups' seventh consecutive conference finals appearance. Few point guards can say that they have had that type of success; thus, he is a top-20 point guard as a result.

Former NBA star Lenny Wilkins played before many NBA fans were even born, which has causes him to be overlooked historically. Still, he made nine all-star teams in 15 years, led the NBA in assists, and was one of just a handful of guards with at least 17,000 points and 7,000 assists.

Legend Nate "Tiny" Archibald was a dominant player throughout the 1970's, averaging 27.3 points, 8.7 assists, and 1.5 steals over a five-year run. He even led the NBA in scoring and assists in 1972-73 after averaging 34 points and 11.4 assists. However, he wasn't the same player after tearing his ACL in his late 20s. Fortunately, he made six all-star teams, five all-NBA teams, and won a championship with the Boston Celtics, giving him enough of a resume to make the Basketball Hall of Fame.