The 75 greatest players in NBA history, ranked by Player Efficiency Rating (PER)
By Cal Durrett
![Tim Duncan, Kobe Bryant Tim Duncan, Kobe Bryant](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_3000,h_1687,x_0,y_37/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/GettyImages/mmsport/307/01hrmvznbykwtch1qr9g.jpg)
47. Clyde Lovellette-21.67
Unlike many of the early NBA players on this list, Clyde Lovellette was a journeyman. Free agency didn't exist back in the 1950s, and trades were incredibly rare, but Lovellette played for the Minneapolis Lakers, St. Louis Hawks, Cincinnati Royals, and Boston Celtics over his 11-year NBA career.
Being the first journeyman NBA player actually worked out well for Lovellette, who managed to average at least 20 points per game six times in his career for three different teams. He was also a dominant rebounder, averaging 10 rebounds for six straight years.
Being a perennial double-double threat helped him earn a PER of 20 in eight straight seasons and even during his last couple of seasons with the Celtics as a low-minutes player. That helped him land at 47 on this list with a career PER of 21.6.
That is definitely too high for Lovellette, who simply doesn't have the same resume or accolades as other players on this list. That definitely makes him an outlier and there may be a few other players on this list that fall into that category. Stay tuned.