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25.6k voters

The Greatest Shooting Guards in NBA History

Originally by Ranker Community

Updated January 27, 2020 182.5k votes 25.6k voters 252.1k views175 items

List RulesOnly NBA players who played shooting guard for most of their career.

The greatest shooting guards in NBA history are all here in this list of the best shooting guards of all time, ranked by fans of the NBA. Some of today's best NBA players, as well as some of the best NBA players of all time are here on this list of the top shooting guards in NBA history.

The main objective of a shooting guard (or "SG") is to put up points for his team, and some of these NBA shooting guards have put up more points in a season that other shooting guards will hope to score in their whole career. Future hall of famers like James Harden are currently giving legends like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant a run for the title of top NBA shooting guard.

Who are the best shooting guards in NBA history? What skills do the greatest shooting guards have? Are shooting guards the best players in the NBA? This greatest shooting guards list takes the opinions of NBA fans and attempts to name one man the greatest NBA shooting guard in history. If your favorite NBA player isn't on the list, make sure to add him so others can vote for him in the quest to pick the best shooting guard ever.

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Michael Jordan
Chicago Bulls, Washington Wizards
Position: Shooting guard
Age: 57
Birthplace: New York City, New York, United States of America
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2
8,194
4,120
Kobe Bryant
Los Angeles Lakers
Position: Point guard, Shooting guard, Swingman
Age: 42
Birthplace: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
Number: 24
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3
2,756
691
Dražen Petrović
Portland Trail Blazers, New Jersey Nets
Position: Shooting guard
Age: Dec. at 29 (1964-1993)
Birthplace: Šibenik, Croatia
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#3 of 130 The Best European NBA Players of All Time#1 of 107 The Best Foreign NBA Players of All Time
4
7,111
5,504
Dwyane Wade
Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat
Position: Shooting guard
Age: 38
Birthplace: Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
Number: 3
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#451 of 583 The Greatest Entertainers of All Time#24 of 73 The Greatest Chicago Bulls of All Time
5
4,155
3,197
Jerry West
Los Angeles Lakers
Position: Point Guard
Age: 82
Birthplace: Chelyan, West Virginia
Number: 44
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#5 of 25 The Best NBA Point Guards of the 1970s#12 of 76 The All Time Greatest NBA Coaches
6
3,550
2,724
Clyde Drexler
Portland Trail Blazers, Houston Rockets
Position: Shooting guard
Age: 58
Birthplace: New Orleans, Louisiana, United States of America
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#13 of 120 The Fastest NBA Players of All Time#3 of 26 The Best NBA Shooting Guards of the 80s
7
3,321
2,549
Vince Carter
New Jersey Nets, Toronto Raptors
Position: Shooting guard, Small forward
Age: 43
Birthplace: Daytona Beach, Florida, United States of America
Number: 25
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#3 of 51 The Greatest UNC Tar Heels Basketball Players of All Time#64 of 85 Great Athletes Who Waited Too Long To Retire
8
3,959
3,050
Ray Allen
Boston Celtics, Seattle Supersonics
Position: Shooting guard
Age: 44
Birthplace: Merced, California, United States of America
Number: 34
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#34 of 77 US Men’s Olympic Basketball All-Time Dream Team#12 of 31 The Most Successful NBA Free Agent Acquistions
9
6,430
4,987
Allen Iverson
Philadelphia 76ers, Denver Nuggets
Position: Point guard
Age: 45
Birthplace: Hampton, Virginia, United States of America
Number: 1
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#1 of 78 The Best Philadelphia 76ers of All Time#11 of 27 The Best '90s Point Guards
10
662
468
Walt Frazier
Cleveland Cavaliers, New York Knicks
Position: Point guard
Age: 74
Birthplace: Georgia, USA, Atlanta
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#91 of 96 The Best Rebounders in NBA History#12 of 20 Athletes with the Best Facial Hair
11
2,660
2,030
Pete Maravich
Utah Jazz, Atlanta Hawks
Position: Shooting guard
Age: Dec. at 41 (1947-1988)
Birthplace: Aliquippa, Pennsylvania
Number: 44
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#24 of 133 The Best Boston Celtics of All Time#2 of 58 The Greatest LSU Basketball Players of All Time
12
4,215
3,253
Tracy McGrady
Houston Rockets, Orlando Magic
Position: Shooting guard, Small forward
Age: 41
Birthplace: Bartow, Florida, United States of America
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13
481
333
Glen Rice
Houston Rockets, Charlotte Hornets
Position: Shooting guard, Small forward
Age: 52
Birthplace: Flint, Michigan, USA
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#1 of 46 The Greatest Michigan Basketball Players of All Time#19 of 107 The Greatest Lakers of All Time

14
352
201
Bob Cousy
Cincinnati Royals, Boston Celtics
Position: Point guard
Age: 92
Birthplace: Yorkville, New York City, New York, United States of America
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15
2,704
2,068
Oscar Robertson
Cincinnati Royals, Milwaukee Bucks
Position: Point guard
Age: 82
Birthplace: Charlotte, Tennessee, United States of America
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#7 of 69 All NBA Rookie Of The Year Award Winners, Ranked#1 of 22 The Best NBA Point Guards of the 60s
16
3,574
2,758
Reggie Miller
Indiana Pacers
Position: Shooting guard
Age: 54
Birthplace: Riverside, California, United States of America
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#3 of 42 The Greatest UCLA Basketball Players of All Time#86 of 150 The Greatest Point Guards in NBA History
17
292
185
Devin Booker
Phoenix Suns
Position: Shooting guard
Age: 29
Birthplace: Whitmire, South Carolina
Number: 1
18
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141
Victor Oladipo
Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder
Position: Shooting guard
Age: 28
Birthplace: Upper Marlboro, Maryland
Number: 4
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19
713
516
Chris Mullin
Indiana Pacers, Golden State Warriors
Position: Shooting guard, Small forward
Age: 57
Birthplace: New York City, New York
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#45 of 68 The Best Current College Basketball Coaches#5 of 22 The Best Small Forwards of the 90s
20
4,223
3,309
James Harden
Oklahoma City Thunder, Houston Rockets
Position: Shooting guard
Age: 31
Birthplace: Los Angeles, California
Number: 13
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C. J. McCollum
Portland Trail Blazers
Position: Shooting guard
Age: 28
Birthplace: Canton, Ohio, United States of America
Number: 3
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#63 of 161 The Best NBA Players With No Championship Rings#33 of 102 The Most Likable Players In The NBA Today
22
2,362
1,913
Manu Ginóbili
San Antonio Spurs
Position: Shooting guard
Age: 42
Birthplace: Bahía Blanca, Argentina
Number: 20
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611
466
David Thompson
Denver Nuggets, Seattle Supersonics
Position: Shooting Guard
Age: 65
Birthplace: Shelby, North Carolina
Number: 33
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#26 of 55 The Best No. 1 Overall NBA Draft Picks of All Time, Ranked#1 of 31 The Best NC State Basketball Players Ever

24
452
328
Richard Hamilton
Washington Wizards, Detroit Pistons
Position: Point guard, Shooting guard, Small forward, Swingman
Age: 41
Birthplace: Coatesville, Pennsylvania
Number: 32
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#3 of 41 The Greatest UConn Basketball Players of All Time#8 of 27 The Best NCAA Shooting Guards of the 90s
25
2,216
1,796
Klay Thompson
Golden State Warriors
Position: Shooting guard
Age: 30
Birthplace: Los Angeles, California
Number: 11
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