Greatest Scorers Series: 20-16

Today's installment of The Greatest Scorers series will be controversial to alot of different basketball fans I will get into why later. There are two players I am looking at who NBA Twitter can't agree on where they rank.

20. George Gervin (74-83)

• 37 IA PTS/100 (36.8 PO)

• 61.5 IA TS% (62.1 PO)

• +4.6 rTS%

• 83.9 FT% (8.8 FTA/100)

George Gervin is the inventor of the finger roll and was one of the smoothest finishers at the rim. He is another one of the pioneers of flashyness in the nba. while Julius Erving was a flashy dunker, Gervin was one of the first acrobats. He was able to change directions in the air, Shoot through contact, and he had a lot of different Ways he could lay it up over a defender including his signature, The Finger roll. Gervin played in the ABA and NBA And unlike Fellow pioneer, Julius Erving he did not suffer a Drop off from the ABA to the NBA.

19. Carmelo Anthony (07-14)

• 37.8 IA PTS/100 (38.1 PO)

• 57.8 IA TS% (55.7 PO)

• +1.2 rTS%

• 36.2 3pt% (4.9 3s/100)

• 81.8 FT% (10.7 FTA/100)

If Playoff dropoffs didn't exist Melo would be higher On this list but melo constantly would drop off in the Playoffs despite him having one of the biggest Bags in NBA History. This can be partially accredited to his lack of spacing and offensive help for most of his prime. Melo also only has 2 PO Runs where he played more than 10 games, 2009, and 2013. In 2009 He improved in volume and efficiency while he did the opposite In 2013. Carmelo's other fault that holds him back is his efficiency. This can also be attributed to lack of scoring help throughout his prime and his insanely high volume but he also took a lot of Tough shots and inefficient shots. Melo's Saving grace is his volume. Melo also had very high gravity from the high post and obviously from mid range. This Gravity along with his insane volume helped explain why The Knicks were 6.14 PTS/100 better with melo on the court in 13 and 14 and he had this same effect with denver in 09 and 10 (+6.45). His 3yr ORAPM of 3.98 from 13-15 was 6th in the NBA showing just how impactful his scoring was. I point this out because melo gained value almost exclusively from scoring (he was a good pure passer but was unwilling to pass) So looking at his Offensive impact his reflective of his scoring impact. melo was my first controversial player today. He is very polarizing on Twitter, Depending on the side of NBA Twitter you ask He is ranked as high as a top 8ish scorer ever and as low as not even a top 40 scorer ever. I see myself as high on Melo because of his insane Volume and Bag.

18. Oscar Robertson (61-70)

• 31.5 IA PTS/100 (29.3 to 29.7 PPG RS-PO)

• 66.4 IA TS% (65.3 PO)

• +8.5 rTS

• 83.7 FT% (10.7 FTA/G)

Oscar would've been higher on the list if not for Longevity and Volume. His ppg numbers are nice but when you adjust for possessions his volume is much smaller especially compared to other ATGs. His bag wasn't super deep but he was able to shoot jumpers in the 60s and he was great at getting to the rim. Because he was a great jump shooter He had insanely high gravity especially within 15ish feet. He became a primary playmaker with the Bucks And lowered his volume much more. His GOAT Tier efficiency and PO Resilience gave him the 18 spot but i can see arguments for Melo because of his bag and Volume.

17. Tracy McGrady (01-07)

• 38.3 IA PTS/100 (40.1 PO)

• 56.8 IA TS% (56.8 PO)

• +.3 rTS

• 34.6 3PT% (6.8 3s/G)

• 75.9 FT% (10.3 FTA/100)

Tmac gets so heavily held back by Longevity and PO. He never got to truly prove his PO resilience, as the most PO games he played in his prime was 7 in 04 05 and 07. He has a big PO rise but that lacks context as he only played 29 PO Games in that 7 year span. His longevity got ruined by injuries. He fell off of a cliff from 07 to 08 and fell off another from 08 to 09. His Fringe top 10 scoring peak saves him along with his great gravity. He constantly had to be doubled and because he was a 3pt shooter and a Deep 2 shooter teams had to pressure him farther up the court which makes life harder for the Defense. TMac also has a top 15 bag ever. Being an elite mid range shooter and having great post moves and foot work. He was a great scorer from all 3 levels As well. Oscar and Melo both have arguments but i think Tmac has a far better peak than both and the peak gap is bigger than the Longevity gap. Tmac is the second Controversial Player. Depending on who you ask he is ranked as high as top 7ish and as low as top 20. He isn't as polarizing as melo but he also isn't as popular. I Think I'm more on the low side for Tmac because of his lack of Longevity

16. Bob McAdoo (74-79)

• 34.8 IA PTS/100 (33.7 PO)

• 62.7 IA TS% (57.7 PO)

• +5.6 rTS%

• 75.4 FT% (9 FTA/100)

Steph Curry is often seen as the poster child for efficient volume scoring but Bob McAdoo Was one of the2 originators of this rare scoring type and McAdoo Lead the league in PPG and TS% in the same year (1974). His 1975 season was even better tho. in 75 McAdoo averaged 40.3 IA PTS/100 on 64 IA TS%. That is just absurd. he also has a big PO Drop but its more due to Low sample size than anything. McAdoo had great post gravity and was a good jump shooter which helped his bag. He had a lot of post moves and was hard to stop. McAdoo has god awful longevity but his Peak is enough to put him over Tmac slightly