Who is the best clutch shooter in the NBA's History?

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Answer the poll question and explain

I'd say Gilmore by far. Yes, Unseld was a beast on the boards and I think his offensive game is slightly underrated but Gilmore could do much more than Unseld. Gilmore was a very good post scorer, a dominant rebounder and shotblocker. He shot almost 60% from the floor in his career. Not to mention, Gilmore has been durable most of his career.

Gilmore was a complete big-man while Unseld was more of a rebounding specialist. Seriously, Gilmore is very underrated. When people talk about best big-men of all time, you don't hear them include Gilmore in their list.

wes unsled is better than gilmore ( biased becuz he's a wizard lol)

And reggie miller is the best clutch shooter, bird and jordan are HM

One more thing, the best clutch shooter in the NBA history would be Larry Bird. I know many people will say MJ but I have to disagree. Bird had no fear. He had ice in his vein. When the game is on the line, Bird can completely take over the game and carry his team to victory. I will never forget him and Xavier McDaniel. Bird flat-out told McDaniel that he will shoot from that exact spot and he did. Guess what? He made the shot and game over. You can try defending Bird as hard as you can but he will rip ur heart apart. Magic Johnson said he has a lot of respect for MJ but he feared Bird the most. That should tell you a lot. There will never be another Larry Bird. Dirk isn't even close lol.

Reggie Miller was great. For a three point shot at the buzzer, I'd take him over anybody to ever play the game. If all you need is two though, and there is 6+ seconds left, I want Michael Jordan. The only way to stop him was to hope he missed, because with enough time, he ALWAYS got the shot he wanted, whether it was that mid-range pull up, or a drive to the hoop, you could not stop him from going where he wanted to go. Bird is another great option, because as Historian said, you could defend him as well as you wanted anywhere on the floor, and a lot of times, he'd just hit the shot over you anyway. One more guy that I think deserves mentioning is Kobe Bryant. I read an article by J.A. Adande after he hit that shot against Miami. In it, he made the claim that Kobe Bryant is the best bad-shot maker in history. As in, when there is not enough time left in the game to get a good shot, he'll make an impossible one. At first I didn't really agree with this, because I thought Adande was using one crazy example to make his case. However, when you look at the shots Kobe has made, there are quite a few that should never have been close to going in. So I'd take these 4 guys for different reasons. I'm really not sure which would be the best overall, because they all do different clutch things so well, but all deserve mentioning in my opinion.

Great post there, man. I'd take Reggie in a heartbeat if I need a clutch 3. Ray Allen would be a good option too. That guy is clutch when it comes to hitting 3s. Did you see him hitting a 3 tonight to put a dagger in Memphis' heart?

Jordan was clutch as hell for sure. So was Bird and Kobe. If I need a player to take over the game, I'd go with Bird because he can change the game with his D, rebounding, passing, shooting....u name it. That man is unreal. He doesn't just take over the game by scoring. He can do it in other areas. That's why I gotta go with Bird.

To me the greatest clutch shooter is Larry Bird.When the games were on the line that guy was fearless when it was about big shots because of his greatest shooting skills ever.Bird's clutch shots bringed Celtics lots of titles

People often say MJ is the most clutchest because he has made most of them but to tell you the truth Michael Jordan is the greatest clutch perfomer not shooter.When i say greatest clutch perfomer i mean,the game he dominated in were all Finals and he made shots for the win

I make 2 diffrences here so that's diffrence for me

Honarble Mention is for guys like Jerry West,Ray Allen and Kobe Bryant.

Sure West played in the 60's,win 1 time in the league from many attemts but he was fearless when it was about solving games.He would just make a turn around jump shot in any time of the game.Ray Allen is also great clutch shooter.In the last years,he has proven as a clutch shooter when the games were on the line.I cannot count those shots.And Kobe's preety much clutch

Also i would add LeBron James to this list too.The guy deserves to be here,he's not so good shooter but when it's about the last second with his incredibble driving ability and confidence at last seconds moments he's clutch.He leads the current players in most clutch shots made

To answer the Bonus Question i would say Artis Gilmore too

Wes Unseld was a rebounding machine!He's one of the greatest rebounders ever and had those to me all time best outlet passes.He was great defensive center too and under-rated scorer.

Artis Gilmore was a complete big man/center.He's the second best defensive center ever to me after Russell,greatest left handed scorer to play the game,dominating shot blocker and rebounder for sure.Shame that he and Unseld are deadly under-rated

Bottom line

Gilmore's better because he's more complete but Unseld was special center too

Greg Oden-Get well!!!!!!! wrote:

Also i would add LeBron James to this list too.The guy deserves to be here,he's not so good shooter but when it's about the last second with his incredibble driving ability and confidence at last seconds moments he's clutch.He leads the current players in most clutch shots made

No he doesn't lead the leage in clutch shots made, kobe bryant,carmelo anthony,derek fisher,gilbert arenas and michael redd lead in that.

VISA wrote:

Greg Oden-Get well!!!!!!! wrote:

Also i would add LeBron James to this list too.The guy deserves to be here,he's not so good shooter but when it's about the last second with his incredibble driving ability and confidence at last seconds moments he's clutch.He leads the current players in most clutch shots made

No he doesn't lead the leage in clutch shots made, kobe bryant,carmelo anthony,derek fisher,gilbert arenas and michael redd lead in that.

Among the current players he's the leader in most made clutch shots.That's what i read couple of monts ago but it could be changed

Michael Jordan and Larry Bird of course...

I'd take Kobe as my #1 option, and if it was a 3 i would take Ray Allen. And Lebron being clutch is a joke.

KB24 wrote:

And Lebron being clutch is a joke.

how so? :/

1. He passes up most of the clutch shots, hes afraid to miss
2. He has like what? 2 game winners?

NBA Historian wrote:

If I need a player to take over the game, I'd go with Bird because he can change the game with his D, rebounding, passing, shooting....u name it. That man is unreal. He doesn't just take over the game by scoring. He can do it in other areas. That's why I gotta go with Bird.

I think you're probably right. Jordan was a great defender, and Kobe can be a great defender, but they didn't have the rebounding and passing ability that Larry Bird had. All three are lights out shooters when they want to be, but Bird is probably the singular best all around presence to have out on the floor as the game winds down. Talking just a final shot or two, it could be any of the guys mentioned in this thread (they were/are all so good), but I agree that if there was a guy I'd most want out there in the final 4 minutes of a game it would be a really tough choice between Michael Jordan and Larry Bird. Both guys not only improved themselves over the closing minutes of a game, but also their teammates. Anybody who can do that is simply amazing. They inspired confidence in their fellow players, just because they were out there with them. They also had amazing trust in their teammates, as shown by the clutch passing both elite scorers showed down the stretch. If I had to choose between Jordan and Bird, I'd probably say Bird as well, because people forget how important rebounding is down the stretch of a close game, and Bird was a great rebounder in addition to his other great skills. That coupled with his killer shooting ability and very good defense, wins me over. I'm still not sure who I'd take for a final possession shot, though. There are a ton of good options.

KB24 wrote:

1. He passes up most of the clutch shots, hes afraid to miss
2. He has like what? 2 game winners?

Two of the most inaccurate, widespread things about LeBron right there.

1. When he DOES pass, its a smart pass...and 95% of the time, he's shooting that game winner
2. It doesn't have to be a buzzer beater to be a gamewinner... Lebron has at least 5-8 game winners

KB24 wrote:

1. He passes up most of the clutch shots, hes afraid to miss
2. He has like what? 2 game winners?

As Historian pointed out, being clutch isn't simply a matter of shooting. When you're covered by three guys in the final possesion, doesn't it make sense to pass on the shot and get a much better, much more open one for a teammate? Now, if a teammate missed, that shows that they themselves may not be clutch, but how exactly does that reflect upon LeBron when he made the right move?

82games.com may be biased, but I think that shows he has more than 2 game winners, Abdi. I've seen it referred to by a few prominent NBA analysts and writers (J.A. Adande actually cited it in the article you showed me about Kobe's clutch shooting), none of which have actually questioned the numbers. As a measure of LeBron's clutch shots since he entered the league, it is a very good measurement.

nahh i seen him pass up shots when he was played man to man. 5-8 game winners were mostly driving. The only game winners i know that he shot was the Orlando playoff game and the Golden state game. He doesn't have the killer instinct like Kobe does to become a clutch shooter.

Off the very top of my head, LBJ vs Wizards in playoffs.
Made it w/ 0.5 left on the clock. Deep 2(or maybe 3)

Hell, last week he shot a deep 3 against Memphis for the win(missed it, but he didn't pass it off or anything)

KB24 wrote:

nahh i seen him pass up shots when he was played man to man. 5-8 game winners were mostly driving. The only game winners i know that he shot was the Orlando playoff game and the Golden state game. He doesn't have the killer instinct like Kobe does to become a clutch shooter.

Abdi, how is him driving to the rim and finishing not clutch? Its a game winner, and just as difficult considering the defense he would see going down the lane in the final seconds. I agree, that from longer range, I'd rather have Kobe, but there is a reason Kobe doesn't have as many game winning makes these past 6 seasons and just one game winning assist (to LeBron's 6). You're pinpointing times when he passed and a teammate missed. I could do something similar for Kobe by pinpointing times when he shot and missed, but should have passed. Being clutch is making the right play, despite the pressure, and for the most part, LeBron does that. As a player, would you rather have a shot in the lane or an off balance shot from the perimeter? Which would you have more chance of making? It only makes sense that LeBron goes to the lane, because shots from there are much more likely to go in.

Ughh he mised it, thats all that matters. Their was no time for him to pass the ball and he knew it.

Well what do you want?

You want him to stop passing in the clutch? He passes when he needs to.
You want him to start racking of game winners? He's got a boatload of them
You want him to start making them? He has a better % than Kobe...

I never said going to the lane wasn't clutch. I said he hasnt made any clutch shots. Driving isnt shooting, thats a lay-up, if Kobe had done that he would have so much more game winners. Like i said With Lebrons size it's easy to drive, thats why he does it. And when he does decide to shoot he misses.

why does it have to be an off balance Jumper? I've seen Kobe take so much normal on balance jump shots.

KB24 wrote:

Ughh he mised it, thats all that matters. Their was no time for him to pass the ball and he knew it.

I don't even know who or what you're talking about with this statement. In my opinion, your claim of LeBron not being clutch is completely unfounded. He may not have as great a body of work as Kobe (7 less seasons), but at no time during his tenure in the NBA has he indicated he isn't clutch. Thinking of obvious examples are his tear against the Pistons, going one on five against the Celtics a couple seasons ago (did very well in that series), and the play against the Wizards and Magic. What clutch playoff moments of Kobe come to your mind? I can think of the Blazers game, but recently I can't think of any. You'd be better at that. What playoff shots do you remember?