Penny Hardaway snubs 10x All-Star & picks himself for all-time top 5 NBA PGs list
Four-time NBA All-Star Penny Hardaway appeared as a special guest on Thursday's episode of "The Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis." To conclude his guest appearance, Hardaway was asked to name his top five point guards.
Hardaway didn't have any trouble in giving the first four point guards, but he appeared to struggle in naming a fifth. Green and Davis tried to help him by enumerating some great players who played at the one position. Specifically, Green named John Stockton as a possible fifth while Davis suggested Steve Nash and Kevin Johnson.
However, Hardaway decided to go in a different direction and named someone else.
"It's so many great ones, bro," Hardaway said. "I gotta pick one more, though. I know I'm in that top five. I'll just say, 'And me.' That's where I'll leave it."
John Stockton played in the NBA from 1984-85 to 2002-03. After spending the first three seasons of his career mostly coming off the bench, he became a starter in 1987-88. He immediately made an impact upon receiving a heavier workload as he led the league in assists with 13.8 per game that year.
After that breakout year, Stockton continued to prove that he was one of the greatest point guards of all time. He went on to lead the league in assists in eight more consecutive seasons.
From '87-88 to '95-96, he averaged 13.1 apg. He was also a menace on defense, forcing turnovers regularly. He led the league in steals twice, once in '88-'89 with 3.2 per game and again in '91-92 with 3.0.
Throughout his career, Stockton averaged 10.5 apg and 2.2 spg. He was named an All-Star nine straight seasons from 1989 to 1997 and then once more in 2000.
Also read: "I was trying to put fear in him": Penny Hardaway gets honest about Michael Jordan match up
Who were the other point guards on Penny Hardaway's list?
Before finally settling on naming himself No. 5 on his list of top-five all-time point guards, Penny Hardaway breezed through the first four. When Draymond Green asked him for his list, he immediately started naming some of the best players to play at that position.
"I'm starting with Magic (Johnson) because that's my guy," Hardaway said (Timestamp: 1:10.10). "I'm putting Steph (Curry) in there for sure. It's tough for me, man. I'll throw my boy (Gary Payton) in there because he played both sides. I'm going GP, Gary Payton. You got to put (Jason) Kidd in there. It's getting real tough. I got so many guys."
These four players whom Penny Hardaway named all won championships in the NBA. Magic Johnson has the most, with five championships (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988), followed by Steph Curry with four (2015, 2017, 2018, 2022).
Meanwhile, both Gary Payton and Jason Kidd have one each. Payton won one with the Miami Heat in 2006, and Kidd got his championship with the Dallas Mavericks in 2011.