Where Wade, Giannis fit in our ranking of top 25 of this NBA century (Part 2)

Our ranking continues and like the playoffs, gets harder to get through at each stage.

When examining the Miami Heat's accomplishments in that Pat Riley era, one can point to the organization having some of the best players in NBA history, and things start to make sense. Additionally all of the battles against notable foes have made the memories everlasting.

Of course, playoff victories and winning championships, especially as the first or second option, are weighted highly on this list, but so is continued excellence. Let's review how many Heatles are listed.

15. Tie between Allen Iverson and Chris Paul

Yes, I’m cheating, but it was the only way to stay true to my principles and honor two of the best small guards in history who deserve recognition. Besides, it’s not like co-awards haven’t happened before (Rookie of the Year), and the league’s top 75 list has 76 names.

Aside from Wilt Chamberlain and some others, it is hard to say if the NBA has seen a bigger workhorse than Iverson in his 2001 MVP season, in which he led the battered and bruised Philadelphia 76ers to the finals against Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant‘s Los Angeles Lakers. Iverson got them a win in the opener and kept them in two of the remaining four games.

He was a blur with tremendous courage and flare. Keep in mind that Iverson, at six feet tall, won three of his four scoring titles this century.

And CP3 was the prototypical point guard, plus the best one in the NBA for a while until Stephen Curry surpassed him in 2014-15. One of the true marks of greatness is when a player can change his game and be just as effective. Paul had to slow down his attack to preserve his body as a younger man, becoming more of a jump shooter. One of the other marks is a player improving every team they are on, and he did that until his last real season, with San Antonio.

Unfortunately, his body would betray him often in the playoffs with ailments yet he still did a lot. Don’t forget that he was James Harden’s teammate in the 2017-18 Houston Rockets that took the Kevin Durant and Curry-led Golden State Warriors to seven games, and Paul later helped the Phoenix Suns get to the Finals in 2021, in year 16, as one of the top contributors.

Paul notably made 11 All-NBA teams and led the league in assists and steals five and six times.

14. Kawhi Leonard

Kawhi Leonard turned into the Heat’s worst nightmare in the 2013 and 2014 Finals, and he and the San Antonio Spurs took the latter. He then was the driving force in helping the Toronto Raptors win their only championship five years later, after just arriving in a new city.

Leonard is entering his 15th year and second in Toronto, which comes eight seasons after his first with them. Injuries played a big part in capping his runs with the Los Angeles Clippers, but when he’s right, few perimeter players can match his three-level accuracy, athleticism and power. His mid-range mastery and post moves are big-time weapons and part of what makes him so good at those spots are his massive hands, allowing him extra control.

He was formerly the back-to-back Defensive Player of the year in 2015 and 2016, and had three top-five finishes for the MVP award. Aside from winning two rings, one of his most memorable moments was leading the Clippers back from a 2-0 deficit in the 2021 playoffs against the Dallas Mavericks before tearing his ACL in the following series.

13. Tie between Jason Kidd and Kevin Durant

Jason Kidd turned the New Jersey Nets into a contender immediately, taking them to two consecutive Finals series, when they had been a 26-win team the season prior. He was also known as Mr. Triple-Double and was second in MVP voting in 2001-02, falling short to Tim Duncan.

Kidd was still averaging nine assists at age 36, and was the starting point guard on the 2011 Dallas Mavericks that defeated the Heat in the Finals.

Furthermore, maybe there wouldn’t be a tie here if Durant didn’t hop on the Warriors’ wagon, but he was one of the best scorers of a generation and a model of longevity. His size at nearly seven feet made his release point tough to disrupt, especially on the move.

Durant’s best individual accomplishments include the 2013-14 MVP award and 12 All-NBA selections.

12. Kevin Garnett

Kevin Garnett was slotted sixth on ESPN’s list two years ago and that’s a perfect example of players becoming more legendary in retirement. Even with Garnett’s notable Boston tenure, he unfortunately didn’t make his way over there sooner and spent the first eight years of his career losing in round one. To his credit, the Celtics won instantly when he joined forced with Ray Allen and Paul Pierce.

Nonetheless, he was a ruthless two-way force who was an excellent rebounder and the best player on the 2008 championship team. His most notable individual achievement was being MVP in 2003-04 and the Defensive Player of the year in 2007-08.

11. Luka Dončić

Luka Dončić has not won a championship yet and his defense leaves a lot to be desired, but he makes up for it being the top scorer in the game, plus a fine rebounder and passer. He’s only 27 years old and already has logged four seasons scoring at least 27 points with at least a 55.0 effective field goal percentage.

He’s not the quickest, but his pace is still unguardable because of his strength advantage over most defenders. Coverages often get stunned while he is on the move, being unable to read if he is hoisting a floater or a lob to a teammate.

Dončić is as clutch as they come and makes his teammates better by giving them easier shots after absorbing multiple defenders.

10. Dirk Nowitzki

Inverted screen rolls are more common than they were in the past, yet there is tape of Dirk Nowitzki running them in the 2006 playoffs. Additionally, he is another Miami nemesis that claimed revenge in the 2011 Finals, as he led the Mavericks over the Big Three Heat. The next best player on those Mavericks was Jason Terry, who didn’t start a game of that playoff run.

Nowitzki was an OK rebounder and had defensive weaknesses, but he was a threat from anywhere and got to the line more than the typical jump shooter. He had five seasons logging at least 25 points per game and he was the MVP in 2006-07. He is one of the rare players who helped change the game because now every team wants their big man to be an outside option.

9. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

The reigning back-to-back MVP wasn’t on ESPN’s list two years ago, but should have been even if he didn’t have the hardware yet because he was effortlessly scoring in a way few this century have. To boot, he is one of the greatest pull-up mid-range shooters ever and must be the best in the league today. His first step is swift and he has plenty of moves to create separation.

SGA led Oklahoma City Thunder to a championship in 2025 and is just getting started. He is currently one of the two or three best players in the world.

8. Giannis Antetokounmpo

A good case could be made that Giannis Antetokounmpo is one of the greatest player development stories ever. He wasn’t a lottery pick, and has ascended to being a two-time MVP, a Defensive player of the Year and an NBA champion in 2020-21. On top of that, he’s scored 23,801 points in the regular season and playoffs through 13 years.

Antetokounmpo is one of the top shot creators in the league, which includes creating the most 3-point attempts for teammates through his passes. He’s still in the back end of his prime, now starting his time with the Heat in 2026-27.

7. Nikola Jokić

Klay Thompson’s father, Mychal, said Nikola Jokić is the guy he’d want to play with if he was active today because the big Serbian is “like a center version of Magic Johnson.” He’s averaged a triple-double the last two seasons, which included leading the league in rebounds and assists in 2026. His chronic wrist injury coming and going can’t stop him from being the top offensive player and arguably best in the world.

Jokić‘s face-up game is a nightmare to guard and the same is true in the post. He has three MVP awards and three second-place finishes. Being one of the five strongest players in the league gives him an advantage, and his one championship coincidentally ended the Heat’s memorable 2023 postseason.

6. Dwyane Wade

The last two on this list could have been a coin flip, but Wade’s status as a three-time champion carries loads of weight. If any Heat fan has the league pass and hasn’t seen the 2006 Finals, watch it now and witness Wade when he was the best player in the world for almost two weeks.

The highest he finished in MVP voting was third place in 2008-09, which was the same year he won the scoring title, coming behind LeBron James and Kobe Bryant. Of all the players on this top 25 of the 21-st century, none were greater slashers than Wade in his prime. He was fast and would contort his body effortlessly as he cut through the air. Had his knees been in better shape he probably would’ve moved up further on this list.

The most special part about him was how he would rise to the moment in big games, which he would do even late in his career.

Add us as a preferred source on Google