I think it’s almost unanimous that Steph is the greatest shooter of all time and Magic is the greatest passer of all time. My question is, who has a wider gap between them and #2 + the rest of the pack?
Also, stats are important, but not the end all be all here. For instance, Klay might actually be a slightly better catch-and-shoot 3pt maker than Steph, but Steph is so far and away better at creating his own shot it’s why he is clearly the best shooter of all time. And Magic may not hold the assist record, but you would be hard-pressed by most fans and players if you said Stockton had a similar passing ability to Magic.
What is interesting is Nash, in addition to be talked about as one of the great passers, is also in the discussion for second best shooter. He had four 50-40-90 seasons and missed a fifth by .1% from the line. The rest of the NBA combined has 14 of those seasons. Obviously the volume was nowhere near the same as Steph, but you have to wonder what he would’ve done in today’s NBA where the shooting PG was more of an emphasis. He has the scoring ability, for sure. Steph is #1 without dispute, but I don’t think the chasm between him and Nash is quite as wide as people think.