Every NBA team’s greatest point guard of all time

Atlanta Hawks — Mookie Blaylock

1992-1999
14.9 points per game
7.3 assists per game
4.6 rebounds per game

This one is so close to being Trae Young, but he’s not quite there yet. Mookie Blaylock would still be considered better if Young’s career ended now. It’s close, which is saying something since Blaylock was the top guy for this team for seven seasons. Young has slightly more to go before he gets to that level.

Blaylock made a name for himself in college with his start defense despite his short stature. At 6-foot, he wasn’t necessarily the tallest point guard in the game. He was a bulldog, and his tenacity allowed him to get the ball out of the hands of bigger players. It was his way of evening the playing field.

Blaylock was drafted by the New Jersey Nets, but he was traded to the Atlanta Hawks, where he quickly built great chemistry in Lenny Wilkens’s system. His tenacity made it into the NBA, where he became the Hawks career leader in steals and he was ahead of his time in 3-point shooting. Only five players have led the league two years in a row in steals, and Blaylock is one of them.

He only spent seven years with the Hawks, and his career was never the same after he left Atlanta. He spent the last few seasons of his career with the Golden State Warriors before he had a rough time in retirement. He was arrested multiple times and spent years in prison after a crash killed a woman.