Where does James Harden rank among all-time NBA shooting guards?

Luminous basketball mind Kendrick Perkins recently said on one of his many opportunities to throw words at a screen that James Harden has had a better career than three-time NBA champion Dwyane Wade. That got us thinking about where exactly Harden ranks among the all-time shooting guards in NBA history.

Let's begin with some caveats:

• Harden’s career is not yet finished, and he’s of course hopeful for his first NBA championship with the Cavaliers this season
• Harden has often acted in the role of point guard far more so than Wade or the other greats on this list; positions are nebulous, and never more so than in Harden’s era
• This always involves a personal delineation between longevity and peaks, etc.

And now, to the list.

Michael Jordan stands alone

Harden and Wade are where we’re starting the comparison. Michael Jordan is the first name, naturally. Kobe Bryant must be included. Jerry West, too. And let’s include Reggie Miller, Allen Iverson and Clyde Drexler. Two lesser-known names will round out our list: George Gervin (the original and only Iceman, Caleb Williams) and Ray Allen.

Let’s go to the tale of the tape.

This honestly puts the debate in pretty stark terms.

Jordan has to be first; he’s arguably the GOAT, with the most championships, second-most points and third-most All-NBA selections among this group, and if he hadn’t taken his baseball sabbatical in 1994-1995 he'd be higher in all of those categories. (Eight straight titles in the modern era would have ended the GOAT debate forever.) Jordan’s five MVPs is two more than all the others on this list combined.

So that’s settled. No. 2 is where the debate begins.

Dwayne Wade or Kobe Bryant?

The competitors for the runner-up spot are commonly thought to be Wade, West and, in some modern circles, Harden.

Now, I entered this exercise believing that Wade should be No. 2. He led his team to the 2006 championship as the No. 1 guy, something Bryant did only once, in 2009. The other titles were more Shaq’s than Kobe’s; Kobe was awesome, but Shaq was the dominant force in those years.

Wade was a better playmaker and, I would argue, a better defender. Wade made his teammates better to a much higher degree than Bryant did. Wade was also inarguably a better teammate. Wade was more efficient, though both suffered historically from playing in an era when efficiency was neither maximized nor as easily obtained as it is now.

I’d rather have prime Wade than prime Bryant because you can build a better team with Wade. The 2005-2007 Lakers are proof of that.

However ... Kobe Bryant had the second-most titles on this list, only one behind Jordan. Bryant had the most points among all shooting guards, based on his longevity and volume. Bryant’s 15 All-NBA selections double Wade’s. He has an MVP to Wade’s zero. (Go look at Wade’s 2009 season in comparison to Bryant’s 2008 MVP season, however. The only reason Wade didn’t win was that LeBron James was a Worldbreaker.)

Bryant had more team success (whether he was the primary driving force or not; Wade wasn’t the driving force on Miami's 2012 or 2013 titles), individual accolades, and individual production. He played more seasons, but that also matters here.

I will give Wade the edge over West, despite West’s MVP and 12 All-NBA selections. I do think we have to consider relative league strength, as the NBA just wasn’t as deep or developed when West played. West was incredible, and nowadays would be much more of a point guard. He’d shoot a lot more from 3-point range, and that would help.

But ultimately, Wade’s athleticism, relentlessness and absolutely massive big-game performances move me in his direction and put Wade third.

How far does James Harden fall?

West vs. Harden gets incredibly interesting. West has an MVP, and Harden has one as well. Harden has fewer All-NBA selections after starting his career coming off the bench. Both had playoff performances that labeled them losers, though West was individually stronger than Harden.

One title for West is a pretty big differentiator here. Harden is an absolute engine. He’s the best playmaker on this list by a wide margin, an incredible passer that people won’t remember him enough for. It’s not just that he creates assists; he has every single pass in his bag.

But West made nine NBA Finals. Wade made five, Bryant made seven and Jordan won all six of his. Harden has one Finals appearance, coming off the bench for the Thunder.

The 2018 loss to the Warriors wasn’t his fault; the Rockets absolutely win that series if Chris Paul doesn’t suffer his hamstring injury. However, Harden’s meltdowns in 2016, 2017 and 2019 do matter here. In his other Western Conference Finals appearance in 2015, he was largely great, but he was benched in the Rockets’ Game 6 comeback against the Clippers that decided the series.

Harden’s overall playoff statistical profile is better than you’d think, but watching them, you were always disappointed. Jerry West clears him. Which means we’ve got a top four of:

1. Jordan
2. Kobe
3. Wade
4. West

For the fifth spot, it’s Harden vs. Drexler and Iverson. Drexler has one championship but no MVPs; Iverson has one MVP but no titles, like Harden, and was much more culturally influential.

Harden has so many more points than the other two. Drexler was a better defender, but only won the title as a No. 2 to Hakeem on the reigning champions as they went back-to-back. Harden clears him.

Iverson, like Harden, was more often talked about as a point guard, but both were explosive scorers. They both had seven All-NBA selections (though theoretically Harden could still add an 8th, and a championship for that matter). Harden had great seasons as a bench scorer and playmaker with OKC, as the MVP mega-engine in Houston, was still great in Brooklyn on a dysfunctional squad, had moments in Philadelphia (he was actually better in their playoff run than he gets credit for) and with the Clippers.

Iverson, by contrast, really only had the great stretch in Philadelphia. Iverson’s Finals appearance does make this competitive, but based on total output, longevity, playmaking and overall career, we’re putting Harden ahead.

We have two pure shooters to reckon with here after Harden: Reggie Miller and Ray Allen. Both are remembered for their spot-up 3-point shooting, but it’s forgotten how much and how easily they could score on-ball. Allen was a monster scorer in Milwaukee and Seattle before his Boston and, later, Miami runs. Miller was the best player on a team that made a Finals and contended for almost 15 years with him at the helm.

But Harden’s MVP lifts him here. Allen’s two championships were as a spot-up role player. Their singular greatness in that area gets them on this list but not above Harden.

Here’s how I’d rank the top 10 shooting guards in NBA history, currently, with Harden still competing.

1. Michael Jordan
2. Kobe Bryant
3. Dwyane Wade
4. Jerry West
5. James Harden
6. Reggie Miller
7. Allen Iverson
8. Clyde Drexler
9. Ray Allen
10. George Gervin

Harden being top five in a position all-time should be considered an incredible accomplishment and compliment. But his odds of rising up any higher on this list sadly faded with his title chances in 2018. Even one ring would have changed the narrative on him considerably, but as it stands, he’s in a tier below the all-time top four.