Top 100 NBA Players: #50

Shawn Marion

(BBR: #79)

Shawn Marion is easily the most surprising member of my all-time top 50. Only one other member of my top 50 doesn't appear on either Elliott Kalb's top 50 or Bill Simmons' top 96, and you'll see him at #40. Marion asked out of Phoenix because he felt he wasn't getting the credit he deserved, and I have to agree, which is why he's here.

In just his second season, Marion showed the all-around skills that would make him a star. That year he averaged 17.3 points, 10.7 rebounds, 1.7 steals, and 1.4 blocks, and he continued to improved from there. From 2002 to 2007, he was incredibly solid, improving his numbers across the board and helping the Suns become annual contenders. His stats from that period are listed below:

Marion - 19.8 pts, 10.4 reb, 2.1 ast, 2.1 stl, 1.4 blk, .481 FG%, .831 FT%

Marion has played on three teams that made deep playoff runs, and had a major part in all three. In 2004, he was the third-best player on the Suns team that made the Western Conference Finals, playing behind Amare and Steve Nash. The next season, Amare went down with an injury, so Marion stepped into his role and led the Suns to the Conference Finals again, this time as their best player. His most recent playoff run happened just a few months ago, as he helped the Mavericks win their first championship as the #3 player on the team.

Marion is one of only 5 players in NBA history to amass over 1500 steals and 1000 blocks in his career, and the others are all pretty recognizable names: Julius Erving, Hakeem Olajuwon, Kevin Garnett, and Karl Malone. He led the league in total steals twice, and finished in the top 10 in rebounding 6 times, despite being only 6-7. Taken all together, you have to recognize that the Matrix really was the star he thought he was.

You may not realize it, but Marion was actually better than Webber for the majority of their playing careers. Their per-game averages were pretty similar, but Marion was a much better free throw shooter and had a lot more playoff success than Webber, not to mention the fact that he rarely missed time with injuries, which Webber did with great regularity. Marion definitely has had the kind of career that needs to be remembered.