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Any discussion of the best shooting guards in NBA history usually starts with Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant at the top of the list, though the historical roster of great two-guards is deep and versatile, ranging from the recently retired Dwyane Wade to offensive dynamos such as James Harden to silky smooth shooters like Ray Allen and Reggie Miller. Among this group, two of the more underrated and perhaps under-appreciated shooting guards/wings are Clyde “The Glide” Drexler and George “The Iceman” Gervin, franchise mainstays who quietly went about doing their thing on a nightly basis and were always among the best players in the league, but never quite “The Man”. Nevertheless, both players are rightfully immortalized in Springfield and deserve mention in any conversations about top shooting guards throughout the Association’s history – however, between the two:
Who was better – Clyde Drexler or George Gervin?
The Beginning
While neither Drexler nor Gervin were earmarked as obvious future basketball superstars, both would gradually showcase the skills of franchise cornerstones, though their paths to stardom were not without trials and tribulations along the way.
As a relatively lightly recruited player out of Houston, Drexler stayed local and played his college ball at the University of Houston; there, he teamed with Hakeem Olajuwon as part of the famed “Phi Slama Jama” teams that made two straight Final Fours in 1982 and 1983, though fell just short of the title both times. After being named Southwestern Conference Player of the Year and First Team All-American during his junior year, Drexler turned pro and was drafted 14th overall in the 1983 NBA Draft by the Portland Trail Blazers (who would then infamously draft Sam Bowie second overall the next year, right behind Olajuwon and before some guy named Michael Jordan). Though he had a relatively quiet rookie season (7.7 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game in 17.2 minutes played), Drexler broke out in his sophomore campaign to the tune of 17.2 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game, thus entrenching himself in the Portland starting lineup for the next decade.
Meanwhile, as a Detroit native, Gervin originally committed to play collegiate basketball at Long Beach State (in California) for Hall of Fame coach Jerry Tarkenian, but had trouble adjusting to the environment and soon transferred back home to Eastern Michigan. Despite a productive career, he was eventually suspended and kicked off the team for punching an opponent in the NCAA College Division National Semifinals. After a brief stint with the Pontiac Chaparrals in the now-defunct Continental Basketball Association (CBA), Gervin was signed by the Virginia Squires of the American Basketball Association (ABA). Following a good rookie year in 1972-1973, during which he averaged 14.1 points per game, Gervin was in the midst of a terrific 1973-1974 season (25.4 points per game on 47.2% shooting with 8.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game) when the Squires traded him to the San Antonio Spurs for cash considerations. Given his two years of ABA service, he was eligible for the NBA Draft and was selected by the Phoenix Suns with the 40th pick in the third round, but decided to stay with the Spurs in the ABA.
Career Comparison
Once they had established themselves with Portland and San Antonio, respectively, both Drexler and Gervin would become franchise stalwarts for a decade – even today, Drexler remains arguably the greatest player in Trail Blazers history (though Damian Lillard may have something to say about that when all is said and done), while Gervin was the best Spurs player in franchise history until David Robinson and Tim Duncan came along.
Building on his breakout 1984-1985 season, Drexler became a first-time All-Star in 1985-1986 on the strength of 18.5 points, 5.6 rebounds, and a career-best 8.0 assists per game (overall, he was a 10x All-Star in his career). From there, he would firmly establish himself as one of the best all-around players in the NBA, averaging close to 20+ points, 6+ rebounds, and 6+ assists per game for a decade. This included seven straight All-Stars selections from 1987-1988 to 1993-1994, including his first selection to the All-NBA Second Team in 1987-1988 when he averaged 27.0 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 5.8 assists per game. The next season (1988-1989) was arguably one of his best from a statistical perspective, as Drexler had a career-high 27.2 points and 7.9 rebounds per game to go along with 5.8 assists per game. In an era dominated by superstars (Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Hakeem Olajuwon, Karl Malone, etc., just to name a few), Drexler was often overshadowed and perpetually underrated, but had one of his best seasons in 1991-1992: that year, he contributed 25.0 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 6.7 assists per game, and made First Team All-NBA for the only time in his career while also finishing second to Jordan for MVP.
Post his near-MVP season, Drexler continued to be a consistent force for the Trail Blazers, averaging a shade under 20 points per game for the next couple of years. Then, in 1994-1995, despite him averaging 22.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game, Portland was in a clear rebuilding mode and honored Drexler’s desire to play for a contender, thus trading him to the Houston Rockets along with Tracy Murray for Otis Thorpe, the draft rights to Marcelo Nicola (who never played a game in the NBA), and a 1995 first-round pick. Reunited with his old college teammate Olajuwon in Houston, Drexler put together a strong second half for the Rockets (21.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game) en route to being selected All-NBA Third Team. This was followed by two more All-Star seasons in Houston, though following another solid all-around year in 1997-1998 (18.4 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game), Drexler chose to retire at age 35.
As for Gervin, his career took off in San Antonio, as he never averaged fewer than 21 points per game in his 11 full seasons with the Spurs across the ABA and NBA. After being a 3x ABA All-Star and 2x All-ABA Second Team selection, Gervin would continue his high-scoring ways post the ABA-NBA merger in 1976 and proceed to make nine straight NBA All-Star Games. From 1977 to 1980, he won three straight NBA scoring titles, increasing his scoring average while shooting above 50% from the field each year; moreover, Gervin was also a First Team All-NBA selection in each of these seasons (5x overall):
- 1977-1978: 27.2 points (53.6% shooting), 5.1 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game; Gervin narrowly beat out David Thompson of the Denver Nuggets by a scoring average of 27.22 vs. 27.15 – Thompson scored 73 points in his last game of the season, but Gervin countered with 63 points in his last game to secure the scoring title (the 63 points was also a Spurs record until David Robinson scored 71 points in 1994)
- 1978-1979: 29.6 points (54.1% shooting), 5.0 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game
- 1979-1980: a career-high 33.1 points (52.8% shooting), 5.2 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game
In the midst of seven consecutive 25+ point-per-game seasons, Gervin won his fourth and last scoring title in 1981-1982 on the strength of another 30-point average season (32.3 points per game on 50.0% shooting with 5.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game). However, with Gervin on the downside of his career and the Spurs bringing in a new head coach in 1985-1986, the Iceman was traded to the Chicago Bulls for David Greenwood. There, the aging Gervin played with a young Michael Jordan and was still an effective scorer (16.2 points per game), but retired from the NBA at age 33 following his lone season in Chicago. From there, he would play a few more years overseas in both Italy and Spain, as well as back in the CBA.
Though their careers spanned a similar number of years (15 for Drexler and 14 across the ABA and NBA for Gervin) and are separated by only 26 games played, their styles differed greatly – Drexler was more of a prototype all-around playmaker vs. Gervin’s unmatched scoring prowess. Thus, in comparing their career numbers, Gervin had higher career scoring numbers (25.1 to 20.4) on better shooting percentages vs. Drexler maintaining clear leads in rebounds (6.1 to 5.3) and assists (5.6 to 2.6). For awards and accolades, Gervin also has the edge in All-Star nods (12x to 10x) and All-NBA selections (7x to 5x, plus 2x All-ABA), but Drexler came closer to winning MVP (the aforementioned second-place finish in 1991-1992). Additionally, when you look at advanced metrics, Gervin is slightly favored by Player Efficiency Rating (PER), but Drexler accumulated more Win-Shares. As mentioned, both Drexler and Gervin are Hall of Famers (Drexler – 2004, Gervin – 1996), as well as part of the NBA’s Top 50 Players selected in 1996 as part of the Association’s 50th anniversary.
Regular Season Statistics
| Clyde Drexler | Player | George Gervin |
| 15 (1983-1998) | Seasons | 14 (1972-1986) |
| 1,086 | Games Played | 1,060 |
| 20.4 | Points | 25.1 |
| 6.1 | Rebounds | 5.3 |
| 5.6 | Assists | 2.6 |
| 47.2% | Field Goal % | 50.4% |
| 78.8% | Free Throw % | 84.1% |
| 21.1 | PER | 21.4 |
| 135.6 | Win Shares | 116.3 |
| 10x | All-Star Games | 12x (NBA and ABA) |
| 5x | All-NBA | 7x |
| – | MVP | – |
| 1x | NBA Titles | – |
| – | NBA Finals MVP | – |
| – | Other Awards | 2x All-ABA |
| 2004 | Hall of Fame Induction | 1996 |
Source: Basketball-Reference.com
Both Drexler and Gervin exhibited remarkable consistency in playoff appearances, with Drexler playing in the postseason every year of his career and Gervin in 13 out of 14 seasons with the Squires, Spurs, and Bulls. However, while each player performed admirably in the postseason, typically either on-par with or even surpassing their regular season production, their teams continued to fall just short of an elusive title; it would take a trade to pair Drexler with another superstar before he finally broke through, while Gervin never won a championship or even made it to the NBA Finals.
As a member of the Trail Blazers, Drexler twice made the NBA Finals in losing efforts:
- 1990: Portland lost in five games to the Detroit Pistons “Bad Boys” despite Drexler’s 26.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 6.2 assists per game
- 1992: in Drexler’s near-MVP campaign, Portland lost in six games to Jordan and the Bulls despite another strong Finals from their star (24.8 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game)
Sandwiched between these two Finals appearances, Drexler led the Trail Blazers to a franchise-best 63-19 record in 1990-1991 and they were heavy favorites to make the Finals once again, but were upset by Magic Johnson and the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. Finally, after his mid-season trade to Houston in 1994-1995, Drexler was part of the Rockets team that would win its second straight title by sweeping the Orlando Magic; in those Finals, he was the second-leading scorer behind Finals MVP Olajuwon, putting up 21.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 6.8 assists per game.
In addition to being a 4x NBA scoring champion, Gervin led the postseason in scoring for five straight years from 1978 to 1982. The Spurs’ deepest playoff run came in 1979, when in the Eastern Conference Finals (they would later move to the Western Conference), they held a 3-1 series lead vs. the Washington Bullets (now the Wizards) before losing three straight and blowing their best shot at the Finals; overall, Gervin averaged 28.6 points (53.6% shooting), 5.9 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game in the playoffs. A few years later, San Antonio would make it to the Western Conference Finals behind Gervin’s 29.4 points (45.2% shooting), 7.3 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game, but were swept by the Lakers. The next season, the Spurs would again make it to the Western Conference Finals before falling to the Lakers in six games despite another strong postseason from their leader Gervin (25.2 points per game on 51.9% shooting with 6.7 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game).
While Gervin never competed on the international stage, Drexler was a member of the original 1992 Dream Team that took the Olympics by storm and easily won gold in Barcelona.
Playoff Statistics
| Clyde Drexler | Player | George Gervin |
| 145 | Games Played | 84 |
| 20.4 | Points | 26.5 |
| 6.9 | Rebounds | 6.9 |
| 6.1 | Assists | 2.9 |
| 44.7% | Field Goal % | 50.1% |
| 78.7% | Free Throw % | 82.0% |
| 19.7 | PER | 21.2 |
| 15.5 | Win Shares | 9.7 |
Source: Basketball-Reference.com
Every athlete goes through a natural career lifecycle, from starting off as a rookie to reaching peak years of performance and finally, declining into the inevitable retirement due to a combination of age and/or injury; Drexler and Gervin were no exceptions to this rule, in particular Gervin who retired relatively young from the NBA and spent a few years thereafter overseas and in the CBA. For Hall of Fame caliber players across sports, I like to look at a concept I call a “decade of dominance.” The thinking behind this is that for most Hall of Fame type careers, there are roughly 10 great seasons that define an athlete (this idea is embodied in a sense by the NFL’s All-Decade teams), though due to injury or other factors, they might not be 10 consecutive years.
Decade of Dominance
| Clyde Drexler | Player | George Gervin |
| 1986-1996 | Decade of Dominance | 1974-1984 |
| 717 | Games Played | 802 |
| 22.9 | Points | 26.9 |
| 6.7 | Rebounds | 5.5 |
| 5.9 | Assists | 2.9 |
| 47.6% | Field Goal % | 50.9% |
| 79.5% | Free Throw % | 84.1% |
| 21.9 | PER | 22.1 |
| 104.1 | Win Shares | 99.9 |
Source: Basketball-Reference.com
No surprises across the decades of dominance, as Gervin remains the superior scorer vs. Drexler being the better all-around player. One of the more interesting comparisons is looking at the advanced metrics – again, Gervin is slightly ahead in PER, but Drexler’s large lead in Win-Shares is considerably smaller across their best seasons, thus speaking to his overall better career consistency and longevity.
My Thoughts
If you ask a casual basketball fan to name the best shooting guards in NBA history, most will probably go through half a dozen to a dozen names before potentially naming Clyde Drexler and/or George Gervin. But make no mistake – despite their relative lack of recognition, each was in his own way one of the dominant players of his day. Between the two, pick your poison – do you prefer Drexler’s well-rounded game or Gervin’s devastating scoring prowess? For me, I lean towards basketball players who can contribute and help their team win in a multitude of ways, even when their shot is not falling. As transcendent a scorer as Gervin was, he was neither an elite playmaker nor a force on the defensive end and as a result, was a bit one-dimensional in his ability to affect the outcome of a game; on the other hand, Drexler had to adjust from being alpha dog in Portland to super sidekick in Houston, but his versatility allowed him to thrive in his new role and ultimately, win the championship he so desired.
Thus, after weighing their careers against each other in terms of statistics, achievements, and impact, the winner of this faceoff is:
Clyde Drexler
As always, vote for your choice and leave your thoughts and comments below.
Further Reading
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