All-Time Greatest NBA Point Guards, Ranked

Game 5, 1987 Eastern Conference Finals—Bird steals the ball, but Dennis Johnson makes the layup to win it. That was DJ: always in the right place, ready to deliver. A three-time NBA champion and 1979 Finals MVP with Seattle, Johnson later became the defensive backbone of Boston’s mid-’80s dynasty.

He made five All-Defensive First Teams and was praised by Larry Bird as “the best I ever played with.” Johnson didn’t post flashy stats, but he hit big shots and locked down the league’s top guards. His legacy? Clutch, calm, and completely essential.