Who is better Isiah Thomas or Allen Iverson?

Question

My dear, dear, mhikedelima, In case you haven't get it yet (I hope you do now) I'm asking about the overall type of player! Who better all around, who's better in what he does.. Who's better in carrying his team. That's it.

Answer 1

Hard question. Thanks for this one though it's a long time coming.

Isiah as a player is a li'l better than Iverson. Both have the passion, Both are great help defenders, Both definitely have good ofensive arsenals going on for them.

The difference is the rings. Some might say that Iverson had inferior line-ups for a team compared to Zeke's which is why he didn't win any ring. Iverson was MVP. (Zeke while not having a regular season MVP has a Finals MVP trophy to show, and that was what really mattred).

See if Isiah's team did not won any championship would you call their team great? They had a center who couldn't jump lol. Zeke's sheer determination (with Chuck Daly's cunning) helped them win two titles enough to seal him with the all-time greats.

Zeke just surrounded himself with a lot of issues (such as the Jordan-freezing issue and the alledged sexual harrasment issue) which kind of glooms over his reputation but as a player he is simply one of the best. As Chuck Daly once put it "Isiah Thomas is the shorter version of Michael Jordan". Enough said.

Hope this helps.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Ahahahahaha! To tell you the truth mhike that just shows how little you know about NBA history... I never said Isiah is better than Allen in terms of steals. Isiah was an 1.9 SPG averager with Iverson averaging 2.3 SPG. All I said was "both of them are great help defenders". Read again and be surprised.

Isiah was a better blocker than Allen finishing his career with an average of 0.25 BPG compared to Iverson's 0.10 BPG.

Stop jumping on me for your Boo Boo.

Good Day!

Answer 2

Isiah was a better passer, defender for sure, smarter player and just as quick if not quicker. Isiah took more efficient shots and didn't jack jumpers all day. Any good NBA player could score 25 a night when they take 30 attempts. Common sense is the 76ers got more organized and better when he left, as well as the Nuggets. Isiah once said that he could score 30 a night if he wanted, but realized that the team was what mattered. If people think Billups is better than Iverson than Isiah is certainly better. Isiah is top 5 all time at his position, can you say the same for Iverson.

Answer 3

My god it's Isiah Thomas. We can use the cliche "Who has more championships?" but take that out of the equation and Isiah is still better. Isiah had better ball-handling skills, got his teammates involved and was tough. Iverson's a baller and tough as nails but Isiah is just on another planet. His competitive drive is underrated because he's quiet. Think about this: Isiah was so competitive Jordan didn't even want him on the Olympic Dream Team. You wouldn't see Jordan get intimated by Iverson like that. You remember Isiah against the Laker hitting 3's with one knee or taking that flying elbow from Magic in the finals? That's a prime example of a tough gritty guard. Isiah is one of the more underappreciated point guards of the 80s/90s, he'll probably never get the credit he deserves.

Answer 4

In terms of what?

Team Leadership= Isiah
Passing= Isiah
Defense= Isiah
Scoring= AI
On a Related Note, Popularity With the Ladies= AI
Better at not having a constant phony smile even though your team is the joke= AI

Depends what you're looking for....at one point, inch for inch, AI was the best, but he never won any championships like Isiah did. You might be able to argue that AI never had a good enough supporting cast, but Isiah was a much better team player....so maybe in the end, Isiah is a better competitor. As Barkley once said: "Isiah would cut your balls off to win." We'll see what he does in a different court.

Answer 5

Allen Iverson

Answer 6

Allen Iverson

Answer 7

first of all allen iverson never won a ring and was always a solo basketball player he never cared for his team but the money and himself but hey i admire him for his skills and talents even if he was lets say 8 or 7 time allstar player that didnt help him win a ring. Basketball is all about teamwork, when basketball was invented it started out as a team game not by one on one even if allen iverson had a TERRIBLE team and coach a team is a team building teamwork is very important look at michael jordan he had help from his teammates,his teammates made him a legend thats how much of a great team they are in the other hand kobe the best shooting guard in the nba on the court,although he never was a team player even if he did scored 101 points a game he would never win a game that way ,one man can help contribute but one man cant do it by himself that is teamwork. spurs won a title again because they played like a team.
isiah thomas is one of the greatest point guard in nba history
he won rings because their team was great and he was never selfish and never a ball hog also in my opinion they both are great in their own way,they are soooooo talented you cant compare them the only thing you can compare is their attitudes off and on the court and towards basketball .so now tell me who is better?AI or isiah?

Answer 8

That is a very tough question. We can say isiah is better, but he had dumars in his back court. And they had a good (not great) supporting cast ALL who could knock down15/17 foot jumpers. And I LOVE Zeek.

But A.I. is in a league now where 17 footers arent automatic anymore. And his teams, he took dikembe mutombo to the finals.

The real problem with A.I. is the transition of the NBA game in the post jordan era to a one on one game with guys standing around. Can you imagine what magic, Isaiah, john stockton, heck, even mark price or mugsy boges would run the break with iverson on the court. Dare i mention steve nash.

The NBA has changed to a grind it on the black, force a double team kick it out league. And coaches havent been cleaver enough to date to learn how to use him.

Clutch shooting? zeek
penetration? a.i.
drive and kick? zeek
free throw shooting? a.i.
game management? zeek
matchup problem? BOTH

Good question

Answer 9

Why do we keep asking this kind of question?

And more amusingly, people actually answer questions like this and thinks their answers are better than the other of opposite point of view.

I feel lame even commenting with this one but at the same time its funny in way. i get to read geniuses and moronic commets and it reminds me of the FINE line separating the two.

Ok then, heres my comment:

Better in what sense? Unless you make the question more specific with a real GROUND as basis so we can actually and scientifically compare two unique objects, this time isiah and Iverson being given, the answers will always be unrealistic and will be in favor of any side you are bias of.

A more likely question would be questions whose answers are probable and realistic(facts):

a. who of the two has a better scoring ave in the regular season?
b. who earned more via endorsements and salary?
c. who had more steals in a game?
d. who had more all star apperance?
etc...

and yet some question will have to wait a few more years for the exact answers coz one object is still at it at this point...

Questions like who's a better defender? you gotta be kidding me? and this guy above said its isiah. Wat if i say A.I., and support my answer with the fact that he has a better spg even bpg. Then some will say defense is not all steals and blocks...
And I agree because that is precisely my point...
A general question will give a vague answer while a specific question will give you specific answer. Like 1 + 1 = 2
the answer will always be acceptable for everybody.

Answer 10

Allen has more points per game, but Isiah has two more championships compared to Allen's zero. So I would take Isiah here.