If there's one thing that'll get you kicked out of the NBA quicker than Gilbert Arenas did after drawing a gun on a teammate, it's not being able to score. Sure, there are players out there such as Tony Allen and Rajon Rondo -- who are coincidentally on the same team -- who aren't the greatest of scorers, but they're the exception to the rule as they can do other things extremely well, such as pass or defend. The bottom line is, if you can't score, either by creating a shot yourself, or via spotting-up, you're more than likely hurting your team.
Because scoring is so important in the NBA, a Reddit user going by the name of yesssir32 has compiled a list of the current top scorers -- using a points per game average -- against every franchise in the NBA. Here is his reasoning.
"I was curious to see the leading players against each team. I used the same criteria as ESPN (minimum 3 games played against). I did some clicking through Basketball Reference and put this together. There’s nothing too interesting to be honest, but fun to look at nonetheless."
You may be surprised with the results.
Atlanta Hawks: Kevin Durant - 27.9 PPG (17 Games)
Boston Celtics: LeBron James - 29.6 PPG (47 Games)
Charlotte Hornets: Steph Curry - 28.1 PPG (14 Games)
Chicago Bulls: LeBron James - 28.4 PPG (52 Games)
Cleveland Cavaliers: Andrew Wiggins - 29.8 PPG (6 Games)
Dallas Mavericks: LeBron James - 27.4 PPG (27 Games)
Denver Nuggets: Kevin Durant - 28.9 PPG (35 Games)
Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
Detroit Pistons: Anthony Davis - 29.5 PPG (8 Games)
Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Golden State Warriors: Kevin Durant - 30.9 PPG (30 Games)
Nate Billings, The Oklahoman
Houston Rockets: Kyrie Irving - 28.0 PPG (8 Games)
Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Indiana Pacers: Kevin Durant - 29.6 PPG (17 Games)
Los Angeles Clippers: Kevin Durant - 27.9 PPG (35 Games)
Los Angeles Lakers: Kevin Durant - 27.8 PPG (33 Games)
Memphis Grizzlies: Kevin Durant - 27.7 PPG (32 Games)
AP Photo/Brandon Dill
Miami Heat: LeBron James - 28.2 PPG (33 Games)
Milwaukee Bucks: LeBron James - 28.2 PPG (53 Games)
Minnesota Timberwolves: Kevin Durant - 27.4 PPG (34 Games)
Brooklyn Nets: Karl-Anthony Towns - 27.5 PPG (4 Games)
New Orleans Pelicans: Kyrie Irving - 27.1 PPG (9 Games)
New York Knicks: Kevin Durant (15 Games) & Carmelo Anthony (17 Games) - 29.4 PPG
Oklahoma City Thunder: LeBron James - 28.9 PPG (25 Games)
Orlando Magic: Carmelo Anthony - 26.2 PPG (34 Games)
Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Philadelphia 76ers: LeBron James - 27.1 PPG (44 Games)
Phoenix Suns: Kevin Durant - 27.6 PPG (33 Games)
Portland Trail Blazers: LeBron James - 27.8 PPG (25 Games)
Sacramento Kings: Kevin Durant - 27.1 PPG (33 Games)
San Antonio Spurs: LeBron James - 26.2 PPG (25 Games)
Toronto Raptors: Steph Curry - 30.2 PPG (15 Games)
Utah Jazz: LeBron James - 29.4 PPG (27 Games)
Washington Wizards: Kevin Durant - 27.8 PPG (18 Games)
Here are some quick stats to go along with the averages:
"The players that hold the highest PPG mark against all teams are:
Kevin Durant: 12 teams
LeBron James: 10 teams
Steph Curry: 2 teams
Carmelo Anthony: 2 teams
Kyrie Irving: 2 teams
Anthony Davis: 1 team
Karl-Anthony Towns: 1 team
Andrew Wiggins: 1 team
*Joel Embiid would average the most PPG against the Lakers at 30.5 PPG, but with only 2 games played
Same goes for DeMarcus Cousins and the Kings, with 39 PPG through 2 games played"
If anything, these numbers just confirm that both LeBron James and Kevin Durant are two of the greatest scorers we've seen in the history of the game.
