Yesterday, we left off at number three on my list of the best NBA players in 2005. To refresh your memory, I listed Allen Iverson at #1, Dwayne Wade at #2, and LeBron James at #3. Where in the world is Kobe Bryant? I’m glad you asked. He’s next on my list.

#4: Kobe Bryant – Kobe was #1 in scoring last season with 35.4 points per game. He was also #1 in free throws made. He doesn’t like giving up the rock as is evident by him being ranked #37 in assists. This is one of the main reasons why Kobe comes in at #4 and not much higher. For me, the best player not only possesses great stats, but helps his team by setting up others to score. It’s worth noting that Kobe Bryant was the #3 three-point shooter—for attempts—in the league last season. He attempted 518 three-point shots last season and hit 34.7% of them.

#5: Gilbert Arenas – He was 4th in scoring last season with 29.3 points per game. He was 3rd in free throws made and 19th in assists. As attempts go, Arenas was 2nd in the league for three pointers. He attempted 540 of them. He made 199 three-point baskets—36.9%.

Coming in a close 6th was Paul Pierce. He was 6th in scoring last season with 26.8 points per game for Boston. Pierce was 5th in free throws made and 32nd in assists.

So, I bet someone is asking about Shaq about now. What about him? Shaq is on the downward trend of his career. If you look at points per game in 2005, he was at 20, which was the lowest of his career. He snagged 9 rebounds per game, which was 18th in the league. He was 21st in the league for free throws made. Actually, he only attempted a little more than half of what the cream of the crop did. As to percentages, he hit 46.9% of his free throws in 2005.

Is this list perfect? Of course not. However, it’s a pretty good starting point for finding out just who’s the cream of the crop in the NBA. Anyway you slice it, the NBA is back. We have a bunch of very talented players