1. Deron Williams
This year Deron Williams distanced himself from the rest of the pack, posting 18.7 PPG and 10.5 APG Williams carried his Jazz to a 53-29 record. Coming into this season the general consensus was that Williams and Chris Paul were the two best point guards in the league. It is possible that if Paul didn't have an injury plagued season he would be sitting atop this chart, but for now Williams holds the title. The game that really sold me was his performance against the Bulls on March 9th. 28 points (11-15 fg) 17 assists and 1 turnover?! That's just not fair. He had a 19 assist game later that month but that game was against the Warriors. Big numbers mean much more when they come against a good team. Williams is one of those players whose stats don't tell the full story. Despite the great statistical season that Carlos Boozer is having, it's Williams who's the heart and soul of that team. Numbers don't make a good player great and Williams is a perfect example of that. Last year I would have said Chris Paul was the best PG in the league because he took a pretty bad team to the playoffs. Last year Williams' numbers were better than they were this year. The difference is that this year Williams is playing more like a Chauncey Billups, only better. Williams now realizes that being the floor general is better for the team than trying to do everything alone. That's something all young point guards eventually need to learn.
2. Derrick Rose
If you're a basketball fan pay attention to the Chicago Bulls. Since Rose's early season ankle injury recovered the second year guard out of Memphis emerged as a legitimate superstar in this league. Rose, almost singlehandedly, took his Bulls to the playoffs as major components of the team were constantly coming in and out of the lineup due to injury. I felt that Rose was in the conversation for the second best point guard in the league for a long time. People finally started accepting it around the all star break when he became the first Bulls all star since Michael Jordan in 1998. The icing on the cake was when Rose promised that the Bulls would defy the odds and beat out the Raptors for the eighth and final playoff spot. That run was highlighted by a 39 point masterpiece against Rajon Rondo and the Celtics in the second to last game of the season. As Rose continued to show his dominance in the second half of the season the Rose vs. Rondo debates were starting to come to a close. Once Rose absolutely torched Rondo on national television, the verdict was in.
3. Rajon RondoRajon Rondo's emergence as a premier point guard started in the 2008 playoffs. In the big 3's first season together the question was whether or not the Celtics could win a championship with Rondo running the team. Rondo's defensive superiority started to surface in the 2008 finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. On the world's biggest stage Rondo hounded the Lakers' bigs nonstop. In the deciding game 6 Rondo had 4 steals in the Celtics' 131-92 rout. That was two seasons ago and Rondo has matured into a great point guard. The main reason why he's third on the list is his inability to be a prolific scorer as well as his inability to take over late in games. Both Rose and Williams can take over in the last 5 minutes, Rondo not so much.
4. Steve NashAt 36 years old Steve Nash is still running up and down with the best of them. Nash guided his Suns back to the playoffs this season in the midst of all kinds of trade rumors involving nearly everyone on his team. Nash is no longer the most valuable player in this league but he's still by far the best passer. This guy throws passes that make your head spin in disbelief and he's been doing it for over a decade. Leading his Suns all the way to the Western Conference Finals is a commendable achievement. It is unknown what the future holds for Nash but it's safe to say he's had a legendary career, the only thing missing is a ring.
5. Chris PaulThe primary reason why Paul isn't higher up on this list is because of his injury plagued season. He had some games where he played like the CP3 we all now and love but there were many games where Paul just didn't seem like himself. I don't know if the emergence of Darren Collison made him question his job security (I doubt it) or not but something was definitely wrong with him both mentally physically. In all likelihood it was probably that Paul was scared to death of being re-injured as that is the common mindset of a player coming back from injury. This list is not of the best point guards of the 2009-2010 season, it's a list of the best point guards in the league as of right now. And as of now Chris Paul is the fifth best point guard.
