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Inspired by all-star weekend, I’m counting down the all-time fantasy greats. See my “All-Time All-Stars, #94-77” post for more on my methods. Without further ado, here is the next batch:

Check out the mighty numbers of Brent Barry. I especially like the all-around game and the terrific field goal percentage even while hoisting a messload of threes. Brent is another case (like Donyell Marshall, about whom I wrote earlier) where a fantasy stud just could not find coaches who appreciated him. As his reward for posting one of the all-time great fantasy lines in 2001-2, Brent saw his minutes cut from 37.5 to 33.1 and then to 30.6 in the two succeeding campaigns.

And then the bottom really fell out. Barry made one of the worst mistakes a fantasy basketball player possibly can: caring about winning. Brent left woeful Seattle and signed on as a free agent with the Spurs, a powerhouse team but a statistical graveyard. His first season in San Antonio Barry logged a feeble 21.5 minutes, and it went downhill from there. Brent should have stayed put in Seattle or signed on with a team that was even more hapless. When it comes to fantasy, I always look for guys who have the mental toughness to put their own selfish stat-hogging over nonsense like victories and teamwork.

Few fantasy players have betrayed me like the treacherous Brad Miller. I am a laughing stock in my league for drafting him year after year – except for the years he put up the lofty numbers like those above. This year I have managed to lay off him – but if Noah stays hurt I can’t be held responsible for my actions…

Remember when two men were shot and killed in Philadelphia in 1997 when an argument over whether Gary Payton or Alan Iverson was the better player spiraled out of control? Had the combatants come to me, everything could have been peacefully settled: the numbers show Payton was superior, though in his prime Iverson was no slouch.

Speaking of Iverson, he won’t be playing in today’s game, despite having been voted a starting all-star by the fans. Iverson truly is having an outstanding season, but not the kind the fans might think. Among players who are averaging 30 or more minutes a game, Iverson is 103rd out of 104. (Only Rip Hamilton ranks worse.) And that’s by per game averages, not even penalizing Iverson for the fact that he’s missed more than half the games. With this kind of wisdom on the part of voters, we wonder why ballot initiatives have screwed up my state of California?

On the subject of point guards, how about joining my campaign for a new addition to all-star weekend? In addition to the rookie/sophomore game, how about adding a game where the league’s five shortest players play against the five tallest? Post your thoughts – who do you think would win?

The countdown to the top fantasy player of all time continues soon. Tune in next time.