10 greatest signature moves in NBA history

Great players usually have moves that people associate with them. It may be because of its flashiness, the power involved or just the ridiculous number of times they attempt the move. Nowadays, James Harden seems to have perfected the step-back 3, Steph Curry's off-the-dribble 3 is as deadly as it gets and so on.

There are other moves, however, which have captured the imagination of fans over the years. It could be a borrowed move that they have perfected or an original, the likes of which hadn't been seen before.

Here, we rank the top 10 signature moves of all time:

#10 LeBron James' Chasedown Blocks

We kick things off with the King and his routine chase-down blocks. It's kind of ridiculous how often he manages to do it and it's not something that's started just recently. Bron's been barrelling down the court to block shots in transition since his 1st stint with the Cavs. The Cavs back then used to even keep track of how many times he did it during the season

Whenever a player is on the fast break against a team LeBron is on, they simply cannot afford to be casual laying it in. You normally wouldn't think a 6'8 guy can run down the court so quickly, but LeBron is a freak athlete and closes in before his opponents even realize it.

There have been a lot of top players who've fallen victim to that vicious chase-down block, including Curry, Iverson, Harden, Derrick Rose, Kobe and of course the most iconic one on Andre Iguodala. You'd think they'd just stop attempting some of those casual layups in transition and just dunk it in, to avoid being on LeBron's highlight reel.

#9 George Gervin's Finger Roll

An aesthetically pleasing shot unlike any other perhaps, the finger roll layup was the bread and butter of George Gervin's game. One of the greatest scorers of his era, Gervin was nicknamed the Iceman for his cool demeanor on the court and also for apparently not sweating during games.

The Finger roll isn't an easy shot to master, but once done, it's a very difficult shot to stop. The main purpose behind the finger roll is to flick the ball over an outstretched defender and using the spin to lay it in off the backboard.

While Gervin wasn't the one who pioneered the finger-roll in the NBA, it was Wilt Chamberlain (we'll get to him later), but Gervin used it on a far more consistent basis. He used the finger roll to deadly effect, winning 4 scoring titles in 5 years. While many NBA players use the Finger Roll at the basket, Gervin used to pull it off even from as far as the free throw line.

#8 Manu Ginobili's Euro-Step

We see so many players use the Euro-Step nowadays including Dwyane Wade, Harden and, Russell Westbrook, but it was really Manu Ginobili who popularised the move in the NBA. The Euro-step basically involves the player taking a step in one direction and then swiftly taking the second one the other way. It makes defenders think, they're in a position to either get a charge or contest the shot, but a split second later the player goes the other way for an easy score.

Throughout Ginobili's career with the San Antonio Spurs, he's been the Maverick on the team. For much of the 2000's, when the Spurs played their boring, methodical style of basketball, Manu was the one who seemed to improvise on the fly and get people off their seats. The Euro-step was his go-to move and he used his quickness to execute it to perfection. The euro step does, however, go right to the edge of a traveling violation and it needs to be done perfectly to avoid getting called for traveling.

#7 Tim Duncan's Bank Shot

There are 3 certainties in life, Death, Taxes and Tim Duncan hitting that boring bank shot again and again and again. Duncan's signature bank shot probably describes his career in a nutshell. It wasn't really flashy or physically imposing, it was all about the Fundamentals for The Big Fundamental.

Duncan had the basics of the game all figured out for a big man. He could score in the post with an array of moves and had a reliable mid-range jumper to boot. The common denominator in all of the moves was that he'd hit them off the backboard.

The move is so basic that there really isn't much to say about it. It was simple yet incredibly effective, which makes you think why more players nowadays don't use it. Coach Pop's theory is simple, they don't use it because it's not cool.

#6 Allen Iverson's Crossover

Pound for pound, the greatest scorer in NBA history. His scoring average of 26.7 PPG ranks 6th all-time which is crazy for a guy who's just about 6 feet tall. What Iverson had going for him were his quickness and ball-handling abilities. He had plenty of offensive moves in his arsenal, like the stepback fadeaway but he is remembered for those amazing crossovers.

Iverson often used what's called the double crossover. It starts off like a normal crossover, but instead of for example faking left and then going right, he'd instead switch it back to his left at the end of the move, thereby leaving the defender completely flat-footed. If the NBA kept some statistic regarding ankle breakers Iverson might well be at the top of the list. The unfortunate part for defenders was that they knew it was coming but they couldn't do a thing about it.

Before we move on though, a shout out to Tim Hardaway, whose Killer Crossover didn't make the list. Tim was the original crossover specialist in the league. Like Hardaway is credited with making the Killer Crossover popular in the NBA, Iverson is credited with popularising the Double Crossover.

#5 Shaq's Black Tornado

Nicknamed the Black Tornado by the man himself, the move is basically Shaq being the most dominant Physical specimen since Wilt Chamberlain in NBA history. There was practically no way of stopping this maneuver apart from fouling the big fella.

More well known, as the drop step, Shaq's unique physical attributes made it very difficult for anyone to stop it. He was too powerful and crucially, for such a large human being, extremely nimble. Someone would dump the ball down low to Shaq, who'd just back down any defender, spin and then dunk over them. It really didn't matter who was guarding him in the post, David Robinson, Hakeem Olajuwon, Tim Duncan, Ben Wallace, Dikembe Mutombo and so on, none of them could stop it.

What made it harder to defend, was that Shaq could easily spin the other way and hit the hook shot. Any premeditated move from the defender and he would just go the other way and convert. The obvious way to counter the move was, as expressed before, fouling him, which a lot of teams resorted to doing

#4 Dirk Nowitzki's One-Legged Fadeaway

It's hard to guard a 7-footer who can shoot from anywhere and it gets much harder when that guy can hit the fadeaway from anywhere. Dirk's one-legged fadeaway is one of the most iconic shots in the modern NBA.

Dirk was never the most athletic guy and hence, needed to find a way to get separation from his defender and he says that is why he developed that shot. Being over 7-feet tall and then leaning back, gave him enough separation from his defender and he was able to get the shot off easily.

He really started to use it on a consistent basis as he got older and a lot of people started taking notice of the shot in his magical 2011 Playoff run. It really didn't matter who was trying to guard him or how many, Dirk kept hitting it and burned the LeBron led Heat in the Finals. James has called it the 2nd most unstoppable shot in NBA history and it is kinda hard to argue.

#3 Wilt and Jordan's Fadeaway

Two of the greatest scorers we've ever seen. Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain are currently 1st and 2nd in PPG average in NBA History and the fadeaway was one of the big reasons behind their success.

While Wilt is often regarded as this physical specimen, who was just overpowering people, he was an incredibly skilled big man. He had a terrific fadeaway jump shot which many of his old rivals consider his best move. Despite standing at 7'2, Chamberlain executed that fade away at will, even hitting it from mid-range. His height made the shot almost unguardable.

Now, we get to Mike. Early on in his career, Jordan was the freak athlete, the NBA hadn't seen in ages, but as the seasons went by, he developed the fadeaway which he is so well known for now. For most of the second half of his career, the fadeaway was Jordan's go-to move and often, it really didn't matter how well he was being guarded, he'd hit it anyway.

#2 Hakeem Olajuwon's Dream Shake

A personal favorite of mine, the Dream Shake is just amazing to watch. It is basically a combination of fakes and spin moves that Olajuwon perfected over the years which left many defenders bamboozled when he executed it. Hakeem was really a guard stuck in a center's body. His footwork for a big man was remarkable and he used that advantage over other bigs to clown them in the post.

Olajuwon was at his dominating best in the 1995 playoffs, especially in the Conference and NBA Finals. Matched up against David Robinson, who was awarded the MVP before the series, Olajuwon had his most memorable performances. He dominated Robinson using the dream shake, scoring almost at will, averaging 35.3 PPG in the series. When Robinson was asked later by LIFE Magazine, on how a team could 'solve' Olajuwon, he responded by saying "Hakeem? You don't solve Hakeem."

#1 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's Skyhook

The single most unstoppable (almost) move in NBA history. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar used the skyhook to devastating effect during his 20 years in the league. Virtually unblockable, the Skyhook enabled Jabbar to reach the top of the scoring charts in NBA history. Almost fittingly, the basket he scored to surpass Wilt Chamberlain's then record was with his signature move.

A lot of players use the hook shot, but Kareem's combination of size and technique was second to none. Standing at 7'2, with a 7'5 wingspan, he shot it at quite a distance from the defender and unlike some of the other bigs, Jabbar was more than capable of hitting it from mid-range.

While Kareem claims that no one has ever blocked the Skyhook, there are a couple of occasions when it has been, by Chamberlain and a few others. Blocking the Skyhook required precise timing, as if the defender was slightly early, he could just fake it and score with ease and if a little late, the ball would have gone past them before they could react. In 2 decades there are only like 4 occasions when the shot has been blocked which is just ridiculous.