0 of 6

D. Clarke Evans/Getty Images

Rules designed to limit physical contact and a defender's inability to read his opponent's thoughts mean NBA defenders always operate at a disadvantage. Generally, the best they can do in on-on-one situations is take away the opponent's pet move.

Don't let him turn right shoulder on the block. Crowd him, so the pull-up trey is impossible. Force him to his weak hand.

That sort of thing.

Getting beaten is fine, but nobody wants to be roasted, predictably, by a scorer's preferred method of attack.

But what if there's no way to stop an opponent from taking exactly the shot he wants? What if option No. 1 in his decision tree is always available?

That's when things get especially tough for defenders. Everyone knows what's coming, nobody can stop it and signature moves are born.

These are some of the best.