My Admittedly Idiosyncratic List of History's 18 Top-10 Economists

Commenting here, IndianaJim asks my list of top-ten economists of all time.  It's a difficult list to compile, but here goes – with a bit of fudging at the end:

1. F.A. Hayek

2. Adam Smith

3. James M. Buchanan

4. Armen Alchian

5. Ronald Coase

6. Harold Demsetz

7. Julian Simon

8. Milton Friedman

9. Frederic Bastiat

10t.* Joseph Schumpeter

"t" means "tentative."  Other candidates for this coveted No. 10 slot are J.-B. Say, Carl Menger, Knut Wicksell, Philip Wicksteed, Alfred Marshall, Frank Knight, Aaron Director, and Gordon Tullock.