Birds been supplanted by someone else on that mythical list, but the Hick from French Lick is forever aLegend. Karl Malone Kobe Bryant Michael Jordan Dirk Nowitzki Wilt Chamberlain Shaquille O'Neal Carmelo Anthony Moses Malone Elvin Hayes Hakeem Olajuwon Oscar Robertson Dominique Wilkins Tim Duncan Rebounds Wilt Chamberlain Bill Russell Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Elvin Hayes Moses Malone Tim Duncan Karl Malone Robert Parish Kevin Garnett Dwight Howard That doesn't make the list good or bad inherently, I'm just saying to consider the source. I'd say that longevity wasn't the issue. After, with two 3 peats and 6 Finals MVPs, there is no denying why he is the GOAT. La dunk de la mort is my favorite play in basketball history, and I cannot imagine anything will ever top it. AC, Some of us are willing to die on the Wilt Chamberlain Belongs on the NBAs Mt. You guys just hatin. There are no specific criteria for calling one the greatest. However, it takes a truly rare talent to make more than one of the categories. We all know what hes done and will continue to do for at least a few more years. In 251 playoff games, he averaged 19.9 PPG and 11.0 RPG. Who do I think was the greatest? I'm somewhat surprised far fewer people got Moses Malone than Karl Malone. As a result, he is the first NBA player to win NBA Defensive Player of the Year and NBA MVP in the same season. Thanks. He was overshadowed by Duncan, whose numbers are slightly better, but Garnett was by far the more fun player to watch. In the 2016 NBA Finals, LeBron James consecutive 41 points game and chase-down block in deciding Game 7 helped Cavaliers complete a historic 3-1 comeback against the Warriors. Its impossible to talk about Abdul-Jabbar without mentioning his signature shot, skyhook. He is one of the players whose career stats and achievements are one of the greatest. Next on our list of the best NBA players is Larry Bird, often considered the greatest Celtics player and small forward of all time. no cap of I feel you on that, best dunk ever, kobe Bryant should for sure be ahead of LeBron for the 3rd all time spot. Onto the final 3, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ranks third on our list of best NBA players of all time. he was a great player, and i agree he's top 100 all time. To be honest with you the bunch of players that are active would be easily ranked in top 100 in history, guys like Curry, Durant, Paul or Wade are some of the best in history and guaranteed hall of famers. He was the gold standard and wholly worthy of being cast as the leagues logo, even if he not so secretly disdains the honor. Likewise, in his last game he dropped 60 points against the Jazz, the most in the previous game by any player. I can only imagine how that shit looked back in those days. About This Quiz. Top 100 Greatest NBA Players Top 100 Greatest NBA Players Can you name the top NBA players of all-time according to an ESPN poll of experts from 2016? MVP's or championships I will need to do some research. But as great as he was in the regular-season, West shined in the playoffs. AC, Way more than just a sidekick to you know who, Scottie Pippens greatness is sadly taken for granted by many, including those who saw it with their own two eyes along with the ones basing their assessments solely on what they saw in The Last Dance. RIP Mamba. Although ranked second in our list by the end of his career, James may take the number 1 spot. He is 19 times NBA All-star, most in NBA history. A former professional basketball player and coach is considered one of the best NBA players and the most incredible power forward of all time. Also Gasol is elite, no question. AD, The Big Ticket is one of those players where the rings convo holds little to no weight. It all started in a YMCA in Springfield, MA for Americans privileged enough to join the club, but basketball games soon began popping up all over the country. For Jordans individual career, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2009 and a Dream Team member in 2010. Nowitzki, a Mav since 1998, is a 12-time All Star and the franchise's leading scorer. Its guaranteed to get hardcore basketball fans in their feelings and, in our humble opinion, do a much better job than some of those other rankings floating around the interwebs that shall remain nameless. I cannot believe Rodman is not on the all-time rebounds list. LeBron James has called him the pound-for-pound best ever. There's little doubt Dirk Nowitzi is the Mavericks' best and most important player of all time. He is on track to become at least 10th all time. More quiz info >> Start Quiz Comments (6) He is on track to become top 15 in those also. Pippen is inarguably one of the greatest defenders in NBA history having made 10 All-Defensive squads (8 First-Team selections) during his 17-year career and regularly stifled the oppositions best player like it was nothing. James is lucky he plays in a soft era, because had he played in the Jordan era he would have gotten his butt kicked by the Pistons, Knicks, Celtic, Lakers and the Bulls. Your quiz is broken. Lebron should not be in the top 10. He never did anything as good as Jordanexcept, that is, defend. Similarly, to be in the conservation of the greatest is similar to being part of the exclusive club. This is a good list overall. If you look at the all-time Top 50 in Rebounds-per-Game, the all-time Top 50 in Assists-per-Game and all-time Top 25 Points-per-Game, 15 players in NBA history appear in at least 2 of those lists. Bill Russell With His 11 NBA Championship Rings (Source: Axiois). This article was last updated by Vandana Thapa on March 1, 2023. AC, Elgin Baylor never won a ring. Since he wasnt flashy, often was called dirty, wore those short shorts, wasnt an athletic outlier,and benefited immensely from playing his entire career with Karl Malone, his brilliance is easily forgotten. In 2016, Shaq was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Many NBA fans worldwide love Magic Johnsons trademark smile and passion for basketball. Durant, another two-time Finals MVP, asserted himself as one of the most prolific scorers in history, averaging a decade-best 28 points. No guard has ever dominated the league like he did, which helps his case when you see him on the top of everyones list. Hes top 10 in rebounds, blocks, win shares, and defensive win shares. The greatest player ever to play basketball is Michael Jordan. Thomas was a diabolical general who was able to score whenever he wanted and put his team on his back to will them to victory. AD, HakeemThe Dream Olajuwons inclusion in this part of the list needs noexplanation. Jordans jersey from his opening game of the 1998 NBA Finals was sold as the most expensive memorabilia in history for $10.1 million in September 2022. He is on track to become #1 all time. But the debate on a GOAT is a never-ending cycle. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich put it best when the franchise retired Duncans jersey. But you can only dominate the competition in front of you and the NBA did its best to reign in The Big Dipper, who rightfully earned a spot on theNBAs 75thanniversarysquad,when opponents couldnt. Right now he is 11th All-Time in scoring. I'll appreciate it. Later, in 2008, he led the USA Redeem Team to the gold medal in Beijing Olympics and another gold in London Olympics. Sure, his game has holes, and Bucks haters will say their run to the title wasnt the hardest. So I get Dave DeBusschere and Earl Mornroe, and miss Dr. J, the Admiral, and Pistol Pete. This is the Best Top 10 i have seen very Good your Top 5 is on Point. AI is unquestionably a top 30 NBA player ever. Even despite losing in the second round to the Boston Celtics this season, Giannis became the first NBA player in history, Few guys in the league have everaffected the game in all facets like Antetokounmpo does, even if that 3-point shot forever remains a work in progress. Larry Bird Retired From NBA In 1992 (Source: NBA.com). How many players have ever had his combination of wingspan and shooting? Crescent There's not much I could write here that hasn't already been said, but I am happy that there seems to be very little controversy among this group that he's #1 of all-time, and I really have a hard time imagine his accomplishments ever being eclipsed. Dominant. Cant argue with the results. Likewise, in the same season, on March 2, 1962, Chamberlian scored 100 points against New York Knicks highest-ever scored by any NBA player in a single game. After joining the Lakers in free agency, Shaq formed one of the deadliest NBA duos with Kobe Bryant. He had issues with his ankles early in his career forcing us to wait to see the greatness that we caught glimpses of during his time in college at Davidson. Six times Malone, nicknamed the Chairman of the Boards, led the NBA in rebounds and for 14 straight seasons, he averaged double-digits cleaning up the glass. I hated Larry Bird as much as any self-respecting Lakers fan, but the idea that he was somehow overrated is nuts. My list is 1 jordan 2 LeBron 3 Kareem 4 Magic Johnson 5 Larry. they're both deserved to be here. Anybody else going to averaged 22.9 RPG during their career like Wilt did? NBA 75 honoree, five-time champion, three-timeFinals MVP, two-time regular-season MVP, 15-time All-Star,15-time All-NBA and All-Defensive team selection later, Duncan played all 19 seasons inSan Antonio and consistently put up numbers like he was a robotwith the personality, as portrayed by the media,to match. Having to argue how Stockton, a 2009 inductee into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, is inarguably one of the greatest point guardsgets laborious. You cant deny how dominant of an offensive force the Greek Freak is in the paint, how incredible of a defender hes worked to become, and how inspiring his journey from a skinny kid in Athens to NBA superstar is to millions of basketball fans. ZO, When you talk about best PGs in NBA history, it would be impossible to not have Magic Johnson as No. Keith Durant Duran Durant Kevin Durant Ant Durant 3/10 mavs.com This player is regular for Dallas Mavericks. Makes me kind of happy that LeBron isn't in any of these! Says something about the danger of relying too much on statistics, which recognize Mookie Blaylock and Shawn Bradley, over performance. The younger generationsgetsto enjoy the Chuckster in ways older NBA fans never imagined. Who else is going to average 50.4 PPG for a season like Wilt did in the 1961-62 season? ZF, While we can argue all day and night about the value of the triple-double in todays position-less game, when Oscar Robertson became the first player in NBA history to average a triple-double over a season it was nothing short of monumental. Bird wasn't an on-the-ball defender, nor was he a shot blocker. Haven't followed basketball since the Bulls dynasty fell apart after 1998, so I didn't do well on this. I hate lebron but he's in the goat talks. I would say something to him and he would stare. Everyone's got biases, and it makes sense for ESPN to be biased in favor of the modern day since actively promoting the people playing now is good business for them. at no point in his entire life has Manu Ginobili been "the best player in the world." Bird didn't play enough to amass the numbers these guys did, but he outpaced just about everyone in the games he actually played. We have put together a quiz that will tell you the current basketball player that you most closely resemble. At the start of next season you will have to swap out Havlicek because Paul Pierce is only 79 points away from him, he will probably move up to at least 11th scoring all-time this year, thats only 600 points away. Third, Westbrook is ahead of Cheeks in assists. A Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee in 2001, Julius Erving introduced his former teammate before Malones enshrinement speech and Dr. J joked with the audience that evening, Just think about the sound of that name. Some will love the rankings, others will loathe them. His rivalry with Larry Bird took NBA to the height where it is now. Magic started as a center and played all positions, registering 42 points, 15 rebounds, and 7 assists. For about 75 years the NBA has been entertaining people around the world with high-flying dunkers, lightning-quick dribblers, lock-down defenders and surgical shooters. Small correction: neither of the Gasol brothers are active in the NBA anymore. Try to name the NBA's all-time leaders in scoring, rebounds, assists, blocks, and steals. He has the two Defensive Player of the Years, the two Finals MVPs, hes put a franchise on his back en route to an NBA title, he made the NBAs 75thanniversary team, and hes pretty much won his entire career. Obviously, Leonards regular-season rsum isnt as strong as others on this list due to injuriesand being in that Spurs system, buthis playoffperformances smokes a lot of people on this list as well. When you get Billy Cunningham but miss Dr. J. Garnett, Kobe and Duncan have retired, making them no longer 'active' players. Kevin love and gasol shouldn't be in here. This man won three in a row, left to play baseball, then came back to win three in a row again, and then he came back one more time and was one of the oldest players to average 20 PPGand to score 40-plus in a game. He averaged 30 or more seven times, including a preposterous 40.6 per over 11 games in 1965. Knock us all you want, but well rest easy knowing Antetokounmpo belongs here as a newly minted. Sure, Duncan benefited greatly from playing alongside the legend David Robinson and future Hall of Famers Tony Parker, Manu Ginobli, Pau Gasol, and Kawhi Leonard. In 2008 and 2009, Bryant led the Lakers to back to the back championship and was named Finals MVP both years. how are you going to put marc gasol in front of harden and kevin love and gail goodrich, like what even man. But just because Baylor technically never won a title in his 14 years with the Lakers, two of which he spent in Minneapolis, dont let that cloud how incredible of an offensive force he was and GOAT candidate during the leagues early days. Who cares? For instance, in the 1961-62 NBA season, he averaged 50.4 PPG, which no player to date has achieved. Desmond Bane Bio: NBA, Net Worth & Awards, Tom Bradys Son, Jack Edward Bio: Family, Football, Summer Job, Who Is Aaron Rodgers Wife? Had a defensive player of the year existed in the 1960s, Russell would probably have won all of it in his 13 years as an NBA player. Next on the list is the late Wilt Chamberlian. For myself, Ill never forget Game 1 of the 2001 NBA Finals. Top Contributed Quizzes in Sports 1 2022 World Cup Stars 2 NBA Photo Minefield: 2-Team Players 3 4 Every captain to win the T20 World Cup 5 NBA Chain Quiz (Medium Difficulty) 6 The Best Premier League Trios 7 Hiding NBA Logos II 8 NBA Logic Puzzle 2.0 9 Sports I Drew :) 10 Top 5 Arsenal Goals and Assists Since 2000 Explore More BODY. Charles Barkley played 16 seasons in the NBA. Dethrone Jordan?? Atlanta Hawks Career Leaders. We update this quiz at the end of every season. A guy this young isnt supposed to have so many accolades on his, , especially after he entered the league as such a project. He is absolutely as successful then as he is today. Career Stats: Points: 19.0 Rebounds: 10.8 Assists: 3.0. Or, if you insist on that, give us Alvin Robertson too. For comparison's sake, here are the top 10 players from last preseason: LeBron James Giannis Antetokounmpo James Harden Luka Doncic Kawhi Leonard Stephen Curry Kevin Durant Nikola Jokic Jimmy. 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