Wilt was, without a doubt, the most dominant player of all time. In his 14-year career, he had averages of 30.1 points, 22.9 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game, while shooting a fantastic 54 percent from the field and a terrible 51.1 percent from the line.
He won seven scoring titles and an unheard of 11 rebounding titles in his career. He also would've been at the top of the blocked shots list, but they weren't recorded in his era.
He was selected to the All-Star team 13 times, winning the All-Star game MVP in 1960. He was selected to the All-NBA team 10 times, with seven of the selections as a member of the first team. He was selected to the All-NBA Defensive team twice, with both of the selections as a member of the first team. (All NBA Defensive teams started in his last two seasons.)
He also ranks fourth all-time in total points, with 31,419 in his career.
Wilt won four MVP Awards, including three consecutive from the 1965-66 to the 1967-68 seasons. He also had the greatest statistical season of all time by far, as he averaged an unfathomable 50.4 points, 25.7 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game in the 1961-62 season.
Wilt won two championships and the Finals MVP in the 1972 Finals as a member of the legendary Lakers team that won 69 games (a record at the time) and 33 straight—still a record in all of sports.
3. Michael Jordan
Jordan is one of the three greatest players of all time. In his 15-year career, he averaged 30.1 points per game, 6.2 rebounds, and 5.3 assists along with 2.3 steals and 0.8 blocks. He also shot a tremendous 49.7 percent from the field and 84 percent from the free-throw line.
He was selected to the All-Star team 13 times, winning three All-Star game MVPs. He was also one of the greatest defensive players of the all time as he won the Defensive Player of the Year Award in 1987-1988.
He was selected to the All NBA Defensive team nine times, with all of them being first team selections, and to the All NBA team 10 times, with nine of them being first team selections.
He led the Bulls to two different sets of three-peats in the 1990s, winning six Finals MVP Awards. He is also second all time in MVP Awards with five, behind only Kareem, who has six.
2. Kareem Abdul Jabbar
In terms of accomplishments, Kareem is the greatest player of all time, and without a doubt the greatest center of all time. He is first all-time in total points with 38,387, third all-time in total rebounds with 17,440, third all-time in total blocked shots with 3,189, and even 33rd all-time in total assists with 5,660.
In a dominant 20-year career, he had averages of 24.6 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 0.9 steals, and 2.6 blocks per game. He also shot an amazing 55.9 percent from the field and 72.1 percent from the free-throw line.
He was selected to a record 19 All-Star teams and to the All-NBA team 15 times, with 10 of the selections as a member of the first team. He was also a very good defensive center, as he was selected to the All-NBA Defensive team 10 times, with five of the selections as a member of the first team.
Kareem was also one of the game's biggest winners, as he led his teams to six championships, five of them with the Showtime Lakers in the 1980s. He also led his team to the Finals a total of 10 times, winning the Finals MVP twice, in the 1971 and 1985 Finals.
Kareem won the 1970 Rookie of the Year Award, and a record six MVP Awards in his career.
On a side note, Kareem was also the greatest college basketball player of all time, as he led the Bruins to three consecutive NCAA championships, a total record of 88-2, and was the winner of two NCAA College Player of the Year Awards.
1. Earvin Johnson, "Magic"
Magic Johnson is the greatest basketball player of all time. He is far and away the best team player ever, and he was one of the biggest winners in the history of the league.
During his career, he led the Lakers to nine Finals appearances in the toughest era of all time—the '80s—while winning five of them. His career averages are 19.5 points, 11.2 assists, 7.2 rebounds, and two steals per game. He also shot a tremendous 52 percent from the field, and a very good 85 percent from the free-throw line.
He was selected to 12 All-Star teams, and he made the All-NBA team nine times, all first-team selections. He won three consecutive MVPs, and three total Finals MVPs. He also won two All-Star game MVPs. He ranks third all-time in total assists, and first all-time in assists per game.
Magic also had the greatest postseason performance of all-time in Game Six of the 1980 Finals against the Sixers.
The Lakers were up 3-2, and Kareem was injured and couldn't play, so Magic started at center, and also played forward and guard. Magic scored 42 points, grabbed 15 rebounds, and had six assists to lead the Lakers over Doctor J and the Sixers and win the Lakers' first championship since their legendary 1971-72 team.
Sign up now to receive our NBA newsletter. All the best articles, videos, and podcasts from around the web delivered to your inbox twice a week.
62 Comments
Loading more comments...
This comment and all replies have been deleted This comment has been deleted Undo delete