I'll take in no order: Jordan Kareem Russell Magic Wilt Bird Duncan Kobe Shaq Oscar Hakeem LeBron HM: Malone, Stockton
1. Michael Jordan 2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 3. LeBron James 4. Bill Russell 5. Shaquille O'Neal 6. Hakeem Olajuwon 7. Tim Duncan 8. Larry Bird 9. Magic Johnson 10. Wilt Chamberlain 11. Kobe Bryant 12. Oscar Robertson I think Curry can break into the top 12 among active players with a few more rings and MVP caliber play he is capable of. It's too late for Paul and Durant I think. I can't see LeBron surpassing KAJ on my list unless he wins like 3 more rings.
LeBron is in a much deeper era than when Kareem was playing. When Kareem was at his peak the league wasn’t nearly what it is today hence the high MVP numbers. For me, LeBron just does so much more on the floor than Kareem and it’s a pretty easy decision. I think Kareem is fighting with Magic and Bird personally
1. Michael Jordan 2. LeBron James 3. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 4. Magic Johnson 5. Larry Bird 6. Shaquille O'Neal 7. Hakeem Olajuwon 8. Wilt Chamberlain 9. Kobe Bryant 10. Bill Russell 11. Tim Duncan 12. Oscar Robertson
LeBron isn't a wrong answer for #2 or #3 spot, I think anything else is blasphemous though. Here is why I rank KAJ above him: I feel comparing eras is fair, but it is definitely underselling what KAJ accomplished in his career. Have you seen another player master the skyhook? It is an incredibly difficult shot to pull off and I feel people undersell that move because it isn't as sexy as chasedown blocks from LBJ. His HS basketball team won 3 straight national titles, went on a 71 game winning streak all while his coach hated him and racially abused him. He was even more dominant in college. 3x NCAA Player of the Year awards, 3x national titles, 3x Final Four Most Outstanding, 47 game win streak and the league imposed a rule where no dunking was allowed to prevent him from dominating. In his first 10 years in the NBA, he won the MVP 6 times! For reference, MJ had 5 in 13 years and LBJ has 4 in 17 seasons. He is not only a massive winner at every level he's played at, he puts up MVP level stats, has won multiple times with different franchise, iconic skyhook that will never be replicated and has a rule changed because of his dominance. Imagine if he was allowed into the NBA after high school, he'd probably have won more MVP titles and maybe more NBA Championships to his name.
Tough one to answer like usual, but based on stats, accolades, records, longevity, and peak domination I'd say: 1. Michael Jordan 2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 3. LeBron James 4. Magic Johnson 5. Wilt Chamberlain 6. Larry Bird 7. Tim Duncan 8. Shaquille O'Neal 9. Kobe Bryant 10. Bill Russell 11. Hakeem Olajuwon 12. Stephen Curry Honourable Mentions: Kevin Durant, Oscar Robertson, Moses Malone, Karl Malone, and Dirk Nowitzki
Having Lebron at 1 really isn't blasphemous if you strongly value on-court performance rather than career story. He has already had a longer career at the top than Jordan - and both were fairly close at their peak - and his peak level was higher than Kareem's, and he looks likely to equal Kareem's longevity in the NBA too. I'm pretty confident Lebron will end up with the best career in NBA history by my perspective. I don't really care about his finals record or whatever. Just how effective he was and for how long.
Not a lot of love for the Logo here? Until MJ came along he was probably the greatest scoring guard of all time. I know a lot of old timers hold him in much higher regard than Oscar.
In order: Jabbar James Jordan Chamberlain Russell Kobe Magic Duncan Shaq Hakeem Bird West HM: (no order) Baylor, Robertson, Durant, K.Malone, Curry, Havlicek, Erving, Mikan, M.Malone, Hayes, Dirk, Garnett. My Best-Carey
oops. just noticed i did a top 10 and not 12 MJ Magic Lebron KAJ Kobe Bird Wilt Shaq Duncan Russell Hakeem Durant I'd put west right after durant