The top 77 NBA players of all time: Part 2 50–26
Disclaimer: I publish my last list two years ago and I made some changes to my system. The biggest is giving one hundred points to the best player in the championship, forty more than in 2021. That change and others have created my most accurate list yet well at least imo. If you want to learn more about how I came up with this list you can see that here.
50. Dolph Schayes Points 254 (1948-64)
12x Allstar, 6x all 1st team, 6x all 2nd team, 1x rebound leader, NBA Champion (1955),
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 39
Dolph is one of two players on this list who could not play in the NBA today. Not at all. I tried to take as many points away from players in the 1940s and 50s as possible. Seasons before 1960 get zero era points. So Dolph has only five seasons that count in that category. He is still top fifty barely because he was the best player on the champion and a 12-time all-star.
49. Willis Reed Points 264 (1964–74)
7x Allstar, 1x 1st team, 4x 2nd team, 1x 1st defensive team, MVP (1970), 2x Finals MVP (1970, 73), NBA Champion (1970,73)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 56
Know for one of the most famous moments in sports history — the best player on the ’71 champions. Reed could be higher if you think he is the best player on the ’73 champions. I give that nod to Clyde. As it stands, Reed’s prime is a little too short to put any higher on the list.
48. Elgin Baylor Points 264 (1958–71)
11x Allstar, 10x All 1st team
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 42
Most people have Elgin in their top twenty-five. He is the clear fifth-best player in the sixties, which is universally thought of as a weak era. Like most of the players of his Era, he didn’t play for very long. If Russel, because of the Era, can’t be the best player of all time. Why would Baylor be in the top twenty?
On the plus side, though, he was the first or second-best player on a team that never won a championship but went to finals a bunch. I did not give any points to someone who was the second-best player on a finals loser which probably hurt Elgin the most. He loses out to Jerry West when you examine both of them closely. I did give Elgin credit for being the best player on a finalist twice. It’s hard to deny his ten first-team all-NBA nods.
47. Russel Westbrook Points 265 (2008-Present)
9x Allstar, 2x 1st Team, 5x 2nd Team, MVP (2017), 2x Scoring Champion, 3x Assists Leader
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 48
Four years ago, Westbrook was 51. He has not done much in those four years, but he was so close, and some of the changes I made in scoring helped move him into the top fifty. Where Westbrook scores high on my list are career points (MVPs, First Team All NBAs, etc.). Only three MVPs are not in the top 50. Westbrook, maybe at the end of his prime, is still top fifty for now.
46. Dennis Johnson Points 266 (1976–90)
5x Allstar, 1x 1st Team, 1x 2nd Team, 6x 1st Team Defense, 3x 2nd Team Defense, NBA Finals MVP (1979), 3x NBA Champion (1979, 84, 86)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 65
DJ has one of the most unique careers in NBA history. He was the best player on the 1979 champion of the Seattle Supersonics in his early career. Then he joined the Celtics dynasty as their third/fourth most crucial player. It’s hard to compare his case to anyone else’s on the list. Imagine if someone had a poor man’s Rick Barry career and then had Manu Ginóbili’s career. Add nine all-defensive appearances, and you have a pretty solid top-fifty-player resume.
45. Gary Payton Points 266 (1990–2007)
9x Allstar, 2x 1st team, 5x 2nd team, 1x DPOY, 9x 1st team defense, 1x steals leader, NBA Champion (2006)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 34
At this point, Gary Payton is underrated. He is the best defensive point guard of all time. He made 1st team defense nine times only other players to do that: Jordan, Kobe, and Garnett. That is the list — he leads the Sonics to an NBA Finals with Shawn Kemp. The 90s Sonics were one of the scariest teams of all time. Like many other greats of his era, Payton ran smack into Michael Jordan.
Later, Payton became a role player for Wade/Shaq’s 2006 Miami Heat Champion. Like Dwight Howard last year, Payton was not a top-six player on the Heat, so he didn’t get any points in my system. So besides the Sonics finals run, Payton doesn’t have enough playoff points to be higher on the list.
44. Dave Cowens Points 269 (1970–80, 83)
8x Allstar, 3x all 2nd team, 1x all defensive 1st team, MVP (1973),2x NBA Champion (1974,76)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 52
Typically someone who was the best player on a champion, MVP, and the second-best player on another champion would be a lock to be in the forty. Cowen’s issue is that he only played in the NBA for ten years and played in NBA during the ABA era. In many ways, Cowens represents the type of player that I think is overrated in most systems. He is from a big market, played in a weak era, and was an outstanding but limited player on a great team.
43. Steve Nash Points 276 (1996–2015)
8x Allstar, 3x 1st team, 2x 2nd team, 2x MVP (2005,06), 5x assist leader
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 33
We all know why Steve Nash is here, those two MVPs. Does he deserve them? It doesn’t matter. This list doesn’t get into internet debates. What gives Nash a slight edge on this list besides the MVPS is five-assist titles, which puts him tied for fourth all-time with Jason Kidd. Only Bob Cousy, The Big O, and John Stockton have more assist titles. That is a heady company.
42. Elvin Hayes Points 284 (1968–84)
12x Allstars, 3x 1st Team, 3x 2nd Team, 2x 2nd Team Defense, NBA Champion (1978), 1x scoring champion, 2x rebounding leader
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 44
The Big E has become a controversial top fifty player — interviews with old teammates and coaches explaining that the Big E was universally disliked. Tales of him shrinking from the big moments have caused sportswriters and commentators to put Big E’s teammates above him in lists like this.
But the truth is those teams would not have even been in those moments if it wasn’t for Hayes. Any cursory look at the numbers or even the game footage tells you that Hayes was usually the best player on his team, and his teams usually won big. He is the best player on the 78' Bullets by a wide margin, no matter what the Wes Unseld media tells you.
He is this low on the list, not because he was a primadonna but because his peak was short. He only has about a five to six-year peak as a top-ten player. The folks higher on this list have more NBAs 1st Teams or MVPs. Short as his peak was, though, it was high as almost anyone’s.
41. Dwight Howard Points 290 (2004–22)
8x Allstar, 5x 1st team, 1x 2nd team, 3x DPOY, 4x 1st team defense, 1x 2nd team defense, 5x rebounds leader, 2x blocks leader, NBA Champion (2020)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 36
People were upset when I put Howard in the top fifty on my first list back in 2018. Call it the Bill Simmonsing of these lists. Howard’s five-year peak would line up with the greatest players ever. He was a top-three player at his height in the league with Tim Duncan, Dirk Nowitzki, Dwayne Wade, Kevin Garnett, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James. He led a team to the NBA Finals and was a three-time defensive player of the year. He will be slightly lower in twenty years but still in the top fifty on this list because he deserves to be.
40. Jason Kidd Points 296 (1994–2013)
10x Allstar, 5x 1st team, 1x 2nd team, 4x defensive 1st team, 5x Defensive 2nd team, 5x Assist leader, NBA Champion (2011)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 29
Jason Kidd was the best passer I have ever seen. No disrespect to Magic, LeBron, Jokic, or all the other great passers I’ve watched, but Kidd just saw things no one has been able to before or since.
For Kidd, he probably wasn’t going to be the best player on a champion, no matter what. His two finals as the best player have more to do with being in the weak East Conference than being the second or third-best player in the league. Kidd was not the offensive player who could go against guys like Kobe, Duncan, Webber, Dirk, Shaq, or Steve Nash. Lucky for him, they were in the West, not the East.
39. George McGinnis Points 301
6x ABA/NBA Allstar, 3x ABA/NBA 1st team, 2x ABA/NBA 2nd team, 1x scoring champ, ABA MVP (1975), ABA playoff MVP (1973), 2x ABA Champion (1972, 73)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 45
McGinnis was the star Power Forward for the Indiana Pacers mini ABA dynasty. He was the playoff MVP on the 1973 Pacers championship team. In his 1975 MVP season, McGinnis nearly averaged thirty points during the regular season and a triple-double in the playoffs. He was a multiple-time all-star in the NBA and helped lead the 76ers to the 1977 NBA Finals.
38. James Harden Points 313 (2009 to Present)
10x time all-star, 6x first team, MVP (2018), 3x scoring champions, 2x assists leader, 1x steals leader
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 37
Except for another year of leading the league in assists, Harden’s post-Houston career has not helped him on this list. The championship he has searched for has been elusive, and he passed the point where First Team All-NBA seems possible. Harden is no longer an alpha on an NBA team. His only hope to move up on the list at this point is to stick with Joel Emiid and hope to break through for the championship. Harden currently does not seem to want to do that. At this point, the odds seem long, but Harden had a six-year run that is unparalleled individual success and will keep him in the top fifty for a while.
37. Walt Frazier Points 318 (1967–79)
7x Allstars, 4x 1st Team, 2x 2nd Team, 7x 1st Team Defense, 2x NBA Champion (1970, 73)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 43
Clyde’s peak was very high, but his career was short compared to other legends. As a style icon and great announcer Frazier is still well-known around the league today. The best player in 1973 on the Knicks championship team, he is higher than his teammate Willis Reed primarily because of his fantastic run of 1st team all defenses. Frazier was of the greatest two-way players of all time.
36. Chris Paul Points 320 (2005–Present)
12x Allstar, 4x 1st Team, 5x 2nd Team, 7x Defensive 1st Team, 2x Defensive 2nd Team, 5x Assists Leader, 6x Steals Leader
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 28
Paul proves that if you are a two-way player with high stats, it’s still possible to be in the top forty without an MVP or being the best player on a championship team. With his injury in this year’s playoffs, 2023 might be the end of Chris Paul’s run as an NBA starting player, but either way, the Hall of Fame awaits.
35. Charles Barkley Points 322 (1984–2000)
11x Allstar, 5x 1st team, 1x MVP (1993), 5x 2nd team, 1x rebound leader
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 27
Barkley has been a household name since the Dream Team in 1992. He was a superstar if ever there was one, and he may be more famous now than he was in his playing days. A big at only six foot six but could jump out of the gym. He was electric to watch play, and it was one of my first memories of basketball as a kid. Like Zion, he wasn’t good from three. Unlike Zion, he shot too many of them. Another legend vanquished by both Jordan and Olajuwon in the playoffs. He is this high because, like CP3, the advanced stats love Chuck. He is a little higher because he was the MVP in 1993.
34. Dwayne Wade Points 327 (2003–19)
3x NBA Champion (2006, 2012–13), NBA Finals MVP (2006), 13x Allstar, 2x 1st Team, 3x 2nd Team, 3x Defensive 2nd Team, 1x Scoring Champion
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 30
Wade is your classic mid-twenties to forty-best player of all time. He did have a period 2005–11 where he was a top five to ten player but never really a top three player.
He was the best player on the 2006 championship team. He is the clear second banana in his prime to LeBron on the Heat. His nickname is Flash, for godsakes. He is on the Justin League of his generation but isn’t Superman or Batman, not a sidekick but also not the main hero.
33. Mel Daniels Points 330 (1967–76)
7x ABA allstar, 4x ABA 1st team, 1x ABA 2nd team, 3x ABA rebounding leader, 2x ABA MVP (1969, 71), 3x ABA Champion (1970, 72–73)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 46
Mel Daniels is the highest rank of the great players from the Indiana Pacers ABA dynasty. If you punch holes in his top forty cases, all of his runs were in the ABA and discount it. Still, there is no evidence that Daniels wouldn’t have had a similar or better career than Dave Cowens, another talented but undersized center of the Daniels era. Daniels is on this list because he could be the best player championship team in his prime, and very few guys can say that.
32. Scottie Pippen Points 338 (1987–2004)
7x Allstar, 3x all 1st team, 2x all 2nd team, 8x all defensive 1st team, Steals leader (1995), 6x NBA Champion (1991–3,1996–8)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 34
Scottie Pippen was my second favorite player when I was growing up behind only Hakeem Olajuwon. I liked Jordan but I didn’t think I could ever be Jordan even when I was twelve. Pippen somehow seemed more attainable, he went to a small school in Arkansas (I lived in Texas) and played really hard.
In retrospect, this was incredibly dumb because I was never going to be Pippen. I should have rooted for Scottie Brooks or BJ Armstrong. Pippen was an athlete more gazelle than a human being. He was also a once in a generation genius on defense. Why didn’t he ever win defensive player of the year? I mean he was defensive 1st team eight times. I’m sure he could’ve had one of the Mutumbo ones.
Fun Fact: Scottie once bought a private plane for 3.4 million dollars. He couldn’t pay the million dollars a year of maintenance. So he almost never flew it. That proves that you can be a genius at basketball but not at money management.
31. Rick Barry Points: 342 (1965–80)
12x ABA/NBA all-star, 9x all ABA/NBA 1st team, 1x all 2nd team, 1x Finals MVP (1975) 1x Scoring Champion , 1x steals Leader, 2x ABA/NBA Champion (1969, 75)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 32
Barry was somehow the Dwight Howard and Steph Curry of his era. Barry was an offensive savant; he still might be the second greatest scoring small forward of all time. At the same time, his peers hated him, and he lost the 1975 MVP because, back then, the players still voted.
Barry had a financial disagreement with the Warriors owner in his second year and didn’t play at all in his third season because of legal issues. “Baseball player Curt Flood gets credit for standing up to The Man and paving the way for a new era of sports contracts; only Barry did the same two years earlier. So why doesn’t he get the credit? Because Rick Barry was a dick.” Bill Simmons-The Book of Basketball. His first ABA team moved three times in two years. By the time he returned to the lead Warriors in 1974–5 to a championship, he was seen as an outsider.
He is this low because, like Havlicek, he played most of his career during the ABA/NBA. It’s even worse for Barry because he played in the ABA, which my system penalizes more than in the NBA. Barry lost the most points of any player because of the ABA. You could make the argument he should be much higher.
30. David Robinson 343 (1989–2003)
10x all-star, 4x all 1st team, 2x all 2nd team, 4x all 1st team defensive, 1x rebounding leader, 1x blocks Leader, 1x scoring Champion , MVP (1995), DPOY (1992), 2x NBA Champion (1999, 2003)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 26
It’s the Admiral! He called that because instead of jumping to the NBA right after college, he served additional two years in the Military. So he joined the NBA at the age of twenty-four! TWENTY FOUR! He was the number one first pick in 1989! Can you imagine someone drafting a 24-year-old first pick now?
That Robinson is this high with a very short career compared to their contemporaries is pretty amazing. Part of the reason is he is tied for fifth in my stats advance category. That is part of why they call Robinson underrated when you read other lists. I think they usually put him about five spots too high.
Another reason Robinson is this high is was very good at both offense and defense. To be a scoring champion and block leader in your career is rare.
Robinson was not a great playoff performer as the best player. Look up Hakeem Olajuwon versus David Robinson’s 1995 Western Conference Finals if you don’t believe me. Robinson’s prime ended when he injured his back and then his foot missing most of the 1996–1997 season. He was never the same player offensively.
Luckily his injuries and the Spurs just flat-out tanking brought them Tim Duncan. Duncan brought Robinson two titles and changed the perception of the Spurs and The Admirals. More on that later.
29. Oscar Robertson Points 343 (1960-74)
12x NBA All-star, 9x all 1st team, 2x all 2nd team, MVP (1964), 6x assists leaders, NBA Champion (1971)
My 2021 Top 75 List Ranking: 25
Oscar suffers from many of the same issues Elgin Baylor did on this list. He played in an era that was considered weak. He could never quite win a championship as the best player.
The difference is that Oscar was a clear top-three player in the league during the early sixties. He won the MVP against a crowded field on Legends in 1964. The Big O’ created the modern point guard. He was a triple-double machine. The only player in the sixties that could come close to matching Wilt’s star power.
Oscar’s playoff failure is mainly the fault of the horrible management of his team, the Cincinnati Royals. The Royals had Bob Cousy, their 41-year-old head coach, play seven games during the 1969–70 season to boost their failing attendance.
Robertson was the first modern 6'5 point guard who could play in today’s NBA. Hell, he is one of the few players from his era who might have been even better.
28. Nikola Jokic Points 355 (2015-Present)
Career Highlights: 5x All-Star, 3x 1st team, 2x 2nd team, 2x MVP (2021–22), Finals NBA (2023), NBA Champion (2023)
It is incredible how close Jokic is to Leonard, which I will discuss more in Kawhi’s entry below, but let’s marvel at how a guy can be this high on the list after eight seasons. Even more impressive when you consider it took two years for the Nuggets to consider him a franchise cornerstone. If you don’t count defense, he is probably already a top-10 player and has at least eight years to move even higher.
But here is where the rub comes in. It’s hard to move from here again, as Kawhi has shown since 2019. The only ways you do it is through MVPs or being the best player on Champion, especially a player like Jokic, that will not win any awards for defense. It will be tough for Jokic to win an MVP from here; there are only eight players with three or more MVPS, and much as the media says, they only count the current season. History says that is just not true. One great, two fine, but three, you better blow our minds.
So the easiest path for the Joker to move up the list is also the hardest. Win championships; I for one am excited to see him try and do it.
27. Kawhi Leonard Points 371 (2011–Present)
Career Highlights: 5x All-Star, 3x 1st team, 2x 2nd team, 2x DPOY, 3x 1st Team Defense, 4x 2nd Team Defense, 2x NBA Champion(2014,19), 2x Finals MVP, 1x Steals Leader
After his Toronto championship, it looked like Kawhi could maybe sneak into the top twenty at the end of his career, but the last fours years have stalled him on this list. He doesn’t play enough in the regular season to win individual awards and he is injured in the playoffs more often than not. Joker is in similar place in 2023 to where Kawhi was in 2019, with a real chance and top twenty and beyond. Kawhi didn’t make not because of talent but because of his health.
26. Isiah Thomas Points 372 (1981–1994)
12x Allstar, 3x 1st team, 2x 2nd team, 1x Assist leader, 1x Finals MVP, 2x NBA Champion (1989,90)
Zeke packed a lot in a short career; he was the best player on two champions. Not a ton of dudes can say that. Thomas got robbed not being on the original dream team because of a beef with Michael Jordan. He is the only guy to beat them all in an era dominated by Magic, Larry, and Jordan. The only reason Thomas is this low is his aforementioned short career with today’s modern player health regime. He might have played five more years and been ten spots higher on this list.