THE GOAT

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar — #2 on my list of the greatest basketball players of all time.

Each one of these players in my top 10 have had great individual achievements and their teams have had tremendous success as well. None more successful on the basketball court than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. That success in the form of winning is the embodiment of the basketball career of Jabbar. His teams won 6 NBA Championships. His UCLA Bruin teams won 3 NCAA Championships. Lewis Alcindor, as he was known early in his career, won 3 New York City Catholic Championships at Power Memorial High School. Alcindor's high school teams were 79-2. His freshman team at UCLA was 21-0, including a win over the UCLA varsity that was ranked #1 in the country at the time. His Bruin teams went on to win 88 out of 90 games.

Winning is one of my 10 criteria for greatness but is often given too much importance in evaluating an "individual" player. Basketball is a "team" game as I have stated many times in my book. As a former player and coach, I understand the goal is to win. I also know that ONE player does not win a "team" championship. But in the case of Jabbar, a case could be made that he was the most dominant player on the court and influenced the outcome of the game in every aspect. Throughout his career, he accounted for one-fourth, or more, of his team's points. He led every team he played on in rebounds and in blocked shots. As a post player, Jabbar was an outstanding passer. (3.6 assists career average in the NBA).

Another one of my criteria is the skill to play both ends of the court; Jabbar made the All-Defensive team in the NBA eleven times. Kareem played for 20 years in the NBA, which certainly checks the box for longevity. (He made the All-Star team in his 20th season.)

Lew Alcindor could have been the number one pick in the 1965 draft as a 19-year-old high schooler coming out of Power Memorial High School in New York. The NBA was not drafting high school players back in 1969. His freshman UCLA team beat the UCLA #1 pre-season ranked varsity team in a scrimmage. But as we know Lew Alcindor became Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and became not just a great college player but an even better professional player. Bill Walton has said on many occasions that Jabbar was the best basketball player he ever saw. Like all the great ones Jabbar's stats can fill up a book and still not tell the true story of how great a basketball player he was. His first year in the NBA in 1969-70 he averaged 28.8 points a game and 14.5 rebounds. The NBA did not record block shots until Jabbar's fifth season in the league when he averaged 3.5, so it would be safe to assume he was blocking over three shots a game in those first four years in the league. While Jabbar's patented hook shot did not revolutionize the game like Chamberlain's offensive dominance, his hook shot was deadly and undefendable. His hook shot even took on its own identity, it was called the "Skyhook". Jabbar made more NBA All-Star Teams than anyone (19). He was selected to the All-NBA team 15 times, most by a center. He won more MVP's (6) than anyone who ever played.

He and Robinson are the only players in NBA history to lead the league in scoring, rebounds and blocks. At 39 and 40 years of age he was performing at a high enough level to make an NBA All-Star team. In his first 12 years in the league, he averaged 28.1 points, 14.1 rebounds, 3.4 blocks, and shot 55.6% from the field. He also played in over 80 games every year except three. He did that for 12 years. In those same 12 years in the playoffs, he averaged 28.8 points, 14 rebounds, 3.4 blocks, and shot 53.6% from the field. Besides his six MVPs he finished in the top 10 eleven other times. He teamed with the Big O to win an NBA title in Milwaukee in 1971 before an amazing run of five NBA titles in the 80s with Magic and the Lakers. Jabbar is currently the number one all-time points leader for a career with 38,387. He ranks #3 all-time in playoff points. Jabbar finished his career with 17,440 rebounds (currently ranked 3rd all-time). He finished his career with 3,189 blocks which is 3rd all-time even though the NBA did not keep that stat his first 4 years in the league. Jabbar is the only player in NBA history to lead the league in scoring, rebounding, blocks, and field goal percentage during their career. I can't help but wonder how many points Kareem Abdul-Jabbar might have ended up with had he had the opportunity to go directly into the NBA out of high school as so many players like LeBron were able to do. Jabbar was a great player and was great for a very long time.

As they say on the banquet circuit, "This is a person that needs no introduction." At #3 on my list of the greatest basketball players in the history of the game is Michael Jordan. MJ, His Airness, or whatever name you give him, is the most publicized, recognized, and popular basketball player in the WORLD, not just the NBA. Like Chamberlain, Jordan is considered the GOAT by many, many basketball followers. As I have written in my bio of Jordan, he checks all the boxes, so I totally understand the Jordan allegiance. There aren't many Jordan haters out there. But as I stated throughout the first chapter of my book, I'm trying to be totally objective in the order in which I rank these great players — no emotions or feelings.

Michael Jordan is one of the most recognized SPORTS names in the world. In a survey of the greatest athletes of all time, Michael Jordan was voted number one. He was followed in that survey by #2 Muhammad Ali, #3 Wayne Gretzky, #4 Usain Bolt, #5 Babe Ruth, #6 Michael Phelps, #7 Tiger Woods, #8 Bo Jackson, #9 Pele, and #10 Roger Federer. LeBron James showed up at 12th on the list. This survey was conducted in 2010 and, as they say, "times have changed" — or has it when it comes to picking the greatest basketball player of all time? Jordan has been considered the G.O.A.T. for several years and his popularity has not diminished much since his retirement almost 20 years ago. Among Jordan's many aliases he is referred to as "His Airness" and "Air Jordan" — those two references get to the heart of what made Michael Jordan so special on the basketball court. There have been other basketball players with great leaping ability and hang time, but no other player was able to do the things with a basketball that Jordan did while defying gravity. There is much more to Jordan than just his legs. He has the heart of a champion, the hands of a surgeon, the mind of an assassin, the will of a Secretariat, the discipline of Job, and the determination and competitive spirit of, well, Michael Jordan.

Everyone wants to define greatness with stats and numbers, but it isn't that easy. All the players that you have read about in this book and many more who did not make the book have great numbers. The question, and it is a very difficult question to answer, is what sets one great player apart from another? MJ checks all the boxes to be the G.O.A.T.: dominance, longevity, the yardstick test, excels on offense and defense, team championships, excels under pressure (clutch), and finally the stats. Jordan was five-time league MVP. Only Jabbar with six has more. He also finished second and third five other times in the voting. His Chicago Bulls team won the NBA title six times. Jordan was the MVP all six times the Bulls won the championship. He led the league in scoring 10 times and has the all-time best career average at 30.12 — just a half point better than Chamberlain. He and Pettit are the only two players in NBA history to average over 20 points every season of their career. He is currently 47th all-time in assists with 5,633 and 3rd in steals with 2,514. Jordan's ability to perform at a phenomenal level when the stakes were highest is reflected in his 33.4 average in the playoffs, which is three points better than during the regular season. Jordan made the First Team All-NBA and First Team All-Defensive team in the same season 9 times, most of any player. His career won-loss record is 706-366 (.659). His playoff won-loss record is 119-60 (.664).

◆ Bird and Magic are rightly given credit for resurrecting the NBA in the early 80s. Jordan almost single-handedly took the league to another level in the 90s.

Last week at #5 in my countdown to the greatest basketball player of all time I presented the player that changed A position in basketball, point guard. This week at #4, I am going to present a player that changed THE game. Wilt Chamberlain, who many basketball fans consider the GOAT, was responsible for more rule changes than any other player in the history of the game. At least five rules were changed to try and neutralize his effect on the game. Goal tending, rules of execution on the free throw lane were just two rules that were changed due to Chamberlain. He could throw the basketball off the backboard while attempting a free throw, go rebound the ball and dunk it for a basket.

Wilt Chamberlain was the most dominating basketball player of his generation and arguably the most dominating player to ever play the game. No other player has been responsible for so many rule changes to the game of basketball than Wilt Chamberlain — free throw lane, free throw shooting, goal tending, etc. Like Jabbar, Chamberlain could not enter the NBA as a teenager right out of high school but began his NBA career in 1959 at the age of 23. That is truly significant in sports when your youth and physicality are so important. In Chamberlain's first year in the league, he led the league in points with a 37.6 average, rebounds with a 27.0 average, and minutes played.

"The Big Dipper," his favorite nickname, led the league in points seven times including a record 50.4 points per game in 1961-62, a record that still stands. He led the league in rebounds 11 times including an average of over 27 in 1959-60 and 1960-61. In his 14 seasons he led the league 9 times in minutes per game played. Wilt had 124 30/30 games in his career — all other NBA players COMBINED have had 32.

Chamberlain holds many firsts or onlys in the NBA: only player to average 50 points a game, only player to score 100 points in a game, only center to lead the league in assists (he did that in response to sports writers accusing him of shooting too much and not being able to pass). Wilt is the only player to average 30 points and 20 rebounds for a season, only player to get 2,000 rebounds in one season (2,149), only player to score over 4,000 points in a season (4,029).

Chamberlain finished his career with 31,419 points (currently 7th all-time), 23,924 rebounds (currently 1st all-time), and 4,643 assists. Neither Wilt nor Russell played in the NBA when blocked shots were kept — they would have likely finished #1 and #2 in that category.

The only two criticisms ever made about Chamberlain were that he only won two NBA titles, and he could not shoot free throws. Only one of these is fair — he could not shoot free throws. As for championships, basketball is a team game. Chamberlain never had great players as teammates except for a few years. No matter how much fluff and rhetoric is spouted about the matchup between Russell and Chamberlain, Wilt dominated their head-to-head. In 94 regular season games between the two, Wilt averaged 29.9 points to Russell's 14.2, and 28.1 rebounds to Russell's 22.9. In the playoffs, the numbers were about the same — Wilt averaging 25.7 points to Russell's 14.9 and 28.0 rebounds to 24.7.

I have always said that if Wilt and Russ would have switched teams, the records would have been the same — or perhaps the Celtics might have NEVER lost a championship. Russell himself said, "Wilt Chamberlain was the most athletic player to EVER play in the NBA."

Let the drum roll begin and the countdown to my #1 greatest basketball player of all time commence. At #5, one of the two players that rescued the NBA from mediocrity in the early 80's after the Chamberlain-Russell and Celtic/Laker battles. Earvin "Magic" Johnson, along with Larry Bird, brought a new aura to the National Basketball Association. Part Hollywood and part "Mid-America, Heartland," Magic was the quintessential name for Earvin Johnson, the basketball player from LA.

Magic is the quintessential name for Earvin Johnson, the basketball player. What he could do on a basketball court was truly magic. He was drafted first overall in 1979 and went to the perfect team, in the perfect city — a city that included Hollywood. Magic and his basketball talents were made for Hollywood, and before his career ended, he received a lot of "Oscars" (NBA MVPs).

Magic was the first 6'9" point guard, but his legend grew while playing another position. He almost single-handedly won the 1980 NBA title with an unbelievable Game 6, scoring 42 points and grabbing 15 rebounds — as the center. Jabbar suffered an ankle injury with the Lakers ahead of the 76ers 3–2 in the Finals and could not play in Game 6. Magic announced to the team and the world, "Do not fear, EJ is here." Promises backed up with results is what legends are made of — Joe Namath, Muhammad Ali, Babe Ruth, etc.

In his first year in the NBA, he led the Lakers to the NBA Finals and became the only rookie in NBA history to win Finals MVP. He scored 42 points, pulled down 15 rebounds, dished out 7 assists, and made 3 steals in Game 6, the clinching game. Many NBA followers rate that game as one of the best playoff games by any player, ever. Magic spent his entire 13-year career as a Laker in the "City of Angels." He would have had even more remarkable stats if he hadn't sat out four years dealing with a new and scary illness — HIV.

Magic led the NBA four times in assists and is the all-time career playoffs leader in assists (12.3 APG in the playoffs). Magic was always at his greatest when the spotlight shined brightest. The Lakers won 5 NBA championships with Magic running the show, and he played in four other NBA Finals. He teamed with Jabbar to form one of the most imposing and dominating duos in all of basketball history.

However, he is probably recognized as much for his link to a rival player from Boston. He and Larry Bird began their "friendly" rivalry in the NCAA tournament and carried that special rivalry right through their NBA careers. That rivalry and their extraordinary talent rescued the NBA from obscurity during the early '80s. Magic won three MVPs and finished second or third six other times. He finished his career with 17,707 points and 10,141 assists (currently 6th all-time). Magic is considered the best point guard to ever play the game.