The 20 Greatest NBA Players of All Time
The Top 20 greatest NBA players of all time
In bars and sports halls across the globe, the debate about who is the Greatest NBA player of all time rages daily. Is it Michael? Is it Lebron? Is it impossible to answer? Maybe.
There is however a list of players who deserve to be considered among the very best to have played in the NBA, and some of these are not up for discussion.
We’ve picked our 20 best players, maybe yours look a little different.
So, it’s a tough call to make and will be debated until the end of time, but these are our Top 20 NBA players of all time.
20. Dirk Nowitzki
The single most impressive NBA championship of the last 20 years arguably came from the 2011 Dallas Mavericks team led by Dirk Nowitzki.
This team knocked off the Miami Heat in their first year as the Big 3 when Lebron, Wade, and Bosh were in their prime.
Nowitzki led the Mavericks with no other current All-Stars or players to average over 16 points per game that season.
The 14-time All-Star, 4-time 1st team All NBA, and 2007 NBA MVP averaged 20.7 points and 7.5 rebounds per game over his career as he revolutionised the game, turning 7-footers into 3-point shooters and play-makers.
Nowitzki is 12th all-time in 3-pointers made, which is very impressive due to his size and how the NBA was not as 3-point heavy for the first half of his career.
19. Kevin Garnett
One of the most feared NBA players in the 2000s, Garnett did it all in the NBA. After 12 seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Garnett formed a Big 3 in Boston to win his first NBA title in 2008.
That same year he was the NBA defensive player of the year and also 1st team All NBA. Garnett had 4 first-team All-NBA selections total and 15 All-Star selections.
He was also on the 1st team All defensive team 9 times and was a 4-time league leader in rebounds per game.
One of the most effective NBA players of all time averaged a double-double for his career at 17.8 points and 10 rebounds per game.
18. Jerry West
Playing from 1960-to 1974, Jerry West made it to the NBA Finals 9 times in his career winning just 1 championship.
West had a ridiculous career average of 27 points and 6.7 assists per game and bumped up his points per game average to 29.1 for his career in the playoffs.
He was also a 14-time All-Star which was impressively achieved in every year of his NBA career.
Jerry West’s impact on the game was so great that he is still the silhouette on the red and blue logo of the NBA.
17. Julius Erving
Dr J was one of the most influential players of all time as he was the first player to truly be an above-the-rim player, throwing down dunks no one had ever seen before in the 1970s.
Erving would likely be higher on the list of all-time greats if he hadn’t spent the first half of his career in the ABA before merging with the NBA.
In the NBA, Erving won the 1983 NBA championship and was an All-Star in every one of his 11 seasons.
Erving was also a 5 time All-NBA selection and 1-time All-Defensive team selection due to his all-around game.
That all-around game is overlooked by many when talking about Erving as he averaged 22 points, 6.7 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.8 steals, and 1.5 blocks in his NBA career.
Dr J’s Greatest Moments
16. Karl Malone
Karl Malone was one of the most dominant players in the NBA over 3 decades.
He averaged at least 22 points per game in a season in each of the 80s, 90s, and 2000s with one season topping 31 points per game.
Malone may be top 10 all-time if he had brought a championship home and the Utah Jazz hadn’t faced Michael Jordan and the Bulls in both of his finals appearances.
So far on this list, Malone had the most 1st team All-NBA selections by far with 11 and also won 2 league MVPs.
Malone also touts impressive career averages of 25 points and 10 rebounds per game.
15. Moses Malone
This is a higher all-time ranking for Moses Malone than many people have.
He is somewhat forgotten about when talking about the all-time greats but he has 3 NBA MVPs, tied with Larry Bird and Magic Johnson for 6th most of all time.
He was somewhat hurt by playing in the ABA at the start of his career, like Julius Erving, but Malone also won the 1983 NBA championship with Erving and was named the Finals MVP.
The 8-time All-NBA First team player averaged over 20 points and 12 rebounds per game and led the NBA 6 times in rebounds per game for that season.
The career averages would be even more impressive for Malone had he not played 11 minutes or less per game in his final 3 seasons.
How good was Moses Malone?
14. Kevin Durant
This is the first player on the list who is still active but already has the career achievements to put him in the top 14 of all time.
Durant is a two-time NBA champion and Finals MVP and is in a good position to add even more by the end of his career.
Other accolades include the 2007 College Player of the Year, 2008 NBA Rookie of the Year, 2014 NBA MVP, 11-time All-Star, and 6-time All-NBA 1st team selection.
Some say Durant is the best scorer of all time as a 7-foot player who plays like a guard and can get his shot off anytime he wants.
He has averaged 27 points per game in his career while shooting over 38% from three-point range on average.
With 2 or 3 more championships, Durant could find himself in the top 5 players of all time.
13. Stephen Curry
Another active player, Curry is already a ridiculous number 1 in all-time in 3-pointers made and a 3-time NBA champion.
Curry also had a slower start to his career and didn’t make an All-Star team until his 5th year in the league, something he has now done 7 times.
However, Curry has already made the 1st team All NBA 4 times and won two league MVP awards.
Not known for his defence, Curry led the NBA in steals per game in 2016 despite not being named to a 1st or 2nd team all defence once in his career.
Curry has a career average of 24 points per game and a ridiculous career average of 43% from three.
He could find himself even higher on this list if he wins another championship or two as well as another MVP as he still averaged 32 points per game in 2021 as a 33-year-old.
12. Oscar Robertson
Oscar Robertson a.k.a ‘The Big O’ was drafted into the NBA in 1960 and in just his 2nd year was the first player ever to average a triple-double, Russell Westbrook is the only other player to do so.
However, Robertson is still the only player to be in the top 10 in points per game and assists per game for his career. Hence his place as one of the greatest passers in NBA history.
Robertson also won 1 championship with the Milwaukee Bucks when he teamed up with Lew Alcindor in 1971.
The career averages for Robertson are insane at 25.7 points per game, 9.5 assists per game, and 7.5 rebounds per game.
Other impressive stats are that Robertson led the league in assists per game 7 times in 13 seasons, led the league in minutes per game once with 45.6 per game, and led the league in scoring once.
11. Hakeem Olajuwon
‘The Dream’ played 18 seasons in the NBA and was one of the most dominant centers of all time.
Olajuwon led the Houston Rockets to their only 2 championships ever in back-to-back seasons where he averaged a ridiculous 30.9 points, 10.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 3.4 blocks per game during the playoffs of those two championship runs.
Like many of the all-time greats, Olajuwon was just as dominant on the defensive end as he was on the offensive, leading the league in blocks per game 3 times with one season averaging 4.6.
Some career accolades include
12-time All-Star,
6 time All NBA 1st team,
2 time Defensive player of the year, and
1-time league MVP while averaging 21.8 points, 3.1 blocks, and 11.1 rebounds per game for his career.
10. Bill Russell
Famously, Bill Russell has the most NBA championships of any player with 11, all with the Boston Celtics.
But Russell also won two college championships with the San Francisco Dons. He is also tied for 2nd most NBA MVP awards with Michael Jordan at 5.
Russell may have the lowest career points per game average on this list at just 15.1 points but his impact was felt elsewhere on the court as he averaged a crazy 22.5 rebounds per game.
The NBA didn’t track blocks per game when Bill Russel was playing in the 1950s but experts who broke down how many he would have averaged say it was about 8 per game which would be by far the most all-time.
Bill Russell sadly passed away on the 31st July 2022.
9. Kobe Bryant
The late Kobe Bryant was the closest thing to Michael Jordan the NBA has ever seen.
Bryant was a prolific scorer averaging 25 points per game, leading the league in scoring twice, and is 4th all-time in total points.
The thing that sets Bryant apart from other big-time scorers was his ability to win.
Bryant won 5 NBA championships but only won finals MVP twice compared to Jordan winning 6 finals MVPs out of 6.
Part of that winning mentality was also on the defensive end for Bryant as he was a 9-time 1st-team all-NBA Defensive team selection.
Kobe also holds the record for 2nd most points scored in an NBA game at 81 and scored 60 points in his final NBA game at 37 years old.
He nearly ended his career as a career 25, 5, and 5 player, just missing with just 4.7 assists per game.
8. Shaquille O’Neal
Maybe the most dominant player in the last 50 years, Shaq was unstoppable due to his size and athleticism.
In his 1st 15 years in the league, Shaq never averaged under 20 points per game and shot 55% or higher each year from the field.
O’Neal won 3 championships in Los Angeles with Kobe Bryant where Shaq was the Finals MVP in each and then won 1 more in Miami with the Heat and Dwayne Wade.
Shaq was dominant everywhere he went, winning Associated Press Player of the Year in college and then NBA Rookie of the Year and was an NBA League MVP.
O’Neal Career Highlights;
A 15-time all-star,
8-time 1st team All NBA,
2 time NBA scoring champion
Career averages of 23.7 points, 10.9 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game.
7. Tim Duncan
Duncan wasn’t the biggest, most athletic, or most dominating player in the league but would beat you with skill and smarts. Hence the nickname “The Big Fundamental.”
This could be why Duncan falls out of the top 10 in some all-time greatest lists but was dominant in the sense of winning, as he led the small-market San Antonio Spurs to 5 championships.
Duncan was finals MVP for 3 of those championships and also league MVP twice.
He was 1st team All NBA 10 times in his career as well as a 15-time All-Star selection. Duncan was also a defensive stalwart, being selected to the 1st team all-defence 8 times in his career.
The 1998 Rookie of the Year went on to have a great career and finished with career averages of 19 points per game, 2.2 blocks per game, and 10.8 rebounds per game.
6. Larry Bird
Bird and Magic were the faces of the NBA in the 1980s as they brought rivalries and excitement back to the league. Bird led the Celtics to 5 finals appearances winning 3 of them and 2 finals MVPs.
He was one of the most prolific 3-point shooters of all time winning the 3-point contest 3 years in a row and is a two-time member of the 50-40-90 club for players who shot 50+% from the field, 40+% from three, and 90+% from the free-throw line during a season.
Larry Bird was named to the All NBA 1st team 9 times in his career and was a 12-time All-Star in 13 seasons. The 1980 Rookie of the Year had an impressive career averaging 24.3 points, 10 rebounds, and 6.3 assists per game.
Larry Bird will be remembered as one of the best players of the 1980s, as well as his ability to shoot the ball and take over a game.
There are so many quotes about Larry Bird, that we included them in our list of Basketball quotes here.
5. Magic Johnson
Magic and Bird come in at 5 and 6 all-time but what separated Magic vs his rival, is the fact Magic and the Lakers got the better of the Celtics, winning 5 championships to Bird’s 3.
He also bested Bird in the college championship of 1979.
The Lakers went to 9 total finals under Magic and he had 3 finals MVPs. Like Bird, Magic was a 3 time NBA MVP and a 12-time All-Star in 13 seasons.
Magic was a wizard with the ball, probably where he got the name Magic and was a 4 time season assists leader, as well as a two-time season, steals leader.
Magic averaged an all-time NBA career-best assist per game at 11.2 and also 19.5 points to go with 7.2 rebounds per game. He is another one that makes our Top 5 passers in NBA History.
When Johnson was just 31 he was diagnosed with HIV which caused him to miss 4 seasons in a row before returning for one last heroic comeback season.
We rate Magic as the greatest point guard in NBA history.
Larry and Magic - Friends and Rivals!
4. Wilt Chamberlain
Chamberlain seems like an urban legend as the stats he was putting up in the 1960s and early 70s were unlike anything since or before.
His career averages were 30.1 points, 22.9 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game. Like Bill Russell, the NBA didn’t track blocks per game but he was calculated to average 8 blocks per game as well.
In 1962, Chamberlain averaged an absurd 50.4 points per game and 100 points in one game, both the highest ever by far. Chamberlain has the record for most points per game in a season in the 4 top spots with Michael Jordan in the 5th and not even close at 37 points per game.
His accomplishments are legendary, having been selected as a 13-time All-Star, 7-time 1st team All NBA, and a 7-time scoring and 11-time rebounding champion.
Chamberlain also must have gotten bored one year and decided to lead the league in assists with 8.56 per game in 1968.
It’s hard to compare Wilt Chamberlain to other players because when he was playing it was unreal to be 7 foot 1 and the most athletic player by far. It would have been interesting to see Chamberlain against bigger and more athletic players like the current NBA.
With how dominant he was, it is surprising he is only a 2 time NBA champion which is why he is in the 4th spot.
3. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Abdul-Jabbar has the most illustrious individual awards career out of any player in NBA history. He won a record of 6 regular-season MVPs and made 19 NBA All-Star appearances as well as 10 All-NBA 1st team and 5 All-Defensive 1st team selections.
Abdul-Jabbar was also a winner, winning 6 NBA championships in his career with the 1st and last interestingly coming 17 years apart.
He also won 3 NCAA championships while at UCLA. What made him unstoppable was his patented sky-hook shot which no one could guard, and this led to him averaging 24.6 points to go with 11.2 rebounds per game for his career.
Once the NBA started recording blocks in the 1974 season, he won the blocking title 4 times.
2.
2. Lebron James
Lebron ‘King’ James has already been in the NBA 20+ years, over 5 more than the retired Jordan, and still may have a couple of years left in him. Lebron’s award accomplishments include:
4 time NBA MVP,
17-time All-Star,
13-time 1st team All NBA selection,
5-time Defensive 1st team,
1-time scoring champion, and
1-time assists leader.
He has also won 4 NBA championships on 3 different teams, including taking a Cleveland team out of the playoffs before he got there, to winning the championship.
It can be said that at least one of Lebron’s championships was harder than Jordan’s as he faced a Warriors team with 4 current All-Stars and 2 top 14 players of all time in their prime.
Lebron has career averages of 25 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 7.4 assists per game and has the most career playoff points by far. While Jordan was a better scorer, Lebron was more of a play-maker, averaging 2 more assists per game.
Lebron is also a more efficient scorer than Jordan was.
Lebron takes 19.5 shots per game for his career while Jordan took 23 and Lebron has higher percentages on field goals and threes.
On the 7th February 2023, Lebron James became the NBA’s all-time leading points scorer, overtaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record of 38,337 points.
1. Michael Jordan
For this article, we won’t get into the Jordan vs Lebron best player of all time argument too much, but instead, let’s try to celebrate both players’ accomplishments.
Michael Jordan’s Career Highlights
6 NBA championships in 6 attempts to go with 6 finals MVPs.
Jordan was also a 5-time regular season MVP
10-time 1st Team All-NBA selection
9-time Defensive 1st team selection
14 times All-Star
10 time NBA scoring champion
3 time steals leader
1-time Defensive Player of the Year.
Definitely one of the best awards resumes out of any player ever.
Jordan was a 10-time scoring champion, and he also holds the NBA record for the highest points per game career average at 30.1 and the highest playoff points per game at 33.4.
Michael had the fortune of playing with one of the greatest NBA teams of all time for much of his career.
Even if you exclude him, they would still have been a top team with a top 25 player of all time Scottie Pippen, who some people have in their top 20.
Jordan also only played 15 NBA seasons which doesn’t allow him to hold some top NBA records, but we all know amongst many other things he is the most clutch player of all time, as well as the greatest.
Almost as famous off the court as on it, he is perhaps the man who inspired the most famous sports shoe on the planet, the Nike Air Jordan.
Read more top lists on our NBA blog
