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The game of basketball is poetry in motion. Fans sometimes envision their favorite teams operating as a five-man jazz ensemble, in which each member spaces the floor to improvise, deliver pinpoint passes, and score. On the other end of the court, a cohesive group coordinates traps, rotates to the ball on dribble drives, and recovers back in to help on defense for timely rebounding off the glass.
This is team basketball. The greatest basketball players of all time, however, can still perform at high levels despite apparently breaking all of the rules in their respective positions. As individual talents, it is impossible for the greatest basketball players of all time to merely blend into the action. By nature of the very definition of greatness, these athletes must dominate.
A dominant player will set up shop on the low block before fending off double and triple teams to wheel and deal in the post and put the ball in the hole. Meanwhile, the greatest wing players are all-around performers who can create instant offense from all spots out on the floor, wreak havoc on the defensive end for timely steals and blocks, and even stand tall in the paint to get physical. The point guard is the ultimate facilitator. An elite point guard accepts responsibility to deliver the ball at impossible angles and keep his teammates involved with easy buckets, either in transition or through half-court sets.
It can often be hard to describe individual greatness with mere words because the aura of excellence is best observed through eyewitness accounts. Basketball fans often simplify the meaning of greatness to a collection of first names: Wilt, Larry, Magic, and Michael.
While the following list of great players for each position involves some opinion, on its day, this composition cannot be defeated. (All facts and figures are from Basketball-Reference.com and Hoophall.com.)
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Center: Wilt Chamberlain
Wilt Chamberlain’s video-game-like dominance over the NBA was completely comical. In 1973, the Big Dipper completed his 14-year career with an unreal 30-point/22-rebound/4-assist per game average. As an offensive force, the 7-foot-1 Chamberlain led the league in scoring during his first seven NBA seasons. Chamberlain’s multiple scoring crowns included his signature 100-point game, during which he abused the 1961-1962 New York Knicks in every way possible in Hershey, Pennsylvania. That year, Chamberlain averaged 50 points and 25 rebounds per game for the regular season. Stung by early criticism of operating as a selfish black hole in the paint, Chamberlain was to further develop his playmaking talents as he matured. Remarkably, Chamberlain actually led the NBA in assists as a 31-year-old center, with 702 total dimes.
However, some say that Chamberlain was more concerned with accumulating statistics than he was with winning titles. Many historians casually categorize Chamberlain’s body of work as the antithesis of his bitter rival Bill Russell. Through moxie, hustle, and determination, it is often noted that the selfless Russell took home 11 championships in 13 seasons with the Boston Celtics. Chamberlain, of course, performed in Philadelphia and Los Angeles without the benefits of Bob Cousy, John Havlicek, or Sam Jones as teammates.
Chamberlain did bring home two titles for the 76ers and Lakers, in 1967 and 1972, respectively. In 1972, Chamberlain claimed Finals MVP honors as an elder statesman who proved to be the missing link for the championship dreams of Gail Goodrich and “The Logo,” Jerry West.
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Power Forward: Tim Duncan
Tim Duncan has been so good for so long that he is almost boring. Duncan is a technically sound big man who has combined the lateral quickness of David Robinson with the precise footwork of Kevin McHale to go to work in the low post.
On the block, Duncan can reach deep into his bag of tricks on every possession to destroy the opposition with an assortment of drop steps, up-and-under moves, spins, hook shots, and turnaround jumpers. In space, Duncan is equally effective from his triple-threat stance. From the wing, Duncan can either put the ball on the floor to blow past lumbering stiffs or pull up to hit sweet mid-range jumpers off the glass from 18 feet and in. On the defensive end, he plays the angles to cut off post moves, rotate on the weak side, and recover back into the lane to box out and clean up the glass for rebounds.
In 17 seasons as a San Antonio Spur, Duncan has turned in workmanlike averages of 21 points, 12 boards, 3 assists, and 2 blocks per game. As a winner, Duncan represents the centerpiece of a Spurs dynasty that was to claim five championships during his tenure at starting power forward.
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Small Forward: Larry Bird
Larry Bird redefined the small forward position. As a shooter, the Hick from French Lick was automatic from nearly all points within his side of the half-court line. With a quick feint or forearm shiver, the crafty Bird would work to keep defenders off balance to create just enough space to rise up and drain his patented overhead jump shot. In the post, Bird was equally as unstoppable, because he could pin smaller opponents on his back to knock down fadeaway jumpers or spin into the lane for easy layups and dunks.
As a passer, Bird rivals LeBron James as the greatest playmaker of all time in the frontcourt. Through his 13-year career, Bird played the angles to feed his Celtic teammates for easy scores from their favorite spots on the floor. In the 1987-1988 season, Bird put it all together as he ran roughshod over the league to rack up 29 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists per game.
As a three-time champion, Bird was especially dangerous in the clutch, when he would carry the city of Boston on his back and will its storied franchise to glory. During the 1988 Eastern Conference semifinals, Bird squared up and went toe-to-toe to match a red-hot Dominique Wilkins bucket for bucket in the fourth quarter. When the smoke cleared, Bird walked away with 34 points (20 in the fourth quarter) and yet another Game 7 triumph. Beyond the human highlight film showdown, Bird, of course, will forever be linked to Magic Johnson atop the grand marquee of the Lakers-Celtics rivalry.
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Point Guard: Earvin “Magic” Johnson
Magic Johnson’s Showtime Lakers served as the perfect contrast for the gritty team play of Larry Bird and his Boston Celtics. With Magic flashing his trademark smile, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, Byron Scott, and Michael Cooper were all too happy to run the floor, fill the lanes, and catch crisp passes that led to easy transition buckets. At point guard, Magic could completely dominate the flow of the game without even scoring.
As a 20-year-old kid, he burnished his image as one of the greatest winners in all of sports. As a rookie, Johnson put together one of the most memorable postseason performances of all time to close out the Philadelphia 76ers in the Game 6 Finals clincher. While playing all five positions, Magic torched Philadelphia for 42 points, 15 rebounds, 7 assists, and 1 MVP award. From there, he was to collect four more championship trophies for the city of Los Angeles against the 76ers, Celtics, and Bad Boy-era Pistons.
Starting from his days as a Michigan State star, Magic was always in rare form against rival Larry Bird. His sweeping hook shot across the lane to seal a Finals victory on the Boston parquet hardwood will forever remain burnished as part of NBA lore.
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Shooting Guard: Michael Jordan
Without question, Michael Jordan is the baddest man to ever put on a pair of basketball shorts. A fierce competitor, Jordan took pleasure in breaking opponents’ wills and making them eat their words at mid-court. For motivation, Jordan would manufacture perceived slights and disrespect before he would go ballistic, drop 50, and eventually muscle his way to six championships.
As a young star, Jordan was often ridiculed as a gunner out for his own stats. In the 1986-1987 season, he averaged 37.1 points per game, as he largely refused to accommodate his own teammates. For years, the Bad Boy Pistons would install the “Jordan Rules” — they would collapse their defense upon No. 23, dare him to share the ball, and physically dominate the Bulls. Jordan, of course, did not emerge as the ultimate winner until 1991, when he learned to trust the likes of Scottie Pippen, Horace Grant, John Paxson, and head coach Phil Jackson. That year, Jordan and his supporting cast finally swept the Pistons out of the playoffs en route to establishing a Bulls dynasty.
By then, Air Jordan had transformed his game to that of a complete player. He ultimately closed out a 15-year career having posted 30-point, 6-rebound, 5-assist, and 2-steal per game averages. In his prime, Jordan had no weaknesses on the floor.
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