Accomplishments: Nine-time All-Star, seven-time All-NBA, 1985-86 scoring champ. Teams: Boston Celtics (2003-11), Oklahoma City Thunder (2011-15), Cleveland Cavaliers (2015, 2018), New Orleans Pelicans (2015-16). Bottom line: Bill Russell was the centerpiece of the greatest dynasty in NBA history, winning 11 NBA championships in his 13 seasons. His most iconic play was a baseline, left-handed dunk over Jordan and Horace Grant in the playoffs. Want to learn how to continue to get better every season while simultaneously carrying the load? Stats: 18.8 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 3.9 APG in 13 seasons with Baltimore Bullets (1967-68 to 1971-72) and New York Knicks (1971-72 to 1979-80). He may have often looked out of place when he played, but thats because he was far ahead of his time. Horace Grant and Dennis Rodman with Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen on the Bulls in the 1990s. J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award. 11. Johnson won three NBA titles in his career, which is almost entirely associated with his time with the Boston Celtics, but that was his third team after he was run off in Seattle and Phoenix because of clashes with coaches. He really knew how to leave his mark. Accomplishments: 10-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA, five-time All-Defensive team, nine-time assists champ, two-time steals champ, 1993 All-Star MVP. Its also a clear indicator of where his toughness came from he trails only Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell in that category. The 50 Greatest NBA Players of All Time - Sports Illustrated The 10 Greatest Basketball Players of All Time | Britannica 13 Kevin Durant Top accolades: Two NBA titles, two Finals MVPs, one MVP, six All-NBA 1st Team selections, 11 All-Stars NBA rank: 26th. But as his skills declined, he extended his career by turning into a tough-minded enforcer for the teams he played on. His biggest claim to fame came on the New York Knicks teams that won NBA titles in 1970 and 1973, where he cemented his reputation as one of the most physical players of all time. List of all the NBA and ABA Players | Basketball-Reference.com Accomplishments: 10-time All-Star, 10-time All-NBA, eight-time All-Defensive team, 1994-95 MVP, 1991-92 Defensive Player of the Year, 1989-90 Rookie of the Year, 1993-94 scoring champ, 1990-91 rebounding champ, 1991-92 blocks champ, two-time NBA champion. Bottom line: Most of Americas introduction to Gary Payton came via one of the most iconic Sports Illustrated covers of all time, when he was a senior at Oregon State University in 1990. Bottom line: In 12 NBA seasons, Bobby Jones earned a reputation as one of the classiest players of all time. He is an American basketball player for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA) since 2019. He has won an NBA Most Valuable Player Award in 2014, four NBA scoring . McDaniel combined toughness with intimidation to a maximum degree. J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award. Stats: 24.2 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 5.4 APG in 10 seasons with Atlanta Hawks (1970-71 to 1973-74), New Orleans/Utah Jazz (1974-75 to 1979-80) and Boston Celtics (1979-80). The NBA's 75th anniversary team was selected by a blue-ribbon panel of media, current and former players, coaches, general managers and team executives. Garnett has had a reputation of trash talking since he came into the league, and that is something that has followed him to this day. Bottom line: There are few tales as tragic as Kermit Washingtons in the history of the NBA. Rookie of the Year. Who are the most athletic players in NBA history? We take - Sportskeeda What makes these numbers even more amazing is that he underwent an astonishing eight knee surgeries over his career and was known to choke back several cigarettes in the locker room at halftime. Sixth Man of the Year. *All stats/accomplishments for active players are entering the 2021-22 season. Kevin Wayne Durant was born on 29 September 1988. Lucas also could ball. The toughness wasnt just an act. Bottom line: Its not a coincidence that NCAA Division II Virginia Union put two players on this list because one of them, Charles Oakley, recommended the other one, Ben Wallace, to the school after seeing him at a basketball camp. There was a reason he was the No. Aaron Rodgers and Packers are in the 'most passive aggressive During halftime of the 1997 NBA All-Star Game in Cleveland, 47 of the 50 members of that team were honored in person. Stats: 14.5 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 1.5 BPG in 21 seasons with Golden State Warriors (1976-77 to 1979-80), Boston Celtics (1980-81 to 1993-94), Charlotte Hornets (1994-95 to 1995-96) and Chicago Bulls (1996-97). Accomplishments: Seven-time All-Star, five-time All-NBA, 1969-70 All-Defensive team, 1969-70 NBA MVP, 1964-65 Rookie of the Year, 1970 All-Star MVP, two-time Finals MVP, two-time NBA champion. Famed broadcaster Howard Cosell summed up Americas feelings toward Reed in the winning locker room after the game. Jones toughness meant playing through a variety of debilitating health problems, including asthma, a chronic heart condition and epileptic seizures that once caused a serious injury when he fell in his kitchen. Bottom line: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won six NBA titles and six NBA Most Valuable Player awards and is in the conversation when it comes to the greatest basketball players of all time, which probably automatically puts him in the conversation for toughest players ever, as well. Jordan played in an NBA era where you had to essentially fight your way out of games, with every opponent he faced trying to physically break him. Teams: Seattle SuperSonics (1990-03), Milwaukee Bucks (2003), Los Angeles Lakers (2003-04), Boston Celtics (2004-05), Miami Heat (2005-07), Key stats: 1,335 G, 16.3 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 6.7 APG, 46.6 FG%. Thurmond set the NBA record with 18 rebounds in one quarter, was the first NBA player to record a quadruple-double but only played in the NBA Finals once, losing to Chamberlain and the 76ers in 1967. Teams: Charlotte Hornets (1992-95), Miami Heat (1995-2002, 2005-08), New Jersey Nets (2003-04), Key stats: 838 G, 17.1 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 1.1 APG, 52.7 FG%. Accomplishments: Eight-time All-Star, seven-time All-NBA, 1955 All-Star MVP, four-time NBA champ. Stats: 21.0 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 2.4 BPG in 17 seasons with New York Knicks (1985-86 to 1999-00), Seattle SuperSonics (2000-01) and Orlando Magic (2001-02). Rookie of the Year. The 20 Greatest NBA Players of All Time The Sporting Blog Accomplishments: 15-time All-Star, 14-time All-NBA, three-time All-Defensive team, 1999-2000 MVP, 1992-93 Rookie of the Year, three-time All-Star MVP, three-time Finals MVP, two-time scoring champ, four-time NBA champion. They didnt get that way because they could score or rebound. Bottom line: Xavier McDaniel set a baseline for what it meant to be tough when he was still playing for Wichita State University and became the first player in NCAA history to lead the nation in points and rebounds in 1984-85. Whats unique about his career was that style of play, at that time, was ahead of its time feed the ball to one player and let the game hinge on that. His father, Stan, was an NBA player, and he had his son study tapes of Hall of Famer Wes Unseld as part of learning to play the game the right way. His Piston Automotive Group, a global auto parts supplier, does almost $2 billion in business annually and employs 8,300 people. Pettit only played 11 seasons in the NBA and was a first-team All-NBA pick 10 times. Stats: 25.7 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 9.5 APG in 14 seasons with Cincinnati Royals (1960-61 to 1969-70) and Milwaukee Bucks (1970-71 to 1973-74). After his career nearly ended with a one-year suspension for his role in "The Malice at the Palace," he redeemed himself and won an NBA title with Kobe Bryant and the Lakers in 2010. That included a career-high 18.7 rebounds in 1991-92. He helped lead the Trail Blazers to the 1977 NBA title and set the tone in the NBA Finals by squaring off with Darryl Dawkins (!) Three teams are well situated (Denver Nuggets, Memphis Grizzlies and Sacramento Kings), and Jordan retired for the first time at the . Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has 6 NBA Championships to his name. Marches to the beat of his own drum? Jordan scored 38 points despite playing with a fever and recovering from a stomach virus. One little-known fact about Havlicek, an 11-time All-NBA pick and eight-time All-NBA Defensive pick, is that he was also drafted as a wide receiver by the Cleveland Browns and briefly contemplated a career in the NFL. Robertson was found not guilty of human trafficking in 2015, five years after he was arrested and after authorities discovered the accuser made up the whole story. Legends profile: Michael Jordan | NBA.com Did you really expect to see anyone but the best at the head of this list? Bottom line: Aside from putting together one of the greatest careers in NBA history, Kobe Bryant also had perhaps the most legendary pain tolerance in the history of the game. Famously, he played center in place of the injured Abdul-Jabbar in the title-clinching game six of the 1980 NBA finals as a 20-year-old rookie. Stats: 30.1 PPG, 22.9 RPG, 4.4 APG in 14 seasons with Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors (1959-60 to 1964-65), Philadelphia 76ers (1964-65 to 1967-68) and Los Angeles Lakers (1968-69 to 1972-73). Oakley squared up with a whos who of NBA tough guys and had an epic series of throwdowns with Hall of Famer Charles Barkley. He made the All-NBA Defensive Team nine times, including eight first-team picks, and was known as a player who would never resort to "dirty" tactics. Teams: Los Angeles Lakers (1973-77), Boston Celtics (1977-78), San Diego Clippers (1978-79), Portland Trail Blazers (1979-82), Golden State Warriors (1987), Key stats: 507 G, 9.2 PPG, 8.3 RPG, 1.4 APG, 52.6 FG%. NBA's 75 greatest players of all time - The complete list - ESPN.com NBA History: The Top 50 Greatest NBA Players of All-Time Adams found a home on a basketball court, where he developed his game based on physicality and tenacity and quickly established himself as one of the toughest players in the NBA. Stats: 23.1 PPG, 13.4 RPG, 2.8 APG in seven seasons with Minneapolis Lakers (1948-49 to 1955-56). If any other player had dressed up like grandmamma, they probably wouldnt have been able to live it down, but nobody dare challenged Johnson like that. Nobody wanted to challenge him in the lane, and its hard to blame the opposition considering the volume at which he swatted shots away from the rim. 1, but some big men are climbing the . For the prime example of Jordans mentality, look to the 1997 NBA Finals Game 5 "The Flu Game." Key stats: 963 G, 15.1 PPG, 22.5 RPG, 4.3 APG, 44.0 FG%, NBA titles: 11 (1957, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969). Ranking the greatest 75 NBA players of all time: Nos. 25-1 - USA Today Jackson has bounced around the league throughout his career, but it hasnt been because of his intensity. Alex English was a high-volume scorer throughout the prime of his careerhe took home a scoring title in 1983. Stats: 19.0 PPG, 10.8 RPG, 3.0 APG in 19 seasons with San Antonio Spurs (1997-98 to 2015-16). Roundfield died tragically in Aruba in 2012 while swimming with his wife. Accomplishments: 19-time All-Star, 15-time All-NBA, 11-time All-Defensive Team, six-time MVP, two-time Finals MVP, 1969-70 Rookie of the Year, two-time scoring champ, four-time blocks champ, 1975-76 rebounding champ, six-time NBA champion. Sloans toughness came from his hardscrabble background. White Men Can Jump. Ranking the 10 greatest white players | by Brad The two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year averaged 13.1 rebounds per game, which stands among the NBAs best career marks. He had game-changing skills, and thats not something we talk about when discussing point guards very often. Double check. He was dominant at both ends of the floor, and his mean mug was enough to scare the opposition before he entered the lane. Cowens won two NBA titles with the Celtics and was named the NBAs Most Valuable Player in 1973. Top 10 Coaches in NBA History | Basketball-Reference.com As long as were not talking about practice, Iversons on-court performance was riddled with intensity on a nightly basis early on his career. Bottom line: Ron Artest legally changed his name to Metta World Peace in 2011, but no matter what his name was during his 18-year pro career, opponents were in for a dogfight when he stepped on a court. Kevin Durant, Jayson Tatum top NBA quotes of the week. Perhaps thats why he was such a valuable commodity. Accomplishments: 10-time All-Star, six-time All-NBA, nine-time All-Defensive team, 1994-95 Rookie of the Year, five-time assists champ, 2011 NBA champion. Accomplishments: Eight-time All-Star, three-time All-NBA, three-time All-Defensive team, 1972-73 MVP, 1973 All-Star MVP, 1970-71 Rookie of the Year, two-time NBA champion. Mournings play was the bottom line when it came to his toughness, but he also had a world-class scowl that went with it, and his glare became synonymous with the rough-and-tumble play of the 1990s. Stats: 18.5 PPG, 12.1 RPG, 3.1 APG in 15 seasons with Syracuse Nationals/Philadelphia 76ers (1949-50 to 1963-64). A lot of that comes from his upbringing. Accomplishments: Eight-time All-Star, seven-time All-NBA, five-time assists champ, two-time MVP. Unseld, known for bone-rattling picks, played for a decade before helping lead the Bullets to the NBA title in 1978, when he was named Finals MVP. He's made five All-NBA teams, four All-Defensive teams and an All-Rookie team. Accomplishments: Five-time All-Star, four-time All-NBA, 1976-77 scoring champ. Accomplishments: 12-time All-Star, 10-time All-NBA, three-time All-Defensive team, three-time MVP, two-time Finals MVP, 1979-80 Rookie of the Year, 1982 All-Star MVP, three-time NBA champion. Accomplishments: Five-time All-Star, five-time All-NBA, four-time All-Defensive team, two-time MVP, 2019-20 Defensive Player of the Year, 2016-17 Most Improved Player, 2021 Finals MVP, 2021 NBA champion. Key stats: 1,504 G, 13.1 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 10.5 APG, 51.5 FG%. Havlicek died in April 2019 at 79 years old. They didn't get that way because they could score or rebound. Paytons reputation was made by his skill as much as by his fearlessness, talking trash and backing it up to everyone. He became tough growing up in Dallas and playing basketball on the playgrounds. Stats: 21.8 PPG, 11.1 RPG, 3.1 BPG in 18 seasons with Houston Rockets (1984-85 to 2000-01) and Toronto Raptors (2001-02); NBA's career leader in total blocks. Over the course of one season, Haslem lost 50 pounds, returned home and aced his tryout with the Heat. Which threw even more fuel on his fire. Thats what the Magic man was all about. Hes also on track to break the NBA career minutes played record in that same span. After missing Game 6 of the 1970 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers with a torn thigh muscle, Reed was almost certainly a scratch for Game 7. Over two decades after his retirement, Abdul-Jabbars 1,797 career games (including the playoffs) is more than anyone in NBA history. Why is Oakley so beloved? Bottom line: The mystery behind Chauncey Billups career lies within the mulitude of inexplicable trades that let him play on seven different teams over his 14-year career. Stats: 19.5 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 11.2 APG in 13 seasons with Los Angeles Lakers (1979-80 to 1990-91; 1995-96). Player Index; Traditional Stats; All Time Summary; Clutch; . Thru 2030 Thru 2029 Thru 2028 Thru 2027 Thru 2026 Thru 2025 Thru 2024 Thru 2023 Thru 2022 Thru 2021 Thru 2020 Thru 2019 Thru 2018 Thru 2017 Thru 2016 Thru 2015 Thru 2014 Thru 2013 Thru 2012 Thru 2011 NBA & ABA Career Leaders and Records for Player Efficiency Rating Bottom line: Patrick Beverley is truly a case study in determination. Olajuwon didnt take anything from anybody when it came to where he felt his proper position in the lane was. His aggressiveness was something that he asserted as a strength, and theres no questioning the obvious impact it had in his success. Bottom line: Norm Van Lier had one of the more modest, accomplished careers in NBA history in almost total anonymity. Bottom line: At 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds, Joe Dumars was built more like the NFL safeties of his era than a shooting guard. Most Improved Player. Western Conference Finals MVP. He was teased and bullied mercilessly as a child and through high school because he stuttered, and it got so bad he had to leave several schools. Live stream: Grizzlies 97, Nuggets 113 | HoopsHype LeBron may very well be the most physically gifted athlete weve seen come into the league, but that doesnt make him the best, and certainly doesnt make him the most intense.