 |
| RealGM Hoop Net |
|
| Search |
|
|
|
|
| Trade Checker ID |
| Draft Sim ID |
| Newsletter |
|
|
|
|
22nd April, 2009 - 3:09 pm
|
|
|
| Current Features |
|
SCOOP DU JOUR: Iverson With The Knicks, Joe Alexander, Lincecum's Cy Young & More
Allen Iverson and the Knicks is a marriage out of necessity, forecasting Joe Alexander's future, why there hasn't been any players compared to Magic or Bird, plus Tim Lincecum's Cy Young and the possibility of Pacquiao/Mayweather at Cowboys Stadium.
TEAM RANKINGS: NBA Power Rankings For The Week Of November 12th
While the Cetlics remain an easy number one in our rankings, Greg Oden and the Blazers have moved up to the second slot, ahead of Dallas, Miami and the Lakers.
MOCK DRAFT: 2009 NBA Mock Draft, Version 11.0 (Draft Day Edition)
How will the 2009 NBA Draft shake out? We're only hours away from finding out.
LOCKER TALK: Nash, Cleveland, & Orlando
Steve Nash could draw trade interest this summer and Cleveland isnt overlooking Orlando
PLAYER RANKINGS: The Final NBA Player Rankings For The 2008-09 Season
The 2008-09 season is in the books and how did players rank individually?
CLASSICS: Hakeem Vs. Ewing: Who Was The Better Center?
Born within six months of each other in opposite corners of the world, two seven footers who are finalists for the Basketball Hall of Fame this fall are two of the best ever to play the center position.
|
by Andrew Perna
I hope the buildup for the final installment in this series has been positive. It's been four months since I posted the last update, and I hope you've enjoyed some of the other projects I admittedly put ahead of this one.
Thanks go out to the readers that filled my inbox with requests for an update. You kept me on my toes and, at the very least, made me feel guilty about taking so long to put together the final list.
As expected, this list was the toughest to put together and will likely be the most debated. The first player taken in each draft should, in principal, turn out to be the best professional in his class. However, as the Wizards will tell you, it doesn't always turn out that way.
After looking through all the players that have ever been taken with the first pick in NBA history, I put together a list of 18 guys that warranted consideration for such a list. I say that because it will (or should) protect me from extreme criticism for omitting a player. If you e-mail me, I'll likely cite the fact that eight players just missed the cut...
10. David Robinson No. 1 in 1987 (San Antonio)
The Spurs didn't fully enjoy Robinson until the 1989-90 season, as he was required to fulfill two years of duty with the Navy prior to beginning his NBA career. Robinson won two titles with the Spurs (1999, 2003) and was the league's MVP in 1995. He was named to ten All-Star teams, and made ten All-NBA and eight All-Defensive teams during his 14-year career.
"The Admiral" tallied 20,790 points, 10,497 rebounds and 2,954 blocks in 987 games. He averaged a double-double on nine occasions and likely would have tallied even more impressive numbers had he not served the country, which ultimately took two years (if not more) off his career. During his career, he led the NBA in points, rebounds and blocks once each. He was a member of the first two 'Dream Teams,' winning gold medals in 1992 and 1996.
9. LeBron James No. 1 in 2003 (Cleveland)
On a list littered with Hall of Famers, I simply couldn't leave LeBron off. Sure, he's only been a part of the NBA for six years, but he'll undoubtedly go down in history as one of the greatest players ever to grace the floor. He was the Rookie of the Year in 2004, has won a scoring title, and, in my opinion, should be named the MVP shortly.
He has improved tremendously on defense, and could soon be a yearly threat to win both the MVP and the Defensive Player of the Year awards. He's missed just 20 games over six seasons, and has already tallied 12,993 points, 3,307 rebounds and 3,159 assists for the Cavaliers. His averages (27.5 points, 7.0 rebounds and 6.7 assists) make him a threat to notch a triple-double every night.
8. Elvin Hayes No. 1 in 1968 (San Diego)
Hayes is seventh on the NBA's all-time scoring list, having accumulated 27,313 points in 1,303 career games with the Rockets and Bullets. He is also fourth all-time with 16,279 rebounds, a testament to the twelve straight seasons in which he averaged a double-double.
The Big E, who was a legend at the University of Houston, won an NBA title with the Bullets in 1978. He led the NBA in scoring during his rookie campaign (28.4 points per game) and finished his 16-year career with averages of 21.0 points and 12.8 rebounds. He posted 3.0 blocks per game in 1974, the first season in which they would recorded. Hayes is 19th all-time with 1,771 rejections, but would have been much higher (perhaps in the top-10) if the stat had become official earlier.
7. Tim Duncan No. 1 in 1997 (San Antonio)
Duncan will retire as one of, if not the, greatest power forward in the history of the game. He has won four NBA titles, including three Finals MVP awards, and is a two-time MVP. He's also an 11-time All-Star, All-NBA team and All-Defensive team member.
He's so incredibly consistent -- having never averaged fewer than 18.6 points and 10.6 rebounds in any of his twelve professional seasons -- that he's often left out of conversations debating the best players in the game today. While he has improved since his rookie season, he's played at a tremendously high level from the moment he stepped upon an NBA court.
6. Elgin Baylor No. 1 in 1958 (Minneapolis)
Baylor dominated the paint in the 1960s for the Lakers, averaging 27.4 points and 13.5 rebounds over his 14-year career. He was named to eleven All-Star teams, and was the Rookie of the Year and All-Star Game MVP in 1959. The Lakers had struggled significantly the season before Baylor was drafted, but they won the Conference title in his rookie season.
He averaged a double-double eleven times, just missing a twelfth season in 1965-66 when he posted 16.6 points and 9.8 rebounds in 65 games. He never led the league in scoring or rebounding, but he contributed more than 30 points (three) and 15 rebounds (four) on multiple occasions.
5. Hakeem Olajuwon No. 1 in 1984 (Houston)
Olajuwon opened his career with twelve straight seasons of double-double numbers, leading the league in rebounds (twice) and blocks (three) numerous times. He led the Rockets to back-to-back titles (1994-95), winning the Finals MVP award on both occasions. He was as dominant in the paint offensively as he was defensively, and ranks among the league's greatest centers in many statistical categories.
"The Dream" ranks eighth all-time in points (26,946), eleventh in rebounds (13,748), and first in blocks (3,830). Olajuwon stands as the only player in NBA history to win the NBA's MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP award in the same season.
4. Magic Johnson No. 1 in 1979 (Los Angeles)
A five-time NBA champion, Earvin "Magic" Johnson also grabbed three Finals MVPs, three regular season MVPs, and two All-Star MVPs in his career. He was named to twelve All-Star teams and nine All-NBA first teams during his thirteen professional seasons. He retired in 1991 after learning that he had been infected with HIV (he briefly returned in 1995) and has since been a huge advocate for HIV/AIDS prevention.
He finished with career averages of 19.5 points, 11.2 assists and 7.2 rebounds, and it's hard to imagine just how unbeatable his career totals would have been if his playing days weren't shortened by his health. He, along with rival and friend Larry Bird, also helped make college basketball what it is today in the 1979 NCAA Tournament.
3. Oscar Robertson No. 1 in 1960 (Cincinnati)
Robertson was an all-around threat well before such a player was prominent in basketball. He is still the only player in NBA history to average a triple-double over the course of a season, having posted 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds and 11.8 assists for Cincinnati in the 1961-62 campaign. He was within a few decimals of achieving the mark on four other occasions, in 1961 (9.7 assists), 1963 (9.5 assists), 1964 (9.9 rebounds) and 1965 (9.0 rebounds).
Robertson, who was named to twelve All-Star teams, won an NBA title with the Bucks and was named the NBA's MVP in 1964. It's hard to imagine that he wasn't named the Most Valuable Player in 1962, when he averaged a triple-double. Bill Russell took the award home that year with averages of 18.9 points and 23.6 rebounds for the Celtics.
2. Shaquille O'Neal No. 1 in 1992 (Orlando)
Shaq has been getting attention more for his mouth than his play as of late, but still stands to go down in history one of the most dominant big men ever. He has won four titles, an MVP award (2000), three Finals MVP trophies, and is a 15-time All-Star. He's also won a gold medal for the United States, and has spent time with four teams (Orlando, Los Angeles, Miami and Phoenix).
His numbers have declined as of late, but seventeen years into his career he still averaged 17.8 points and 8.4 rebounds for the Suns this past season. O'Neal is fifth on the NBA's all-time scoring list, behind only Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan, Karl Malone and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He also ranks 15th all-time in total rebounds, and 7th in blocks.
1. Lew Alcindor/Kareem Abdul-Jabbar No. 1 in 1969 (Milwaukee)
Alcindor, who dunked so often that college basketball briefly banned the move, changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on May 1, 1971 soon after the Bucks won the NBA title. No matter what name he went by, he was an absolute dominant presence in the NBA during the 1970s and early 80s. He won a total of six NBA titles and six MVP awards, and was named to 19 All-Star teams during his twenty seasons.
Abdul-Jabbar is still the NBA's all-time leading scorer (38,387 points), and it doesn't appear as though anyone will approach him in the near future. Shaquille O'Neal, the closest active player, is still more than 10,000 points behind Kareem. The former member of the Bucks and Lakers is third all-time in rebounds, behind just Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell. He's also third in total blocks and first in minutes played in NBA history.
Andrew Perna is a Senior Writer for RealGM.com and co-host of RealGM's Radio Show and would love to hear what you think about this list. Feel free to e-mail him at Andrew.Perna@RealGM.com |
