Greatest Player of All-Time

[rutzan]

My very rudimentary standards:

Greatest Player = Greatest Competitor + Makes Teammates Better

Greatest Competitor = Will Destroy you to Win

Greatest Competitors = Bird, Jordan, KG, Kobe

Makes teammates better = Bird, Magic, Russell

Greatest Player = Bird = My biased choice

[fairweatherfan]

You should probably add Russell to your greatest competitor list, he fits the criteria very well.  People just struggle to think of him that way because we mostly just know him as a tall, soft-spoken old guy.

[GreenShooter]

I wonder how many rings Jordan would have if he didn't take up baseball.
Also, too bad the C's were so beat up during the late 80's and prior to that they had teams like the sixers and bucks to battle every year and even the nets and hawks at some points. Then the pistons. That was some tough sledding just to get to the finals.

[manl_lui]

Jordan and Russel tops my list.

Just how they dominated a entire decade is enough. I don't care what era, 11 championships, 8 straight and 2 dynasties separated by 2 years, is no joke. Consistently destroying their competition.

Just look at Jordan, there's so much great players during his era, that without Jordan alone, could have had gave chance to many many players at a shot at a ring. Barkley, Stockton and Malone, etc, etc. and Jordan beat all of them.

[Moranis]

Wilt

[boscel33]

I wonder how many rings Jordan would have if he didn't take up baseball.
Also, too bad the C's were so beat up during the late 80's and prior to that they had teams like the sixers and bucks to battle every year and even the nets and hawks at some points. Then the pistons. That was some tough sledding just to get to the finals.

you should have said it like this:  if he didn't "take up" baseball!   

anyone who doesn't believe that was a deal with the devil, has paid enough attention.  he walked away to avoid suspension.

that said, probably a two more and he would have had a run that could have only been compared to russell.

[D.o.s.]

Wilt

That's my first reaction, too. Its hard to wrap my mind around a player that put up the kind of numbers Wilt did, especially if we're talking about individual greatness.

[perks-a-beast]

Kobe. Unfortunately, he's also probably the most smug, and worst teammate.

Kobe
Bird
Magic
Jordan
Russell
James
Kareem
Wilt
Duncan
Shaq

are the clear cut top ten. Durant's going to have something to say about that when it's all said an done, though. 

[Celtics4ever]

Greatest  Champion of all time is Bill Russell.

The Greatest Player for a season was Oscar Robinson averaging a triple double.

It is hard to argue against Wilt with the hundred point game though.   That feat has not been equaled.  But comparing eras is really hard.  Different rules and things allowed.   

My favorite all time was Larry, he played hard, made his team mates better, shot the lights out and did every thing well and never quit but I would be hard pressed to say he is greatest of all time.  Jordan was certainly tough.   Jabbar had a stretch where he was really tough as well and is much better than some of the guys on the list by perks-a-beast.  I don't care for him but he was a great player.

I am going with the Big O for that triple double for  a season.   He was the greatest player that year.

[RebusRankin]

Greatest Winner: Bill Russell
Greatest Player: Michael Jordan
Most Dominate: Wilt in 62, 50ppg and 27rpg.
My personal favourite: Larry Bird

Kobe is no where near the top 8.
Jordan
Russell
Abdul Jabbar
Bird
Magic
Chamberlain
Duncan
Robertson

[GreenWarrior]

I don't need multiple categories. there's only 1 category that matters.

Bill Russell - most championships

 

[mmmmm]

Russell
Wilt
Jordan


In that order.

I'm not just giving the nod to Russell because of championships.   He was every bit the elite, world-class athlete that Wilt and Jordan were, even though he did not post the same gaudy counting stats.  I think he easily _could_ have poured in the same kind of scoring stats as those other two did -- if it had been needed in order to win.    Instead, he was perhaps the greatest defensive player ever in the game and the ultimate teammate and in a team game, that, to me makes him the greatest player.

I also have to give a strong nod to the fact that of those three, Russell and Wilt had to compete against _each other_.

I would list Bird and Magic on the next tier below those three.   

[Neurotic Guy]

I don't need multiple categories. there's only 1 category that matters.

Bill Russell - most championships

Where does that criterion place Robert Horry on the all-time list?

I think this topic is fun to debate, but really can't be taken too seriously.  American sports history is not that long, but with each passing sports generation answering who is the greatest becomes less and less possible.  Obviously it is all speculative, but think of how you could ever compare Ty Cobb with Mike Trout? It's not only the lack of visual evidence, but a myriad of factors (including quality of one's own team and quality of competition) would make the comparison impractical.   Despite anything we might say about Bill Russell, only a few of us ever saw him play, and those of us that did (like me) saw him when we were kids on a fuzzy 12 inch  black and white TV with poor camera angles and no replays.  I absolutely cannot say that he was better/worse than Bird, Magic, LBJ, Jordan, Kobe, Big O, or any of the consensus top 10.  I can't even say he was better than Wilt despite the championships.   Wilt was a dominant player.

[Mazingerz]

Bill Russel
Larry Bird
Kareem
Wilt
Dave Cowens (man, was he very driven)
Jordan
Duncan

[Beat LA]

Well, I'm going to say Bird, and not just because he's my favorite haha.  I've always felt that Jordan ruined the game and got away with murder on both ends like no one else in history, from his first game, save for Lebron.  It is my personal view that, had Len Bias and Reggie Lewis played together with the Big 3 and Danny and DJ, Michael wouldn't have 6 rings.  He would have been lucky to win half as many.  The 90s weren't even close to the 80s, in terms of the level of competition around the league, and Jordan never had that rival, quite honestly.  Bias and Lewis would have been such adversaries.  Reggie played Michael tougher than anyone, and had the ability to block his shot, which no one else in the league ever did, and every time Pippen tried to guard Lewis, #35 routinely lit him up for around 30 points.  And Bias had the one ability that no one else who ever played against MJ did - the ability to post him up, assuming of course that Michael would guard him, depending on the situation.  The guy was like Dominique Wilkins mixed with Bernard King, but with defense and a jump shot that Michael never even came close to, even by the end of his career.  There would have been so many great games.  Sigh.  That's part of my problem with Jordan.

My top five would probably be Bird, Russell, Kareem, Magic, and Chamberlain.  Wilt's dominance will never be matched.  Any time the rules have to be changed for you, that's just nuts.  My only issue is that he was mostly all about him, and only won after adopting a Celtic approach to the game, via Bill Sharman, but in all fairness, I never saw him play (and yes, I do know that he once led the league in assists, btw).  It's really hard after the first 4, imo.  Where would you guys put Jerry West, Oscar, and Elgin Baylor?  Who knows - had Bias played, he might be in top 5 of all time, but we'll never know.  Sigh.  It's just so sad.