It’s your lucky day.
I have meticulously created a point system in order to rank the The Top 10 NBA Players Of All Time.
I believe this to be the most comprehensive, detailed, most accurate all-time ranking of NBA players currently on the internet. Is it perfect? No. After all, it’s a point system that I created, so there’s absolutely no way not to be subjective in the matter. However, I do believe this to be the least subjective way possible of ranking the best NBA players to ever play the game.
This point system rewards players for their achievements in the postseason, the regular season, and for the accumulation of stats.
Before getting into how the point system works for this list, there are a few major achievements I chose not to reward points for that I want to explain the reasoning behind:
- Olympic Achievements
- The main reason for this omission is that before 1992, the USA did not send NBA players to the Olympics. It felt unfair to reward players post 1992, and not the many players who would have won medals at the Olympics had they been allowed to participate. Additionally, foreign players historically don’t have the same opportunity to earn points in this category as American players do. For these reasons, and a few others, I chose not to reward points for Olympic achievement.
- College Achievements
- I named this list “The Top 10 NBA Players Of All Time” for a reason. While players like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Russell would have benefitted greatly from their college achievements, players like LeBron James and Kobe Bryant didn’t have that same opportunity. Something I did consider however was the fact that guys like LeBron and Kobe had the ability to jump straight to the NBA from high school, a luxury guys like Russell and Kareem did not have. Ultimately, we could always play the game of “what-if.” What if Kobe and Lebron went to college? What if Kareem and Russell went straight to the NBA? After completing the list, I felt leaving off college achievement was the most fair and appropriate thing to do.
- ABA Achievements
- Again, this list is purely about NBA achievements. The only player that had a chance of being on this list that was affected by leaving off ABA achievements was Julius Erving. This honestly is a bummer, because Dr. J was objectively one of the most influential players in the history of basketball. Using the point system I created, Dr. J would have been right on the cusp of the Top 10, had I counted his ABA achievements the same as I counted NBA achievements. This obviously would have been unfair, as we don’t know if he would have won the 3 MVP’s, 2 championships, and the various other achievements he earned in the ABA had he been in the NBA during that time. I made the decision to reward Dr. J half the points for his ABA achievements that I would have rewarded him if they were achieved in the NBA. Doing so put him at #22 on the all time list using my point system.
- All-Star Game MVP
- I’m sorry, I know this achievement is listed on many of these players Wikipedia page, but I think we can all acknowledge that the All-Star Game MVP doesn’t really mean anything.
- Third Team All-NBA
- Third Team All-NBA didn’t exist until 1988. Additionally, because I award points for being an All-Star, it felt a bit redundant to also reward points for Third Team All-NBA selections.
Additionally, as you will see, I have adjusted the points rewarded to a couple of players in order to most accurately reflect the differences in the era they played in. This only affects two players on this list.
Without further ado, this is the point system I developed in order to put this ranking together:
Ring Culture
Finals MVP = 100 points
Championship, No Finals MVP (at least 2nd best player on team) = 50 points
Won Conference, Lost Finals = 25 points
Regular Season Accomplishments
MVP = 75 points
Defensive Player of the Year = 40 points
Rookie of the Year = 30 points
Scoring Title = 20 points
Assists Leader = 12 points
Rebounds Leader = 10 points
Steals Leader = 8 points
Blocks Leader = 8 points
First Team All-NBA = 15 points
Second Team All-NBA = 10 points
First Team All-Defensive Team = 10 points
Second Team All-Defensive Team = 5 points
All-Star = 5 points
Career Stat Milestones
Points
Top 25 All-Time = 50 points
Top 10 All-Time = 100 points
Top 5 All-Time = 150 points
#1 All-Time = 200 points
Assists
Top 25 All-Time = 30 points
Top 10 All-Time = 60 points
Top 5 All-Time = 90 points
#1 All-Time = 120 points
Rebounds
Top 25 All-Time = 25 points
Top 10 All-Time = 50 points
Top 5 All-Time = 75 points
#1 All-Time = 100 points
Steals
Top 25 All-Time = 20 points
Top 10 All-Time = 40 points
Top 5 All-Time = 60 points
#1 All-Time = 80 points
Blocks
Top 25 All-Time = 20 points
Top 10 All-Time = 40 points
Top 5 All-Time = 60 points
#1 All-Time = 80 points
Now, using this point system, in descending order, here are The Top 10 NBA Players Of All Time:
#10 – Hakeem Olajuwon
Ring Culture
2X Finals MVP = 200 points
1X Won Conference, Lost Finals = 25 points
Regular Season Accomplishments
1X MVP = 75 points
2X Defensive Player of the Year = 80 points
2X Rebounds Leader = 20 points
3X Blocks Leader = 24 points
6X All-NBA First Team = 90 points
3X All-NBA Second Team = 30 points
5X All-Defensive First Team = 50 points
4X All-Defensive Second Team = 20 points
12X All-Star = 60 points
Career Stat Milestones
Top 25 All-Time Points = 50 points
Top 25 All-Time Rebounds = 25 points
Top 10 All-Time Steals = 40 points
#1 All-Time Blocks = 80 points
Total Points: 869
#9 – Shaquille O’Neal
Ring Culture
3X Finals MVP = 300 points
1X Championship, No Finals MVP = 50 points
2X Won Conference, Lost Finals = 50 points
Regular Season Accomplishments
1X MVP = 75 points
1X Rookie of the Year = 30 points
2X Scoring Title = 40 points
8X All-NBA First Team = 120 points
2X All-NBA Second Team = 20 points
3X All-Defensive Second Team = 15 points
15X All-Star = 75 points
Career Stat Milestones
Top 10 All-Time Points = 100 points
Top 25 All-Time Rebounds = 25 points
Top 10 All-Time Blocks = 40 points
Total Points: 940
#8 – Magic Johnson
Ring Culture
3X Finals MVP = 300 points
2X Championship, No Finals MVP = 100 points
3X Won Conference, Lost Finals = 75 points
Regular Season Accomplishments
3X MVP = 225 points
4X Assists Leader = 48 points
2X Steals Leader = 16 points
9X All-NBA First Team = 135 points
1X All-NBA Second Team = 10 points
12X All-Star = 60 points
Career Stat Milestones
Top 10 All-Time Assists = 60 points
Top 25 All-Time Steals = 20 points
Total Points: 1049
#7 – Kobe Bryant
Ring Culture
2X Finals MVP = 200 points
3X Championship, No Finals MVP = 150 points
2X Won Conference, Lost Finals = 50 points
Regular Season Accomplishments
1X MVP = 75 points
2X Scoring Title = 40 points
11X All-NBA First Team = 165 points
2X All-NBA Second Team = 20 points
9X All-Defensive First Team = 90 points
3X All-Defensive Second Team = 15 points
18X All-Star = 90 points
Career Stat Milestones
Top 5 All-Time Points = 150 points
Top 25 All-Time Steals = 20 points
Total Points: 1065
#6 – Tim Duncan
Ring Culture
3X Finals MVP = 300 points
2X Championship, No Finals MVP: 100 points
1X Won Conference, Lost Finals = 25 points
Regular Season Accomplishments
2X MVP = 150 points
1X Rookie of the Year = 30 points
10X All-NBA First Team = 150 points
3X All-NBA Second Team = 30 points
8X All-Defensive First Team = 80 points
7X All-Defensive Second Team = 35 points
15X All-Star = 75 points
Career Stat Milestones
Top 25 All-Time Points = 50 points
Top 10 All-Time Rebounds = 50 points
Top 5 All-Time Blocks = 60 points
Total Points: 1135
#5 – Wilt Chamberlain
*Disclaimer – The same rules apply to Wilt as they do for Bill Russell (*spoiler – #4 on this list. See below). However, because Wilt did win a Finals MVP in 1972, this list will give him 150 points total for his two championships.
Ring Culture
1X Finals MVP + 1X NBA Finals Champion = 150 points
4X Won Conference, Lost Finals = 100 points
Regular Season Accomplishments
4X MVP = 300 points
1X Rookie of the Year = 30 points
7X Scoring Title = 140 points
1X Assists Leader = 12 points
11X Rebounds Leader = 110 points
7X All-NBA First Team = 105 points
3X All-NBA Second Team = 30 points
13X All-Star = 65 points
Career Stat Milestones
Top 10 All-Time Points = 100 points
#1 All-Time Rebounds = 100 points
Total Points: 1242
#4 – Bill Russell
*Disclaimer – The NBA did not start giving out the Finals MVP until 1969, a year that Bill Russell’s Boston Celtics won the championship, but Jerry West from the losing Lakers won the award. Because of this outlier when trying to award points to the all-time greats, this list will be giving 50 points for every championship won before 1969. This will mostly affect Bill Russell, who would have won Finals MVP the majority of his 11 Celtics championships. Keeping in mind there were only 8 teams in the NBA in 1957 – the year Russell entered the league, and only 14 teams in the NBA in 1969 – Russell’s last year in the league, awarding 50 points for every Bill Russell championship felt like a fair middle ground. This rewards his dominance, while also acknowledging the lack of competition in his era compared to the number of teams we now have in the NBA. Additionally, to further remedy this disparity in competition between eras, this list will not be rewarding Russell points for – Defensive Player of the Year, All-Defensive First or Second Team (except in 1969, the first year of this honor), or for being the NBA’s regular season Blocks Leader – Awards, honors, and stats that were not rewarded/accumulated in his era – Many of which Bill Russell would have won.
Ring Culture
11X NBA Finals Champion = 550 points
1X Won Conference, Lost Finals = 25 points
Regular Season Accomplishments
5X MVP = 375 points
4X Rebounds Leader = 40 points
3X All-NBA First Team = 45 points
8X All-NBA Second Team = 80 points
1X All-Defensive First Team = 10 points
12X All-Star = 60 points
Career Stat Milestones
Top 5 All-Time Rebounds = 75 points
Top 10 All-Time Blocks = 40 points
Total Points: 1,300
#3 – LeBron James
Ring Culture
4X Finals MVP = 400 points
6X Won Conference, Lost Finals = 150 points
Regular Season Accomplishments
4X MVP = 300 points
1X Rookie of the Year = 30 points
1X Scoring Title = 20 points
1X Assists Leader = 12 points
13X All-NBA First Team = 195 points
3X All-NBA Second Team = 30 points
5X All-Defensive First Team = 50 points
1X All-Defensive Second Team = 5 points
20X All-Star = 100 points
Career Stat Milestones
#1 All-Time Points = 200 points
Top 5 All-Time Assists = 90 points
Top 10 All-Time Steals = 40 points
Total Points: 1602
#2 – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Ring Culture
2X Finals MVP = 200 points
4X Championship, No Finals MVP = 200 points
4X Won Conference, Lost Finals = 100 points
Regular Season Accomplishments
6X MVP = 450 points
1X Rookie of the Year = 30 points
2X Scoring Title = 40 points
1X Rebounds Leader = 10 points
4X Blocks Leader = 32 points
10X All-NBA First Team= 150 points
5X All-NBA Second Team = 50 points
5X All-Defensive First Team = 50 points
6X All-Defensive Second Team = 30 points
19X All-Star = 95 points
Career Stat Milestones
Top 5 All-Time Points = 150 points
Top 5 All-Time Rebounds = 75 points
Top 5 All-Time Blocks = 60 points
Total Points: 1722
#1 – Michael Jordan
Ring Culture
6X Finals MVP = 600 points
Regular Season Accomplishments
5X MVP = 375 points
1X Defensive Player of the Year = 40 points
1X Rookie of the Year = 30 points
10X Scoring Title = 200 points
3X Steals Leader = 24 points
10X All-NBA First Team = 150 points
1X All-NBA Second Team = 10 points
9X All-Defensive First Team = 90 points
14X All-Star = 70 points
Career Stat Milestones
Top 5 All-Time Points = 150 points
Top 5 All-Time Steals = 60 points
Total Points: 1799
Here’s a summary of the Top 10:
1: Michael Jordan – 1799 Points
2: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 1722 Points
3: LeBron James – 1602 Points
4: Bill Russell – 1300 Points
5: Wilt Chamberlain – 1242 Points
6: Tim Duncan – 1135 Points
7: Kobe Bryant – 1065 Points
8: Magic Johnson – 1049 Points
9: Shaquille O’Neal – 940 Points
10: Hakeem Olajuwon – 869 Points
Now let’s try and decipher what will be some of the major questions that come out of this list.
#1 – Kareem over LeBron?
Listen, I know this will ruffle some feathers among the LeBron stans out there, but after crunching the numbers, this is simply how it played out.
So what kept LeBron out of the Top 2?
To the naked eye, you’d probably think – “Oh, this is a ring culture thing huh?” Well actually, LeBron earned 550 points in this category and Kareem only earned 500. So what was the difference? The separator here was regular season accomplishments. More specifically, KAJ had two more regular season MVP’s than LeBron, and 5 more All-Defensive team honors. Also, Kareem led the league in scoring twice, rebounds once, and blocks 4 times. LeBron has one scoring title and one assist title. Add it all up and Kareem edges LeBron for #2 on this list. For now…
#2 – No Larry Bird?
Well, as it turns out, using this point system, Larry Bird fell to #11 on the all time list. Here’s what it looked like for Larry Legend:
Larry Bird
Ring Culture
2X Finals MVP = 200 points
1X Championship, No Finals MVP = 50 points
2X Won Conference, Lost Finals = 50 points
Regular Season Accomplishments
3X MVP = 225 points
1X Rookie of the Year = 30 points
9X All-NBA First Team = 135 points
1X All-NBA Second Team = 10 points
3X All-Defensive Second Team = 15 points
12X All-Star = 60 points
Career Stat Milestones
Not Top 25 in PTS, AST, REB, STL, or BLK
Total Points: 775
So why did this happen?
Well for one, Larry lost out on the Finals MVP in 1981, an award he probably should have won that ended up being handed to Cedric Maxwell. But still, that would have only given Bird 50 more points, giving him 825 total, still 46 points shy of Hakeem Olajuwon’s 869 points at #10.
So what really hurt Larry Bird?
His lack of longevity.
Larry didn’t end up in the Top 25 all-time in any major statistical category – Points, Assists, Rebounds, Blocks or Steals. Additionally, he never led the league during any one season in any of these major categories.
Larry Bird unequivocally had one of the best peaks of any NBA player ever. He won his 3 regular season MVP’s in 3 consecutive years. However, his inability to stay healthy deep into his career, as well as the fact that he never dominated any one specific statistical category, kept his name off this Top 10.
#3 – Magic Johnson Only At #8?
I was surprised by this as well, but this goes back to what we saw with Larry Bird – Longevity. Magic had to essentially end his career at the age of 32 because of the HIV virus in 1991. Playing just a little longer would have no doubt put him ahead of Kobe Bryant on this list, and probably would have catapulted him into the Top 5. It’s a shame Magic’s career ended so early and so abruptly.
Thoughts From The Author:
Overall, I stand by how this list turned out. The biggest challenge for me was trying to find a balance between rewarding the players from older generations, while still acknowledging the lesser competition. I found the best balance I could and I think it played out pretty well overall.
I think the biggest gripe you could find with the list is that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar didn’t have any points taken off despite there only being 17 teams in the league during his first championship with the Bucks in 1971, and only 23-27 teams in the NBA during his championships in the 80s. This is certainly an argument you could make for the new generation of players, and I’d be hard pressed to argue you on that point. However, on the flip side of the coin, do I take away points from LeBron for his Heat and Lakers championships for using free agency in a way players of past generations weren’t able to? Ultimately I decided to leave it alone and let championships count as championships (outside of the 50’s and 60’s where there were only 8-12 teams in the league).
The other challenge was balancing longevity vs. peak production. After completing the list and discovering Larry Bird wasn’t in the Top 10, and Magic Johnson was only #8, I seriously questioned the validity of my point system. In the end, I came to the conclusion that I put a correct amount of emphasis on longevity. One thing I think this list DID help figure out? What should be determined a hypocritical argument moving forward. For example, I don’t see how it’s possible you can say LeBron James is the best NBA player of all time, while also putting Magic Johnson in your Top 5 or Larry Bird in your Top 10. Outside of non basketball related arguments, I don’t see how claiming those two things congruently wouldn’t be hypocritical.
The only thing this list lacks in my opinion is the ability to measure impact. Impact on the NBA, impact on society, etc…I ultimately decided trying to measure the amount of “impact” a certain player had would be a fools errand. How can I measure Magic and Bird “saving the NBA” in the 80’s, or Kareem and Russell’s “impact” on the civil rights movement in the 60s and 70s? Jordan and Olajuwon’s “impact” on helping the NBA become a global game, or Kobe and Lebron’s overall “impact” on the entirety of the NBA? It’s impossible to compare, and for that reason I left “impact” off this list.
Things that stood out to me about the Top 10:
- Hakeem Olajuwon is the only player in NBA history to be in the Top 25 all-time in 4 major stats. This both surprised and impressed me. Hakeem was truly a special talent.
- Tim Duncan was one Chris Bosh rebound and a Ray Allen miracle 3-pointer away from being 6-0 in the Finals. Considering what that play also did for LeBron and his career, that may just be the single most consequential sequence of events in NBA history. Also, this list is just another reminder that Tim Duncan is consistently underrated when talking about the all-time greats.
- A lot of big men. Hakeem, Shaq, Duncan, Wilt, Russell, Kareem. That’s 6 of the top 10 that are big men (Tim Duncan being the only power forward). Did this list unfairly reward big guys over guards? I don’t know what metric you could say I used that blatantly favored that position group…Maybe it’s just easier to accomplish basketball greatness when you’re taller than everyone else…
- Michael Jordan remains the GOAT. A huge part of why I took this project on was the fact that there’s been a lot of chatter lately about who the true GOAT is. After making this list, I truly think it’s undeniable. It’s Michael Jordan.
Finally, for those curious, here’s how the rest of the Top 25 played out:
11: Larry Bird – 775 Points
12: Kevin Durant – 745 Points
13: Moses Malone – 710 Points
14: Karl Malone – 700 Points
15: Steph Curry – 648 Points
16: Jerry West – 642 Points
*Disclaimer – This is a weird one, as Jerry West won the very first NBA Finals MVP…in a losing effort. To this day, he’s still the only player to win the award while his team did not win the Finals. Additionally, in the only championship he won, Jerry West was NOT the Finals MVP. I made the decision to award him 100 total points for these combined accomplishments. Also, like Russell and Wilt before him, I will not be able to give West certain points for stats/accomplishments that did not exist in his era. To reiterate my sentiment from before, I think leaving these points off the board for these pre-1970 accomplishments is a fair compromise, considering there were far less teams competing for championships in this era.
17: Kevin Garnett – 640 Points
18: Bob Cousy – 611 Points
*Disclaimer – I decided to give Bob Cousy 25 points for every one of his championships he won with Bill Russell. The reasoning behind this decision is that since I gave Russell half the points he would have won for his 11 NBA championships (assuming he won Finals MVP), I’m giving Cousy half the points he would have been rewarded for being the 2nd best player on those championship teams. Staying consistent with what I did for Wilt, Russell, and West, I did not reward points for stats/accomplishments that did not exist in this era.
19: John Havlicek – 585 Points
*Disclaimer – Like Bob Cousy, I gave Havlicek 25 points for every one of his championships he won with Bill Russell. I also gave him 100 points for his 1974 Finals MVP, and 25 points for his 1976 championship (I determined he was the 3rd best player on the Celtics in that series). Staying consistent with what I did for Wilt, Russell, West, and Cousy, I did not reward points for stats/accomplishments that did not exist in this era.
20: Oscar Robertson – 577
21: Bob Pettit – 570
22: Scottie Pippen – 563
23: Julius Erving – 539 (counted ABA accomplishments as 1/2)
24: John Stockton – 489
25: Giannis Antetokounmpo – 485
Others Notables: Kawhi Leonard (468), Dirk Nowitzki (455), Nikola Jokic (435), Elgin Baylor (410), Isiah Thomas (392), Dwayne Wade (360), Charles Barkley (315)
The biggest challenge here was obviously trying to figure out how to properly reward the guys on the 50s, 60s, and 70s Boston Celtics teams. I’m skeptical this played out as it should have, considering most people who were around during that era of the NBA have John Havlicek ahead of Bob Cousy on their all-time lists.
A few things that surprised me about #11-25:
- Kevin Garnett at #17. If you asked me before making this list, I probably would have guessed KG was a Top 30 player in the history of the NBA, but #17 was pretty shocking to me. When you dig deep though, KG accomplished A LOT in his 21 seasons in the NBA. This got me thinking – Where would Garnett have ended up if he didn’t play the first 12 years of his career in Minnesota? A couple more championships and all of a sudden KG is in the Top 10…
- Kevin Durant ahead of Steph Curry. To be honest, this doesn’t sit very well with me. KD doesn’t win those 2 championships without Steph Curry, but I don’t know if I can say the same if reversed. Curry does have some time to make up ground in this ranking though, so we shall see. Only time will tell how the careers of these two great players end up.
- Karl Malone at #14 without any championships. I guess playing 18 seasons with John Stockton will do that for ya.
So there you have it.
The Top 10 NBA Players Of All Time
1: Michael Jordan – 1799 Points
2: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 1722 Points
3: LeBron James – 1602 Points
4: Bill Russell – 1300 Points
5: Wilt Chamberlain – 1242 Points
6: Tim Duncan – 1135 Points
7: Kobe Bryant – 1065 Points
8: Magic Johnson – 1049 Points
9: Shaquille O’Neal – 940 Points
10: Hakeem Olajuwon – 869 Points
Do you agree with this list? Let me know in the comments.
-Mustache Man
12 Comments
No way is a Finals MVP worth as much as a regular season MVP. A regular season MVP puts you in the HOF. A number of Finals MVP’s have not made it. JoJo White, Cedric Maxwell, etc.
I am not sure I agree with only 25 points per championship for Bob Cousy and John Havlicek while awarding more points to Russell. Not winning the Finals MVP already significantly reduces the points available for winning a Championship. And you did give Russell the extra points even though the Finals MVP didn’t exist. It’s almost like saying that Bob Cousy and John Havlicek’s championship was not as important as others who won the championship but not the MVP. I don’t think that is defensible. Being on a great team with a great player shouldn’t impact the other player’s legacy. Let’s use Scottie Pippen as an example. He didn’t win the Finals MVP and Michael Jordan was by far the best player, but his championships weren’t discounted.
My reasoning for the point deduction for that era was that there were only 8 teams in the NBA during those championships that the Celtics won. With that in mind, championships were way easier to achieve with roughly 75% less teams competing for the championship than there are now
No sense the methodology. To validate this rankings you need to add points for playoffs alltime rankings. (Same thing you are doing in regular season, maybe less points)
But to play every year on playoffs is sustained success. So, to be the #1 in total points scored must to have a reward.
Please, update this rankings with that info and you will have an objetive ranking .
Interesting exercise. I like the metrics, but would also like to see them go deeper. Incorporating efficiency into it would be one way, as well as acknowledging stats per time played. The fact Jordan is so high while skipping out a couple of prime years could be reflected better with something to gauge how long the stats took to accrue, while also adding a separate stat for sheer longevity. I’d love to see metrics that reflect how they elevated the team. Did their teammates play better or more efficiently with or without them? Did a player win because of the caliber of their teammates or despite them? Something to reflect a player staying with a team or hopping around multiple times (of their free agency choice, not a team trade).
Great insights, look forward to how this might develop further.
Didn’t Wilt win 2 NBA championships, once with Philly and once with the Lakers?
Yes, and I gave him points for 2 championships
I feel like scoring titles and steal titles should have been included
They were…
Nice list!
Biggest problemS “NO POINTS FOR PLAYER EFFECT ON THE GAME , secondly NO POINTS FOR BEST TEAM PLAYER, 3rdly NO POINTS FOR FAN BASE” … just my 40 plus years NBA observations and an island basketball player.
A bit odd on the math side of analysis.
It would make a lot more sense if all championships won were listed and given a 50 point value. And Finals MVP were separated. It’s a bit questionable that Finals MVP and Finals win have the same mathematical ranking. …. And, i have to question whether a regular season mvp would have a stronger weight than a finals win or even finals MVP. —- I like the idea, I like the Excel work, but as a professional analyst I am not sure I agree with the weights and allocations. From a 1000 foot perspective, it seems a miss as it tries too hard to normalize the “Ring Culture” at the expense of missing that the momentum of winning a ring is the purpose of the a professional NBA player and team. I’m not sure it passes the sniff test that a guy like Westbrook could get a regular season MVP , not get close to a Finals win or MVP, and get more points than someone who won a championship.