The 100 Best Players in Basketball History, Part 9

Previous installment is here.

40 players left.  We are getting down to it.

40. Horace Grant 138.23 PF 1335 .104

He’ll go ahead of Chet Walker..and Marion…and Lanier, that career value really starts to spread as we move up the list.  He winds up just behind McHale.  Odom is out of the top 100, Tony Parker (for now?) out of the top 50. 

39. Patrick Ewing 140.51 C 1322 .106

Ewing’s ahead of Grant; does he get McHale…yup.  Ewing gets all the way to Bellamy. Strickland is out of the top 100, Grant Hill out of the top 50.

38. Steve Nash 141.51 PG 1122 .126

Still ahead of CP3.  All the way to #2. McGinnis out of the top 100; English out of the top 50.

37. Chauncey Billups 141.65 PG 1170 .121

Maybe the most underappreciated all time great; he’s just under Nash by an inch. Camby out of the top 100, TMac out of the top 50.

36. Rick Barry 142.1 SF 1125 .126

Barry and Nash with super similar numbers. 

35. Adrian Dantley 143.21 SF 1028 .139

Look how great Dantley was – he’s clearly the new number two. Harper/Murphy out of the top 100; Greer and Wallace out of the top 50.

34. Bob Pettit 147.79 PF 880 .168

And now Robert E Lee Pettit zips right past Dantley.  Michael Finley out of the top 100, Bosh out of the top 50.

33. Scottie Pippen 148.66 SF 1386 .107

Where to put Pippen…how about right between Barry and Billups.  Maxwell out of the top 100, Moncrief out of the top 50. 

32. John Havlicek 150.99 SF 1442 .105

Hondo gets by Pippen.  Majerle out of the top 100; Otis Thorpe out of the top 50. 

31. Clyde Drexler 151.07 G 1231 .123

Drexler goes by Dantley; he’s the new number three as we finish this section. 

Hudson out of the top 100, Bobby Jones from the top 50.

30 left – that means everyone currently in the top 20 is one of the 50 greatest basketball players who ever lived.  That means Dantley.  Billups.  Grant.  Gasol.  All in that 50 best players ever list.

1.       George Mikan

2.       Bob Pettit

3.       Clyde Drexler

4.       Adrian Dantley

5.       Steve Nash

6.       Rick Barry

7.       John Havlicek

8.       Scottie Pippen

9.       Chauncey Billups

10.   Walt Frazier

11.   Chris Paul

12.   Walt Bellamy

13.   Patrick Ewing

14.   Dwyane Wade

15.   Kevin McHale

16.   Horace Grant

17.   Paul Arizin

18.   Pau Gasol

19.   Bob Lanier

20.   Shawn Marion

21.   Chet Walker

22.   George Gervin

23.   Elgin Baylor

24.   Bailey Howell

25.   Zelmo Beaty

26.   Elvin Hayes

27.   Wes Unseld

28.   Dominique Wilkins

29.   Ed Macauley

30.   Neil Johnston

31.   Dikembe Mutombo

32.   Buck Williams

33.   Jeff Hornacek

34.   Larry Nance

35.   Jack Sikma

36.   Vince Carter

37.   Dwight Howard

38.   Rasheed Wallace

39.   Bill Laimbeer

40.   Terry Porter

41.   Maurice Cheeks

42.   Detlef Schrempf

43.   Elton Brand

44.   Manu Ginobli

45.   Kevin Johnson

46.   Eddie Jones

47.   Sam Jones

48.   Allen Iverson

49.   Jerry Lucas

50.   Sam Perkins

51.   Bobby Jones

52.   Otis Thorpe

53.   Sidney Moncrief

54.   Chris Bosh

55.   Hal Greer

56.   Ben Wallace

57.   Tracy McGrady

58.   Alex English

59.   Grant Hill

60.   Tony Parker

61.   Bob Cousy

62.   Dave Cowens

63.   Amare Stoudemire

64.   Alonzo Mourning

65.   Vern Mikkelson

66.   Bill Sharman

67.   Dennis Rodman

68.   Vlade Divac

69.   Hersey Hawkins

70.   Bob McAdoo

71.   AC Green

72.   Lenny Wilkens

73.   Shawn Kemp

74.   Jimmy Jones

75.   Jason Terry

76.   Cliff Hagan

77.   Anthony Mason

78.   Chris Mullin

79.   James Worthy

80.   Rashard Lewis

81.   Andre Miller

82.   Marques Johnson

83.   Bobby Dandridge

84.   Chris Webber

85.   Harry Gallatin

86.   Peja Stojakovic

87.   Joe Dumars

88.   Dale Davis

89.   PJ Brown

90.   Mark Jackson

91.   Charles Oakley

92.   Terry Cummings

93.   Sam Cassell

94.   Isiah Thomas

95.   Steve Smith

96.   Glen Rice

97.   Tim Hardaway

98.   Tiny Archibald

99.   Dennis Johnson

100.                        Antawn Jamison

The 100 Best Players in Basketball History, Part 8

Previous Installment is here.

Fifty players left.

50.   Bob Lanier 125.74 C 1026 .123

A good start, 125 wins, almost .125/game.  There’s a good fight between Lanier and Gasol; you could flip a coin really, but here, given that one more season and it isn’t a question, you go Pau.  That knocks Kevin Willis out of the top 100.  It knocks McAdoo out of the top 50. 

49.   George Gervin 126 SG 1144 .110

Ahead of Baylor, but not catching Lanier.  Knocks Chambers out of the top 100 and Hersey Hawkins out of the top 50. 

48. Dikembe Mutombo 126.89 C 1297 .98

Right ahead of Hornacek, behind Macauley and Johnston.  Silas is out of the top 100 and Vlade out of the top 50. 

 

47. Chet Walker 127.65 SF 1137 .112

Right ahead of George Gervin.  Goodrich is out of the top 100; Rodman out of the top 50.

 

46.   Shawn Marion 127.72 SF 1124 .114

Look at the Marion/Walker similarity.  Nelson out of the top 100, Sharman out of the top 50.

 

45. Buck Williams 128.09 PF 1415 .91

Between Dikembe and Hornacek.  Ellis out of the top 100; Mikkelson out of the top 50.

 

44. Walt Frazier 129.46 PG 918 .141

Clyde’s a step up; he goes in right behind Mikan.  Still ahead of both Paul and Wade. Byron Scott out of the top 100, Mourning out of the top 50.

 

43. Elvin Hayes 132.47 PF 1399 .095

Right above his teammate Unseld, together forever (maybe) in the top 100.  Uncle Cliffy is out of the top 100.  Amare out of the top 50. 

 

42. Kevin McHale 133.71 PF 1140 .117

Ahead of Lanier and Gasol (for now) but not Arizin. Thurmond out of the top 100, Cowens out of the top 50.

 

41.   Walt Bellamy 135.2 C 1089 .124

But who does get ahead of Arizin, and Wade – is Bellamy. 

 

Only 40 players left, that means the current top 10 will be in the overall top 50. (Shawn Marion is one of the 50 greatest basketball players of all time.  He should retire.)  Here’s the current top 100.

 

 

1.       George Mikan

2.       Walt Frazier

3.       Chris Paul

4.       Walt Bellamy

5.       Dwyane Wade

6.       Paul Arizin

7.       Kevin McHale

8.       Pau Gasol

9.       Bob Lanier

10.   Shawn Marion

11.   Chet Walker

12.   George Gervin

13.   Elgin Baylor

14.   Bailey Howell

15.   Zelmo Beaty

16.   Elvin Hayes

17.   Wes Unseld

18.   Dominique Wilkins

19.   Ed Macauley

20.   Neil Johnston

21.   Dikembe Mutombo

22.   Buck Williams

23.   Jeff Hornacek

24.   Larry Nance

25.   Jack Sikma

26.   Vince Carter

27.   Dwight Howard

28.   Rasheed Wallace

29.   Bill Laimbeer

30.   Terry Porter

31.   Maurice Cheeks

32.   Detlef Schrempf

33.   Elton Brand

34.   Manu Ginobli

35.   Kevin Johnson

36.   Eddie Jones

37.   Sam Jones

38.   Allen Iverson

39.   Jerry Lucas

40.   Sam Perkins

41.   Bobby Jones

42.   Otis Thorpe

43.   Sidney Moncrief

44.   Chris Bosh

45.   Hal Greer

46.   Ben Wallace

47.   Tracy McGrady

48.   Alex English

49.   Grant Hill

50.   Tony Parker

51.   Bob Cousy

52.   Dave Cowens

53.   Amare Stoudemire

54.   Alonzo Mourning

55.   Vern Mikkelson

56.   Bill Sharman

57.   Dennis Rodman

58.   Vlade Divac

59.   Hersey Hawkins

60.   Bob McAdoo

61.   AC Green

62.   Lenny Wilkens

63.   Shawn Kemp

64.   Jimmy Jones

65.   Jason Terry

66.   Cliff Hagan

67.   Anthony Mason

68.   Chris Mullin

69.   James Worthy

70.   Rashard Lewis

71.   Andre Miller

72.   Marques Johnson

73.   Bobby Dandridge

74.   Chris Webber

75.   Harry Gallatin

76.   Peja Stojakovic

77.   Joe Dumars

78.   Dale Davis

79.   PJ Brown

80.   Mark Jackson

81.   Charles Oakley

82.   Terry Cummings

83.   Sam Cassell

84.   Isiah Thomas

85.   Steve Smith

86.   Glen Rice

87.   Tim Hardaway

88.   Tiny Archibald

89.   Dennis Johnson

90.   Antawn Jamison

91.   Lou Hudson

92.   Dan Majerle

93.   Cedric Maxwell

94.   Michael Finley

95.   Derek Harper

96.   Calvin Murphy

97.   Marcus Camby

98.   George McGinnis

99.   Rod Strickland

100.                        Lamar Odom