The 10 most significant players in NBA history

[bagelred]

You can't separate Magic and Bird. They were both equally significant.

That being said, we need to join their names together:

Either Larry Johnson or Magic Bird. Either way....hilarity ensues......

[L.Kizzle]

You can't separate Magic and Bird. They were both equally significant.

That being said, we need to join their names together:

Either Larry Johnson or Magic Bird. Either way....hilarity ensues......

Larry Johnson is just a regular nae, Magic Bird sounds like a mid 70s pimp.

[FF1]

No one has had more effect on the last decade of drafts than Dirk.

[calvin671996]

Dirk
big man shooter was being popular in NBA just becoz of Dirk

[RobertdeMeijer]

Would Earl Manigault (a.k.a. The Goat) be indirectly significant to the NBA?

[WillC]

Yeah I suppose he would. There are probably quite a few non-NBA players who had a significant impact on the NBA, i.e. European players, barnstormers, etc.

[Locked_Up_Tonight]

Naaah, Bob McAdoo preceded Dirk by 20 years and he lead the league in scoring for a few years. His range might have been deeper as well.

Not according to Pat Riley...... he said he never had 3 point range.

[JMT]

Not according to Pat Riley...... he said he never had 3 point range.

McAdoo didn't have Dirk's range. Better around the hoop and a bit more athletic in his prime, but nowhere near the long range shooter.

[ZaaaaaH]

all the basketball players my mom can name:

Jordan
Kobe
Shaq
Magic
Bird

Bingo !

[sprainedankle]

Throw out AI and Pistol and replace them with Kareem and Russell and I think it's better.

AI's popularity here is overstated. He and the Pistol were novelty acts compared to what Russell brought to the table in the Celtics run and the Captain to the Laker showtime era. Probably the best defensive presence and the best offensive presence for big men.

[JMT]

Throw out AI and Pistol and replace them with Kareem and Russell and I think it's better.

AI's popularity here is overstated. He and the Pistol were novelty acts compared to what Russell brought to the table in the Celtics run and the Captain to the Laker showtime era. Probably the best defensive presence and the best offensive presence for big men.

Won't disagree, but a lot comes down to what you consider "significance". On the floor, there's no question Russell and Kareem were more influential. But societally, AI and Pistol Pete had tremendous impact on the way the general public...non-fans in many cases...were influenced by the game.

There's a whole league full of players now that were influenced by Iverson and the way he introduced the culture...rap, thug, whatever you want to call it...to the NBA. Players to that point really toed the line, afraid to be "too radical". The league was 80% black and the fan base was 80% white. He really picked up the mantle from dr J in regards to generating interest from young, African American males.

Maravich was the first million dollar player, lending credibility to a sport that was largely seen as the Celtics and a bunch of other guys. He was the first NBA player to garner national endorsements, which was huge at the time. His college reputation put the NBA on national TV back in the days when the Finals were seen...maybe...on tape delay by most of the country.

Just a matter of how you want to interpret "significant".

[WillC]

More info here: http://basketballjournalist.blogspot...t-players.html

We should use the 5Rs to determine if a player is 'significant':

Remarkable - It was remarked upon by people at the time
Remembered - It was important at some stage in history
Resulted in change - It had consequences for the future
Resonant - People like to make analogies with it
Representative - ...of some other aspect of historical significance.