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NBA commentator and podcaster Bill Simmons loves ranking basketball players, and he is at it again.
Simmons tweeted out his list of the best six NBA players of all time. The list, in alphabetical order, contained Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, LeBron James, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan and Bill Russell. Of course, plenty of fans had some hilarious reactions.
“Get Bill Russell out of there,” one fan wrote.
Simmons is an unapologetic Boston Celtics fan. So, he will always include 11-time champion Russell in the GOAT conversation.
Simmons asserted that these were the six players who belonged in the top tier. He said there were no admissions or snubs.
“We can argue about the order, but we can’t argue about any current guy displacing any of those six – at least not yet. Sorry,” Simmons tweeted.
Fans disagreed. There were plenty of calls for other players to be included. Many asked for Tim Duncan and Kobe Bryant to be included in the top tier.
Others asked where Wilt Chamberlain was. Most called for Bill Russell to be replaced on the list.
Check out some of the best fan reactions.
Who is the GOAT of basketball?
It is one of the hottest debates in all of sports. Many have narrowed the list down to two players. Those two are Michael Jordan and LeBron James.
The many championships of Bill Russell are often overlooked. Bird and Magic battled in the 1980s, yet each player never reached the status of Jordan and James.
Jordan, of course, won six championships to James’ four. However, Jordan never lost in the NBA Finals going a perfect 6-0. Many give Jordan the nod, especially those of the older generation.
Newer fans of the league may support James for the case instead. He can play all five positions on the floor. He can score from anywhere and is one of the greatest passers of all time.
James, who has played for 20 seasons after coming straight out of high school, is also the all-time leading scorer in NBA history (38,652). He is also the winningest player in NBA playoff history. The four-time MVP led the league in scoring and assists for one season each and is a six-time All-Defensive team selection.
Jordan, who played for 15 seasons after winning a national championship and being the national player of the year at North Carolina, holds the record for highest scoring average (30.1 points per game). The five-time MVP is a 10-time scoring champion and nine-time All-Defensive team selection as well as the 1987-88 Defensive Player of the Year in an era when defense was a premium.
The debate may live on forever. Who is your basketball GOAT?
Guess the Lakers players!
