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NBA: 50 greatest players who aren’t in the Basketball Hall of Fame

By Maxwell Ogden

AUBURN HILLS, UNITED STATES: Chauncey Billups of the Detroit Piston celebrates with the fans after the Pistons defeated the Lakers 100-87 to win the 2004 NBA championship final, in Auburn Hills, MI, 15 June 2004. The Pistons won the best-of-seven NBA championship series 5-1 and Billups was the series MVP. AFP PHOTO / Robyn BECK (Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
AUBURN HILLS, UNITED STATES: Chauncey Billups of the Detroit Piston celebrates with the fans after the Pistons defeated the Lakers 100-87 to win the 2004 NBA championship final, in Auburn Hills, MI, 15 June 2004. The Pistons won the best-of-seven NBA championship series 5-1 and Billups was the series MVP. AFP PHOTO / Robyn BECK (Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Portland Trail Blazers legend Maurice Lucas
LANDOVER, MD – CIRCA 1977: Maurice Lucas #20 of the Portland Trail Blazers looks on against the Washington Bullets during an NBA basketball game circa 1977 at the Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland. Lucas played for the Trail Blazers from 1976-80 and 1987-88. (Photo by Focus on Sport/Getty Images) /

50 greatest players who aren’t in the Basketball Hall of Fame: 19. Maurice Lucas

The 1977 Portland Trail Blazers quietly won a championship in improbable fashion. Led by Hall of Fame center Bill Walton and dynamic power forward Maurice Lucas, Portland defeated a long list of legends, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar included.

Walton was the MVP of both the 1977 NBA Finals and the following regular season, but Lucas was amongst the most complete players in the Association during that time.

Lucas was a walking double-double and a potent scoring threat. Over the course of his 10-year peak, he proved exactly that with averages of 16.2 points and 10.0 rebounds per game.

He actually led the Trail Blazers in scoring during their championship season, averaging 20.2 points and 11.4 rebounds per contest during the regular season. He averaged 21.2 points, 9.9 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game in the playoffs.

Those numbers may not have landed him in the Hall of Fame, but that combination of production and toughness certainly made him a staple of NBA basketball for 14 strong seasons.

Lucas was technically a five-time All-Star, with four appearances in the NBA and one in the ABA. He was also named All-NBA in 1975-76 and All-Defense in both 1978 and 1979. Furthermore, Lucas was named to the ABA All-Time Team and had his No. 20 jersey retired by the Trail Blazers.

With just under 15,000 career points and more than 9,000 career rebounds, Lucas should be remembered as one of the better power forwards in NBA history.

Outside of the Hall of Fame, but certainly a Trail Blazers legend.