Ranking the 75 best players in NBA history for 75th anniversary
Ranking the 75 best players in NBA history: No. 2 – Michael Jordan
On NBA 50 at 50 List
Career: 1984 – 2003
Achievements: Six-time champion; five-time MVP; All-NBA (11x); All-Star (14x); All-Defense (9x); Defensive Player of the Year; Final MVP (6x); led league in scoring (10x); 5th in career scoring; 3rd in career steals.
Many of us react viscerally to the idea of Michael Jordan anywhere but first on this list; it was difficult for me to not have him at the top. I grew up believing that MJ was not only the greatest player ever, but that he always had to be. No one could match his winning and his cultural impact.
Jordan was inevitable during the 1990s, destroying whatever team stood in his way. He was an unstoppable scorer, leading the league in scoring 10 times, but also was such a terrorizing defender that he won a Defensive Player of the Year award. He found the motivation to shred whichever poor player tried to either guard him or take up the mantle of outscoring him. From Clyde Drexler to Isiah Thomas he always found that extra gear.
No one will likely ever match Jordan’s 6-for-6 mark in the NBA Finals. Few players even get there six times, let alone win every time. An entire generation grew up idolizing Jordan, as he blew open the ceiling of the cultural impact of basketball players. Magic Johnson made them fun; Michael Jordan made them cool.
What holds Jordan back ever-so-slightly in the face of James’ accomplishments and longevity are two things. The first is that he couldn’t hold up under the grind of contending year after year; he retired from the game twice only to return again. That isn’t meant to delve into or minimize some of the emotional reasons presented for why he did, but simply to state that it’s harder to maintain that level of play and contention for as long as LeBron did than to take time off as Jordan did.
The second is how hard it was to be around Jordan. He chewed up and spit out his teammates; only Scottie Pippen could hang around for the second three-peat, and even he almost didn’t make it. Jordan’s pursuit of winning at all costs broke down those around him. LeBron’s teammates love playing with him to the point that they come back to compete with him again, and he has friends across the league; he has found the top tier of success without sacrificing the concept of treating people with respect. He has his own frustrating passive-aggressive style that can be grating, but he lifts up those around him instead of burning through them.
There is no wrong answer here; any of four players can make a claim to the top spot, and Jordan will appear here on most lists. He was an incredible basketball player, the face of the league for years and years, and his impact on the international game is likely underappreciated.