The 75 greatest NBA players of the 2000s, ranked
By Cal Durrett
![Tim Duncan, Shaquille O'Neal Tim Duncan, Shaquille O'Neal](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_3000,h_1687,x_0,y_91/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/GettyImages/mmsport/307/01hw5q1p4ggbf0kxkjkf.jpg)
56) Zach Randolph
Prior to signing with the Memphis Grizzlies, the team he is most often associated with, Zach Randolph started his career with the Portland Trailblazers. He spent seven seasons with the Blazers—then nicknamed the Jailblazers due to their frequent run-ins with the law—and emerged as a star after winning Most Improved Player during his sophomore season.
Over his final five years with Portland, he has averaged a stellar 19.7 points and 9.7 rebounds before being shipped to the New York Knicks and then the LA Clippers to finish out the decade. He averaged 16.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 506 games. Still, the best was yet to come for Randolph, who would sign with the Grizzlies for the 2009–10 season and help them become a perennial playoff team.
He had back-to-back 20-point and 11.5 rebound seasons and led Memphis to the Western Semifinals in 2011 and the Western Conference Finals in 2013. That, of course, doesn't factor into these rankings but Randolph doesn't need him to make the cut after posting nearly 17 and 10 over a 500-game span and winning a major award. Based on that, Randolph is one of the best players of the decade.