Shaquille O'Neal Retirement Triggers The Big Debate: The Top 5 NBA Centers of All-time

5) Hakeem Olajuwon

The Essentials: NBA MVP, two-time NBA Finals MVP, two-time NBA Champion, two-time Defensive Player of the Year, first career in blocks. Career averages: 22/11/3.1/1.7 (points/rebounds/blocks/steals)

'The Dream' had a 1995 Playoff run to be remembered. After going through hall-of-fame big men in Karl Malone, Charles Barkley, and David Robinson, Olajuwon gave a young Shaq a tutorial in humility in the Finals, going for over 30 points in all four games of the sweep. He was one of the best all-around players, going for a quadruple double in 1990, only the third in NBA history. Olajuwon is the only player who could challenge Bill Russell’s title as the most impactful defender. If they had tracked statistics for blocks and steals in Russell’s time, it would be very interesting to compare the two players as defensive stalwarts. Olajuwon was also a great passer, and one of the premier all-around players in NBA History.  

4) Wilt Chamberlain

The Essentials: Four-time NBA MVP, two-time NBA Finals MVP, NBA Season Records: Scoring (50.4) Rebounds (27.2), FG% (72.7) Career: First in rebounds, second ppg (30.1)

From a statistical standpoint, Chamberlain is the greatest of a all-time. So why wouldn't he be higher on this list? Chamberlain was dominated in head-to-head match-ups by fellow hall-of-famer Bill Russell. He played in an era where he was the league's lone seven-footer. In fact, consider this: in 1962, Chamberlain’s mythical 50 ppg season, Russell was the only other hall-of-fame center. In 1972, when Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had his best statistical season, there were seven (Chamberlain, Willis Reed, Dave Cowens, Nate Thurmond, Wes Unseld, Bob Lanier, and Elvin Hayes).  Chamberlain would have been an all-time great in any era, but his gaudy statistics could have only come when he was physically head and shoulders above the rest. Is there any reason to believe the 7’1” 325lb. Shaq not have duplicated the 7’1” 275lb. Wilt’s accomplishments in the ‘60’s? This was also an era where there was an unwritten rule on how many black players to allow, so a lot of the premier athletes were dunking on fools at Rucker Park.   

3) Shaquille O'Neal

The Essentials: Three-time NBA FInals MVP, NBA MVP, two-time MVP Runner-up, four-time NBA Champion, two-time NBA scoring champ, career: 23.7/10.9 /2.3 (points, rebounds, blocks)

A virtual coin toss as who to put ahead of the other: Shaq or Wilt. However, O'Neal pulled down twice the championships in an era with more teams, and larger athletes. He saved his dominance for when it mattered most, peaking with an average of 38 points and 17 rebounds per game in the finals against the Pacers in 2000. In his three-year playoff peak, which consisted of 58 games, Shaq averaged 30 points, 14 rebounds, and three blocks per game. Was Shaq a poster boy for the too much too soon era? Did he leave something on the table by not taking conditioning seriously? Yes, and yes. Shaq had too much fun with basketball to take every game as a life-or-death scenario. He could turn on that extra competitive edge, though, and could be counted on in the biggest games.

Regardless of what he didn’t do, what Shaq did do is incredible. He is the only player to average 20/10 in 13 seasons. From 1994-2006, Shaq’s teams never finished with fewer than 50 wins, proving he was a force that directly resulted in wins and championships. Hard to put him ahead of Olajuwon after the Rockets’ four-game sweep of the Big Fella in ’95, but Shaq was only 22 and still averaged over 28 points and 12.5 rebounds per game against one of the best defenders of all-time. Statistical dominance plus four rings is just enough to put Diesel over Olajuwon and Chamberlain.

2) Bill Russell

The Essentials: 11-time NBA champion, 5- time NBA MVP, second all-time in rebounds per game (22.5), first in playoffs (24.9), 10-0 all-time in game 7s, 16-2 in must-wins

The greatest defender of all-time Russell was also the greatest winner. Russell proved the Unstoppable Force succumbs to the Immovable Object with his career record of 85 wins against 57 losses versus Chamberlain. He is the only player-coach to win a title, something he did twice. If blocks and steals were a statistic in Russell’s era, he would be at or near the top in there, too. It is fitting, though because with Russell the only statistic that mattered was wins.

Also the most cerebral player of all-time, he was a coach on the floor, and eventually was a player and a coach. As Russell will tell you, he collected most of his rebounds before the ball hit the rim, having an inane ability to position his body exactly where the ball would carom off. Also a great passer, he ignited the Celtics’ fast breaks with pinpoint outlet passes after many of those rebounds. All of today’s big men need a lesson in blocking the shot and keeping it in bounds to retain possession. They all go for the volleyball spike out of bounds, not helping their team win, just helping their ranking on Sportscenter’s top ten. Would he have won 11 rings in 13 seasons in an era with 30 teams, as opposed to eight? Probably not, but rest assured, Russell would have a slew of rings in any era.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar:

The Essentials: Six-time NBA MVP, six-time NBA Champion, all-time leader in scoring, minutes played, and field goals, 11-time All-Defense, Career averages: 24/11/2.5 (points, rebounds, blocks)

He has not done himself any favors lately, lobbying for a statue, and writing a letter to Scottie Pippen, signing it ‘Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: The NBA’s #1 all-time scorer.’ He probably does deserve these accolades, but lobbying for yourself is a little pathetic. So I’ll do it for him:

Abdul-Jabbar is arguably the greatest player of all-time, yet continually gets left out of the discussion. He put up Chamberlain-esque stats in a more modern era, averaging 35 points, 16.5 rebounds, and five assists per game in 1972, playing against the aforementioned seven opposing hall-of-fame centers, compared to Chamberlain’s one in ’62. No one can approach the longevity of his dominance, playing 20 seasons, and averaging over 20ppg in every one of those seasons through his seventeenth. He also took home Finals MVP trophies an unheard fourteen seasons apart. He matches Michael Jordan in championships and MVP trophies. He was 11-time All-defense, and averaged over 2.5 blocks and nearly a steal per game, in spite of steals and blocks not being recorded during his first four seasons, some of his athletic peak years. Again, why isn’t his name mentioned as the greatest of all-time (Jordan still is, but a mention would be nice).

Sorry Scottie: 5 reasons why LeBron will never be Michael

So Scottie Pippen thinks LeBron James is better than Michael Jordan, eh? Blasphemy. If it wasn’t for the six rings with the Bulls, the man may be ex-communicated from the city of Chicago. On the one hand, it may seem that no player would have a better opinion of the “Next Jordan” than his former running mate, and Robin to Jordan’s Batman on all six of the title teams. However, Scottie should consider himself lucky to remain on the Bulls’ payroll as “Ambassador” next season. Let’s examine the top five reasons of how Scottie has committed the highest form of NBA treason, in descending order:

5: The titles

With all due respect to Jason Segel this is the easiest reason, and one that admitedly could be excused in the next decade, to put MJ over LBJ. However, to put LeBron over the greatest winner in the NBA's modern era, before the man has even won a single NBA Finals game, is ludicrous. LeBron may not even be playing the greatest basketball in these playoffs (See: Nowitzki, Dirk) let alone of all time. In a historical perspective, how can we put LeBron over Kobe Bryant, at this point in their respective careers? Kobe, stylistically and competitively, is the closest thing we will ever see to Michael Jordan. If Michael is the perfect 10 as a shooting guard, Kobe is a 9.5, and if he retires one ring behind Michael, with his current handful of five, it will be a fitting tale of the two players. And then there are two other great champions, with four apiece, in Tim Duncan and Shaquille O’Neal. The four rings is why, like it or not, Duncan will go down as a better player than Kevin Garnett, and why Shaq will be seen as the best big man since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. LeBron cannot leapfrog these great champions without a single ring to put on his finger. I’m not denying LeBron is in a great position to get a slew of rings, but until that point, let’s not jump the gun.

4: The Playoff Run

Yes, LeBron has done amazing things in these playoffs. He has done everything asked of him. One game he is Magic 2.0, handing out ten dimes. The next he does his best MJ impression and scores 35. Then he locks down the league’s MVP in the fourth quarter, a match-up most fully anticipated being Dwyane Wade’s responsibility. By shutting down the MVP, he essentially sealed the last two games in Miami’s favor. However, has he been more valuable to his team than Dirk Nowitzki? Watching virtually every single game in these playoffs, I have seen both do equally incredible things. The shots that Dirk is making are an 11 out of 10 in the scale of difficulty. Oklahoma City in particular, had a team of defenders that are the best you could ask to put on Nowitzki. Serge Ibaka, an uber-athletic power forward/center in a young KG mold. Kevin Durant, a 6’10” extremely long and athletic competitor who knows his team's success rides on his shoulders just as much as the Heat and Mavs’ rides on LeBron’s and Dirk’s. Nick Collison, a big, strong defensive specialist who curtailed Zach Randolph’s dominance so that OKC could get to the Conference Finals. Kendrick Perkins, one of the toughest and most respected post defenders in the league had his shot, too. No one could stop Dirk. Compare Dirk’s and LBJ’s stats. LeBron: 26/9/5.5/48/33/79 (points, rebounds, assists per game, field goal, three point, and free throw percentages). Dirk: 28.5/7.5/3/52/51.5/93. Those shooting percentages are all-time. Meanwhile, LeBron has two of the best players at their respective positions as running mates in Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, while Dirk’s best teammates are a sixth man (Jason Terry) a 38-year-old point guard (Jason Kidd) and a 33-year-old former all-star (Shawn Marion). I don’t see anyone rushing to put Dirk Nowitzki ahead of Larry Bird, and rightfully so. Granted LeBron is undoubtedly a better defender than Dirk, but everyone and their brother knows Dallas’ success relies on Dirk’s ability to put the ball in the basket. Three teams have tried to stop him, including the two-time defending champs, and three teams have failed.

3: LeBron leaving Cleveland

Not to re-hash bad memories, and a story that has beaten ten dead horses into the ground by the media, but LeBron leaving the franchise that drafted him has to leave a mark on his legacy. Not necessarily a bad mark, but a mark. LeBron left Cleveland to allow him to do what is best at, being the ultimate X-Factor. He didn’t like the pressure of having to score 40 points per game in the playoffs for his Cavs’ teams to win. That’s not what he does best. He is best at being dominant in the specific area of the game that his team needs to win, and now he has the teammates to do it. He is essentially re-creating what he had in high school. Basketball is more fun to him now, and who can blame the man for wanting the game he loves to be more fun? However, he did give up on Cleveland. Michael was drafted by Chicago, and struggled for years in the playoffs with Chicago. He was called selfish, a gunner, and a bad teammate. However, he stuck though with the Bulls, and ultimately created a dynasty there. Unlike LeBron, basketball wasn’t fun to Michael, it wasn’t a game. It was a way of life. It was an outlet to destroy the competition, to prove “I am the Greatest, and there is not a thing you can do to stop me.” He was a soul destroyer. And he loved every minute of it.  

2: Scottie is a bitter, bitter man

So the pro-Lebron crowd might be thinking “Who has a better opinion on someone being better than Michael, than his greatest teammate, the man who may know Michael’s game better than anyone?” That would be an excellent point, if not for that at times, egos lead to insanity. Rightfully so, Scottie will always be seen as Robin, as second best, on his team. And for one of the 50 greatest players of all time, that is hard to handle. Remember, you don’t get to being a great athlete without outlandish confidence that often coincides with cockiness. And Scottie was an exceptional athlete and basketball player. And his bitterness starts a long, long time ago. In the 1989-90 season, the Bulls lost to the Pistons once again. This was Scottie’s first season as an All-Star. He suffered from migraines against the Pistons, something that was not highly publicized, and his play suffered, resulting in Pippen taking the brunt of the criticism for the loss. The following season, Pippen got into a bitter contract dispute that resulted in him signing a contract that paid him $3.5 million per season through the 1997-98 season. In 1990, $3.5 million for a one-time All-Star was good money. However, the timing and longevity of the contract could not have been worse for Pippen. Six championships later, all the way through his prime, and through the NBA’s contract boom, Scottie Pippen, the greatest perimeter defender of all time, was getting paid less than today’s back-ups. It is quite possibly the worst contract of all-time, and why to this day Scottie lingers on the Bulls’ payroll as ‘Bulls’ Ambassador.’

Then there was the first Jordan retirement. Pippen knew this was his time to let the world recognize he was no sidekick. To many observers' surprise, he kept the Bulls in championship contention the whole season, averaging 22 points, 9 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game, finishing third in the MVP voting. There was his infamous refusal to come off the bench for the final play against the Knicks, a play drawn up for Toni Kukoc, a sixth man who has just signed a much more lucrative contract than Pippen’s, to take the last shot (which he hit). If not for some horrid officiating in that series, the Bulls would have reached the NBA Finals. Alas, Pippen’s first chance for non-Jordan validation was gone. His second chance came in 1999-2000 when his Portland Trail Blazers infamously blew the 13-point game 7 lead to Shaq and Kobe’s Lakers. That was the closest Pippen would ever come to a championship sans Jordan, and now forever will be remembered as the greatest sidekick of all-time, a title Pippen despises. Think about his exact quote in comparing Michael to LeBron,: “Michael Jordan is probably the greatest scorer to play the game, but LeBron James may be the greatest player to ever play the game because he is so potent offensively that not only can he score at will, but keeps everybody involved.” Sounds like a player who wished some more shots, and more glory, had come his way. Scottie, you truly were one of the greats. Don’t let your bitterness spoil the NBA world’s perception of you. 

1: Michael being Michael

How many iconic moment has Michael Jordan provided the basketball world? The Jumper over Craig Ehlo. The Flu Game. Simply refusing to lose to a better, younger Pacers team in ’98. The Last Shot over Byron Rusell. A whole book could be dedicated to Jordan Moments. LeBron has one: The last 25 straight points against the Pistons. Obviously LeBron’s resume is far from over. As Scottie put it: “Michael is probably the greatest scorer of all-time.” This is true. But the common assertion that LeBron is a better passer, simply based on stats, is asinine. Michael played as part of a system, the Triangle Offense, only dominating the ball when it was Winning Time. For LeBron’s entire career, he has dominated the ball, pounding it at the top of the key. It is easy to average more assists when you have the ball in you hands for virtually the whole game. Not to say he isn’t dominant, but his offense is predictable. He is going to drive through the defense for a foul, lay-up or dunk. Or he is going to feint the drive and shoot a fall-away jumper. Or he will drive and dish to an open teammate. That’s it. Michael had a bevy of shots. He was a danger at any spot in the court to nail a heat-breaking jumper. And he was as good at going around the defense for a lay-up or dunk as LeBron is at going through it. He was no slouch of a passer, either, averaging 5.3 for his career as a true shooting guard, compared to LeBron’s 7.0 as a ball-dominating point-forward. Yes, LeBron is a better rebounder, but at 6'8" 260lbs, compared to Jordan's 6'6" 220, he'd better be. Don't buy the assertion that LeBron is a better passer, as this is one of those times where the stats do lie. If Jordan ran an Iso-Michael offense, he would have averaged at least 7 assists per game, too.

LeBron James is an amazing talent, and probably the best athlete to play the game. He is in an enviable position to win the title this season, and get more after that. When it's all said and done, he probably will go down as one of the greats. However, let's not put the man ahead of a player who won six straight titles in full seasons that he played. It's not fair to Michael, and it's not fair to LeBron.  

Wild West: Shootout at the OKC Corral

Wild West: Shootout at the OKC Corral

The west sure has been, well, wild. Nine combined rings between Tim Duncan and Kobe Bryant could not save them from early elimination. Youth has been served, as Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant have each had iconic moments. Monkeys have been shed, as Dallas is back in the Conference Finals for the first time since ’06, after four straight disappointing exits. So, who will represent the West in the NBA Finals?

Dallas Mavericks (3) vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (4)

Key Match-ups:

PG: Jason Kidd vs. Russell Westbrook

SG: Jason Terry vs. James Harden

SF: Shawn Marion vs. Kevin Durant

PF: Dirk Nowitzki vs. Serge Ibaka

C: Tyson Chandler vs. Kendrick Perkins

This is the ultimate youth vs. experience battle. The Thunder has one of their best five players over the age of 22, Kendrick Perkins at an ancient 26. The Mavs are led by a 38-year-old point guard in Jason Kidd, and a bunch of title-hungry vets that sense their window of opportunity for a championship is closing rapidly.

Kidd’s days as a defensive stopper are long gone. He may not have a chance at guarding Westbrook, one of the premiere athletes in the league, one-on-one, but the 7’1” Tyson Chandler will help to curtail Westbrook’s ferocious onslaughts on the rim. Westbrook may settle for jumpers early. His inconsistency here is what separates him from MVP Derrick Rose. We have seen Westbrook be a little overconfident in his abilities, shooting too much, and forgetting he has the most gifted scorer in the league on his side in Kevin Durant.

Over-shooting did not prove fatal against Memphis, as he knew when to back off in crucial games. However, OKC was clearly the better team against he Grizzlies, and that series should not have gone seven games. In their three losses in the Semifinals, Westbrook shot 22, 22, and 23 times. In their four wins, he shot 10, 12, 22, and 33 (a triple overtime aberration) times. The Thunder is not the clear-cut better team against Dallas as they were Memphis, and overshooting from Westbrook will kill them here. Look for Kidd to allow Westbrook the jumper, while setting the pace with pinpoint passes for the Dallas offense.

James Harden played his best basketball of the season against Memphis, averaging 14 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists in the series. OKC will need more of the same against Jason Terry, who has been on a tear in the postseason, including a record nine three-pointer game in the decisive blowout against the Lakers. Terry’s hot shooting alone should win Dallas at least one game in this series.

Kevin Durant and Dirk Nowitzki might be the two toughest covers in the league. Both are damn near 7 feet tall, and are a threat to score from anywhere on the court. Dirk is slightly more post-oriented, while Durant is the better three-point shooter. Serge Ibaka will get the first crack at defending Dirk, with Shawn Marion doing the same against the Durantula. However, expect both teams to throw everything but the kitchen sink against the others’ premiere scorer. By the end of the series, we should be seeing what I think should be a rule in the NBA: the two best players on the court guarding each other. We could be looking at an epic scoring match-up here. I’m talking Bird vs. Wilkins in ’88 and LeBron vs. Pierce in ’08. If Dirk takes the series he should be handed a WWE- like belt, screaming at the top of a podium, “AAHHHHHH TAKE DAT WIT CHEW!!!!!”

Tyson Chandler is the X-Factor in this series. Without him protecting the four feet in front of the rim, Westbrook would drive right past Jason Kidd and throw down thunderous dunk after thunderous dunk. People forget Chandler was a member of the Thunder for all of one day in February of ’09, before they decided they didn’t want him. Chandler was a monster against the Thunder in the regular season. 7’1”, 235 lbs of pissed off athletic center is not something any point guard wants to drive against. I like Kendrick Perkins to do the same for OKC, if not for the fact that he is not pre-knee surgery Kendrick Perkins. His value is never measured by stats, but his dip from 7 points, 8 rebounds with the Celtics last season, to 4 and 6 with less than a block per game with OKC is pretty telling.

Dallas has been playing like a team on a mission. They haven’t lost a game since blowing that 23- point lead against Portland. I was on Dallas’ bandwagon for most of the regular season, and hopped off just in time to be made a fool of in the postseason. Consider me back on.

Pick: Dallas 4-3

(TAKE DAT WIT CHEW!!!!!!)