His roots in the Tar Heel State obviously run deep but his long NBA career has unfortunately never included a stint in Charlotte. -> Developed & Maintained By WD Bangalore.in, Furthermore, in 2011 he won his first championship with. Learn more and register Already registered? He was also named the NCAAs Most Outstanding Player those three years and was twice named College Player of the Year by The Sporting News. The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past four-plus seasons. He finished his college career as the leading scorer in Arizona history. Unfortunately, Kobe died in a helicopter crash in January 2020. He was born in Takoma Park before eventually playing college ball at Maryland, where his No. He moved on to Kansas and was a major contributor to a national championship in 2008. But to give him that label now is at best premature, and at worst willfully ignorant After high school, he did not attend an elite basketball program, but instead became one of the premier college basketball players in Division II for Southern Illinois University. But in his rookie year, Russell completely changed the franchises course and established the Celtics as the winningest team in the NBA. In 2004 Lebron became NBA Rookie of the Year. Hello, I am a passionate and dedicated writer with a deep love for Basketball. Its bad form to compare any high school athlete to a professional. 1 pick in the draft. High school: Bartlett High School (Anchorage), Pros: Miami Heat (2008-15), Memphis Grizzlies (2015-16). There must be something in the water in Louisiana that turns kids into great basketball players because this might have been the toughest state from which to pick a GOAT. The four highest all-time NBA single-season scoring averages all belong to Chamberlainin his first four professional seasons. He was an eight-time All-Star and seven-time All-NBA pick who averaged 18.8 points per game over the last nine years of his career. Going back a little farther to the 1990s, there was TJ Caouette at Winthrop High, who had 63 scholarship offers before choosing to play at Villanova, and Andy Bedard, who went from Mountain Valley High to basketball greenhouse Maine Central Institute (the Montverde Academy of its time) before playing collegiately at Boston College and Maine. In the WNBA, Delle Donne has become a productive star, helping the Washington Mystics advance to their first-ever WNBA Finals in 2018. This one was a total toss-up between two St. Louis natives in Hall of Famers Jo Jo White and Ed Macauley, whose careers and stats were remarkably similar. High school: Morningside High School (Inglewood, Calif.), Pros: Los Angeles Lakers (1983-93, 1996-97), Indiana Pacers (1993-95), Vancouver Grizzlies (1995-96), Panathinaikos (1997-98). Just in the last generation, 20 years or so, weve seen players from Maine enjoy not only successful college careers, but professional careers, too. Plus upsets! He won a championship with the Warriors during his final season in 1975. He would win two more titles in 2009 and 2010. High School: Newport Catholic High School, Pros: Boston Celtics (1970-80), Milwaukee Bucks (1982-83). Every dunk made the rounds on social media, and that helped create the hyperbole. Born: Feb. 15, 1964, in Bartlesville, Okla. High school: Enid High School (Enid, Okla.), Pros: Cleveland Cavaliers (1986-95), Washington Bullets (1995-96), Golden State Warriors (1996-97), Orlando Magic (1997-98). Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. After a standout career at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he led the Tar Heels to a National Championship in 1982, Jordan joined the NBAs Chicago Bulls in 1984. Seven former Montverde players were selected in the 2021 NBA draft, including No. His Hall-of-Fame NBA career took him from Philadelphia to Phoenix to Houston but Barkley still loves his home state, even considering a run for governor in years past. I know I risk getting run out of my beloved Chicago on a rail for daring to suggest His Airness isnt the best player ever but, well, I just dont think he is. Its recklessly bad form to compare a high school athlete, even one as unquestionably talented as Flagg, to one of the best players in basketball history. Walt Frazier took the road less traveled to stardom. Garnett made the leap from high school to the pros, and became a star with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Shaquille ONeal is the definition of dominance. and fought Bruce Lee in Game of Death, so his cool quotient is easily the highest of anyone on this list. He led the Celtics to three championships in the 1980s, which is the same number of times he was named NBA MVP. In terms of producing basketball greats, New York City tops all other locations on the planet and the state itself is second only to California in the number of NBA players it has given the world. [This list was originally published in April 2014. High school: East Bank High School (East Bank, W.Va.). Bullet Bob Boozer came from Omaha and remained a major part of that community until his death in 2012. But Catchings is the most complete basketball player I have ever seen. Plus, he was hilarious in Airplane! While the late Kobe Bryant would seem like the obvious choice to represent his home state, there was a lot of great competition representing Pennsylvania. He went on to play college hoops at the University of Oregon, where he was named the Pac-10s player of the year in 1991. LeBron James learned how to be under the spotlight and shine early in life. Oh, and while this has nothing to do with his ranking on this list, its still incredibly awesome and noteworthy that he has successfully fought off HIV for over two decades, helped de-stigmatize AIDS through his high-profile advocacy, and launched a second career as an entrepreneur who opens businesses predominantly in poverty-stricken areas in efforts to spur urban revitalization. He was an All-Star in 1968 with the Chicago Bulls and won a championship in 1971 with the Milwaukee Bucks, in what would be his final season. Akrons most beloved son has gone out of his way to remain an integral part of that citys fabric even long after becoming the most famous basketball player on the planet. Michael also earned the nicknames Air Jordan and His Airness. He had four All-Star seasons with the SuperSonics and Suns and averaged 20.6 points and 6.7 rebounds a night in his first 11 seasons in the NBA. The result: Horton-Tucker had 16 Position: Small forward and power forward. The one time in his 14-year career that he was not an All-Star was in 1970, a season in which an injured Chamberlain was limited to just 12 regular-season games and yet he still managed to will his team to the NBA finals upon his return. Griffin was the first overall pick in the 2009 draft and, after sitting out his first season with an injury, made an impact right away with the Los Angeles Clippers, being named rookie of the year in 2011. He was a 9-time NBA All-Star and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013. Following his 10-year playing career, Hollins wore a coaching suit for over 30 years. The late big man was born in Petersburg and was one of the first truly great NBA stars to come to the pros straight out of high school. WebThe 50 Greatest Players in NBA History, also referred to as NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team, were chosen in 1996 to honor the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Most obsessively competitive to the detriment of ever having normal human relations with anybody? Adams was named rookie of the year in 1976 and eventually had his jersey number retired by the Suns after walking away in 1988. In the NBA, he became one of the best shooters in the league, leading the league in free-throw percentage twice and winning Most Improved Player in 1993. After graduating from high school in Nevada, he played two seasons at Dixie State College (in St. George, Utah) and two years at Arizona State before going pro. Heres why. He was rookie of the year in 1971, league MVP in 1973, a three-time member of the All-Defensive first team and an eight-time All-Star. He was born in Grand Forks, which is one of the biggest cities in the state, but spent his high school and college careers in California. High school: Mead High School (Spokane, Wash.), Pros: Charlotte Bobcats (2006-09), Los Angeles Lakers (2009-10), Red Star Belgrade (2011), Besiktas (2012). The Pistol played in only 4 All-Star games but still managed to average 24.2 points per game over his career and is considered one of the best pure scorers in NBA history.. Pete Maravich 14. He was born and raised in the city of Mitchell, which is in the southeastern part of the state. He averaged at least 10 points per game in seven of his seasons at the games top level. In 2007 he also led the Cleveland Cavaliers to their first-ever NBA finals appearance against the San Antonio Spurs. Stockton is a 10-time all-star, six-time NBA All-Defensive Second Team, nine-time NBA assists leader and two-time NBA steals leader, among many other accolades. Lets wait to anoint Cooper Flagg as the best basketball player ever from Maine, Varsity Maine boys basketball Player of the Year, Flagg the third-best college basketball prospect nationwide in the Class of 2025. McHale was born in Hibbing the same town that gave us Bob Dylan and was named Minnesotas Mr. Basketball as a high school senior in 1976 before playing at the University of Minnesota. All due respect to Mark Price and John Starks but Blake Griffin is the best Oklahoman to ever lace up in the NBA. In high school, Pippen was the man, leading his team to the state playoffs as an all-conference star his senior year. Before we crown him, though, lets at least let him get his drivers license. Scott led the Lakers in scoring at 21.7 points per game during the 1987-88 season, and helped them win a title that same year, one of his three NBA championships. Speaking of guards who are still in the league as of this writing, Tyler Johnson represents his home state of North Dakota, which hasnt exactly cranked out the ballers so far. Diana Taurasi is the best offensive player in WNBA history (and No. Marvin Bad News Barnes was born in Providence and stayed right in his hometown into early adulthood, earning consensus All-American honors as a senior at Providence College in 1974. He stayed home and played college ball at Colorado, where his number has also since been put in the rafters. While hes much more famous for his career as a coach, Phil Jackson had a great career as an NBA player before leading Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant to multiple championships. Maine Basketball Rankings Latest Fight Club More drama than you could hope for in AA. Kevin Garnett was one of the fiercest competitors in basketball. Hes potential personified. In total, Abdul-Jabbar spent 20 seasons in the NBA with Milwaukee and Los Angeles. The Coeur dAlene native had a standout college career at Oregon before being drafted in the first round by the SuperSonics in 2003. The Celtics had played for 10 seasons before Russell joined the team, never once reaching a championship series in that time. After graduating from Notre Dame, he was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1979, played professionally in Italy for a year, then returned to play for the Cavaliers. Born: May 6, 1985, in Winston-Salem, N.C. High school: West Forsyth High School (Clemmons, N.C.), Pros: New Orleans Hornets (2005-11), Los Angeles Clippers (2011-17), Houston Rockets (2017-present). After helping the Seminoles advance to the Elite Eight in the 1993 NCAA tournament where they lost to the Kentucky he was drafted by the Houston Rockets in the first round with the 24th overall pick. Michael Jordan is easily the best basketball player of all-time in the NBA history.

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