Simple Question. Who is the GOAT?

[KSF-ERIC]

Besides Dame, of course. You can make a strong case for all of these guys.

 

[Road Ratt]

There is no way to ever come to an answer since you can't get the NBA players of today to play under the old rules.

People should just enjoy the era they grew up liking. It will pass soon and a new "GOAT" contender, will come along soon enough.

 

[calvin natt]

It’s Michael.

 

[crandc]

Have to give edge to Russell. Eleven championships in 13 years, and unlike Jordan spoke for social justice.

But you could argue Jordan or Abdul-Jabbar.

 

[LayneStaley]

Jordan, it’s not close imo

 

[STOMP]

Siting the opinions of my older Bball friends who saw them all play from the mid 60s on, I'm going to go with the 19 time All Star, 6 time MVP, 6 time NBA champion and by far (and it's not even close) the all time leading scorer Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr as the greatest of all time.

STOMP

 

[Hoopguru]

Have to give edge to Russell. Eleven championships in 13 years, and unlike Jordan spoke for social justice.

But you could argue Jordan or Abdul-Jabbar.

Thats is an accomplishment that will never be matched.

 

[JoshuaHall]

LeBron by a country mile
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MJ
Wilt
Russell
Kareem

 

[Stevenson]

Have to give edge to Russell. Eleven championships in 13 years, and unlike Jordan spoke for social justice. But you could argue Jordan or Abdul-Jabbar.

Ah, but if you put Wilt on those Celtics teams, I bet he would have won just about as many. Plus, Wilt anchored two of the greatest teams in history - the '67 76ers and the '72, 33 in a row, Lakers. Plus his individual accomplishments are incredible. So yes, I have long thought it was Wilt, but truly, it has to be MJ.

 

[Wizard Mentor]

The NBA changed about 15 different rules because Wilt was too dominant. They didn't change any of the rules for any of the other players (that I'm aware of). IMHO, Wilt is the goat.

 

[riverman]

Besides Dame, of course. You can make a strong case for all of these guys.

Dylan Brooks and no Oscar Robertson or Tim Duncan or Jerry West or Dr J?

 

[riverman]

To me it's Wilt ..nobody dominated the game like he did...maybe I was just young and impressionable when he played but he was amazing

 

[KSF-ERIC]

Dylan Brooks and no Oscar Robertson or Tim Duncan or Jerry West or Dr J?

The 8 answers in the poll are the clear best 8. No debate.

 

[Strenuus]

I was gonna give this a serious thought, then I see the troll answer so I must return in kind:

Caruso.

 

[Phatguysrule]

I hated the guy for years. Jordan is the only answer.

Next would be Wilt.

 

[stampedehero]

MJ personally put the lost stamp on us in 92. It's hard to swallow but he willed his Bulls teams to multiple championships and was the poster child of David Stern.

 

[BoomChakaLaka]

I still say it’s Bill Walton, Dave Twardzik, Maurice Lucas, Lionel Hollins, and Bobby Gross - my GOAT team. And basketball is a team sport!

starting 5 of the 1977 Portland Cinderella Trailblazers who showed that teamwork wins Titles

 

[Chris Craig]

Jordan. No case to be made

Wilt a close second

 

[mook]

I voted for LeBron over Jordan just because of longevity. 18 straight seasons of ultra elite basketball (so far).

There were a lot of things out of both guys' control. Pippen was better than any teammate LeBron ever had, and Jackson was a better coach than LeBron ever had. Jordan had a certain amount of good luck in not facing a healthy Sabonis. LeBron had a lot of bad luck in getting drafted by the hapless Cavs. If life dealt them different hands the championship count would be different, and LeBron could easily outstrip MJ on rings. Fate can be funny.

But both guys had complete control over how many seasons of work they put into the league. Jordan walked away twice, and after the second comeback his career with the Wizards was a joke. So he really only put in 13 legit seasons of work. LeBron is on his 18th year, and in not one single season has he produced less than 25ppg

The fact that he put so much more time into being the greatest than Jordan did seals it for me. A lot of life is just showing up, and LeBron showed up for more seasons than MJ.

 

[JoshuaHall]

Kobe

 

[Stevenson]

I voted for LeBron over Jordan just because of longevity. 18 straight seasons of ultra elite basketball (so far).

There were a lot of things out of both guys' control. Pippen was better than any teammate LeBron ever had, and Jackson was a better coach than LeBron ever had. Jordan had a certain amount of good luck in not facing a healthy Sabonis. LeBron had a lot of bad luck in getting drafted by the hapless Cavs. If life dealt them different hands the championship count would be different, and LeBron could easily outstrip MJ on rings. Fate can be funny.

But both guys had complete control over how many seasons of work they put into the league. Jordan walked away twice, and after the second comeback his career with the Wizards was a joke. So he really only put in 13 legit seasons of work. LeBron is on his 18th year, and in not one single season has he produced less than 25ppg

The fact that he put so much more time into being the greatest than Jordan did seals it for me. A lot of life is just showing up, and LeBron showed up for more seasons than MJ.

Winning the championship with three different teams is what really makes a case for LeBron imo, but to me, MJ had something magical that LeBron lacks.

 

[Rastapopoulos]

Evidently Jordan is the GOAT at PR...

 

[wizenheimer]

statistically, Wilt is GOAT. I mean, c'mon, 50 points and 26 rebounds a game in a season? 30 points and 23 rebounds a game for his career? A season when he averaged 24-24-9? And he also probably averaged 4-5 blocks a game too

of course, Russell's 11 championships is a pretty compelling stat

Kareem had quite the career too, and his Skyhook was the most un-guardable shot in basketball history

Lebron is right there with those guys and like somebody mentioned, leading 3 different teams to championships might never happen again. And his game may have evolved more over his career than any of the other greats

MJ was special. And other than Jabbar's Skyhook, I can't recall any player with the ability to get quality shots against strong defense so easily. Jordan's BBIQ was extremely high

so yeah, I vote for all those guys

 

[Phatguysrule]

I voted for LeBron over Jordan just because of longevity. 18 straight seasons of ultra elite basketball (so far).

There were a lot of things out of both guys' control. Pippen was better than any teammate LeBron ever had, and Jackson was a better coach than LeBron ever had. Jordan had a certain amount of good luck in not facing a healthy Sabonis. LeBron had a lot of bad luck in getting drafted by the hapless Cavs. If life dealt them different hands the championship count would be different, and LeBron could easily outstrip MJ on rings. Fate can be funny.

But both guys had complete control over how many seasons of work they put into the league. Jordan walked away twice, and after the second comeback his career with the Wizards was a joke. So he really only put in 13 legit seasons of work. LeBron is on his 18th year, and in not one single season has he produced less than 25ppg

The fact that he put so much more time into being the greatest than Jordan did seals it for me. A lot of life is just showing up, and LeBron showed up for more seasons than MJ.

Quit on his team too many times, IMO. That matters.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

 

[handiman]

I voted for LeBron over Jordan just because of longevity. 18 straight seasons of ultra elite basketball (so far).

But both guys had complete control over how many seasons of work they put into the league. Jordan walked away twice, and after the second comeback his career with the Wizards was a joke. So he really only put in 13 legit seasons of work. LeBron is on his 18th year, and in not one single season has he produced less than 25ppg

There should be an asterisk there, with LeBron having a 3-year head start. So, 15 (and counting) vs 13 isn't that big of a difference.

 

[blazerkor]

I think MJ was the best to ever do it and then it's LeBron.

Putting bigs on the list from the 80s and before is a bit odd. Everyone of those guys would have got their asses handed to them by Shaq, Hakeem and the Admiral and most of them would have been dominated by Malone.

MJ and LeBron would have been impossible to stop in any era. I think Magic and Bird come after them.

 

[ehizzy3]

Dillon brooks easily

 

[Road Ratt]

For sake of the thread.

My head tells me Michael Jordan. But I never saw any players who played before '78 when I started watching NBA basketball.

LeBron may be the best player since they changed the rules and you can no longer defend the way that you could in the 80's and 90's.

 

[KSF-ERIC]

This was a joke thread that only Strenuus seem to get. Nevertheless, it's nice to hear your guys' opinions. The answer is of course Jordan but if LeBron wins the title this year...