Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Photo credit: SI Kids

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (or Lew Alcindor, depending on which era of his career/life you're talking about) is one of the few players outside of #23 for Chicago that has a legit claim to the title of GOAT. How, you ask? Just ask such legendary figures as Julius Erving, Isiah Thomas, George Gervin, and Pat Riley. The reason I believe he is often overlooked in the GOAT discussion is because he wasn't exactly known for being a people person, which I think is absolute crap. Even from an early age, it became obvious to those watching him that he would be special. At Power Memorial HS in New York, he scored 2,067 points in 3 years (a record at the time) and his teams went 79-2, ranked #1 nationally his junior year and #2 his senior year. He continued onto UCLA, where he dominated the defending national champion varsity in his first scrimmage there. After sitting out his freshman season due to NCAA rules at the time, the Bruins went 88-2 in his 3 years on the varsity, which included 3 straight national titles. After his sophomore season in 1967, his dominance led the NCAA to ban dunking in an effort to slow him down. Instead, it only made him a more well-rounded player because it forced him to develop his now legendary skyhook. After graduating, he was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks, immediately turning the team around. In his second year, the Bucks acquired Oscar Robertson, and the duo won a title together in 1971, with Lew winning Finals MVP, as well as league MVP and the scoring title. Not long after, he changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to complete his conversion to Islam. While Kareem remained dominant over the next few years, winning 2 more MVPs in 1972 and 1974, the Bucks fell short of the title, coming closest in 1974, when they lost in 7 games to Boston. Soon, Kareem wanted to move to New York, his home, or Los Angeles, where he played at UCLA, as he felt uncomfortable in Milwaukee. In June 1975, the Bucks granted his wish, trading him to the Lakers. In his first two years there, he won back to back MVPs in 1976 and 1977, but again the Lakers fell short. Into his thirties, Kareem seemed to be slowing down, until a young, energetic guard by the name of Earvin Johnson was drafted by the Lakers in 1979. What followed was a decade of basketball that resulted in another MVP for Kareem in 1980, 5 NBA titles, and a Finals MVP in 1985, becoming the NBA's all time leading scorer in the process. In the end, even if Kareem Abdul-Jabbar doesn't get the recognition and respect he deserves, he certainly has the raw numbers to back up any claims. 

Magic Johnson

BABY HOOK

Earvin "Magic" Johnson. He was Showtime. Never has there ever been a point guard that could run the floor and dish the ball at his size, and never will there be another, at least for the foreseeable future. Magic got his start in Lansing, Michigan, where he stayed to attend Michigan State. In 1979, Magic led Michigan State to a national title over Indiana State, led by a guy named Larry Bird (more on him later). A couple of months after that, he was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers, where he would change basketball forever. He put together a great rookie year, though he lost the Rookie of the Year award to Larry Bird. However, he would get the last laugh in the 1980 NBA Finals, where filling in for an injured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, he put together one of the great NBA Finals performances of all time. He followed that up with a second NBA title and Finals MVP in 1982, then came a long-awaited rematch with Larry Bird in 1984. Late game mistakes in Games 2 and 4 left him with the nickname "Tragic Johnson." However, he bounced back in 1985 and 1987 to beat the Celtics, winning Finals MVP in 1987 to go along with his first regular season MVP. Then, he helped lead the Lakers to another title the next year against his old buddy Isiah Thomas and his hometown team, the Detroit Pistons, making history as the first team since the 1969 Celtics to repeat as champions. He continued his high level of play, winning back to back MVP awards in 1989 and 1990, and despite Finals losses to the Pistons in 1989 and Bulls in 1991, life seemed to be good for Magic. Then came the events of November 7, 1991, when Magic announced that he had HIV and retired. Despite the announcement, he played that year's All Star Game in Orlando after being voted in by fans, winning MVP. He followed that up by playing in the Barcelona Olympics that summer with the Dream Team, the first team composed of NBA players to represent the United States in the Olympics. After a misguided attempt to coach the Lakers, he came back for one last half season in 1996 before retiring for good. Let's face it: while he may make Captain Obvious tweets, he's a major reason we can enjoy the NBA as much as we do today with as wide a level of coverage. Not only that, he's the reason LA became a Laker town and why the Lakers became the team of choice for many immigrants that arrived in this country in the 1980s (you want proof, look at my family).

Shaquille O'Neal

The Dunk that won the West

Shaquille O'Neal. Shaq Diesel, The Big Aristotle, Most Dominant Ever, Superman, and there's probably a couple hundred other nicknames he came up with. Sometimes, certain peoples' personalities match some other characteristic of themselves. In Shaq's case, he's a big man with a personality to match. In my lifetime, I cannot think of a player who was just as entertaining off the court as he was on it. In fact, you could argue he was more entertaining off the court. It seemed destined from the beginning that Shaquille O'Neal would set the basketball world on fire and turn it upside down. He did it in high school in Texas, and did it again at LSU. He hadn't even played a minute of NBA ball and was already doing things many pros couldn't do. After being drafted #1 overall by Orlando in 1992, he continued his dominance, taking the Magic to the NBA Finals in year 3 after teaming with Penny Hardaway. The following year, after losing to the 72-10 Bulls and while competing in the Olympics for Team USA, Shaq became a Laker in one of the biggest free agent signings in sports history. What happened? Only 3 straight titles, 3 straight Finals MVPs, a regular season MVP award in 2000, and probably the most dominant era of basketball by someone not named Jordan. After things didn't work out with Kobe and the Laker organization, he moved to Miami where he won another title with D Wade, then went between the Suns, Cavs, and Celtics (that never happened) over the last few years of his career. Never have I seen anyone who had more fun playing the game, and I probably won't ever again. 

Kobe Bryant

Dwight's baptism

When talking about Michael Jordan earlier, I mentioned that few of those called "The Next One" have managed to do even half the things he has done. Kobe Bryant is one of that select few. He's been labeled many things: selfish, ballhog, cold, overrated, inefficient, shoots too much, the reason Detox hasn't come out yet, you get the idea. However, none of that matters here at the People's Hall of Fame. You want all that other stuff, make your own. I'm here to talk about Kobe Bryant, goddammit. The fact of the matter is, you'll be hard pressed to find a player who was as great as he was in his time period (Some have argued Duncan was better, but Kobe seemed to save his best for the Spurs and ruined Duncan's dreams 4 times). He came along at a time when high school players were still seen as major risks, and the first year of his career seemed to confirm it, particularly during that one playoff game in Utah. However, in year two, he shifted into a different gear, making nightly appearances on SportsCenter and gained popularity, so much so that he got his own shoe, his own video game, and was selected to start for the Western Conference All-Stars despite the fact he didn't even start for the Lakers. The rest, as they say, is history. In this 19th year of his career, the fact that players who were toddlers at the time he first put on a Laker uniform are making their NBA debuts now speaks to his longevity. The amazing thing about Kobe is that at this point in his career, even though his best days are behind him, people will still pay money in cities across this country to watch him play. They get it. They know he ain't gonna be around forever. 

Michael Jordan

A SPECTACULAR MOVE BY MICHAEL JORDAN!!!

If you're doing something on basketball, where else to begin but with Michael Jeffrey Jordan? I don't need to go into his bio, because you already know his story. You know about his high school days (I know the story of him getting cut is really a myth, but I prefer to believe that version), UNC, lifting the Bulls to greatness, his retirement, his return to the top, I can go on and on. Even a decade and a half after his retirement, his impact can still be felt today. Don't believe me? Go by a shoe store late at night on a Friday. If there are people camping out with chairs, sleeping bags, and whatnot, some new retro of his shoes is probably going to be released early Saturday morning. That's right. Michael Jordan is such a powerful force in basketball people camp out and stand in line all night for shoes that came out 20 years ago. To this day, we're still looking for "The Next One," the player who can match Mike's level of greatness. Many have received that title, not many have even done half of what Mike has done (more on one of the few who did later). I mean, if you're going to reach the level of Michael Jordan, you're going to have to:

Win MVP, the scoring title, and Defensive Player of the Year ALL IN THE SAME YEAR

Go 6 for 6 in NBA Finals, and win Finals MVP every time

Win 7 straight league scoring titles

Win 5 MVP awards

Hit game winning shots with regularity

Win 3 straight titles, retire, come back a year and a half later then win 3 straight titles again

Strike fear into opponents with your mere presence on the court

AND

Do a movie with the Looney Tunes (haha).

Which is why I think a lot of the Michael Jordan comparisons are simply unfair. He's one of those once in a lifetime talents that we won't see again, and when someone like him is seen again, we'll all be long dead.

The Hall of Fame

I'm Alex, and I'm in charge of the People's Basketball Hall of Fame. What is the People's Basketball Hall of Fame? It's like the real Basketball Hall of Fame, except for one thing: while I'm featuring players that are already in or will ultimately make it into the real Hall of Fame ( MJ, Kobe, Shaq, Magic, etc.), this one features a lot of people that otherwise would not make the real Hall of Fame. Let me know in the comments below who else you want featured.