GOAT

With the NBA Playoffs in full swing, it’s always fun to look back in NBA history and find your starting five. The possibilities are endless; do you start Magic Johnson or John Stockton at point guard? Is Michael Jordan the only lock? Who’s your starting center, Kareem? Shaq? Bill Russell?  What about Oscar Robertson’s triple-double season? Like I said, the possibilities are endless. I know I have my own starting five as well as every other basketball fan. You’re always going to stir up debate no matter who you is in your starting five, so here’s what I got, let the debate go on.

A side note before I continue, I don’t look at rings as much as everyone else, probably another thing that’s going to cause debate.

Point Guard: John Stockton. Best season: 17.2 PPG, 14.5 APG, 2.9 STL.

Right off the bat I know this one is going to cause debate. I would bet that 99% of NBA fans would take Magic Johnson as their point guard; I guess I’m in that 1% that wouldn’t. I’m not saying Magic is a bad choice, but I like to have some defense, Stockton was named to an NBA All-Defensive team five times. He was the NBA’s assist leader in 9 of his 19 seasons. Granted he didn’t win any titles during 19-year career, but when you mention the top point guards of all-time, John Stockton is certainly at the beginning of the conversation.

Career totals: 19,711 points, 15,805 assists (NBA Leader), 3,265 steals (NBA Leader.) 2 Finals appearances, 0 titles.

Shooting Guard: Kobe Bryant. Best season: 35.4 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 4.5 APG.

Again I’m going to cause debate; how could I not have Michael Jordan as my starting 2 guard, this makes me such a horrible person. If you look at it Kobe made the All-Defensive team the same number as Jordan (9 times), and he was named to the All-NBA First Team 10 times which was one more than His Airness. I mean really, is it that big of a crime that I would take Kobe over MJ? Am I really the only person that would do such a terrible thing? I’d like to think the answer is no, but then again, I like to say bold things (very bold) at times.

Career total: 32,482 points (3^rd all-time), 6,800 rebounds, 6,122 assists. 7 NBA Finals appearances, 5 titles.

Small Forward: LeBron James. Best season: 30.0 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 7.2 APG.

This is an easy one for me, you could put LeBron anywhere on the floor and he could guard anywhere on the floor. LeBron might be on his way to being one of, if not the greatest player of all time. (Cue the LeBron haters out there.) There hasn’t been a player like him and there might not ever be. He is the combination of all the greats mixed into one; he is the best player on the planet and continues to show us why. There are a lot of players in NBA history I’d take over LeBron to take the last shot, but not many I’d take to guard the last shot.

Career totals: 24,913 points, 6,502 rebounds, 6,301 assists. 5 NBA Finals appearances, 2 titles.

Power Forward: Tim Duncan. Best season: 25.6 PPG, 12.7 RPG, 2.5 BPG.

Father time sometimes catches up on athletes but not Tim Duncan. If Duncan can capture his 6^th NBA title, he would quietly be building the resume of one of the all-time greats. In his 19^th NBA season, Duncan, aka the ‘Big Fundamental’, is as consistent as they come both offensively and defensively. Duncan was named to an All-Defensive 14 times throughout his career. A career 19 and 11 player, Duncan has been the cornerstone for a Spurs franchise that has been at the top of the NBA year in and year out. It’ll be a tough day when Father Time decides to hang it up.

Career totals: 25,974 points, 14,644 rebounds, 2,941. 6 NBA Finals appearances, 5 titles.

Center: Shaquille O’Neal. Best season: 29.7 PPG, 13.6 RPG, 3.0 BPG

Quite possibly the most dominant player in NBA history, Shaq simply could not be stopped. The argument against him is that there was a lack of ‘true centers’ during his run, but nonetheless, when he would get the ball in the post the chances of someone stopping him were slim to none. The same can be said for the Diesel on the defensive end; at 7’1”, 325lbs, there weren’t too many players who could go through him and there aren’t many players that will ever be as dominant.

Career totals: 28,596 points, 13,099 rebounds, 2,732 blocks. 5 NBA Finals appearances, 4 titles.