My Top 100

We tend to give extra-credit to basketball pioneers, ones who blazed the trail for others. The NBA would not be the same if it were not for these originators and game-changers, but my top 100 is all about the best skill. This list should be the most biased attempt to be unbiased by time-period and actually look at how these players' skillsets would be utilized and developed in the modern NBA landscape. Say you were to go back in a time machine and kidnap these great players from their day, in the peak of their prime, how would they be able to compete against faster, bigger, more athletic competition if they were given a chance to integrate into the NBA? So hate me, debate me, be irate with me, but most of all engage me. It's all about opinion and I would love to hear yours.

1 Michael Jordan

2 Wilt Chamberlain

3 Kobe Bryant

4 Shaquille O'Neal

5 Bill Russell

6 Magic Johnson

7 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

8 Hakeem Olajuwon

9 Larry Bird

10 Oscar Robertson

11 Moses Malone

12 Tim Duncan 

13 Kevin Garnett

14 Karl Malone 

15 LeBron James

16 Dirk Nowitzki

17 Scottie Pippen

18 Charles Barkley

19 David Robinson

20 Dwyane Wade

21 Julius Erving

22 Elgin Baylor

23 John Stockton

24 Jason Kidd 

25 Kevin Durant

26 Allen Iverson

27 Isiah Thomas

28 Jerry West

29 Steve Nash

30 Elvin Hayes

31 Patrick Ewing

32 Dominique Wilkins

33 Clyde Drexler

34 Ray Allen

35 Dennis Rodman 

36 Gary Payton

37 Reggie Miller

38 Dwight Howard

39 Tracy McGrady

40 George Mikan 

41 Penny Hardaway

42 Kevin McHale

43 John Havlicek

44 Yao Ming

45 Willis Reed

46 George Gervin

47 Bob Cousy

48 Gus Johnson

49 Bill Walton

50 Paul Pierce

51 Pete Maravich

52 Bob McAdoo

53 Chris Webber

54 Bob Pettit 

55 Wes Unseld 

56 Carmelo Anthony

57 James Worthy

58 Connie Hawkins

59 Alex English

60 Vince Carter

61 Manu Ginobili

62 Walt Frazier

63 Earl Monroe

64 Chris Paul 

65 Rasheed Wallace

66 Amar'e Stoudemire

67 Rick Barry

68 Nate Archibald

69 Derrick Rose

70 Alonzo Mourning 

71 Nate Thurmond

72 Vlade Divac 

73 Jerry Lucas 

74 Jermaine O'Neal

75 Grant Hill 

76 Dikembe Mutombo

77 Shawn Kemp

78 Chauncey Billups

79 Deron Williams 

80 Michael Cooper 

81 Pau Gasol 

82 Ben Wallace

83 Drazen Petrovic

84 Joe Dumars 

85 Sam Jones

86 Walt Bellamy

87 Elton Brand

88 Tim Hardaway

89 Chris Mullin

90 David Thompson 

91 Mark Jackson

92 Marcus Camby

93 Robert Parish

94 Adrian Dantley 

95 Shawn Marion

96 George McGinnis

97 Glenn Robinson

98 Arvydas Sabonis

99 Artis Gilmore 

100 Chris Bosh