The Best Player For Every NBA Franchise
by hunterdobert | created - 10 months ago | updated - 10 months ago | PublicThe best player ever for every single NBA franchise. Listed in alphabetical order by team.
1. Bob Pettit
Self | The 1957 NBA Finals
Bob Pettit is an American retired professional basketball player. He played 11 seasons in the NBA, all with the Milwaukee/St. Louis Hawks (1954-1965). He was the first recipient of the NBA's Most Valuable Player Award. Pettit won the NBA All-Star Game MVP award four times, a feat matched only by ...
Atlanta Hawks
2. Larry Bird
Actor | Space Jam
Larry Bird graduated from Springs Valley High School in French Lick, Indiana in 1974. He attended Indiana University briefly, then transferred to Indiana State University in Terre Haute. He then embarked on an outstanding basketball career, establishing himself as one of the best shooting forwards ...
Boston Celtics
3. Julius Erving
Actor | Philadelphia
One of the NBA's first superstars Julius Erving's high flying hard powered style brought the NBA and basketball to levels previously unheard of. Julius Erving was born in Hempstead New York in 1950. He grew up in a housing project, the son of a single mother, with two siblings. His father having ...
Brooklyn/New Jersey Nets
4. Larry Johnson
Actor | Space Jam
Larry Johnson was born on March 14, 1969 in Tyler, Texas, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Space Jam (1996), Eddie (1996) and Triumph of Faith (2001). He has been married to Celeste Wingfield since August 27, 1994. They have three children.
Charlotte Hornets
5. Michael Jordan
Actor | Space Jam
Michael Jeffrey Jordan was born in Brooklyn, New York on February 17, 1963. He was the fourth of five children born to James and Deloris. James Jordan was a mechanic and Deloris Jordan was a bank teller. Soon after Michael's birth, James and Deloris felt that the streets of Brooklyn were unsafe to ...
Chicago Bulls
6. LeBron James
Producer | Space Jam: A New Legacy
LeBron James is an American basketball player and film producer who played for the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers. He is one of the most accomplished basketball players of the 21st century. He played himself in Space Jam: A New Legacy and Trainwreck. He is the owner of a ...
Cleveland Cavaliers
7. Dirk Nowitzki
Actor | Hustle
Dirk Nowitzki was born on Monday, June 19th, 1978, in Wurzburg, Bavaria, Germany, Europe, as Dirk Werner Nowitzki. Dirk is a very active athlete & has become an actor, in sports events, especially basketball. He is best-known for being 24 for 24 in Western Conference Finals' Game 1, on Tuesday, May...
Dallas Mavericks
8. Nikola Jokic
Self | The 2023 NBA Finals
Nikola Jokic was born on February 19, 1995 in Sombor, Vojvodina, Serbia. He is an actor, known for The 2023 NBA Finals (2023), Detail (2018) and The NBA on TNT (1988).
Denver Nuggets
9. Isiah Thomas
Producer | Playin' for Love
Isiah Thomas is an American former basketball player who played professionally for the Detroit Pistons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). A point guard, the 12-time NBA All-Star was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History and inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball ...
Detroit Pistons
10. Stephen Curry
Producer | Finding Forrester
Stephen Curry was born on March 14, 1988 in Akron, Ohio, USA. He is a producer and actor, known for Finding Forrester, Breakthrough (2019) and Ballers (2015). He has been married to Ayesha Curry since July 30, 2011. They have three children.
Golden State Warriors
11. Hakeem Olajuwon
Actor | Heaven Is a Playground
Hakeem Olajuwon, is a Nigerian-American former professional basketball player. From 1984 to 2002, he played the center position in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Houston Rockets and the Toronto Raptors. He led the Rockets to back-to-back NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. In ...
Houston Rockets
12. Reggie Miller
Actor | He Got Game
Reggie Miller is an American retired professional basketball player who played his entire 18-year National Basketball Association (NBA) career with the Indiana Pacers.
Miller was known for his precision three-point shooting, especially in pressure situations and most notably against the New York ...
Indiana Pacers
13. Bob McAdoo
Robert Allen McAdoo (born September 25, 1951) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he was a five-time NBA All-Star and named the NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 1975. He won two NBA championships ...
Los Angeles Clippers
14. Magic Johnson
Producer | Obsessed
Magic Johnson was born on August 14, 1959 in Lansing, Michigan, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for Obsessed (2009), Dead Tone (2007) and Hair Show (2004). He has been married to Cookie Johnson since September 14, 1991. They have two children.
Los Angeles Lakers
15. Marc Gasol
Self | Pau Gasol: lo importante es el viaje
Marc Gasol was born on January 29, 1985 in Barcelona, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. He has been married to Cristina Blesa since July 7, 2013. They have one child.
Memphis Grizzles
16. Dwyane Wade
Actor | What to Expect When You're Expecting
Dwyane Wade was born on January 17, 1982 in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He is a producer and actor, known for What to Expect When You're Expecting (2012), Shot in the Dark (2017) and Relentless. He has been married to Gabrielle Union since August 30, 2014. They have one child. He was previously married...
Miami Heat
17. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Actor | Airplane!
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is an American retired professional basketball player who played 20 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Milwaukee Bucks and the Los Angeles Lakers. During his career as a center, Abdul-Jabbar was a record six-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP), a record...
Milwaukee Bucks
18. Kevin Garnett
Actor | Uncut Gems
Kevin Garnett is an American former professional basketball player who played for 21 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Known for his intensity, defensive ability, and versatility, Garnett is considered one of the greatest power forwards of all time. He is one of four NBA players ...
Minnesota Timberwolves
19. Anthony Davis
Self | Space Jam: A New Legacy
Anthony Davis is known for Space Jam: A New Legacy (2021), House Party (2023) and Los Angeles Lakers (2022). He has been married to Marlen P since September 18, 2021. They have one child.
New Orleans Pelicans
20. Walt Frazier
Actor | Eddie
Walt Frazier was born on March 29, 1945 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. He is an actor, known for Eddie (1996), 3 A.M. (2001) and Aaron Loves Angela (1975). He was previously married to Marsha Ann Clark.
New York Knicks
21. Gary Payton
Actor | After the Sunset
Gary Payton played his high school basketball at Skyline High School in Oakland, California before attending Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon. Throughout his four-year career at OSU, he became one of the most decorated basketball players in OSU history. During his senior year, Payton ...
Oklahoma City Thunder/Seattle Supersonics
22. Shaquille O'Neal
Actor | Steel
Shaquille O'Neal is a retired professional American basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program Inside the NBA on TNT. He is considered one of the greatest players in National Basketball Association (NBA) history. He was one of the tallest and heaviest players ever. O'Neal ...
Orlando Magic
23. Julius Erving
Actor | Philadelphia
One of the NBA's first superstars Julius Erving's high flying hard powered style brought the NBA and basketball to levels previously unheard of. Julius Erving was born in Hempstead New York in 1950. He grew up in a housing project, the son of a single mother, with two siblings. His father having ...
Philadelphia 76ers
24. Charles Barkley
Actor | Hot Shots!
Charles Barkley is an American retired professional basketball player who is an analyst on Inside the NBA (1988).
Barkley established himself as one of the National Basketball Association's most dominant power forwards. An All-American power forward at Auburn University, he was drafted as a junior ...
Phoenix Suns
25. Bill Walton
Actor | Little Nicky
William Theodore Walton III (born November 5, 1952) is an American retired basketball player and television sportscaster. Walton played for John Wooden and the UCLA Bruins in the early 1970s, winning three successive College Player of the Year Awards. He led the UCLA Bruins to two NCAA ...
Portland Trail Blazers
26. Oscar Robertson
Producer | Something to Cheer About
Oscar Robertson was born on November 24, 1938 in Charlotte, Tennessee, USA. He is a producer, known for Something to Cheer About (2002), The Final Game (1967) and Rome 1960: Games of the XVII Olympiad (1960). He has been married to Yvonne Crittenden since June 25, 1960. They have three children.
Sacramento Kings/Cincinnati Royals
27. Tim Duncan
Actor | Watch NBA Finals with Spidey and Iron Man
Tim Duncan is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He spent his entire 19-year playing career with the Spurs.
In high school, he played basketball for St. Dunstan's Episcopal. In ...
San Antonio Spurs
28. Kawhi Leonard
Actor | Drake Feat. Future & Young Thug: Way 2 Sexy
Kawhi Leonard was born on June 29, 1991 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He is an actor, known for Drake Feat. Future & Young Thug: Way 2 Sexy (2021), National Basketball Association (1954) and LA Clippers: Introducting the Intuit Dome (2021).
Toronto Raptors
29. Karl Malone
Actor | After the Sunset
Karl Malone is an American retired professional basketball player.
Malone played the power forward position and spent his first 18 seasons (1985-2003) in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the Utah Jazz and formed a formidable duo with his teammate John Stockton. Malone also played one ...
Utah Jazz
30. Wes Unseld
Self | The 1978 NBA Finals
Westley Sissel Unseld (born March 14, 1946) is an American former basketball player. He spent his entire NBA career with the Baltimore/Capital/Washington Bullets, and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1988. Unseld starred for the Seneca High School team that won ...
Washington Wizards
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