Heading in all-time NBArank to the series premiere

Who's Michael Jordan's actual competition for the best NBA player of all time? MJ's last championship operate with the Chicago Bulls is captured in "The Last Dance," a 10-component documentary series debuting on ESPN on Sunday (9 p.m. ET). That sixth and final name helped Jordan generate a solid claim for GOAT position, with the Hall of Famer completing No. 1 in ESPN's all-period NBArank in 2016. But do legends such as for example Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar have a stronger case than Michael Jordan's Jordan? How about LeBron James? And what characteristics make one participant the GOAT? Heading in all-time NBArank to the series premiere, our NBA specialists answer the largest questions about the very best basketball players ever. MORE: Remembering the greatness of Michael Jordan and the Bulls dynasty 1. Just how many NBA players should realistically become included for greatest ever consideration? Bobby Marks: I've got 10 upon my list for conversation: Wilt Chamberlain, Oscar Robertson, JORDAN, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Tim Duncan, Karl Malone, Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O'Neal and LeBron James. In the event that you inquire me the same query in a decade, that list may also consist of one current and one former Golden Condition Warrior: Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant. Jackie MacMullan: For the reasons of this discussion, I have 11 players who require no intro: Jordan, Russell, LeBron, Magic, Wilt, Oscar, Kareem, Shaq, Bird, Kobe and Jerry West. Marc Spears: This discussion should definitely be considered a short 1. The only previous players I've are Magic, MJ, Wilt and Kareem, though I do go back-and-forth Shaquille O'Neal and LeBron James about Bird, Robertson, Hakeem Olajuwon, Duncan, Kobe and Shaq. What maintains Russell off Kobe and Jerry West that list for me personally is that he had not been a dominant pressure on the offensive end. The only current player who gets GOAT concern is usually LeBron, but I really do believe Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo possess potential to become listed on that discussion.