I GET it. The popular vote goes to his His Airness Michael Jordan as the GOAT in National Basketball Association history.
Jordan, after all, earned six title rings with the Chicago Bulls in “three-peat” fashion twice from 1991-93 to 1996-98. And fans may have been awed by the glitz lights of scientific technology during the 1980s and 1990s. The powerful social media – specifically the Internet – in the current times have the propensity to make Jordan’s offensive wizardry during his distinguished NBA tenure more glitzy than usual (not to say that he’s not an excellent defender as well) as well as prop up his ability to will his team to victory.
Allow me to go against the grain, however, and cite the reasons for my selection of Bill Russell – and not Jordan – as the NBA’s greatest player of all time.
The truth of the matter is that nobody really started talking about how great Jordan is … until he secured his first NBA championship in 1991 in his seventh pro campaign out of the University of North Carolina notwithstanding his various individual accomplishments (multiple scoring crowns, in particular).
And GOAT talks began to shape up only after MJ and his Bulls again reached the mountain top in the next two seasons for the first of his two title “three-peats.”
Following a brief, forgettable 1.5-year flirtations with major-league baseball, Jordan “unretired” to lift the Bulls to another three-year championship reign in 1996, 1997 and 1998.
That’s when the 6-foot-6 Jordan heard the GOAT discussions roar the loudest as the stakeholders in the sport (media, co-athletes, coaches and fans) elevated the current Charlotte Hornets team owner’s status in the NBA’s Mount Rushmore list as the world’s great player ever.
It follows then that championships won was a major factor in evaluating the GOAT issue.
That’s why the 6-foot-10 Russell, who collected 11 titles – the most by any player in NBA history – in 12 trips to the Finals during his illustrious career from 1956-69, gets my GOAT vote.
For those people who have a contrary opinion, I accept them all with much respect. At the end of the day, we can always agree to disagree.
Russell’s defensive accomplishments – shot-blocking (no stats were documented until the 1973-74 season when he was already five years into retirement) – and rebounding (22.5 boards per game) – far outweighed his offensive contributions (still pretty cool with averages of 15.1 points and 4.3 assists in 963 regular appearances) during his entire NBA tenure with the Boston Celtics.
Russell and Jordan each collected five Most Valuable Player awards, trailing only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s NBA-record six.
Russell even submitted higher numbers in the playoffs where all the marbles are at stake. The goateed center registered per-game clips of 16.2 ppg, 24.9 rpg and 4.7 apg in 165 games.
And before some people forget, Russell romped away with 11 NBA titles. No other player has ever won more than him. (His Celtics mate Sam Jones owned 10).
Try this: Go to a well in your backyard. Strike it a dozen times and the well produces water on 11 occasions.
Russell’s claim to GOAT status was validated when the NBA named the Finals MVP hardware in his honor starting in 2009.
It could well have been the Michael Jordan Finals MVP trophy; but this wasn’t so. It was named the Bill Russell Finals MVP trophy.
By the way, I am not a leprechaun apologist. I have been a Los Angeles Lakers follower since Abdul-Jabbar moved out of the gloomy weather in Milwaukee in June 1975 to join the bright lights of Hollywood.
Russell as the GOAT? Approve (after some deep thoughts).
To expand matters, my top five choices for GOAT are: 1-Russell, 2-Jordan, 3-LeBron James, 4-Oscar Robertson (over The Logo Jerry West) and 5-Abdul-Jabbar (over Wilt Chamberlain).
Another violent reaction? So be it.
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