Top five centers in NBA history
By Charles Joel, Yahoo! Contributor Network Mar 31, 5:50 pm EDT
In all walks of life there are giants among us: those who figuratively, and at times literally, stand apart from their peers. The NBA is no exception. It is graced by behemoths of both stature and accomplishments and none are larger than the centers. Playing arguably the most important position in basketball, centers serve as efficient scorers and patrol the paint, making it nearly impossible for opponents to convert.
Historically, having a great center on your team has meant title contention and pairing him with a talented perimeter player is the main ingredient of a dish called dynasty.
Below you will find my list of the top 5 centers in NBA history based on their per minute production on offense and defense as well as their ability to lead their team to championships. The list prioritizes overall career value over peak value and takes into account both regular and playoffs efforts.
5. Moses Malone
Before Kevin Garnett(notes), Kobe Bryant(notes) and LeBron James(notes) made the successful leap from high school to the NBA, there was Moses Malone. At 6'10'', Malone led the league in rebounding from 1980 to 1985 and is third all time in total rebounds. Particularly, Malone is arguably the best offensive rebounder in league history, possessing the perfect combination of power, length and instincts. Although Malone never won a scoring title, he averaged over 20 points per game for his career and eclipsed the 30 points per game mark in one of his 3 MVP seasons, 1981-82.
Malone was one of the best post players of his generation and had the ability to drive around slower defenders like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Malone led the 1983 Philadelphia 76ers to an NBA Championship and was selected as one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history.
4. Hakeem Olajuwon
He possessed the speed, agility and offensive skill-set of a guard as well as much size and power as big man. Add that to the fact that he was the greatest shot blocker in league history and you have the perfect basketball player.
The Dream.
In his prime, Olajuwon may have been the most well-balanced center in the history of basketball. As far as particular skills go, Kobe Bryant, who Hakeem has trained, considers Olajuwon the best post player ever.
But, we don't need Kobe to tell us that.
If you ever watched him against David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, Alonzo Mourning(notes) or Shaquille O'neal(notes) in the mid-90s, you will remember that in a league dominated by spectacular big men, Olajuwon bested them all. With a flurry of dream shakes, fadeways and spin moves, his eminence was undisputed .
He was a two-time NBA champion, 12 time All Star, league MVP and ended his career in the top 10 all time lists in scoring, rebounding, steals and blocks.
3. Shaquille O'neal
Throw the ball within 6 feet of the basket and two points would appear on the scoreboard.
If you've played a lot of basketball, you can easily imagine how Shaq dominated the NBA. Remember when you played your little brother, who actually wanted to beat you but you posted him up eight times in a row to punish the little runt for his pee-wee body?
That's what Shaq did to NBA centers.
In the paint, Shaq was an adult playing with athletically gifted children. And so, the point of defenses was to keep the ball out of his hands at all costs. Entire front courts swarmed him because he made the basket the size of his wingspan for his team. All you had to do was get him the pass in the paint and no one would stop him.
From the moment he exploded onto the scene in 1992, Shaq seemed destined for that type of dominance. Coming into the NBA at 7'1'' and 325 lbs and gaining weight later in his career, he is undoubtedly the most most imposing figure in the history of sports.
There are simply not enough accolades to the Big Aristotle justice. Shaq is a 4 time champion, MVP, Rookie of the Year and a 15 time All Star. He's 5th all time in scoring and 7th in blocks. In fact, because of his gargantuan presence, he can still add value in to his team today, as he is the oldest active player in the league.
2. Wilt Chamberlain
Unlike any player ever, the moment stepped on an NBA court, he was far and away the best player in the league. When Kareem entered the NBA, it was Jerry West. When Magic and Bird joined, it was Kareem. When Jordan arrived, it was Magic and Bird. When LeBron showed up, it was KG and Duncan.
For years, Bill Russell was considered the best player in the world. Then, overnight, he became a distant second to Chamberlain. In head to head match-ups, Bill Russell, who may be the greatest winner in the history of sports, one of the best defenders and an honorable mention on this list, had no answer for the Big Dipper and could easily suffer a 40 point 25 rebound shellacking at the hands of Wilt.
Wilt Chamberlain averaged 37 points and 27 rebounds as a rookie. He then averaged 50.4 points per game an entire season.
If you don't get the picture after reading that, how about the fact that he holds the record for most NBA records.
He boasts every major scoring and rebounding record except most points all time. He scored 100 points in a game, won seven scoring, nine efficiency and eleven rebounding titles and when charged with being a selfish player, what did Wilt Chamberlain do?
He led the league in assists.
He was a two-time champion and four time MVP. Although his resume is behind Kareem's in terms of career output, in his prime, Wilt Chamberlain schools everyone on this list.
1. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is not just the best center ever in the NBA, he is the most accomplished athlete in the history of professional sports.
Born Lew Alcindor, Kareem's greatness was apparent from his college days. He played three seasons with UCLA and won three NCAA championships. In those days Kareem was so dominant that the slam dunk was banned from collegiate basketball for ten years because of how flagrantly he embarrassed opponents with it.
Early in his NBA career, we was paired with Oscar Robertson on the Milwaukee Bucks to win his first of six MVP awards and first of six NBA Championships.
That's right, 6 MVPs and 6 rings.
Five of those championships were shared Magic Johnson as a member of the showtime Los Angeles Lakers. He also played integral roles for two of the greatest teams ever assembled, the 1970-71 Bucks and the 1986-87 Lakers.
Kareem scored more points than any other player in history and might have been first all time in blocks if the statistic had been recorded during his whole career.
He was a two-time collegiate player of the year, NBA rookie of the year and two-time Finals MVP.
Still, perhaps his greatest accomplishment was the sky-hook, the most unstoppable shot known to date. It should come to know surprise that a man heralded for his meticulous attention and extreme intelligence would devise the one shot in NBA history that was unguardable. He could shoot it with both hands and robotic accuracy from as much as 15 feet from the basket.
And unlike Wilt or Shaq, if you fouled him, Kareem would make you pay.
There was no defense.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did as much in basketball as any individual can do in a team sport.
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