The 25 Greatest Players of All Time (PEAK ONLY) 

My Top 10 (peaks only) 1. MJ 2. Wilt 3. Kareem 4. Bird 5. Magic 6. LeBron 7. Bill 8. Kobe 9. Hakeem 10. Shaq

@@vb2388 Bird over Bron? Wasn’t alive to see Bird play so im not disagreeing, but is there a main reason why you say that?

@@vb2388 I would also put Steph in this

I think Arvydas Sabonis at hes peak was top 25 player of all time but that is my opinion

I think Jokic aftter this Year might be on this list

I feel like giannis could join him if he plays for the bucks for the rest of his career.

He played in shitty Minnesota

Not to mention, the entire history of the Minnesota Timberwolves success begins and ends with him.

@@crookedbraincrookedbrain9874 you mean Minnesota? 😂

Insane

Bob McAdoo is super underrated.

Bob isn’t top 20 lmfao outta here with these black and white players

​@@imonthatbeno1964 Ignorant.

If the pathetic NBA included ABA stats, Dr. J would be in the top 10

@@imonthatbeno1964so take out Wilt?

I literally just posted about this before reading this post.. Birds actual peak was 84-88 which basically holds up against anyone ever. 3 straight MVP's, made the finals 4yrs in a row, won 2 championships, 2FMVPs, on 28/11/7.. That's just ridiculous.

If it didn’t end in rings Kobe from 01-10 was different..

@@dontbemad.5435 - If

@@dontbemad.5435 No even if mj lost every finals during that period due to his cast playing bad or whatever thats still the GOAT peak by miles.

@@MIZ0217 No because the only reason he WOULD lose the finals is that they are playing bad. And MJ wouldn't have said stats without them exception being points and steals. They're literally the Warriors and I see this as the equivalent as Curry > LeBron logic.

@@dontbemad.5435 which is why i mentioned if his cast was playing worse and not him specifically

Or Lebron 2009, 2013 and 2018

This is a great idea although I’m sure it would require a lot of research to find all those seasons for all those players cuz stats might not always tell the whole story

I think curry 2022 was better than 2019 or 2015 is first MVP

Curry this year is better than every other curry

Thichicken I think unanimous was better than this year

He was one of my guys who barely missed the cut for me. 26-28 range on my list

@@jonnyarnett You are the man!! Merry Christmas

Thanks! Merry Christmas to you!

@@jonnyarnett Don't forget George Gervin, Alex English, ANDRIAN DANTLEY, and Bob McAdoo. From 25 - 30 in the list in my opinion.

Adrian Dantley probably in terms of peak could have been on here. Same with George Gervin.

The problem with modern players is that they're playing in such a weak league, it's difficult to tell how good they really are. Between softer players and softer rules, it's almost a different game now

@@hlf_coder6272 Are you suggesting players in 60s and 70s were at a higher standard? The NBA talent pool is deeper than ever, it takes more and more for a player to be considered elite. Scouting is improved, players are watched and trained from a young age and come into the competition at standards unseen before this century. Even in Jordan's era (still the GOAT IMO), the talent pool was marginal. Don't you find it odd how many teams were winning 60 games a season during that era? A few teams were stacked while the rest were filled with ordinary players. In today's game, there are phenomenal players in nearly each and every team. Are you really suggesting the likes of Giannis and Jokic wouldn't dominant in the 90s? If Giannis can dominate in defense in an alleged weak league, wouldn't he be even stronger in a league that would enable him greater physicality in his enormous frame and strength?

​@@cheezydubs2549no the 80s and 90s....people are looking for the next Jordan and Bird too much

Not a mvp but a ring and a fmvp

That’s not true. Jokic is one of the most overrated players in NBA history, he would not even be in the top 25.

I don't root for him at all but you are right

jokic would avg something like 15 8 and 5 if he was playing in 90s😃

@@ziginaigra lol

What has he done in the playoff to be on the greatest peak?

@@mixedpleasure4324 averaged 27 11 and 6 on 52/40/84 and had back to back 3-1 comebacks, he’s an elite playoff performer lol

MJ just had the best peak in NBA history with the least negatives failings and defficiencies, even compared to other all time greats. the man is really in a league of his own.

I just made a similar comment about Jokic after watching this video

Why, his peak is not better than that 25 players, more players deserve being in this list more than Jokic

The greatest big passer ever and one the greatest passers ever already

@@emilioreyes4159 that doesn't make his peak a top 25 peak just yet

He’s too busy “appreciating” dudes he wasn’t even born to watch. I’m sorry I appreciate the old dudes that pioneered the league we love today but it was way too many old dudes in this peak video. Most of em didn’t belong

So true

I get what he’s saying, but getting out scored by your matchup is the total opposite of dominance

Well wilt averaged like 30 and 28 against Russell (on 49% shooting, which is 5% lower than his regular average), while Russell averaged 14 and 23 on 37%, which is 7% lower than his normal efficiency. Not quite the dominance you are referring to lol despite all that, Russell’s team won 57 of 94 matchups when their teams played. The Celtics were stacked and that’s what led to their dominance lol not Russell saying this bs you are quoting

@@floorgeneral309 it is dominance if you win the actual game and I think Bill Russell knew a couple of things about winning

@@emilioreyes4159 sure, but when your team is clearly better than the rest, it’s not individual dominance, especially not over another player who consistently outplayed you

I literally just posted this before I saw this.. Birds actual peak was 84-88.. In which he averaged 28/11/7, went to the finals 4yrs straight, won 3 straight MVP's, 2 titles, 2Fmvp's.. His 3 straight MVP's to this very day have only been done by Russell, Wilt and Bird. His peak holds up against any peak by anyone ever.

Who’s gonna be alive to remember that 🙄

Mikan and the Lakers were the first dynasty, winning 5 titles in 6 years.

Did he not make it?! Just started video but having Malone over Dirk is a joke when you look at what they did in the playoffs. Dirk outplayed LeBron, Wade, Kobe and Durant in the SAME PLAYOFF. The disrespect is insane.

he is not even top 6 pf. he might make top 60. the dude was below average on defense and averages 20 points and 7.5 rebounds for his career.

@@willh1655 he only averaged 20 and 7.5 because he stayed around for so long and started much younger than the other greats. Over 12 seasons of his prime he averaged 24 and 9. Effective FG of 51% and most importantly had a dominant postseason run that Malone and Barkley never had. And he finished with MVP votes in 11 consecutive years. Not many guys can say that.

I am going to be biased right now, but you are stating factual information, that a lot of people (of all ages, but mostly 45 and under) have no idea of .. I was fortunate to be around older influences who informed me, how much Wilt was beat on, and didn't get calls, and I seen him play, but it was while he was a Laker.

Yeah Russell and Wilts time is also negatively impacted by them being black too. They faced more opposition than any current player sees. Not getting calls, missing out on awards, being overlooked for a white team mate and the blatant racism from fans and the pubic aswell. Also they didn't track all stats back then, there's alot of rumours if they did Wilt and Russell both would have been near double digit block averages and Oscar was apparently a prolific stealer which means we'd possibly have more triple double seasons and maybe even Quadruple double season with Wilt and/or Oscar.

Only one issue. This would be way more relevant if Wilt was even average from the FT line. He was historically bad. Not saying you're wrong, but it's not as impactful when Wilt missed Ft's at a historic rate.

@@Jbf-76 Making free throws and being deliberately and aggressively fouled are two (different) categories. Also, Heinsohn stated this fact in an article: "At 7’ 2” tall and weighing at least 250 pounds, Wilt may have been the strongest man in the league as a rookie. Despite his size, Wilt’s introduction to physical aggression in the NBA was far worse than what confronted Bill Russell. Wilt was grabbed, held, jostled, and manhandled worse than any player in the short history of the league. It went beyond rookie hazing: it was a deliberate attempt to stop the taller, stronger player by frustration and intimidation. Wilt was constantly double- and triple-teamed, hacked and whacked and smacked as opponents tried to knock the ball out of his hands. The tactics were all the more effective because of Wilt’s notoriously poor foul shooting. Even the referees contributed to the harassment, letting opposing players get away with often egregious fouls, but calling Wilt for the slightest infraction." samcelt.forumotion.net/t2803-wilt-meets-bill-and-tommy-4000-words

Kobe was also way to high, otherwise we could put russ in the top 10 if we ignore postseason and efficency

I respect it. Suggesting additions aren't difficult, its subtractions that are tough though, so who would you take out for Harden?

@@jonnyarnett probably AI, I just feel Harden was a better scorer, playmaker, and rebounder during their peaks, and defensively they were both pretty bad, so I’d say Harden has an edge, imo even considering the eras

@@jollfamily4379 AI led his team to the finals. Harden accomplished nothing in the playoffs as the leader.

@@facelessandnameless besides that 2001 finals, ai never got past the second round once

@@facelessandnameless AI’s competition in route to the finals was mediocre. Harden had to go against the greatest team of all time and almost defeated them

Lmao he’s no where near Michael Jordan’s peak. I’m assuming you weren’t around to watch MJ?

Yeah, also his early cavs team was just as bad as Kobe's Lakers, yet he took them to the finals (albeit in a weaker Eastern Conference). It's actually crazy how hard it is to determine what Lebron's real peak is with how consistent he has been. That being said, who are you bumping out? Prime Kareem? Also the best player in the league on both ends of the court. Larry Legend? Maybe worse on defense (though he was a great defender), but he's one of the few players who is actually a better passer and scorer than Lebron. And I don't think Wilt, Shaq, or Jordan are getting bumped out. I would put him ahead of Kobe at 6 though, since if you highly value being a floor raiser, Lebron was the best floor raiser of all time.

@@cabriskus4700 nowhere near? 😂 Lebron at his peak is a better 3 pt shooter, driver/finisher, passer, playmaker, rebounder, versatile defender, shot blocker, more valuable, only thing jordan has is mid range shooting and free throw shooting but your right he’s nowhere near jordan

@@cabriskus4700 Read what he said again. Bro hears Jordan’s name once and then immediately defends him.

He is a good RU-vidr but hates LeBron slightly

lebron at 7? lmao

LeBron would’ve lead them to the finals😂

​@@demier-cn1ul not in the west. The only reason bron got to the finals was bc of horrible comp.

​@@demier-cn1ul the east was weak while Lebron was playing there the west was always stack for 20 years also kobe beat more 50 wins team then anyone in NBA history

Shaq denied some legitimate Blazers and Kings teams of their shot at a title. Nobody in the east even had a chance against Shaq and I'm a Reggie Miller fan. Shaq talks up Ric Smits but Ric looked like he was hit by a truck by the end of that series. Because he was.

I remember as a kid, watching Laker games just to see what Shaq was gonna do. He would post up and some how dunk on 3 sometimes 4 people

​@@Bleatmop u do realize those series were rigged by the refs and no one can deny that lol

@@tj5180 I was actively cheering for the Blazers back then. I remember what happened. The source on it being rigged is from the ref who would later be caught and convicted of betting on the games he was reffing. I don't believe him when he says there was some conspiracy from the league to rig the game. I just believe he was trying to win money. That said, none of that takes away from Shaq's performance. The guy was an absolute beast. I have nothing but respect for his game, and this is someone who was rooting against him the entire threepeat.

@@Bleatmop it’s common knowledge it was rigged considering the calls in that series, Tim does have credibility

lying to yourself this was horrible

@@chozen3769 you probably think curry’s the goat too huh?😂

@@chozen3769 what is wrong with it?

@@Sf75178 the fact that you have to ask lol

@@Evan-mp4ev what?

no he shouldn’t

Lebron better

@@playboicarti5412 r u smokin dude

@@lloydramos7012are you?

@@dontbemad.5435 are you?? Thinking Basketball has Jordan as best 10 year peak. 538 has Jordan as the GOAT and said that in their player impact metric (raptor), Jordan has 7 of the top 8 seasons ever.

@@playboicarti5412 I’m sure if there was a worldwide vote amongst people who know basketball, 98% goes to mj over lebron. You reside in that 2% sir 😂

Facts

Agreed. Shaq couldn’t shoot free throws or 3’s and people don’t hold that against him as harshly as they do Giannis.

Maybe statistically....but inflated due to facing 2 over the hill Centers that retired right after the 00 Finals.

I don't know man, I think MJ's 93 Finals performance beats that. He averaged 41 points, 8.5 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.7 steals. He shot 51% for the entire series. He was everywhere. Agreed though, it's a toss up. 17 rebounds is a lot of rebounds.

Nobody would have stopped that man 😭

@@hlf_coder6272 I would agree only if Shaq wasn’t carrying on both sides of the ball that series. At least Jordan had his defensive anchors (Scottie, Horace Grant) but offensively it’s very close

he could have two peaks both in the top ten lmao

Kareem Hakeem and Shaq were greater

Yep he could have 87-89, 89-91, 91-93 and 96-98 Mj is easily the goat

Yea so could wilt😂 wilt could have 4 1 from 20-25 and 3 in the top 10

You can only have one peak

@@doni9824 A players prime is not limited to 3 seasons though. Anyone with a working brain knows this.

@@roboninja3194 prime and peak is different...

His defensive win share of 16 he put out will NEVER be broken. That’s sometimes four times better than the best defender he was an animap

I think Russell should be higher if defense is an emphasis. He's considered by many to be the single greatest defensive player ever and I think rightly so. Even tho the lack of balance with great offensive play hurts his argument, it's just strange to see him outside of the top ten on any list that isn't purely based on offense because his defense was so debilitating that it could shut down any team in an era with inflated concentrations of talent.

​@@kannon1610 russell wasn't bad as a offensive player and much context is needed. But his impact and how great he was defensively also his peak and longevity deserves to be in the top 10 list or top 5

@@tj5180 Yeah I'm very Billpilled tbh, I hope it's not too oppressive a bias but I think for having 11 rings Bill's greatness somehow manages to get underrated frequently. I see a lot of offensive statistic minded people really lay into him in hoisting Wilt over him and they certainly have *some* arguments. Personally the argument that I think has merit but is the most overused is that Bill's team was so overpowered that it reduces his argument for GOAT status. He may have played with a great supporting cast, but honestly where would that supporting cast be without him? His defensive impact was so massive that his teams were frequently winning championships at the same time as being the WORST offense in the entire league. That's only possible if the defensive play is so good that it limits opposing offenses to even less production. And while Bill's teammates were clutch and certainly responsible for shouldering a balanced load offensively, there's certainly no argument as to who the most dominant defensive player of that era and possibly all time was, let alone just on his team. People like to cite Wilt's career average in contests with Bill, which aren't super impressive for Bill, but let's talk about games 6 and 7 of the 69 finals. Bill held Wilt to 8 and 18 points in those games. 8 points from Wilt in game 6, a guy who rarely ever put up fewer than 20 or 30 got stuffed down to just 8 against Russell's chokehold. That's clutch play on the defensive end. Russell never lost in 21 winner take all tournament games. He defined clutch defensive excellence.

Jerry west was underrated and casuals disrespecting him bc of the JJ beef when West didn't start shit and west is literally a guy who appreciates players of today's game also isn't a old head compare to other guys who talk smack about players

Hakeem has pretty insane playoff stats

@@bigsmall2842 Yes. Man played like a top 5 player of all time in the playoffs🔥

Nah bruh he needed to be on a shit team to give you an average effeciency 35ppg

Mj did it 2x

MJ in 1987 was not in the first team all-defense and in 1988, Jordan averaged 34.98 ppg being 1st team all-defense. So Kobe is the only guard to average 35+ ppg and being 1st team all defense

Kobe 'the greatest'? 🤔😂😂😂

@@legrandelysee98 You're right. But averaging 0.02 less points doesn't change anything to me. Both Kobe and Jordan had insane scoring seasons and defensive seasons altogether. The only player who did that,besides Jordan and Kobe,was Wilt. It's hard to fathom how much energy they had to spend to do that.

Jordan's competition was insane though. Many of the all-time greats played in his era, several of them being featured in this very video. Also, you don't just play against the same player on your position - not to mention that positions in basketball are by far not as strict as in some other sports.

Shaq was without a doubt an unstoppable force in his peak. However, I remember watching Jordan when I was younger, and not matter how much the Bulls were losing by, you were always wondering if Michael Jordan was just going to take over and win anyway. There was a level of absolute dominance with him that I never saw before. Sure it was that way with Wilt too, but I was too young to see his games.

Shaq didn't really have any competition during his peak though. His biggest rivals were an older Mutombo, a B-list center like Mourning, and maybe Yao Ming. Tim Duncan was mostly a Power Forward during that time, and most of the best centers from the 90s were retiring or on their last legs. Not saying he couldn't hang with them, even as a young player he was going toe to toe. But, Shaq just never had that comp level in his prime.

Shaq was NOT dominating Duncan. His role had to change to deferring to Kobe in those series wins in 01 and 02. If that didn't happen then the 99 and 03 meetings were what happened

@@DevonDaVinci Mutombo was a B-list center because of his offense. He was still one of the greatest rim protectors of all time, and Shaq made him look foolish.

I was shocked too in every top 5 peak that I saw : MJ, Bron, Shaq, Dream and Kareem are always top 5

Bird Jordan Magic Akeem Abdul-Jabbar

I started watching full games of NBA in the 94 Playoffs. Hakeem was so good on both ends I still haven't seen anything like that guy. The Nigerian Nightmare for his opponents who can only Dream to play like him.

To this day I haven’t seen a more all round player like bird was from 84-86... he did everything and anything the team needed every game weather it was scoring, rebounding, passing or making a key defensive play. He did it all so unselfishly.. he made everyone around him so much better it was an honor to watch him in his prime. Jordan is great and I loved watching him but he wasn’t bird. The difference between them is imagine bird taking as many shots as Jordan did in a game and tell me he wouldn’t have averaged 32-36 points a game. In birds prime I have yet to see a better leader and all round player and I be watch basketball for 45 years. I only wish I could’ve seen wilt play. I bet he was amazing

@@louisgardner1129 Δεν τον πρόλαβα αλλά οι αριθμοί είναι οι αδιάψευστοι μάρτυρες της αλήθειας... Την δεκαετία του 80' ο Bird ήταν ο καλύτερος και πιο ολοκληρωμένος μπασκετμπολίστας 🏀

Bird should be #1.

I am a Celtics fan all my life and Bird was my favorite player of all time. 1985-1986 Celtics is one of the greatest NBA teams of all time!

Agreed, except Bird's peak was actually 84-88.. The man won 3 straight mvp's, on 28/11/7, made the finals 4yrs straight, won 2 titles, 2 finals MVP's, on insane efficiency.. His peak holds up against any peak of any player ever.

Lol. Well you're unbiased, so that's good. Honestly, I may look back on this one a year from now, and be like "yeeaah, I should have ranked KG higher".

Peak is not the same as prime

I go with 5

Nope never

He got his ring, but all the records come from 61-63

61-63 is the peak of his powers. especially the 50ppg season.

This guy has a hate boner for lebron while embellishing players who were before Lebron.

He kinda lost me when I saw that

Know, dude was literally the best offensive and defensive player in the NBA at the time.

The funny thing is, Lebron's peak can be multiple different years during his career. Having him at 7 is blasphemous.

Yes he could , but refs wouldn’t allow it

The haters are dumb af they could say anything about kobe s ranking

good??? GOOD????? worst list ive ever seen in my life LMAOOOOOOO

@@chozen3769 At his place, your top would be attrocius

Something Jonny took into consideration in his rankings were contributions on the defensive side of the court, applying context to stats, and playoff performances too. When considering all three of those, it's understandable why Harden wouldn't be considered a top 25 peak player. Then again, perhaps it still seems wrong since TMac and AI were in this video and I don't see much reason why Harden shouldn't be right there next to them.

@@jordanjenkins1671 He also took into consideration the help all the guys had around them during their peak years and Harden had way more help than AI n McGrady and underwhelmed

⁠​⁠@@scorpio27smooVeWay More? He only had CP3 at best ,while AI had Mutombo too. Mcgrady is understandable but Harden being not on this list is truly a disrespect imo

Who is that 😂😂😂

Well yes, you know he won his ring and his team played better when he stopped being so statpaddy selfish.

@@JT-km6th don't revise history. He didn't stop ball hogging. He had the same problem as Jordan. Bad coaching and avg team. Once he got a good coach and good teams he played with his team. Then the team got rid of the coach which is what made him want to leave.

@@dewanewelch1744 False, when he was more of a team player they won. Although only once before moving teams. Don't compare to Jordan, because if he was anything like Jordan he would've continued winning, he won once with the team then left.

@@JT-km6th nothing I said was false. I'm not saying he is Jordan. I'm saying the same thing happened. He had a avg team with avg coach and was putting up huge number because he had not because he wanted to. As soon as he got a coach they preached team play and coached it he willing stopped shooting to use his team. That's why when he wanted to be traded. He clearly could have kept his scoring numbers up. He said he stopped shooting on purpose to focus on defense, rebounding, and passing..

@@dewanewelch1744 And by focusing on other aspects of his game the team elevated. His statpadding of his prime years didn't help the team in the same way James Harden being so ball dominant was not a good thing

Peak shaq > Peak mj tbh

​@@accountant3847 Bro did you not eat h the vid. Man broke it down clear as day and you still can't understand.

@@JT-km6th I watched the video...since both went to finals 3 times a row...i value finals stats > playoffs stats > reg season stats since those are ranked on how big the stage is and based on that, from the statlines given in the video, shaq's 3 straight finals statline > mj's 3 straight finals statline not to mention, shaq's era's pace is slower than mj's era's pace which makes those shaq's numbers more impressive So yeah, peak wise in the biggest stage, 3y stretch, shaq > mj > anyone else

@@accountant3847 I mean I can respect that opinion. I disagree, but not by much.

@@Bleatmop aight, np bro👌🏽

that's funny because ppl love to use the pace of today's pace against players of today