Top ten NBA centers of all time - David Robinson on the list?

[swede123]

So I'm talking basketball with a guy at work and start praising David Robinson. My friend thought of Robinson as kind of weak, which I strongly disagree with. The Admiral is an all-time top ten center, right?

Swede

[RicktheRuler]

Named the league's MVP in 1995
NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 1992
NBA Rookie of the Year in 1990
Has won the IBM Award five times: 1990, 1991, 1994, 1995 and 1996
Won the NBA Rebounding Title in 1991, the NBA Blocked Shots Title in 1992 and the NBA Scoring Title in 1994 (he and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar are the only two players in NBA history to win each of the three titles)
Honored with the 2001 NBA Sportsmanship Award
Named to the All-NBA First Team four times (1991, 1992, 1995 and 1996) the All-NBA Second Team twice (1994 and 1998) and the All-NBA Third Team three times (1990, 1993 and 2000)
Named to the NBA All-Defensive First Team four times (1991, 1992, 1995 and 1996) and the All-Defensive Second Team four times (1990, 1993, 1994 and 1998)
Is the only player in NBA history to be named to both an All-NBA Team and an NBA All-Defensive Team in each of his first seven NBA seasons (since the NBA started the All-Defensive Team in 1968-69)
A 10-time All-Star
In 1996 named one of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players of All-Time
The Spurs all-time NBA leader in games, rebounds, blocked shots, assists and both FT made and attempted and is second in franchise history in points and both FG made and attempted
Has been named the NBA Player of the Week 15 times and NBA Player of the Month 4 times
The only male basketball player in U.S. history to appear in three different Olympic Games: was the leading scorer on the 1996 Team which captured gold in Atlanta, was a member of the 1992 Team that won the gold in Barcelona and the 1988 Team that won the bronze in Seoul
Is the United States' all-time leader in Olympic history in career points (270), rebounds (124) and blocked shots (34)
Played on the 1987 Pan American Team and the 1986 USA World Championship Team

[Los Feliz Slim]

I absolutely think David Robinson would belong on this list.

What about Robert Parish?

EDIT: I don't know my NBA stats, obviously, because I just checked and I don't there's any question; OF COURSE Parish is on this list, near the top.

[Sponger15SB]

Not to mention he also is only 1 of 4 players to ever record a quadruple double, which is pretty freakin cool.

[Patrick del Poker Grande]

Definitely top 10. If not, which 10 (plus?) are ahead of him?

[Phoenix1010]

Great question. My gut goes with no, but I'm gonna have to think about it.

[swede123]

I agree he is top ten for sure. Top of my head the list would go something like this, when considering them playing in their own era, not just who would be better matched up.

Wilt Chamberlain
Bill Russell
Shaq
Bill Walton
George Mikan
Kareem
Moses Malone
Hakeem Olajuwon
David Robinson
Patrick Ewing

I'm probably missing some people here, maybe Robert Parish.

Swede

[Phoenix1010]

Shaq
Abdul Jabbar
Olajuwan
Chamberlain
Russel
Mikan
Ewing
Walton
Parish
Reed
Malone

Here, in no particular order, is a list of who I think should be considered for this, other than Robinson. You would have to take two of these guys out to put Robinson in. The only way you can squeeze him in is if you put him ahead of Ewing, and count Reed as a PF. Neither is inconceivable, so I change my answer to a probable yes. If I missed any great centers, someone can correct me.

Edited to add: Moses Malone.

[Phoenix1010]

Edit: I was wrong.

[PhatTBoll]

In no particular order:

Kareem
Shaq
Wilt
Mikan
Malone
Hakeem
Parish
Russell
and???

He has to be on this list.

[brokedickrooster]

Robinson - Absolutely
Parish - Absolutely Not

[Soul Daddy]

No way is Walton ahead of him.

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
No way is Walton ahead of him.

[/ QUOTE ]

Nor Ewing. Nor Parish.

[Soul Daddy]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
No way is Walton ahead of him.

[/ QUOTE ]

Nor Ewing. Nor Parish.

[/ QUOTE ]
Correct. Parish is about the same as Walton. Ewing is at least pretty close.

[hoopsie44]

Willis Reed can't be on this list. Walton may have had the best all around skills of any center who ever played, but he was rarely healthy. As such, I wouldn't include him either.

[Slacker13]

I think Robinson is deserving of that title. There are some great people already on that list. I think greatness most def includes your impact on the game. And the centers below def impacted the game of basketball.

George Mikan
Abdul Jabbar
Wilt Chamberlain
Bill Russell
Shaq

Robinsons Honors
Honors: NBA champion (1999, 2003); NBA MVP (1995); Defensive Player of the Year (1992); Rookie of the Year (1990); All-NBA First Team (1991, '92, '95, '96); All-NBA Second Team (1994, '98); All-NBA Third Team (1990, '93, 2000, '01); All-Defensive First Team (1991, '92, '95, '96); All-Defensive Second Team (1990, '93, '94, '98); 10-time NBA All-Star; NBA Sportsmanship Award (2001); Olympic gold medalist (1992, '96); Olympic bronze medal (1988); One of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996).

[Slacker13]

Malone was a forward, wasn't he?

[Patrick del Poker Grande]

[ QUOTE ]
Malone was a forward. Not a center.

[/ QUOTE ]
I'm just going to let this one go. I suspect others won't be quite as forgiving.

[hoopsie44]

I like your list. The only 2 I disagree with are Ewing and Walton. I think Nate Thurmond and Robert Parrish belong.

[Phoenix1010]

[ QUOTE ]
Malone was a forward. Not a center.

[/ QUOTE ]

No.

[AustinDoug]

I would just note that the year he won league MVP and defensive player of the year, Olujawon averaged 40+ points against him in the western conference finals. I don't put a lot of stock in the awards as they are frequently influenced by political decisions.

He was a very good player, but not well rounded. He had no offensive post game (couldn't play with his back to the basket). All of his points came off (a) dunks; and (b) mid-range jump shots (not where you want your center to be).

[Slacker13]

I excluded him from my list because for some reason I always thought he was a power forward. He should def go on the centers list. Carl Malone too.

---NBA---
Malone retired following the 1994-95 season having scored 27,409 points and grabbed 16,212 rebounds in his 19-year NBA career. He made more free throws, 8,531, at the time, more than any other player in NBA history and also finished his career ranked second behind Wilt Chamberlain in free throw attempts with 11,090.

He also left the game as third in games played (1,329), sixth in minutes played (45,071) and 10th in field goal attempts (19,225). Since 1973-74, when the NBA began keeping offensive and defensive rebounds as separate categories, Malone is ranked first on the all-time list in offensive rebounds (6,731).

Add in his two ABA seasons and Malone's numbers are even more impressive. In 21 pro seasons he scored 29,580 points, sixth on the all-time list behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone, Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan and Julius Erving. He also grabbed 17,834 rebounds, third behind Chamberlain and Bill Russell. He's second in free throws made (9,018) and attempted (11,864) behind Karl Malone, fourth in minutes (49,444) played and fifth in games (1,455).

[andyfox]

Here are the centers that made the NBA's Fifty Greatest Players of the First Fifty Years list:

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Dave Cowens
Wilt Chamberlain
Moses Malone
George Mikan
Hakeem Olajuwan
Shaquille O'Neal
Willis Reed
David Robinson
Bill Russell
Nate Thurmond
Wes Unseld
Bill Walton

Thirteen of 'em. I would rank Robinson above Cowens, Reed, Thurmond, Unseld and Walton. That would make him 8th.

[Slacker13]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm just going to let this one go. I suspect others won't be quite as forgiving.

[/ QUOTE ]
Oh geez, thanks for taking it easy on me.

[captZEEbo1]

I'm pretty sure malone WAS a power forward....

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm pretty sure malone WAS a power forward....

[/ QUOTE ]

[ QUOTE ]
At the age of 19, when he was a lean and lanky 6-10 man-child, Malone had no trouble making the jump from Petersburg (Va.) High School to the Utah Stars of the ABA. Playing forward until he filled out enough to take the pounding at center, Malone was an immediate success in the ABA, averaging over 18 points and 14 rebounds as a rookie.

[/ QUOTE ]

[captZEEbo1]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I'm pretty sure malone WAS a power forward....

[/ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
At the age of 19, when he was a lean and lanky 6-10 man-child, Malone had no trouble making the jump from Petersburg (Va.) High School to the Utah Stars of the ABA. Playing forward until he filled out enough to take the pounding at center, Malone was an immediate success in the ABA, averaging over 18 points and 14 rebounds as a rookie.

[/ QUOTE ]

[/ QUOTE ]

That just says what he played as in the ABA, not the NBA.

[Slacker13]

edit.

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
That just says what he played as in the ABA, not the NBA.

[/ QUOTE ]

What are you arguing? That he wasn't a cneter? Are you serious?

[Phoenix1010]

Karl Malone was always a power forward. Moses Malone started out as a PF and then became one of the most dominant centers in the league for almost two decades.

[Phoenix1010]

[ QUOTE ]
I would just note that the year he won league MVP and defensive player of the year, Olujawon averaged 40+ points against him in the western conference finals.

[/ QUOTE ]

Olajuwan destroyed every center of his generation, especially in the playoffs. Might as well take Shaq and Ewing off the list too.

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
Olajuwan destroyed every center of his generation, especially in the playoffs. Might as well take Shaq and Ewing off the list too.

[/ QUOTE ]

Agreed. He had an awesome pro career, especially after Ewing dominated him in the NCAA finals.

[Phoenix1010]

[ QUOTE ]
Here are the centers that made the NBA's Fifty Greatest Players of the First Fifty Years list:

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Dave Cowens
Wilt Chamberlain
Moses Malone
George Mikan
Hakeem Olajuwan
Shaquille O'Neal
Willis Reed
David Robinson
Bill Russell
Nate Thurmond
Wes Unseld
Bill Walton

Thirteen of 'em. I would rank Robinson above Cowens, Reed, Thurmond, Unseld and Walton. That would make him 8th.

[/ QUOTE ]

Patrick Ewing?

[captZEEbo1]

edit: I suck at life

[Phoenix1010]

hahahahaha

Edit: see my post a bit above. You're getting your Malones mixed up.

[Patrick del Poker Grande]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
That just says what he played as in the ABA, not the NBA.

[/ QUOTE ]

What are you arguing? That he wasn't a cneter? Are you serious?

[/ QUOTE ]
Patrick's edit:CaptZEEbo edited out his picture of Karl Malone here
http://www.calvin.edu/~gsl2/poker2/malone.jpg

[/ QUOTE ]
Seriously, people... I let it go before, but this is just ridiculous. MOSES [censored] MALONE. [censored]! And I don't even like the NBA.

edit:Calling out CaptZEE's edit to remove his picture of Karl

[hoopsie44]

He was referring to Moses Malone, not Karl Malone. Karl Malone should not even be in this discussion. He was a power forward.

[jakethebake]

[ QUOTE ]
Seriously, people... I let it go before, but this is just ridiculous. MOSES [censored] MALONE. [censored]! And I don't even like the NBA.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ditto. I very rarely watch the NBA at all and even I know this. Wtf?

[offTopic]

[ QUOTE ]
edit: I suck at life

[/ QUOTE ]

Don't forget:

http://secsports.com/new/sports/bkc/photos/02legends_malone.jpg

and:

http://sportsmed.starwave.com/i/magazine/new/040114_sam.jpg

[Patrick del Poker Grande]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
edit: I suck at life

[/ QUOTE ]

Don't forget:

http://secsports.com/new/sports/bkc/photos/02legends_malone.jpg

and:

http://sportsmed.starwave.com/i/magazine/new/040114_sam.jpg

[/ QUOTE ]
Brilliant.

[Soul Daddy]

Well, Malone was easily a top 10 bartender of all time.

[sam h]

I think Robinson slides in, but that it doesn't mean that much.

Easily better:

Chamberlain
Shaq
Russell
Olajuwon
Kareem
Malone
Mikan

So that's seven. I would also argue that Duncan is really a center and obviously in the above company. He has a center's body, when push comes to shove and a big man needs to be shut down, they put him at five, and if he's guarding a power forward its to avoid foul trouble. If he didn't come into the league and immediately join Robinson, he'd be widely considered a center.

So that leaves two spots. After this point, there's a signficant drop:

Ewing - Probably next and almost surely better than Robinson

Robinson - I think he slips in.

Cowens - Had a shortish career, but you could make an argument for him over Robinson.

Parrish - Looking at the stats, he's not in Robinson's league. But if he had been on a different team, he might have had a run of 6-7 years averaging 25 ppg, so I don't think he's actually that far off.

Bottom line is that Robinson might slip in at ten, but its really a moot point. The most important thing is that there is a top tier of eight which he doesn't come close to.

[Los Feliz Slim]

Not only did Parish play in more games than anyone in NBA history, he's a nine-time all-star, won four championships, and was named one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history in 1996.

And, lest we forget, he did it all while smoking P.O.T., which didn't become really fashionable in the NBA until relatively recently.

[M2d]

what about me?
http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/Track/9444/gm32.jpg

[NiceCatch]

Anyone want to post a justification for Walton? Didn't he only have a few good years in Portland before his knees went to hell?

My impression of him has always been: Top 5 college player of all time, very good NBA player (but not top 10 by any stretch).

[jaxUp]

rik smits...

[Phoenix1010]

[ QUOTE ]
Anyone want to post a justification for Walton? Didn't he only have a few good years in Portland before his knees went to hell?

My impression of him has always been: Top 5 college player of all time, very good NBA player (but not top 10 by any stretch).

[/ QUOTE ]

You forgot top ten worst color commentator of all time.

[offTopic]

[ QUOTE ]
Anyone want to post a justification for Walton? Didn't he only have a few good years in Portland before his knees went to hell?

My impression of him has always been: Top 5 college player of all time, very good NBA player (but not top 10 by any stretch).

[/ QUOTE ]

Agreed. He was injury-plagued his whole career.

His stats show (http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/w/waltobi01.html) that he only played in 51 or more games 6 times in 13 years between '75 and '87.

[tomahawk]

I agree with Duncan. Good point, overlooked by many here.
But Ewing almost surely better!? I'd say it just as strongly the other way around.

[Phoenix1010]

[ QUOTE ]
I agree with Duncan. Good point, overlooked by many here.
But Ewing almost surely better!? I'd say it just as strongly the other way around.

[/ QUOTE ]

Duncan is and has always been listed as a power forward, and almost never plays without a center. Just because he's tall doesn't mean he doesn't play that position.

I do agree about Ewing though, and he's my favorite player of all time. Robinson's MVP and scoring title (even though he shouldn't have gotten it) are enough to put him over the top, not to mention his two rings. It's close though.

[2+2 wannabe]

how is luc longley not on the list /images/graemlins/grin.gif

the bulls would have been NOTHING without him

[NiceCatch]

Walton has got to have some of the worst statistics of any player in the Hall of Fame. There is a clear drop off in his numbers after he left Portland for San Diego... gotta figure he got in on reputation alone. Even when he was in Portland, he never averaged more than 19 points/game in a season.

By the way, he only played 10 seasons, missing three entirely due to injury. He played more than 60 games (three-quarters of a season) only three times (ironically, he played his most in his second-to-last season).

[Bulldog]

[ QUOTE ]
Well, Malone was easily a top 10 bartender of all time.

[/ QUOTE ]

All four Coyote Ugly chicks
Coach Ernie Pantuso
The Tourette's guy from Boondock Saints

Okay, maybe Sam sneaks in at #7.

[swede123]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Well, Malone was easily a top 10 bartender of all time.

[/ QUOTE ]

All four Coyote Ugly chicks
Coach Ernie Pantuso
The Tourette's guy from Boondock Saints

Okay, maybe Sam sneaks in at #7.

[/ QUOTE ]

If we can expand it to bartenders or bar owners it is pretty damn clear who wins out - Rick Blaine. It's not even close. I'd have to throw in Douglas Coughlin (Cruise's "mentor" in Cocktail) and Coach from cheers. Oh yeah, and Sting's character in Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.

Swede

[jakethebake]

You're also forgetting HER. (http://www.virtualbartender.beer.com/VB1/)

[Phoenix1010]

Virtual Bartender from Beer.com.

Edit: damn Jake beat me.

[Bulldog]

Coach Ernie Pantuso = Coach from cheers