Harrison Barnes was born to ball. He would win two more titles in 2009 and 2010. His 13-year-old daughter Gianna also passed away in the crash. Bryant entered the NBA directly from high school. In the NBA, he became one of the best shooters in the league, leading the league in free-throw percentage twice and winning Most Improved Player in 1993. ( Click here for our 5-on-5 debate.) She was the only Vermonter to play in the WNBA. The big man was born in Lawrence before spending his college career in Oklahoma and his entire NBA tenure with the Phoenix Suns. He is the all-time leader in assists with 15,806. The Pistol played in only 4 All-Star games but still managed to average 24.2 points per game over his career and is considered one of the best pure scorers in NBA history.. Pete Maravich 14. Unlike the NFL, which is still almost entirely packed with American players, and the NHL and MLB, which see their foreign-born stars come from a handful of countries in specific areas, the NBAs stars come from all corners of the globe. On Tuesday, he highlighted Jazz guard Talen Horton-Tucker as one of his top NBA DFS picks on DraftKings and FanDuel. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Hakeem Olajuwon played center for the Houston Rockets from 1984 until 2001. High school: Harold L. Richards High School, Pros: Miami Heat (2003-16, 2018-present), Chicago Bulls (2016-17), Cleveland Cavaliers (2017-18). Griffin was the first overall pick in the 2009 draft and, after sitting out his first season with an injury, made an impact right away with the Los Angeles Clippers, being named rookie of the year in 2011. Lucas McNelly Feb 25, 2023 3 comments Regional Final Hes potential personified. Starting alongside Magic Johnson, James Worthy, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and A.C. Green. There's one state that has never produced an NBA player. He got into tussles with multiple players, including Michael Jordan, and was a key component to the Celtics championships in 1984 and 1986. He is the first guard in NBA history to play 20 seasons. He was a military brat because of his own fathers military service, which led to frequent moving and likely made the nomadic life of a professional athlete easier on him. He went on to win an MVP in 1995 and was named one of the 50 Greatest NBA Players of All Time in 1996. He made 62 percent of his shot. Hes bigger than a good portion of the players in the NFL and yet he still moves as gracefully as the most nimble guards in basketball. He was born in Oklahoma City and delighted the basketball fans in his home state when he stayed home to play college ball at the University of Oklahoma. He was born in Spokane and stayed in his hometown through his college years, when he was a star player at Gonzaga. Miller helped contribute to the Miami Heat winning back-to-back titles in 2012 and 2013 before calling it a 17-year career in 2017. Position: Small forward and power forward. Along with teammate Larry Bird, McHale helped lead the Celtics to three NBA championships in his 13 seasons there, averaging 17.9 points and 7.3 rebounds per game for his career. Michael Jordan: Jordan is widely considered the greatest NBA player of all time. Our pick for the best baller from Massachusetts never spent any time playing with the Celtics, instead making his name with the Pistons. Before Charles Barkley became "The Round Mound of Rebound," he was a stocky, 5-foot-10, 220-pound high schooler who failed to make his varsity squad as a junior. ), Pros: Cincinnati Royals (1960-70), Milwaukee Bucks (1970-74). Finally, after graduating from high school early, he got selected by his hometown Cavaliers in the 2003 NBA Draft. the best power forwards in the NBA right now, NBA Teams With Championships And Titles In The World, Who Has The Most Steals In An NBA Game? SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit for $100 players Lillard No other point guard has won the leagues defensive player of the year award and thats on top of his career average of 16.3 points per game. The Best No. I know I risk getting run out of my beloved Chicago on a rail for daring to suggest His Airness isnt the best player ever but, well, I just dont think he is. He was amazing, but he had a lot of help, at least more than the last guy on this list. Although Jordan abruptly retired from basketball in the 199394 NBA season and started a new career in Minor League Baseball, he rejoined the Bulls in 1995 and led them to three additional championships (19961998). Position: Shooting guard and small forward, High school: Davenport North High School (Davenport, Iowa), Pros: Charlotte Hornets (1998-2000), Miami Heat (2000-01, 2007-08), Cleveland Cavaliers (2001-03), Boston Celtics (2003-06), Minnesota Timberwolves (2006-07), Los Angeles Clippers (2008-10), Turk Telekom (2010), Jiangsu Dragons (2010), Chorale Roanne (2011), Maine Red Claws (2011-12), Piratas de Quebradillas (2012), Erie BayHawks (2013-14). Quite possibly. He earned All-Rookie first-team honors in 1975 and was a key component of the Portland Trail Blazers lone championship in 1977. While LaMarcus Aldridge has deeper ties to Texas basketball in general, Hall of Famer Bill Sharman had the best career of anyone from the Lone Star State so far. Robertson was the first player in league history to average a triple double for an entire season, which he did in 1962 with the Cincinnati Royals, and his career averages ended up being 25.7 points, 9.5 assists and 7.5 rebounds per game. He led his high school to a 68-1 record over two years and helped them win a state championship in his senior season. But before they were pros, basketball greats had to put in work to perfect their craft. Ricky Davis helped Davenport North to the state tournament, but did not reach the championship game. In his junior year, he led the nation in scoring at 28.1 points per game and helped Gonzaga get a berth in the NCAA tournament, making it to the Sweet 16 before succumbing to UCLA. Like Alabamas Charles Barkley, Arizonas Sean Elliott stayed close to home for college and wound up having his jersey number retired by both his school and an NBA team. 20 and to Val Whiting at No. He graduated to Auburn, where he holds the school record for field goal percentage (62.6 percent), and went on to become one of the best rebounders in NBA history. Amazing how quickly people forget how good he was. The 65 guy could hit his elbow on the rim when he was a freshman. Since the 2016-17 season, hes averaged 11 points per game, typically coming off the bench. The late big man was born in Petersburg and was one of the first truly great NBA stars to come to the pros straight out of high school. Current Dallas Mavericks forward James Johnson is the only player born in Wyoming whos lasted more than three seasons in the NBA. He averaged at least 10 points per game in seven of his seasons at the games top level. He was rookie of the year in 1971, league MVP in 1973, a three-time member of the All-Defensive first team and an eight-time All-Star. He has had an amazing career and has many achievements. WebPages in category "Basketball players from Maine" The following 19 pages are in this category, out of 19 total. High school: Emsley A. Laney High School (Wilmington, N.C.), Pros: Chicago Bulls (1984-93, 1995-98), Washington Wizards (2001-03). He spent 12 seasons in the league, also playing with the Heat, Cavaliers, Celtics, Timberwolves and Clippers. In 1969, Abdul-Jabbar signed with the Milwaukee Bucks and began his storied professional career. High school: Don Antonio Lugo High School (Chino, Calif.). He helped the Lakers win their first NBA title in Los Angeles in 1972. Then she announced she would play basketball for the Blue Hens in 2009, leading the nation in scoring in her junior season in 2012. The late Walt Hazzard started his route to basketball stardom in Wilmington, Delaware, which makes him pretty unique among NBA players. Thats why its a good thing for us that Michael Jordan was born there because it takes all the work out of sorting through those hundreds of options to find the best one. His tenacity made him one of the best defenders in the game's history. The result: Horton-Tucker had 16 After leading his team to back-to-back state championships, he also became Ohios Mr. Basketball as well as the USA Today High School Player of the Year twice (2002 and 2003). Before he had a solid college career at Florida State and a pro career in Europe, Ralph Mims scored 41 points, including 35 in a row, for Brunswick in a 51-42 win over Bangor in the 2004 Eastern Class A championship game. Jackson was part of the NBAs All-Rookie first team in 1968 and came off the bench to help the Knicks win a title in 1973. Current star Domantas Sabonis could take the honor of Oregons best in years to come but for now it belongs to Brandon. Silver Spring native Victor Oladipo might have something to say about this in a few years but, for now, the title of Marylands best goes to Steve Francis. Learn more. The Greatest UConn Basketball Players of All Time #20 of 76 Every Athlete Signed To Jay-Z's Roc Nation Sports, Ranked 6 Markelle Fultz Point guard from Upper Marlboro, Maryland 155 votes Teams: Orlando Magic #48 of 58 The Best No. But do you know how he got to be so great? This season, the 6-foot-7 Flagg averaged 20.5 points, 10 rebounds, 6.2 assists, 3.7 steals, and 3.7 blocks per game. While Kareem put up a whopping 38,387 points during his playing days, I cant look past the fact that he spent a good chunk of his career receiving passes from Oscar Robertson and Magic Johnson, the two greatest point guards of all time. However, multiple playoff failures made him choose to leave Cleveland to go to Miami to play with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, a move that was heavily criticized. Nevertheless, he was an awesome force who dominated the sport for two decades and perfected the sky hook, one of the most gorgeous shots the game has ever seen. Whoever picked this list is not that knowledgeable about high school basketball history. Before David Robinson earned his nickname "The Admiral" for his military service, he attended Osbourn Park High School in Virginia, where he earned all-district honors despite never before playing organized basketball. In the WNBA, she helped the Lynx win a WNBA championship in her rookie campaign in 2011 and added three more titles after that in 2013, 2015 and 2017. This list is, naturally, incredibly subjective, and shouldnt be taken too seriously. At UMass, Camby won the Naismith College Player of the Year award and the John R. Wooden award in the 1995-96 season. Success. Dwyane Wade averaged 20.7 points and 7.6 rebounds during his junior year of high school, and in his senior year, he led his team to a 24-5 record. The 69 Johnson (making him the NBAs tallest point guard) not only posted the best assists-per-game mark in league history (11.2) but had a tremendous all-around game, as well. The uber-confident Bird had arguably the quickest release of anyone to ever play basketball and hed often let his defender know that the shot was going in soon after it left his hands. Before he earned his nickname, The Admiral, for his service with the U.S. Navy, David Robinson was a kid from Key West. 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