Alright, so today I decided to tackle something that’s been on my mind for a while: figuring out my personal “Mt. Rushmore” of NBA players. You know, the four faces that would be carved into my mountain of basketball greatness.
First, I grabbed a pen and a piece of paper, because, hey, gotta start somewhere, right? Old school, I know. I thought, to define it, I had to select only 4 NBA players that I thought were the very best.
I started brainstorming, just jotting down names that popped into my head. Jordan, obviously. LeBron, for sure. Then it got tricky. I had a whole bunch of names swirling around: Kareem, Magic, Bird, Wilt, Russell, Shaq, Duncan, Kobe… the list went on and on.
So, I decided to get a little more organized. I made a few categories to help me narrow things down:
- Dominance: How much did they just completely take over games and seasons?
- Impact: How much did they change the game or influence other players?
- Longevity: How long were they at the top of their game?
- Personal Preference: ‘Cause, let’s be honest, this is MY mountain, right?
With these criteria in mind, I started crossing off names. It was tough! Some of my all-time favorites didn’t make the cut. Some made strong cases, then lost out because of another. I spent good hours, probably too much, just staring at this list, moving names around, second-guessing myself.
Finally, after much deliberation, I have decided on my NBA top4:
- Michael Jordan. The obvious choice, yeah.
- LeBron James. He’s basically defied Father Time.
- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The skyhook! the points!
- Bill Russell. Eleven championships, cannot be overlooked.
It is difficult, but I think I’ve finally nailed it. I finally had my four. It felt good to have it settled, even if it was just for myself.
