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Welcome in to a very special edition of the What's Right with Nick Wright Podcast YouTube show, Subscribe, rate, review, all that stuff, but Here's Life.
Special Edition.
About three years ago I started on a project. The idea was to do the fifty best players of the last fifty years in the NBA, to basically take from Kareem's rookie year to right now and not only give you a list of fifty, but put them in order one through fifty. It has taken me years. I thought it was going to be a book. It's now via this platform that we're going to do it. So it's really the fifty best players of kind of the last
fifty two years. But we're going to call it fifty of the last fifty from Kareem to now.
We'll get into who just missed.
We'll get into who was too old later, but before we get to number fifty, just to set the parameters, I'm not what matters, what does matter, what doesn't matter. I'm not worried about off the court stuff. I'm not worried about the Olympics. I'm not worried about international ball. I'm worried about how many all NBA teams did you make? Did you ever win an MVP? What did you do in the playoffs? What did you do in the biggest moment?
What were your biggest accolades and awards? Those are the things.
That matter to me.
And now, without further ado, let's get right to number fifty. One of the great what ifs an NBA history, the Great Bernard King.
Number fifty, Bernard Key.
He pairs quite nicely like a wine with a stake. With number forty nine. We'll explain that in a moment. The accolades are the follow two times First Team All NBA, one time Second Team, one time, thirteen he won a scoring title, averaging thirty three points per game. He almost won an MVP that year in nineteen eighty four, And so here's the deal. He averages thirty three and then he suffers a brutal injury, takes him a bit to get back, and then six years later he's back up
to twenty eight per game. But then he got hurt again. And this is back when you can't recover from injuries the way guys can now.
And so he just didn't have it.
He didn't have the longevity of some other guys, but his peak was incredibly high. So as you're gonna see as we go throughout this list, we're talking about Bernard's playoffs in a moment we are we're going to try to value everything, right, So a guy who was really good but did it for fifteen years, how do you weigh that against a guy who was great but only did it for eight years. Bernard King is obviously far
closer to the latter than the former. But the other thing you're going to see is guys with light playoff resumes are penalized greatly, and Bernard King, he doesn't have a non existent playoff resume, but it's a light one. So let me talk about what he did well nineteen eighty four. He did beat Isaiah in the Pistons. That Knicks team had no business beating Isaiah and the Pistons. He beat him, how they beat him. He averages forty three and eight for the series, forty three and eight.
He had four forty point games in that series, that same Pistons team that would years a few years later him up Michael Jordan three years in a row. Bernard King beat him, so that matters. Then in round two, this again is pre injury, it's his best year, almost.
Wins, MVP, does all these things.
He plays Bird Celtics in round two, so you have Isaiah's Pistons in round one, you have Bird Celtics in Round two. Gets to a Game seven against Bird Celtics, averages twenty nine to five in that series, scores forty four in Game six, down three to two, but they lose Game seven, suffers the injury again. So the playoff resume is really just that one year. But that's also the one year in the playoffs where he hadn't been hurt yet, So it does feel like he had amazing
things to come. Never quite reached it because of the injuries. He's the fiftieth greatest player of the last fifty years, the great Bernard King, who the way he explained how he scored, there were like twelve spots on the court he cared about. He just knew how to score from those twelve spots. He had three dribble moves. He worked
on a dribble, right, dribble, left, dribble center. He would look at out guarding him and then pick the spot on the quarteryhos closest to pick the dribble movie needed to do and that's how he would do it. Brilliant player, a big what if the fiftieth greatest player ever? We have a question mark about one Bernard King or a question from a caller, I should say, let me hear it.
Not to be a millennial or anything, but who the hell is Bernard King? And why do you have him over Tracy McGrady. His shoes wasn't the best, but man, that boy could score. He could.
Yeah.
Me, I'm just trying to figure out how Bernard is over t missynt Let me know because I'm confused. Bro.
So that's about Tracy McGrady and Tracy McGrady is a great question because Tracy McGrady, as spoiler alert, does not make this list, so his peak was incredibly high. He also, you could argue, was as good as gifted of a scorer as Bernard King, So why does King make it and Tracy doesn't. Tracy's one of the hardest omissions because Tracy's lack of a playoff resume is even more glaring
than Bernard Kings. Tracy made the playoffs a bunch and never gets out of round one, and if you go through it, it's not great instances on him not getting out of round one, there's a lot of Game sevens and it's not great performances. So most famously, he's up three to one on Detroit, up three to one on Detroit in round one. They not only lose the next three, but he's eight of twenty in game five. He's seven
of twenty four in game seven. Now he's really good in game six, but they lose by fifteen despite it, that's not great. The next time he's in the playoffs, another game seven, a series against Dallas. This time he's with Houston. He's ten of twenty six in that Game seven. They lose the next year, two years later, is in the playoffs again, another game seven, this against Utah. He's not bad, don't get me wrong, He's not bad. In
the game seven he is twenty nine and thirteen. That it was by four, but the problem was they were up three to two, and in game six he's eight of twenty three. So that McGrady, the playoff stuff, in my opinion, just kills him. He just misses out. And so that's why he's not on the list. And that's why forget being number fifty, he's certainly not number forty nine, number forty nine. Another guy who people hold the playoff resume against him one Carmelo Anthony.
Number forty nine.
Carmelo Anthony.
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So Carmelo, Anthony and Bernard King, it's a very interesting dichotomy here because and I'll go through Carmelo's accolades in a moment, I think Bernard King's peak was higher, but Carmelo was close to him peak wise, and did it so much longer. He is ninth on the NBA's all time scoring list. That's got to matter.
Now. He doesn't have.
Any first all NBA first teams, but he has two second teams and four third teams.
He also won a scoring.
Title, was a one time scoring champ, and he finished third in the MVP voting one year. Now, as far as the postseason goes, famously never made a finals. However, he was the best player on a conference finalist. That again, that doesn't get that doesn't do much for you, but it's something. And in that conference finals against Kobe Is back when he was with Denver, he's twenty eight five
and four. It's twenty eight five and four in those conference finals and in the playoffs from that year from nine to twenty thirteen, he was twenty eight a game. So you have the fact that he is top ten all time scoring in NBA history. He is a guy who, though I would say in the best team he was on, they did exactly what they should have done. In the postseason. They got as far as they should have gotten. They didn't underachieve. They were two to two with the Lakers.
And if you remember, I don't know if you do, that Game five against the Lakers is tied going into the fourth quarter. Carmelo was excellent in that game five, actually outplayed Kobe in that Game five, but they ended up losing the fourth quarter by nine points I think, And so they end up losing that game and they lose Game six.
That's a great what if?
What if Carmelo had carried that Nuggets team to the finals? Not only what if for his legacy, but also does he then stay with Denver because the other part that killed Mellow And I know this has been brought up a lot, but it warn't mentioning. He wanted to get to New York very badly. That's fine, but he also wanted all his money. So instead of waiting a year and signing with the Knicks outright he forced it there early.
The Knicks then have to trade all those pieces to get him, which then undercuts his ability to win with them. But when he did get to New York, the best team he was on With New York, they again got as far as they should have gotten in the playoffs. They get to Round two and who they lose to Lebron in the heat. So it's not like there were a bunch of years Carmelo was on the better team and fell short. I do think that happened with the
guy like Trayson Grady we just mentioned. I also think this final act of Carmelo's career is a valuable one. After he was essentially kicked out of the league. Nobody wanted that he wouldn't come off the bench. He didn't work in Houston. What he was able to do for Portland, what he's been able to do for the Lakers, is an important minor legacy and answer probably just enough not only did get him into the top ten all time in scoring, but to push him ahead of a guy
like Bernard King. So the two greatest Nick scorers ever, Bernard King and Carmelo Anthony, come in fifty to forty nine. I think we have a caller that wants to ask about Carmelo.
Hey, Pop, Sistebonse live in the house. I've got a question for you. You say the playoffs matter in this whole ranker thing. Melos only made it past the first round two times in his entire career. Please tell me how it is that he got here. I'd really appreciate it. Thank you.
Bye.
So I think that again, I don't look at Carmelo as a playoff failure. I understand he didn't have much playoff success.
But if you go through the actual and I'm gonna pull it up for you guys right now.
If you go through the career playoff series, like what is the series Carmelo lost that, you're like, oh man, no, oh business losing that? If we're not going to talk about very early in his career. So in eight with Denver, or you go to seven with Denver, they lose to the Spurs. The Spurs won the title that year. Eight with Denver, they lose to the Lakers. All right, Well, the Lakers went to the finals that year. The next year with Denver's the year that you lose to the
Lakers and the conference finals. And I'm gonna go a little overtime here defending my guy mellow who yes, listen, he is a Syracuse guy, and he did deliver us a championship.
It's still ninth all time. We can score.
The next year in Denver, they lose to Utah on six. Okay, I guess you can argue that year. You know, maybe they should have won that series. But then when he goes to the Knicks, who do they lose to. They lose to the Celtics Big Three. That's the better team. They lose to the Heat, that's the better team. They then lose to the Celtics. Again, that's the better team. Twenty thirteen, they lose in round two to the Pacers. Okay, yeah, maybe you win that series. But that Paul George roy
everteen was good. That team took Lebron and the Heat to seven. And then after that it's with OKC, OKC. We're going to hold that one against him. No, he's a different player, so I don't look at the it. Yes, you would like to have a better playoff resume, but if you have a better playoff resume and your top ten all time in scoring, you're higher than forty ninth. Carmelo Anthony, the forty ninth greatest player of all time, will be
right back. Welcome back in What's Right with Nick Wright podcast YouTube show, where we are counting down the fifty greatest players of the last fifty years in the NBA. And even though it's basically Kareem's rookie year to now, I would feel personally remiss if I didn't at least acknowledge guys who belong on any NBA list, if.
They weren't just too old for it.
So the guys this isn't the entire list of guys who were too old to make to make this list, but it's.
A partial list.
I'm going to go through them in a somewhat of chronological order. So, you know, Bill Russell, Elgin Baylor, Bob Pettitt and George Mikeen were the two greatest players of the pre Wilt Russell era of NBA history. Bob Pettitt's you know, career accolades still hold up. George Michen was a dominant, dominant force in the league. So those guys have to be on any list. Obviously Russell, So I think Russell somehow is underrated. He won eleven titles in
thirteen years. He won the league MVP five times, and that was back when the players were voting on it. Everybody knows will Well had a fifty point per game season. Same season he averaged more than forty eight minutes per game. He won an assist title. He just didn't win enough. If Wilt won two more titles, he's probably Babe Ruth of basketball. Even one hundred years later, people would be like, ah,
that's the greatest player ever. In that same era, you have Elgin Baylor and jaredry West competing with those guys. It's one of the reasons Jerry's one in eight in the finals. You also have Oscar robertson the original triple double. Those guys have to be on any all time list. They're just too old for mine. Another great guy that is not the caliber of those players. But what is on the NBA seventy five list, and justifiably is Willis Reid. The reason I'm mentioning him is Willis Reid is the
youngest guy who's too old for this list. So if that helps your mind's eye. If you're an NBA historian, as we're going through this top fifty, you're like, wait, why didn't such and such make it? Why didn't John Halichik make it?
Too old?
Anybody who's willis Reid's era generation or older does not make this list, So that's kind of the cutoff there. Now Here are guys who were eligible but did not make it. Now this will not spoil the list entirely because they are because there are certain guys that made the top seventy five that didn't. Not only did they not make my top fifty, but they weren't even my honorable mentions.
I'm not gonna name any names.
Reggie Miller, but Reggie Miller hes guy's seventeen three and three for his career was never even sniffed in MVP. Why is he this consensus top seventy five guy? I don't know, but let's go through some of these guys. So wes Unselled has the top end to make this list, but not the body of work. He has an MVP, and he has a finals MVP, but he only has
one truly great season. Also, and I'm not trying to bore you with old wes Unselled facts, but wes Unseld's finals MVP is one of the most unfair thefts in NBA history. We don't have to get into it, but we are gonna name a guy who's on this list, who made it, who obviously, clearly and by any fair definition, should have been MVP of that finals. He somehow doesn't get it. His name's Elvin Hayes and so Wes Unseld.
Great player and you know, would be on the top sixty, but not good enough for the top fifty in my opinion. Dave Cowens, he won a couple are a couple of rings, He won an MVP, he just missed the cut. Adrian Dantley two scoring titles, and he's a you know, he's a what if would the Pistons have won if they kept him? In eighty eight? The Pistons should win the title probably. I mean they're up three to two on the Lakers. There's a you know, the famous Isaiah Thomas
Sprain ankle game. There is some people feel a phantom foul call that sends Cream to the line. The Lakers escape game six. They then win in seven because Isaiah is crippled and is a shell of himself. The Pistons then trade Dantly, so Dantley misses out on the championships.
Would they have won with him? Maybe? I don't know.
He just misses out. Another guy from that ero who just missed out Alex English.
I think. I'm not certain.
I think he's the highest on the all time scoring list of guys that didn't make my list. The problem is it's all he did. He makes one conference finals, that's it.
I know.
My guy Colin Cowherd loves him some Alex English. To me, he's out. He just barely misses the cut, but he is out. We also got to go Paul Pierce. Paul Pierce's finals MVP? Now, is it a legit finals MVP?
Maybe? Was he the best.
Player on that team? Absolutely not? But was he the best player in those finals?
Maybe?
He also is a top twenty all time scorer. However, only one time was he first or second team All NBA. I feel he was the third best of the big three. All of those things, in my estimation, have to matter. So Paul Pierce, he just misses the cut. Listen, the shot alone almost gets him on the list. You can almost make the argument Ray Allen, because he had maybe the most iconic shot in NBA history, that alone should
be enough to get him on this list. However, I can't put him on it because he was never an MVP candidate. Really, he was never a first team All NBA consensus guy I and in my he was. He was a great part of some great teams, but never the leading part. And so I love Ray. Ray was a tough omission, but he doesn't make the list. Tracy McGrady,
we talked about him in the first segment. If you were listening, Tracy McGrady is probably the best of all the players that as far as what their career upside was. He is probably the best of all of them that did not make this list. He is probably the guy that his a You know, he was an MVP CA,
he was a scoring champion. However, his lack of playoff success and we went over it so I don't have to belabor it here is so glaring when compared to the guys who made this list that I think he was a pharaoh mission from my list and a pharaoh mission from the top seventy five list. I want to go back in history just a moment before we get to Jokic. Also not on the list is Pistol Pete Merriviage. Pistol Pete he's another there was no winning, no winning whatsoever.
He didn't have much longevity. He was on when I did this thing. Initially, Pistol Pete was there, and then I removed him in favor of someone else after really deep diving into it. Iconic player, amazing scorer, forty a game in college with no three point line, but we told you college stuff doesn't matter.
Pistol Pete not there.
And then the two current guys who probably will be on the NBA's one hundred at one one hundred, but I don't feel have done enough to make this list, Damian Lillard and Nikola Jokicic. Also, by the way, Klay Thompson. But Clay to me was not a heard ow mission, nor was Kyrie to me. If we're talking about guys that should make it that didn't, Dame and Jokic are the ones that you got to discuss. Okay, So Dame does have an obviously elite resime. The problem is he
just hasn't done it long enough. If you're so he's four time first or second team, that's that's valid. Twenty five points per game, that's valid. But you've been to one conference finals. You got washed out. In those conference finals. You have never been, in my opinion, forget considered the best player in the league. I don't think there's ever been a moment you've been considered the best guard in
the league. And because you're still active, you haven't played long enough, so you're never in the best of your position. You've never been on a real contender. You only have one playoff run pass round two. It's just not enough. I think you'll make the next list. It's just not enough. And then there's Jokic. And when I talked on social media about that I'm doing this project, people were like, oh my god, can't wait to see where you have Joki ranked.
I was like, well, I don't.
I'm ranked Nick. That's so it's not unfair. And I'm not saying Jokic is not going to end up being on all of these lists eventually, but if the world stopped today, he flatley does not have the resume of other guys who didn't make the list. I know he has a league MVP, but so does Dave Cowens, and I didn't put Dave Cowens on this list. So does Dereck Rose and Derek Rose. By the way, spoiler alert,
not on this list. He has been two time All NBA First Team and he'll either be first or second team this year, one time All NBA Second Team, so the last three years he's been spectacular. He also has only been out around two once, and nobody's expecting them to get around two this year. And he has the one year where he was an MVP candidate, last year where he won it.
This year's another MVP candidate. So it is not a knock on Jokic.
It's just if you have no championships, no finals appearances, and only four outstanding seasons, how can I put you on the list over a guy like Adrian Dantley.
How can I put you on the list over a guy like Dave Cowens. I can't.
Those guys didn't even make the list. Welcome back into the What's the Right Podcast? Fifty greatest Players the last fifty years Special editions. As you might be able to tell, I had a quick wardrobe change. That's because I'm talking to you from the future, well actually the past, but whatever it is, I'm talking to you weeks after I talked to you about Carmelo Anthony and Bernard King because I forgot to do the final segment of the show.
I was so excited I just left. So now I'm telling you what's coming up next week, Players forty eight through forty four. There's going to be a serious historical, you know, kind of tinge to those to that part of the rankings, including one guy who I feel was the second biggest omission, the second most egregious omission from the NBA's top seventy five list, and some of the greatest defenders ever will be featured in Players forty eight through forty four. Once again, these series will be coming
out once every week. We are counting down the fifty greatest players the last fifty years. I'm so excited to finally be putting out to the public sphere a project I've been working on literally for the last few years in my spare time. So join us next week for Players forty eight through forty four of the fifty greatest players the last fifty years in the NBA on What's right with Nick greg
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