For the prime example of Jordans mentality, look to the 1997 NBA Finals Game 5 "The Flu Game." He also was routinely voted among the NBAs dirtiest players during his career. Isaiah Rider Guard Isaiah Rider of the Portland Trailblazers stands on the court. Along with Detroits Joe Dumars, NBA legend Michael Jordan said Moncrief was one of the two toughest defensive players he ever faced. "I taught the kid the look, the intimidation, yeah, the meanness. Perhaps thats why he was such a valuable commodity. He never played less than 79 games in his first 13 NBA seasons before abruptly retiring early in the 1993-94 season after a fight with teammate Isiah Thomas. NBA Player Earnings Listing the top earnings for all active NBA players. Teams: Milwaukee Bucks (1986-87), Indiana Pacers (1987-89), Orlando Magic (1989-94), Washington Bullets (1994-95), Philadelphia 76ers (1995-96), Key stats: 600 G, 11.1 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 6.5 APG, 43.5 FG%. Teams: Washington Bullets (1980-85), Detroit Pistons (1985-89, 1996-98), Philadelphia 76ers (1989-91, 1999), New Jersey Nets (1992-96), Key stats: 1,117 G, 6.9 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 1.0 APG, 49.3 FG%. Before turning his focus to basketball, the two-time Most Valuable Player grew up in Canada playing hockey, and his family lived in the same neighborhood as future NHL stars Russ and Geoff Courtnall. Were going to need to see that killer instinct from James long before hes even considered for elevation when it comes to intensity. Nash was the featured player on one of the most exciting Offensive teams to watch in NBA History. Whether a mean stare, a suffocating style of play or a general ability to send electricity. Oakleys best seasons were with the Knicks, including two NBA All-Defensive Team selections and his lone All-Star appearance, in 1994. Accomplishments: 11-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA, two-time MVP, four-time All-Star MVP, two-time scoring champ, 1958 NBA champion. Its a shame that the Knicks decided to trade Jackson to the Clippers in 1992 and split up what was just becoming a playoff contender with a nucleus of Patrick Ewing, Charles Oakley and Jackson. Anyone who has watched him play has taken note of his pre-game ritual of talking to the basket while simultaneously pouring sweat off of him like hes already played a full 48. Thru 2030 Thru 2029 Thru 2028 Thru 2027 Thru 2026 Thru 2025 Thru 2024 Thru 2023 Thru 2022 Thru 2021 Thru 2020 Thru 2019 Thru 2018 Thru 2017 Thru 2016 Thru 2015 Thru 2014 Thru 2013 Thru 2012 Thru 2011 Sixth Man of the Year. Teams: St. Louis/Atlanta Hawks (1964-69), Phoenix Suns (1969-72), Boston Celtics (1972-76), Denver Nuggets (1976-77), Seattle Supersonics (1977-80), Key stats: 1,254 G, 9.4 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 2.1 APG, 43.2 FG%. You never wanted to challenge Mount Mutombo. There might not be anyone in NBA history with a sports background quite like Nash, which helps explain why he always seemed to have blood on his jersey. Unseld, known for bone-rattling picks, played for a decade before helping lead the Bullets to the NBA title in 1978, when he was named Finals MVP. 2002, 2009, 2010). Scott Davis. Teams: Indiana Pacers (1975-78), Atlanta Hawks (1978-84), Detroit Pistons (1984-85), Washington Bullets (1985-87), Key stats: 813 G, 14.3 PPG, 9.2 RPG, 2.0 APG, 48.2 FG%. Most Valuable Player. Bottom line: Bob Pettit was one of the most prolific scorers and rebounders in NBA history, and if you did a double take at his career rebounding average, thats understandable. Accomplishments: Eight-time All-Star, three-time All-NBA, three-time All-Defensive team, 1972-73 MVP, 1973 All-Star MVP, 1970-71 Rookie of the Year, two-time NBA champion. Consider also that James has played in three Summer Olympics, two FIBA World Championships and, in 17 years of professional basketball, has never had a major injury. The mental aspect is just as important. Accomplishments: Four-time All-Star, 1968-69 All-NBA, 1967-68 Rookie of the Year, 1973 NBA champion. He won the 2016-17 Most Improved Player award and the 2019-20 Defensive Player of the Year award. Theres a mental aspect to being tough thats just as important. Beverley was a two-time NBA All-Defensive Team pick two times in his first six seasons and has become a staple of highlight-reel clips for his ability to get under the skin of opponents none more so than 2017 NBA Most Valuable Player Russell Westbrook. Accomplishments: Five-time All-Star, three-time All-NBA, 10-time NBA champion. Being tough on the basketball court isn't only a physical thing. Pete Maravich was one of the greatest scorers in NBA history. Mournings play was the bottom line when it came to his toughness, but he also had a world-class scowl that went with it, and his glare became synonymous with the rough-and-tumble play of the 1990s. Stats: 22.0 PPG, 4.7 RPG, 5.4 APG in 16 seasons with Miami Heat (2003-04 to 2015-16; 2017-18 to 2018-19), Chicago Bulls (2016-17) and Cleveland Cavaliers (2017-18). J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award. Jones can place his name among the most admired NBA players of al -time for his class and demeanor, and he was finally elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019. Stats: 18.8 PPG, 2.3 RPG, 7.4 APG in 13 seasons with Cincinnati Royals/KC-Omaha/Kansas City Kings (1970-71 to 1975-76), New York Nets (1976-77), Boston Celtics (1978-79 to 1982-83) and Milwaukee Bucks (1983-84). Check. It seems hard to be one without people thinking youre not also the other. After missing Game 6 of the 1970 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers with a torn thigh muscle, Reed was almost certainly a scratch for Game 7. Perhaps one of the most searched for athletes on YouTube thanks in large part due to the fights he found himself in, Johnson didnt do anything to eschew his reputation of being a tough guy around the league. Bottom line: Aside from putting together one of the greatest careers in NBA history, Kobe Bryant also had perhaps the most legendary pain tolerance in the history of the game. Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006 and died of leukemia in 2016. He quickly earned a reputation for being the "protector" of young Bulls star Michael Jordan and was a ferocious rebounder and defender. LeBron James and Kawhi Leonard. James Worthy with Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the 1980s. Accomplishments: Five-time All-Star, four-time All-NBA, 1976-77 scoring champ. Passion. Bottom line: For the entirety of his career, Scott Skiles was listed at 6-foot-1. He played at least 80 of 82 regular-season games seven times, and only missed a handful of games in three other seasons. His heroic, limping walk out of the tunnel for warm-ups, followed by scoring the first two baskets of the game (his only points) sparked the Knicks to the win and NBA title. In the NBA, some of the greatest players of all time have also been some of the toughest as well as some of the most beloved. Bottom line: Dan Roundfield "Dr. Rounds" could be the next name you drop in a conversation with fellow NBA heads when youre talking about the most underrated, underappreciated players of all time. Resume: 15 years; 4 All-Stars; 2X NBA Champion; Career stats: 12.9 PPG 9.7 RPG 0.9 BPG. Luka Doncic, James Harden, Jimmy Butler to name a few. Its also a clear indicator of where his toughness came from he trails only Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell in that category. These are the toughest players in NBA history. He had the ability to circumvent any defensive scheme put on him (outside of Hack a Shaq), and that speaks to how impossible it was to stop him out there. Teams: Charlotte Hornets (1992-95), Miami Heat (1995-2002, 2005-08), New Jersey Nets (2003-04), Key stats: 838 G, 17.1 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 1.1 APG, 52.7 FG%. Rookie of the Year. He has scored the most points in NBA history. Teams: Milwaukee Bucks (1969-75), Los Angeles Lakers (1975-89), Key stats: 1,560 G, 24.6 PPG, 11.2 RPG, 3.6 APG, 55.9 FG%, NBA titles: 6 (1971, 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988). Bottom line: Theres a long lineage of forwards rounding out championship trios in the NBA based on their ability to blend with generational talent and still cut their own swath. Iverson grew up in abject poverty and was sentenced to five years in prison as a senior in high school for a bowling alley assault, serving four months before he was granted clemency by the governor of Virginia. Thats when America got to know his trademark goggles (and beard) on the way to NBA Finals losses to the Bulls and Pistons. In 2009, the NBA named its Finals MVP award after Russell. An enforcer, McDaniel did well when it came to boosting the energy of whatever roster he was on. By playing ferocious defense, first of all, and also by having what could only be described as a throwback attitude to decades past when it comes to the competition. Nash was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 2018. When a player is seen as an enforcer on one of the most physical teams in league history, you know hes got to be intense. Skiles languished on the bench, somewhat unfairly, for his first three seasons before going to the expansion Orlando Magic, where he set the NBA record with 30 assists in one game and was named NBA Most Improved Player in 1991. He also was unselfish as a mentor and widely credited as having been the man who taught Dennis Rodman the ins and outs of the NBA game and helped make him good enough that the Pistons left Mahorn unprotected in the 1989 expansion draft. Russells mental toughness was on another level. He also always stayed in Detroits lineup because of his versatility, as he could sub easily for starting point guard Isiah Thomas or shooting guard Joe Dumars. Unseld was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1988. Stats: 18.2 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 3.0 APG in 18 seasons with Indiana Pacers (1987-88 to 2004-05). Cooper almost always drew the other teams toughest defensive assignment, and Boston Celtics legend Larry Bird called him the "toughest defensive player who ever guarded me." Stats: 24.6 PPG, 11.2 RPG, 3.6 APG in 20 seasons with Milwaukee Bucks (1969-70 to 1974-75) and Los Angeles Lakers (1975-76 to 1988-89); NBA's career leader in total points. When he played, there werent a lot of players who wanted to challenge him, because it was a battle that they were likely to lose. Bottom line: There is one statistic that underlines Alvin Robertsons toughness better than all others he is still the NBAs career leader with 2.7 steals per game. A legitimate presence in the middle, Robinson embodied all of the characteristics that make up an ideal center. Accomplishments: Seven-time All-Star, three-time All-NBA, 1966-67 Rookie of the Year, 1976 All-Star MVP, 1967-68 scoring champ. His most iconic play was a baseline, left-handed dunk over Jordan and Horace Grant in the playoffs. He was dominant at both ends of the floor, and his mean mug was enough to scare the opposition before he entered the lane. 19, 3/16/22 vs. BOS) and the second-most for any quarter . He averaged 7.4 rebounds per game over 11 NBA seasons, and hes only 6-foot-5. Skiles also, famously, took a swing at Shaquille O'Neal in the locker room. They didnt get that way because they could score or rebound. The Admiral led the ships path for San Antonio by example, and he lived by the idea of no easy buckets for the opponent. The five-time NBA Most Valuable Player needed to define toughness to succeed in his era, with his direct counterpart none other than Wilt Chamberlain, the only other player besides Russell to grab 50 rebounds in a single game. Seriously, 11 championships in 13 seasons is arguably the most intense thing to ever be accomplished in league history. Robertsons specialty was defense, making the All-NBA Defensive Team six times in his career and was NBA Defensive Player of the Year in 1986. The Celtics won the title in seven games. He has the most regular-season. Teams: Cleveland Cavaliers (2003-10, 2014-18), Miami Heat (2010-14), Los Angeles Lakers (2018-present), Key stats: 1,217 G, 27.1 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 7.3 APG, 50.4 FG%. If you want a firsthand look at what that meant, feel free to cue up his 2015 documentary, "Muse," which chronicles his comeback from tearing his Achilles tendon. Starks worked his way up from 10-day contracts with the Warriors to the CBA to finally landing a shot with the Knicks in 1990, where he spent almost a decade as a key foil to Michael Jordan and the Bulls. Louis Hawks (1954-55 to 1964-65). Alex English was a high-volume scorer throughout the prime of his careerhe took home a scoring title in 1983. Teams: Boston Celtics (1997-98), Toronto Raptors (1998-99), Denver Nuggets (1999-2000, 2008-11), Minnesota Timberwolves (2000-02), Detroit Pistons (2002-08, 2013-14), New York Knicks (2011), Los Angeles Clippers (2011-13), Key stats: 1,043 G, 15.2 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 5.4 APG, 41.5 FG%. Mainly because he wasnt a bully. Stats: 18.4 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 7.5 APG in 14 seasons with Boston Celtics (1950-51 to 1962-63) and Cincinnati Royals (1969-70). Bottom line: Willis Reed isnt just one of the toughest players in NBA history. Bottom line: Kendrick Perkins was basketballs version of a hockey enforcer on some truly great teams the Celtics in the late 2000s that included an NBA title in 2008 and several almost-great Oklahoma City Thunder teams with Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden in the early 2010s. Kyrie Irving believes adjusting his aggression level can help get Dallas back on track. Stats: 16.3 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 6.7 APG in 17 seasons with Seattle SuperSonics (1990-91 to 2002-03), Milwaukee Bucks (2002-03), Los Angeles Lakers (2003-04), Boston Celtics (2004-05) and Miami Heat (2005-06 to 2006-07). NBA Odds: Grizzlies vs. Nuggets prediction, pick, how to watch - 3/3/2023. Famously, he played center in place of the injured Abdul-Jabbar in the title-clinching game six of the 1980 NBA finals as a 20-year-old rookie. Garnett has had a reputation of trash talking since he came into the league, and that is something that has followed him to this day. Teams: Fort Wayne Pistons (1950-57), Minneapolis Lakers (1957-60), St. Louis Hawks (1960-62), Key stats: 817 G, 13.7 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 1.7 APG, 40.5 FG%. There are just not players like Sprewell who come along everyday, and his stint with the Knicks came with the vow that he was a changed man. Let us know more about the 5 most aggressive chess players of all time- Garry Kasparov; Garry Kasparov, currently the chairman of the Human Rights Foundation, is a Russian chess grandmaster, former World Chess Champion, writer and much more. Bottom line: Theres always going to be some dispute about what Charles Barkleys actual height and weight were during his playing days, but its safe to say it was an inch or two below the 6-foot-6 he was listed at. Stats: 24.7 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 6.6 APG in nine seasons with Portland Trail Blazers (2012-13 to 2020-21)*. NBA legend Michael Jordan. Stats: 23.1 PPG, 13.4 RPG, 2.8 APG in seven seasons with Minneapolis Lakers (1948-49 to 1955-56). He made second-team the other season. When I played, I liked to hurt people.". He never, ever thought a call that went against him was the right one, and he sought to rise to the occasion whenever his number was called. Accomplishments: Six-time All-Star, five-time All-NBA, 1972-73 scoring and assists champ, 1981 All-Star MVP, 1981 NBA champion. Bottom line: Say what you will about Draymond Green, if his career ended tomorrow, you would have to put him in the discussion as the best defensive player of his era. Starks made an All-Star team in 1994 and was NBA Sixth Man of the Year in 1997. Want to learn how to continue to get better every season while simultaneously carrying the load? Key stats: 650 G, 18.7 PPG, 12.9 RPG, 1.8 APG, 47.6 FG%. Perkins wasnt just hired muscle, though. Because 16.2 rebounds per game is just insane. I'll never understand the hate that Trae . 16 retired by both of the teams he played for the Detroit Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks. He was at his best on the Nuggets when he partnered with a young Carmelo Anthony, whom he also played with on the Knicks. Accomplishments: 12-time All-Star, six-time All-NBA, two-time All-Defensive team, 1968-69 scoring champ, two-time rebounding champ, 1978 NBA champion. Western Conference Finals MVP. Stats: 19.2 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 2.9 APG in 10 seasons with San Antonio Spurs (2011-12 to 2017-18), Toronto Raptors (2018-19) and LA Clippers (2019-20 to 2020-21)*.

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