New York.
The Big Apple. The 5 Boroughs.
Land of wild dreams and harsh realities.
Where Swedish settler Jonas Bronck purchased 500 acres of land in 1639 that became known as “The Bronx”.
The place where John Lennon and Andy Warhol were shot.
Where the Statue of Liberty stands proudly and the World Fair brought the future to the masses.
Gardens are square and islands are cone(y) shaped
Hip Hop grew and grew.
Towers grew and fell.
New York has an almost incomparable history.
Culturally, it is arguably the most important city in the world…
There are a few more ancient cities around the world that might have a word or two to say about that, but in terms of modern culture, New York is right up at the top.
It is simultaneously a bastion of everything that is good and bad about the things people can achieve and the way that they treat each other.
It is the subject of envy, adoration, and disgust the world over.
There is nowhere else like it on the planet Earth.
Now that we’re done waxing lyrical – here are the top 6 best NBA players from New York…
Before you seethe and tear out your hair in anguish at the names that are, very obviously, absent from this list – we have some criteria that explain their omission.
It is not enough for a player to merely have been born in New York to make this list. Yes – we are aware that Michael Jordan and Carmelo Anthony exist. We have been living in this world and noticed that.
But they both moved away from New York when they were young (Michael Jordan as a toddler, Carmelo Anthony when he was 8 years old) and did not attend high school there. Hence their omission.
You may take this up with our complaints department at your local town hall but, for now, please just accept it and read on.
We’re pretty sure you can find articles that effervesce over “His Airness” somewhere else on the world wide web. Here’s one, looking at the Top 5 Best Players from UNC for a start.
He seems to have made quite the impression on a lot of folks…
There are hotbeds for basketball talent all over the USA. The world, in fact. And second only to California in terms of numbers of NBA players we have New York City. The state of New York has been blessed with a wealth of superb athletes in all sports and disciplines over the years.
Just under 10% of all the players who have ever been indicted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame played their high school basketball in the greater NYC area.
The flow is strong and full of talent
Narrowing the list of exemplary NBA players down to just 6 players was very tricky indeed.
The team here at The Jump Hub are nothing if not passionate about basketball. We bicker and fight over every nuance and angle of NBA history. Every name on every list.
There’s no real science behind it. We’re biased. We can’t help it. There are names who surely deserve to be on the list that we just couldn’t agree on.
In accordance with that harmonious spirit, here are the names we came up with in alphabetical order. It was the only way to avoid armageddon…
TOP 6 IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER
KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR
Born – April 16th, 1947 – New York, New York – age 75
Position – Center
Measurements – 7’2″ (2.18m) – 225lb (102kg)
NBA Draft – 1st pick, 1969, Milwaukee Bucks
ABA debut – October 15th, 1971
NBA debut – October 18th, 1969
Career length – 20 years
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was born as Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr. in 1947
He adopted his Muslim name in 1971.
At UCLA the young man averaged 29 points per game and led the team to an undefeated 30-0 record. He was soon being described in the press as a superstar and who was to argue? The Bruins went 88-2 during the 3 years that Abdul-Jabbar (then Alcindor Jr.) was with them.
The first pick in the 1969 NBA Draft was almost inevitable and the Milwaukee Bucks were the lucky recipients of the soon-to-be NBA rocket ship.
Although it seems highly likely that LeBron James will surpass him in due course, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is currently still number one in NBA history for points scored with 38,387. A staggering feat.
NOT ENOUGH FOR YOU?
Ok then, he’s also third for rebounds with 17,440 and has the record for NBA All-Star games with 19.
Still not satisfied? Wow. H0w about the fact that he made 3,189 blocks in his career, and they didn’t even start counting them until he’d already been in the NBA for 4 seasons?
Almost 56% field goal accuracy for 20 years?
Whatever. You’re insatiable.
KAJ is clearly in the right place on this list. He would probably have to be on the list if it was the top 5 players of all time. He was that good.
Awards and accolades
6× NBA Champion – 1971, ’80, ’82, ’85, ’87, ’88
2× NBA Finals MVP – 1971, ’85
6× NBA MVP – 1971, ’72, ’74, ’76, ’77, ’80
19× NBA All-Star – 1970-’77, ’79-’89
10× All-NBA First Team – 1971-’74, ’76, ’77, ’80, ’81, ’84, ’86
5× All-NBA Second Team – 1970, ’78, ’79, ’83, ’85
5× NBA All-Defensive First Team – 1974, ’75, ’79-’81
6× NBA All-Defensive Second Team – 1970, ’71, ’76-’78, ’84
NBA Rookie of the Year – 1970
NBA All-Rookie First Team – 1970
2× NBA Scoring Champion – 1971, ’72
3× NCAA Champion – 1967-’69
NBA Rebounding Champion – 1976
4× NBA Blocks Leader – 1975, ’76, ’79, ’80
NBA Anniversary teams – 35th & 50th & 75th
3× National College Player of the Year – 1967-’69
Jersey number 33 retired by Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers & UCLA Bruins
3× NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player – 1967-’69
3× Consensus first-team All-American – 1967-’69
2× Mr. Basketball USA – 1964, ’65
3× First-team Parade All-American – 1963-’65
Naismith Hall of Fame – Inducted in 1995
Career stats (averages per game)
Games – 1,560
Points – 24.6
Total rebounds – 11.2
Assists – 3.6
Field goal percentage – 55.9%
3-point percentage – 5.6%
Free throw percentage – 72.1%
Player efficiency rating – 24.6
BOB COUSY
Born – August 9th, 1928, New York, New York – age 93
Position – Point guard
Measurements – 6’1″ (1.85m) – 175lb (79kg)
NBA Draft – 4th pick, 1950, Tri-Cities Blackhawks
NBA debut – November 1st, 1950
Career length – 14 years
Bob Cousy became a superior point guard, in part as the result of a childhood injury. He broke his dominant arm falling out of a tree. This forced him to practice with his less natural side and he developed a kind of ambidextrousness.
He began his NBA career at the Boston Celtics with 13 straight All-Star Game selections. He was the league leader in assists for 8 years straight and was a key part of one of the most important, successful franchise dynasties in NBA history.
Bob Cousy set an unbelievable NBA record of 28 assists in a single game. It stood for 19 years but his first-half record of 19 still stands to this day.
Imagine a record lasting over 60 years in a sport that has seen such improvements and innovations as time has passed.
IT’S ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO COMPREHEND.
Cousy also still has the record for the most assists across a series of four games in the NBA Finals. He hit a mind-boggling 51 of them.
Just as a cherry on a truly awe-inspiring cake, Bob Cousy is also the only player here to have been named on all 4 NBA Avviersary teams.
Incredible.
Awards and accolades
6× NBA Champion – 1957, ’59-’63
NBA MVP – 1957
13× NBA All-Star – 1951-’63
2× NBA All-Star Game MVP – 1954, ’57
10× All-NBA First Team – 1952-’61
2× All-NBA Second Team – 1962, ’63
8× NBA Assists Leader – 1953-’60
NBA Anniversary Team – 25th, 35th, 50th & 75th
Jersey number 14 retired by Boston Celtics
NCAA Champion – 1947
Consensus first-team All-American – 1950
Second-team All-American – 1949
Third-team All-American – 1948
Jersey number 17 retired by Holy Cross Crusaders
Presidential Medal of Freedom – 2019
Naismith Hall of Fame – Inducted – 1971
Career stats (averages per game)
Games – 924
Points – 18.4
Total rebounds – 5.2
Assists – 7.5
Field goal percentage – 37.5%
Free throw percentage – 80.3%
Player efficiency rating – 19.9
JULIUS ERVING
Born – February 22nd, 1950 – Roosevelt, New York – age 72
Position – Small forward
Measurements – 6’7″ (2.01m) – 210lb (95kg)
NBA Draft – 12th pick, 1972, Milwaukee Bucks
ABA debut – October 15th, 1971
NBA debut – October 22nd, 1976
Career length – 16 years
Julius “Dr. J” Erving is one of the most influential players in NBA history. He was one of the first to truly master the art of playing “above the rim“.
His journey to the NBA was a complicated one. As the ABA and NBA Merged there were legal disagreements that are too tedious to go into here. Suffice it to say that Erving played for the Virginia Squires and the New York Nets in the ABA and moved to the Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA.
Julius Erving played 16 full seasons as a professional basketball player and was an All-Star in every one of them.
TAKE A MOMENT TO APPRECIATE THAT…
Erving was freakishly athletic. His leaping and dunking are second to none. Dr. J’s prowess on the court has been cited as an inspiration many times. Not least by Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant.
His record on the court speaks for itself and he is one of the few players to have his jersey number retired by two separate franchises. A superb all-rounder who could play full games without complaint or loss of performance.
Erving scored over 30 thousand career points, making him the 8th highest scorer of all time.
The list just keeps coming.
He is one of only 6 players to have averaged 20+ points and 20+ rebounds per game in the NCAA.
The concept of being “posterized” was invented because of his extraordinary skills and eye-catching antics.
He was famous for being able to slam dunk from the free-throw line and has a huge list of achievements as follows:
Awards and accolades
NBA Champion – 1983
2× ABA champion – 1974, ’76
2× ABA Playoffs MVP – 1974, ’76
NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) – 1981
3× ABA Most Valuable Player – 1974-’76
11× NBA All-Star – 1977-’87
5× ABA All-Star – 1972-’76
2× NBA All-Star Game MVP – 1977, ’83
5× All-NBA First Team – 1978, ’80-’83
2× All-NBA Second Team – 1977, ’84
4× All-ABA First Team – 1973-’76
All-ABA Second Team – 1972
ABA All-Defensive First Team – 1976
ABA All-Rookie First Team – 1972
3× ABA Scoring Champion – 1973, ’74, ’76
ABA Slam Dunk Champion – 1976
Jersey number 32 retired by Brooklyn Nets
Jersey number 6 retired by Philadelphia 76ers
ABA All-Time Team
NBA Anniversary Team – 35th & 50th & 75th
Jersey number 32 retired by UMass Minutemen
Naismith Hall of Fame – Inducted in 1993
Career stats (averages per game)
Games – 1,243
Points – 24.2
Total rebounds – 8.5
Assists – 4.2
Field goal percentage – 50.6%
3-point percentage – 29.8%
Free throw percentage – 77.7%
Player efficiency rating – 23.6
CHRIS MULLIN
Born – July 30th, 1963 – New York, New York – age 59
Position – Small forward, shooting guard
Measurements – 6’6″ (1.98m) – 200lb (90kg)
NBA Draft – 7th pick, 1985, Golden State Warriors
NBA debut – November 6th, 1985
Career length – 16 years
Chris Mullin was a Brooklyn native who was picked by the Golden State Warriors after an impressive college career.
He became a real force to be reckoned with in the NBA. He averaged 25+ points per game for 5 straight seasons until injuries began to take their toll.
Nevertheless, Mullins lasted 16 years in the league and accumulated almost 18 thousand career points. He was awarded a place in the Naismith Hall of Fame among many other awards and accolades as listed below.
Mullin has been compared favorably with NBA legend Larry Bird. They both lacked speed but had a great outside shot. Their ability to put their defender off guard made up for their sluggishness.
Awards and accolades
5× NBA All-Star – 1989-’93
All-NBA First Team – 1992
2× All-NBA Second Team – 1989, ’91
All-NBA Third Team – 1990
Jersey number 17 retired by Golden State Warriors
John R. Wooden Award – 1985
USBWA Player of the Year – 1985
Consensus first-team All-American – 1985
Consensus second-team All-American – 1984
Third-team All-American – 1983
3× Big East Player of the Year – 1983-’85
3× First-team All-Big East – 1983-’85
Second-team All Big-East – 1982
Big East Tournament MVP – 1983
3× Haggerty Award winner – 1983-’85
Naismith Hall of Fame – Inducted in 2011
Career stats (averages per game)
Games – 986
Points – 18.2
Total rebounds – 4.1
Assists – 3.5
Field goal percentage – 50.9%
3-point percentage – 38.4%
Free throw percentage – 86.5%
Player efficiency rating – 18.8
DOLPH SCHAYES
Born and raised in the Bronx, Dolph Schayes was a rock-solid ambidextrous shooter that went on to play a key role in the NBA.
Schayes was sensationally accurate from the free-throw line, leading the league three times and shooting over 89% regularly. He set the record of 18 consecutive successful shots in 1957.
Dolph Schayes made more appearances than any other player of the period. He set a very impressive record of 706 consecutive games played between 1952 and 1961.
Think about that a while…
Not one game missed in 9 years!
He became the first-ever player to accumulate 30 thousand points, rebounds, and assists combined. He topped that off by also being the first to pass 15 thousand individual points scored.
Schayes spent his entire 15-year NBA career with the 76ers and even led them to take the NBA Championship in 1955.
Awards and accolades
NBA Champion – 1955
12× NBA All-Star – 1951-’62
6× All-NBA First Team – 1952-’55, ’57, ’58
6× All-NBA Second Team – 1950, ’51, ’56, ’59-’61
NBA Rebounds Leader – 1951
NBA Anniversary Team – 25th, 50th & 75th
NBL Rookie of the Year – 1949
Jersey number 4 retired by Philadelphia 76ers
Haggerty Award – 1948
Naismith Hall of Fame – Inducted in 2006
Career stats (averages per game)
Games – 996
Points – 18.5
Total rebounds – 12.1
Assists – 3.1
Field goal percentage – 38%
Free throw percentage – 84.9%
Player efficiency rating – 22.1
LENNY WILKENS
Born – October 28th, 1937 – Brooklyn, New York – age 84
Position – Point guard
Measurements – 6’1″ (1.85m) – 180lb (81kg)
NBA Draft – 6th pick, 1960, St. Louis Hawks
NBA debut – October 22nd, 1960
Career length – 15 years
Larry Wilkens was a standout character in the NBA. As a player, then as player/coach, then as head coach. He played more than 1,000 games in the NBA and coached nearly 2,500.
He began his career with eight seasons playing for the St. Louis Hawks. They lost in the NBA finals to the Boston Celtics in his rookie season and made the NBA Playoffs consistently during his time there. But they never took the ultimate prize.
Awards and accolades
9× NBA All-Star – 1963-’65, ’67-’71, ’73
NBA All-Star Game MVP – 1971
NBA assists leader – 1970
Jersey number 19 retired by Seattle Supersonics
NBA Anniversary Team – 50th & 75th
Consensus second-team All-American – 1960
Naismith Hall of Fame – Inducted in 1989
From the ages of 30 to 35, Wilkens averaged 19.8 points and 8.8 assists per game and was the NBA assists leader in 1969-70.
Wilkens scored 17,772 points during his career in NBA regular-season games.
Nine times an All-Star, it is a testament to his prowess as a coach that he is generally remembered more for his record on that side of the line.
He coached the Seattle Supersonics for eight seasons and they took their only NBA title in 1979. From Cleveland and Atlanta to Toronto and New York (Knickerbockers), Wilkens led teams to 1,332 wins across his coaching career.
Career stats (averages per game)
Games – 1,077
Points – 16.5
Total rebounds – 4.7
Assists – 6.7
Field goal percentage – 43.2%
Free throw percentage – 77.4%
Player efficiency rating – 16.8
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Elton Brand
Connie Hawkins
Mark Jackson
Rod Strickland
Kemba Walker
Bob Lanier
Billy Cunningham
Bernard King
Clifford Robinson
FINAL THOUGHTS
The State of New York has been inextricably linked with basketball since its very beginnings.
From the New Jersey/Brooklyn Nets, the Buffalo Braves, and the New York Knicks, fans have flooded to their respective stadiums to watch for decades.
Those amazing players that have sprung up in the city and the wider state have continued to create a legacy of inspiration that continues to this day. Countless thousands of youngsters have seen their idols from their home city make the leap into the stratosphere and been motivated to try and emulate their achievements. Now, if that’s not something worth celebrating, then we don’t know what is.
