Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Tim Duncan

[DMAVS41]

Magic
Duncan
Bird

[hateraid]

Magic- Clear cut greatest at his position. The ability to play 5 positions and a true winner

Duncan
Bird

[inclinerator]

bird
magic
duncan

[Odinn]

Magic- Clear cut greatest at his position. The ability to play 5 positions and a true winner

Duncan
Bird

With this kinda logic, Magic and Jordan above all. Right? Magic should be ranked over Russell, Wilt, KAJ, Shaq, Hakeem, and even Moses because he was the greatest at his position by a larger margin compared to other 3 positions?

[Alan Ogg]

Magic had more control of the game than any player ever. No other player comes close in controlling pace, getting easy baskets and getting teammates involved. People talk about his defense but his record against great offensive teams was crazy because they knew an open style game meant Magic's powers would be unleashed. Even a disciplined Celtic offense made mistakes worrying about Magic"s defense to offense capability.

Duncan along with Magic and Russell should have the winning category over hyped. These guys had a real relationship with winning so it should be a real factor in evaluating them.

Bird had the most impressive peak but it was only three years and Magic"s pacing beat them once in that three year span. Bird was one the games most deadly offensive weapons ever.

That's my order.

Bird's peak was only three years?

[hateraid]

With this kinda logic, Magic and Jordan above all. Right? Magic should be ranked over Russell, Wilt, KAJ, Shaq, Hakeem, and even Moses because he was the greatest at his position by a larger margin compared to other 3 positions?

Relax, that wasn't my main criteria. Kind of nit picky there. I'm not one to make long winded points.
But yeah, I rank Magic over those players NOT because he's the GOAT at his position but by his credentials, his play on the court, and he's a winner

[Sarcastic]

1 Magic
2 Bird

4 Duncan


Duncan is an all time great, but honestly he doesn't belong in the same category as Bird and Magic. He's been more of an opportunistic winner (winning in down years). Spurs have never won back to back, and never even been to back to back finals. He was never the undisputed best player in the game, the way Magic and Bird were. Shaq was always better.

They are all top 10 players, but Bird and Magic and at a different level.

[Odinn]

Relax, that wasn't my main criteria. Kind of nit picky there. I'm not one to make long winded points.
But yeah, I rank Magic over those players NOT because he's the GOAT at his position but by his credentials, his play on the court, and he's a winner

Let's not act like Bird or Duncan aren't winners. How many names you can list in the consensus top 10-12 without being a winner? Or how many of them didn't have a low point?

If I remember correctly, Bird lost 9 times with HCA.
Tragic Johnson in 1984. The Lakers should have been in the NBA Finals in 1986.
Duncan missed a critical shot in 2013 NBA Finals. He lost a series from 2-0 lead in 2004 against the Lakers. You can add 2012 WCF but he wasn't in his prime tho.

All three names are winners with some doubtful memories. It's nothing like 'Bill Russell is greater than Wilt Chamberlain because Russell was a winner'.

[Champ]

Bird's peak was only three years?

Good graphic.

While most regard Bird's absolute peak as his three MVP years, he played at an elite level throughout the first 9 years of his career (pre-injury), and could easily have had one and possibly two more MVPs to his credit.

Beginning as far back as the 80-81 season, Bird was at least in the conversation as the game's best player, even though that wasn't something he achieved consensus on until 83-84.

[Harison]

Magic had more control of the game than any player ever. No other player comes close in controlling pace, getting easy baskets and getting teammates involved. People talk about his defense but his record against great offensive teams was crazy because they knew an open style game meant Magic's powers would be unleashed. Even a disciplined Celtic offense made mistakes worrying about Magic"s defense to offense capability.

Duncan along with Magic and Russell should have the winning category over hyped. These guys had a real relationship with winning so it should be a real factor in evaluating them.

Bird had the most impressive peak but it was only three years and Magic"s pacing beat them once in that three year span. Bird was one the games most deadly offensive weapons ever.

That's my order.

I actually started watching NBA because of Magic vs Bird, and it wasnt 3 years Bird was better - he was better from the 1st day in NBA till he succumbed to back injury, i.e. most if his career. And it was an unanimous opinion of vast majority of fans and experts, much like almost everyone have Jordan as GOAT now. Only after Bird's back issues Magic was begun to be considered as better at that point.

I dont know why you so high on Magic, he was never considered as good as Bird in their primes (or even as rookies). Yes he is a GOAT PG, but Bird is GOAT SF.

Speaking about GOAT offensive players, Bird is right up there with Jordan, Magic trails a bit behind, and Bird was clearly better defender too.

[Black and White]

Glad to see Bird getting some love here, for me it's:

Bird
Magic
Duncan

[tpols]

Bird
Magic
Duncan

[Thorpesaurous]

I go Bird Magic Duncan, but I grew up watching Bird in the Garden, and have almost no objectivity at all.

That said, Magic is perhaps the games all time most unique player, and is hard to put up against other players like this. Both guys are better defensively than they're historically regarded, because neither was a stopper, but Bird was instinctively a great defender, and Magic doesn't get credit for simply occupying space.

I also think there will come a day when someone spits out some defensive metric and people start looking at Duncan in an even higher regard, as his impact seems to be beyond most traditional measures on that end.

But to me, it's Bird's peak that seperates him. And one of the things that I've always argued in Bird's favor is that I feel he's perhaps the best building block on the truely elite list, because even more than Magic, Larry is able to play without the ball. He can act as a spacer, he can work in the post, he can work off the dribble, he can facilitate offense, he can play in the high post, he can work out of wing isolation. He has more fittability, which is not a word, than all the other greats who dominated their spots so much they didn't get around much.


All of them are in the truely unique group of guys who won multiple MVPs, AND multiple Titles, which to me is where I cut off my list from first tier to second. And it requires some tough cuts, but it's odd how much that list tends to align with the traditional Big 6 of Magic, Bird, Jordan, Wilt, Russ, Kareem, and seems almost silly to me to cut Bron and Duncan off of it because of a personal preference for Shaq or Kobe or whoever. There's no shame in that second tier. But only a handfull of guys got that accomplishment done.

[NumberSix]

Bird
Duncan
Magic

[magic chiongson]

magic
duncan
bird


y'all should listen to an unbiased guy like me