Drafting 01/10/2024 NBA
One of the big questions about the NBA without a unanimous answer is the selection of the best players in basketball history. But there are always more authoritative voices and Pau Gasol’s is one of them.
As a member of the Hall of Fame, Pau Gasol is a basketball legend. Precisely for this reason, the Los Angeles Times asked the former Lakers player to choose who, according to his criteria, are the 10 best players in NBA history.
“It is a difficult question. It’s very personal, subjective, or both, I guess,” Gasol said, before responding.
These are those chosen by Pau Gasol, in no particular order: Kareem Adbul-Jabbar, Bill Russell, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Dirk Nowitzki, LeBron James y Stephen Curry.
Yes, you counted correctly, there are 11 players. Pau Gasol could not exclude any of them and has reasons to mention all of them.
The reasons for choosing these players as the best in NBA history
«I think those players deserve a special mention because all they have done is made basketball grow.«said Pau Gasol. «They have opened more doors and provided a better reality and presence for today’s NBA players. You have to be grateful to those players«.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Russell were a must-include because “They were two very, very special players.«, explained Pau. «I think they stood out from the rest during their time.«.
«Magic and Larry also changed the game in a unique way“he said, referring to ‘Magic’ Johnson and Larry Bird.
“I think Michael [Jordan] y Kobe [Bryant] They had a great influence on the game. They are also two of my favorites“He said as he began to mention the players he met in the NBA. «LeBron’s contributions must be recognized [James] to basketball. He has played for over 20 years and what he has done is quite remarkable. And you can tell that Steph [Curry] “He is another player that I would put in that category of greatness and uniqueness in changing the sport and making it grow.”.
Finally, Pau Gasol talked about three players with whom he had to pair up in the NBA: Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and Dirk Nowitzki:
«They were my three best power forward players, whom I took as a model for my game and tried to surpass them to become one of the best power forwards in the league. They were my references when I played over the years. So they are very special. And Dirk is probably on that list because in addition to being international, the way he changed the game is very unique and I think it’s significant. That is shocking for European and international players«.
Foto: Getty Images
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2024-01-10 17:56:47
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