Who is the best player ever to play the game?
964302
bill russell was a winner in grade school, high school, college and the nba....maybe its because he belongs to the era long time past but these people who think of others as the greatest never bother to look up russell's winning accomplishments.... and to those of you who chose chamberlain, you might want to check how russell dominated their encounters to wilt's frustration and you have the gall to choose wilt over russell...and remember michael jordan did not win his first title until he was six years in the league and bird, magic and kareem were fading or away from the battles....11 rings in 13 nba campaigns says it all and he even played in 12 finals....no player ever has ever achieved 12 finals in 13 seasons and to say no one will ever again is a safe bet....being great should never be about personal records, flashy plays, or scoring many points...it should be about winning and there is no bigger winner than the great Bill Russell
333175
DIEGO ARMANDO MARADONA\n\nbest player in the world. ever. period. and yes, it was a hand, as we all know. but hey what can you do, that´s footie, ain´it?
467409
Truth is, there are about 8 players in NBA history who have a legitimate argument to be called the best (or most dominant) player of all time...\n\nThey are:\n\n1) Wilt Chamberlain\n2) Bill Russell\n3) Kareem Abdul-Jabbar\n4) Larry Bird\n5) Magic Johnson\n6) Oscar Robertson\n7) Michael Jordan\n8) Shaquille O'Neal\n\nTim Duncan probably comes the closest to matching the skill level of these guys, in terms of fundamentals...but Duncan does not have a claim to be called the best ever...\n\nWilt was really the most dominant player ever (on BOTH ends of the court), and his basketball skills far exceeded those of Shaquille O'Neal. Although Jordan's strong suit is his scoring, his scoring feats really pale in comparison with Wilt.\n\nRussell led his team to 11 NBA titles in his 13 year career. Were Jordan around back then, he'd be just another guy who lost to the Celtic machine.\n\nJordan and Shaq are the only players on the above list who had the luxury of playing against what amounts to 'high school' players. The level of competition and overall skill levels of todays players is not as good as during, for example, the 1980s. But players today are adjusting to the way the NBA wants the game played. Traveling is never called, nor is 'palming' the ball (probably no one under 25 today even knows what 'palming the ball' even means...)\n\nThe All Defensive teams were not selected until after the 1969 season, so Wilt only made that team 3 or 4 times, but would have made it more often had there been such a thing in the '60s. So the idea that Jordan is the greatest defender ever because of his All Defensive number of selections is not well-founded.\n\nIf anyone thinks that todays players are more highly skilled than players of the 60s 70s and 80s, we need only look as far as the U.S. recent international performances, or lack thereof. Teams from Europe are beating our NBA "All Star" teams on a regular basis the last few years, because they (the Europeans) are still playing the game the way the U.S. played it in the 60s and 70s, when the U.S. truly dominated the world in basketball. They have taken the way we taught them the game and are now using that style against us. The U.S. international teams have been pathetic during the 21st century.\n\nMcGrady is not even close to being the best player of all time... there's no argument that one can make to place him anywhere near the company of the guys on this list. Being able to dunk doesn't make you the greatest player of all time.  If you think T-Mac is one of the two greatest players ever, you obviously haven't watched very much basketball.
573733
The best all-round player would be Steve Nash.  He scores and he makes great passes.  All-time greatest player is Oscar Robinson, because he averaged a triple-double one year.  Jason Kidd is very good, because he does it all well.
593139
LeBron is the best. he is the future for the NBA. unlike all the other players that have been player for a long time. he is young and new to the NBA. he will get better and better as the years go by. He will always be #1 for the rest of his career!
430587
Ronaldinho is the best player in the world.\nKhalid Jamlus is s@*k...
362986
Pele is definately THE BEST THERE EVER WAS but Ronaldinho is the best right now and could easily be THE BEST EVER!
615970
Yeah besides Jordan LeBron is the best player of all time.
877055
jordan if it's all-time...\n\ncurrently, i think it's lebron...
1009143
Currently, Vinatieri is the best ... percentages don't always win games (right Vanderjagt!).\n\nI would have to say that either Morten Andersen or Ray Guy should be considered the best of all time.  For these guys to miss a FG would be like watching Jerry rice drop a lob pass from Joe Montana.  Guy and Andersen made kicking almost an artform in the NFL.
183386
Currently it is without a doubt Kobe Bryant he can dominate a game by himself.  He scored 18 points in the 4th quarter in today's game against the Hornets.  Also, 81 points is still unbelievable.\nOf all time it is Michael Jordan.\nThe best dunker is Vince Carter.
47377
I think the best player of all time is Ronaldinho. Why? because he is very very talented and he scores a lot of goals also he doesn't keep the ball with him too long he passes it in the perfect place and time. another thing is that he uses his talents when he plays not like the other players who do some techniques only in the practice time not in the real matches.
634109
all of those answers are good.  i think the top three greatest players of all-time are wayne gretzky, gordie howe and mario lemieux. the greatest player now is a toss-up between alexander ovechkin and sidney crosby. the best defenseman now is a tossup between chris pronger and nick lidstrom.  the best leader now is steve yzerman.  the best goalie now:  martin brodeur.  the best goalie of all time: a tie between patrick roy and terry sawchuck.  the best leaders in history:  mark messier, steve yzerman, and joe sakic to name a few.
344103
I think the best soccer player in history has to be Pele. He could do almost anything brilliantly, and is just pure genius.\n\nMaradonna, Platini, Johan Cruyff, Puskas, Di Stefano must all be considered great players as well, but I think Pele had something on all of them.
992525
Without a shadow of a doubt he is the best player in the world at the moment.Every aspect of his game is so solid and his leadership qualities are the stuff of legend.There are more skillful players.But none better.
24974
I would go with Allen Iverson, because he is currently the leading scorer, and he also steals the ball away many times. He is an excellent defender who only lacks in the rebounding department, but his scoring more than makes up for. He is an overall consistent player on both sides on the ball, and he is always the man you can trust to score in clutch situations.
1049755
allen iverson would be the best because he is a all around player he is good on all subjects like shooting and layups.  Or assists.  But if u like alot of shooting it would be Kobe he makes alot of winning shots but is starting to just help team mates so it would be allen iverson!\n\nALLEN IVERSON*