The new NBA season launched this week and much of the celebration of its return was centered around the league’s 75th anniversary, along with a list of the 75 greatest players of all time. While there are some expected names on the list, there have been several snubs and #NBATwitter definitely had something to say.
The league has done similar lists before, most famously its 50 all-time greats list that was released on the league’s 50th anniversary. All of the names from the previous list were grandfathered to the current one, with the additional 25 being a mix of names that should’ve been on the first iteration and plenty of snubs abound this time.
The complete list can be viewed below:
KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR
RAY ALLEN
GIANNIS ANTETOKOUNMPO
CARMELO ANTHONY
NATE ARCHIBALD
PAUL ARIZIN
CHARLES BARKLEY
RICK BARRY
ELGIN BAYLOR
DAVE BING
LARRY BIRD
KOBE BRYANT
WILT CHAMBERLAIN
BOB COUSY
DAVE COWENS
BILLY CUNNINGHAM
STEPHEN CURRY
ANTHONY DAVIS
DAVE DEBUSSCHERE
CLYDE DREXLER
TIM DUNCAN
KEVIN DURANT
JULIUS ERVING
PATRICK EWING
WALT FRAZIER
KEVIN GARNETT
GEORGE GERVIN
HAL GREER
JAMES HARDEN
JOHN HAVLICEK
ELVIN HAYES
ALLEN IVERSON
LEBRON JAMES
MAGIC JOHNSON
SAM JONES
MICHAEL JORDAN
JASON KIDD
KAWHI LEONARD
DAMIAN LILLARD
JERRY LUCAS
KARL MALONE
MOSES MALONE
PETE MARAVICH
BOB MCADOO
KEVIN MCHALE
GEORGE MIKAN
REGGIE MILLER
EARL MONROE
STEVE NASH
DIRK NOWITZKI
SHAQUILLE O’NEAL
HAKEEM OLAJUWON
ROBERT PARISH
CHRIS PAUL
GARY PAYTON
BOB PETTIT
PAUL PIERCE
SCOTTIE PIPPEN
WILLIS REED
OSCAR ROBERTSON
DAVID ROBINSON
DENNIS RODMAN
BILL RUSSELL
DOLPH SCHAYES
BILL SHARMAN
JOHN STOCKTON
ISIAH THOMAS
NATE THURMOND
WES UNSELD
DWYANE WADE
BILL WALTON
JERRY WEST
RUSSELL WESTBROOK
LENNY WILKENS
DOMINIQUE WILKINS
JAMES WORTHY
Of course, many of these names should be there, notably Michael Jordan, Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, and other league-transforming stars. Bob McAdoo, one of the biggest snubs from the 50th-anniversary list, is included. Giannis Antetokounmpo, the reigning NBA Finals MVP and Milwaukee Bucks superstar is just 26 years of age and made the list, along with Portland Trailblazers sharpshooter Damian Lillard. Dominique Wilkins, another 50th-anniversary snub, has also made the cut.
Check out the reactions to the list from NBA Twitter below.
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Photo: Getty