| Basketball heroes are as old as the game, but most of | | | | the Celtics the team won 11 Championship games. |
| the stars have come out of this past generation. | | | | Russell was the first truly famous African-American |
| Though a few names have seeped through from | | | | player in the league. |
| years past (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Russell, Wilt | | | | In his 20 year career (1969-89), Kareem Abdul-Jabaar |
| Chamberlain) the men that are famous for being | | | | scored the most points of any player in league history |
| famous players came out of the 90s: Kobe, Iverson, | | | | and was awarded MVP six times. He was known for |
| Shaq, and Jordan. Read on to find out a bit more | | | | his skyhook shot, which put his body between the ball |
| about those lesser-known early champions. | | | | and the basket. Coming in at 7'2" tall, this was a risky |
| Wilt Chamberlain wasn't huge only because he came | | | | move. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar spent 6 years playing for |
| in at 7'1" and 300 lbs.; Wilt the Stilt is possibly the | | | | the Milwaukee Bucks before moving to the LA Lakers. |
| greatest player of all time. He played in 13 All-Star | | | | He played on 19 all-star teams and the 50th |
| games as well as on 10 All NBA first and second | | | | anniversary team. |
| teams. He's been MVP four times, Rookie of the year | | | | Charles Barkley played from 1984-2000 and was |
| in 1960, and has two NBA titles. He also has many | | | | voted the 1980's player of the year. Barkley was a |
| "best" titles, and is the only player to score 100 points in | | | | power forward and skilled rebounder. He helped the |
| a game. He's also the only player to average above | | | | Olympic Dream Team win two medals, in 1992 and |
| 50 points in a season. In his career Chamberlain played | | | | 1996, and is now a commentator for the sport. |
| for the San Francisco Warriors, the Philadelphia 76ers | | | | Unlike most NBA stars, Kobe Bryant skipped the |
| and the LA Lakers. | | | | NCAA and went pro directly out of high school. He |
| Larry Bird may be the most famous Celtic, but Bill | | | | was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets but was quickly |
| Russell was the greatest team member. Russell | | | | traded to and has spent most of his career on the LA |
| played for 13 years, from 1956-1969, and won 5 MVP | | | | Lakers. He is a 4-time NBA Champion, 1 time MVP and |
| awards, was on 12 All-Star teams, and is one of the | | | | 12-time NBA All Star. He's played on 7 all-star teams. |
| best shot-blockers in the game. During his 13 years on | | | | |