Basketball is a game of giants, but let’s be real—not all giants are built the same. If you ask ten people who the best nba centers all time are, you’re probably going to get twelve different answers and at least one heated argument about whether Bill Russell could actually score in today’s league. It’s a mess.
People obsess over the "Greatest of All Time" debate like it’s a math equation. It isn't. You can’t just add up rings and MVPs and call it a day. If it were that simple, Russell would be the undisputed king with his 11 rings, and Wilt Chamberlain would be a distant second despite averaging 50 points a game in 1962. But we know it's more complicated than that.
The center position has gone through a massive identity crisis over the last 75 years. We went from the "bucket-at-the-rim" era to the "space-and-pace" era, and now we’re in this weird, beautiful "Point Center" era where guys like Nikola Jokic are basically Magic Johnson in a 280-pound frame. Honestly, trying to rank a guy who played in black-and-white against a guy who shoots step-back threes in 4K is kind of ridiculous. But we’re going to do it anyway.
The Mount Rushmore: Kareem, Wilt, and the Ring King
When you talk about the absolute peak of the position, you have to start with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The man had the skyhook. It was—and still is—the most unguardable shot in the history of the sport. Imagine a guy who is 7'2", has the footwork of a ballerina, and can just drop a soft hook over your head from 12 feet out. Every. Single. Time. Kareem finished his career with six MVPs. Six! That’s a record that might never be broken, not even by the guys we worship today. He played 20 seasons and was an All-Star in 19 of them. Longevity matters, and Kareem is the gold standard for it.
Then there’s Wilt. The "Big Dipper."
Wilt Chamberlain is basically a tall tale that happens to be true. He’s the guy who scored 100 points in a game and grabbed 55 rebounds in another. He was so much stronger and faster than everyone else that it almost looked unfair. Some people try to downplay his stats by saying the pace was faster back then. Sure, okay. But find me another human being who can average 48.5 minutes per game for an entire season. He literally played more minutes than there were in a standard game because of overtime.
Bill Russell: The Ultimate Winner
If Wilt was the unstoppable force, Bill Russell was the immovable object.
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He didn't care about scoring. He really didn't. He averaged 15.1 points for his career, which looks like a typo next to Wilt’s numbers. But Russell understood something that most players never grasp: defense wins titles. He changed the way the game was played by using the fast break. He’d block a shot, tip it to himself or a teammate, and the Celtics would be off to the races. 11 championships in 13 years is just stupid. It shouldn't be possible.
The Modern Shift: From Shaq to the Joker
If you grew up in the 90s or early 2000s, Shaquille O’Neal was the sun that everything orbited around. He was the most physically dominant force I’ve ever seen. Period. When Shaq wanted to get to the rim, he got to the rim. He broke backboards. He made elite defenders look like middle schoolers. But even Shaq had a rival who made him sweat—Hakeem "The Dream" Olajuwon.
Hakeem was different.
While Shaq was about power, Hakeem was about the "Dream Shake." He had the best footwork of any big man, ever. In the 1995 Finals, he basically gave Shaq a masterclass in post-play. He’s the only player in NBA history to win MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, and Finals MVP in the same season (1994). That’s the peak. That’s the ceiling for what a center can be on both ends of the floor.
Is Nikola Jokic Already Top 5?
This is where people start getting mad.
Nikola Jokic doesn't jump high. He doesn't look like a Greek god. He looks like a guy who might own a very successful horse farm (which he does). But the stats don't lie. As of 2026, Jokic has three MVPs and a Finals MVP. He’s currently leading the league in assists and rebounds simultaneously. We have never seen a center who can orchestrate an entire offense from the top of the key like him.
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Some old-timers say he’d get bullied in the 90s. Maybe. But how do you guard a 7-footer who can pass like Larry Bird and shoot like Dirk Nowitzki? You don't. You just hope he misses.
Why the "Era" Argument is Mostly Rubbish
We love to say "Player X couldn't play in today's NBA." It's a lazy take.
Greatness is about adaptation. If you took Wilt Chamberlain and gave him modern sports science, a private jet, and a shooting coach, do you really think he wouldn't dominate? Of course he would. Conversely, if you put Joel Embiid in 1965, he’d probably be banned for being too athletic.
The game has changed from a low-post grind to a perimeter-based chess match. Centers today are expected to:
- Switch onto guards on the perimeter.
- Protect the rim without fouling.
- Shoot at least 35% from three.
- Handle the ball in transition.
Back in the day, if a center dribbled the ball up the court, the coach would have a heart attack. Now, if they can't do it, they're considered a liability.
The Unsung Heroes of the Paint
We can't talk about nba centers all time without mentioning the guys who didn't get the headlines but did the dirty work. Moses Malone was a beast on the offensive glass. He’d miss a layup on purpose just to get the rebound and put it back in. David Robinson, "The Admiral," was a physical specimen who once scored 71 points in a game.
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And then there's Patrick Ewing.
Poor Patrick. He’s the poster child for "Great Players Who Didn't Win a Ring Because Michael Jordan Existed." If Jordan had stayed in baseball, Ewing probably has two rings and we talk about him in the same breath as Hakeem.
Actionable Insights for the Modern Fan
If you want to truly appreciate the evolution of the center position, stop looking at the box score for five minutes. Watch the gravity.
- Watch the spacing: Notice how a guy like Victor Wembanyama (who is currently breaking the league's brain) forces the entire defense to stay home just by standing near the three-point line.
- Study the passing: Look at how many "hockey assists" modern bigs get. The play starts with them.
- Value the defense: Defensive Win Shares and Rim Protection Metrics (like opponent FG% at the rim) tell a much better story than just blocks.
The best way to evaluate these legends is to look at how they broke the game. Mikan forced the lane to be widened. Wilt forced the lane to be widened again. Shaq forced teams to sign three extra "seven-foot stiffs" just to use their six fouls on him. Jokic is forcing teams to rethink what a "point guard" even is.
To get a better handle on these rankings, you should go back and watch the 1995 Rockets-Magic Finals or any 1980s Lakers-Celtics matchup. Seeing the physical toll these guys took in the paint gives you a much deeper respect for their longevity. Don't just take a YouTuber's word for it. Look at the tape. The "eye test" still matters more than any spreadsheet.