SK21209 wrote:I agree its Robinson > Malone > Ewing. It's a shame that we only really scrutinize the Top 10 and we constantly rehash it, spots 11-30 are much more difficult and much more interesting to rank IMO.
The obsession with the Top 10 strikes me as really weird.
But then again, I am new here.
Yes, spots 11-30 are more interesting, and so are the rest too, with the ranking project always becoming more challenging as the length increases, and more candidates are eligible, with much less clear answers. (Something about "asymptotes", right?)
I need to redo my top 100 to capture the developments of the last few seasons, so these are estimates...
Yes, we are talking here about the 6th, 7th, and 8th greatest centers ever.
But for me they are clearly on different tiers.
Malone: Top 20, maybe even Top 15. Most under-rated player ever I figure. The Kareem-stopper. A fantastic 9-year prime. I just wish he had retired 3-5 years earlier than he did; it really tarnished his allure.
Robinson: Top 30, maybe Top 25. Awesome 7-year prime, plus a few more very good years. But I have trouble fully recommending his career as much as most folks here seem too. Whether it was his two early years in Naval Service, or some later years with a less significant role/impact, I just think that this is not the obvious Top 25 Career that most seem to think it is - but it is close!
Ewing: Top 50, maybe Top 40, but I doubt it. An exemplar of a great but not all-time great career. One of the most over-rated players ever I figure. Solid 8-year prime, with some good years before and after too. So much potential for true greatness, and sometimes so close at hand too. What a rollercoaster experience that was. I need to play my Old Person Card here - if you saw him in college, and even just as a fan how it felt to go up against him in those Final 4s, you would understand how much of a difference most of his NBA style felt. That style was highly skilled, and sometimes special, but rarely as great as the narrative now firmly in place.
Hey, is Elvin Hayes a Center? If Hayes had a better Public Relations Department this would be a lot closer than you think regarding Ewing/Hayes 8th/9th center of all time. And hopefully, about ten years from now, Jokic will pass by both Hayes and Ewing. (And we are continuing to pretend that Tim Duncan is not a center, right? Just checking.)