Mount Naismith

When asked recently who would be on his "basketball Mount Rushmore", LeBron James said he'd easily put Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, and Magic Johnson. He then said he'd give the 4th slot to Oscar Robertson. As you'll read later me and LeBron do not have a huge difference in opinions when it comes to who would be on our respective basketball Mount Rushmore's but, take note of the few names that are left off what I call Mount Naismith as I will deem them the "Honorable Mentions":


Honorable Mention:

Oscar Robertson: Yes I am indeed leaving him off my Mount Naismith when LeBron put him on his. This is where we differ. I cannot knock Oscar he is the only player to average a triple-double in a season which at least in theory might be one of the hardest things to do in the game. Getting a triple-double in one game is hard enough but to average over 10 points, assists, and rebounds all season is beyond impressive (In case you were wondering his numbers for that triple-double season of 1961-62 were 30ppg, 11apg, and 12rpg). He was also only a one time champion with the Milwaukee Bucks in 1971. That was also in his "down-year" as a player up till that point averaging his least amount of points, assists, and rebounds per game in his whole career up till that point. The main reason he won that title with the Bucks was because of Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). Great player....Yes, deserving of a spot on my Mount Naismith....No.

Jerry West: "The logo" one of the original great players in the NBA and a very underrated player if I do say so myself. He does not get the credit he deserves for what he did for the game in my opinion. His career averages were 27ppg, 5rpg, and 6apg which is very respectable in an era where defense was preached and it garnered some of the worst looking jump-shots the game has ever seen, and at his best he averaged 31 points per game. However only one title in 1972 which is weird to me because throughout his career he played with such players as Wilt Chamberlain, Elgin Baylor, and Gail Goodrich so I'm surprised he only has one title. Again not that he is a bad player there are just players more deserving of a spot on Mount Naismith.

Kareem Abdul- Jabbar: The player with the most points in NBA history and 6 rings in not on Mount Naismith? Trust me it's hard for me leave Kareem off, one of the best statistical players in both college and professional. Career averages are 24 and 11 respectively but he did score 38, 387 points in his career which is a record that may stand for a while ( The only active player close to him is Kobe with 31,700). He played for some great teams throughout his career and many good players surrounding him which makes this scoring mark even more impressive in my opinion. All in all Kareem is left off because there is one player that encompasses what it means to be a 'big-man". Why can't Mount Naismith have 6 faces on it?

Wilt Chamberlain: There are few players I like more than Wilt Chamberlain. He was the greatest statistical player of all-time in my estimation (Averaged 30 and roughly 23 boards throughout his career). Up until his last 4 years in the league he averaged 20 boards every year which is astounding. On yeah he also averaged 50 points a game one year. A 2 time champ with the Lakers but the reason I just can't put him on my Mount Naismith is I think his stats are slightly skewed, name one player in his era that could stop him? The answer is no one could stop him, nobody was as tall, and strong as he was. I don't want to take away from his greatness but that is the breaker for me in not putting him on my list.

Now for the moment you've all been waiting for these 4 are on my Mount Naismith:

Bill Russell: OK. This might turn some heads I know but look at his body of work. He averaged 15ppg and 22rpg throughout his career. 5 MVP awards and 12 all-star selections. He played for and coached the Boston Celtics from 1966-1969. I almost forgot HE HAS 11 CHAMPIONSHIP RINGS. This is more than your hand can fit where does he put the other one on his toe? Statistically you're probably thinking Why is he on here he didn't even average 20 a game for his career? For Russell it's more than just statistics it's what he did for the game that is so important. He has been the greatest ambassador for the game of basketball to this day, he is the type of person and player that every NBA player should strive to be and that is why he is on my Mount Naismith.



Earvin Johnson: I bet I threw you off by calling him Earvin. If you watch film of Magic Johnson the first thing that will jump out at you in his passing, he averaged 11 assists per game throughout his career and couple that with 19 points per game. Again you're asking yourself He doesn't average enough points to be on here Nolan. Look at who was on the teams he played for Kareem, James Worthy, Michael Cooper, Kurt Rambis, Bob McAdoo, even Byron Scott he played with the most stacked team offensively you should be impressed that he averaged 19 a game and didn't average 20 assists per game. The most unselfish player to ever play all the man wanted to do was win and he did with 5 titles. Same thing with Magic as Russell a great ambassador for the game. I think he gets a bum rap because people always judge him for having HIV (Also here is a note to ignorant fans AIDS and HIV are two different diseases so stop saying Magic Johnson has AIDS HE DOESN'T he has HIV stop pretending that they're the same thing) he made a mistake and he got scrutinized so highly for having an uncontrollable disease but he was still able to build a legitimate empire in the city of Los Angeles. Another player other players should strive to be on the floor and off. Do you see my theme here?





Michael Jordan: Before I begin as of now Michael Jordan is the best to ever play the game of basketball and no I am not a "LeBron hater" I highly respect LeBron but MJ is best ever (I'll continue this thought at the end of the blog). Great statistical player 30ppg, 6rpg, and 5apg. I think if you're reading this you have a good idea of how great of a player Michael Jordan is. Also 6 championships with the Bulls and 5 MVP awards. Besides the fact that he was a great player he also did the job of putting professional basketball back on the map with his marketability. No professional athlete and I mean no professional athlete is more recognizable than Michael Jordan. Go anywhere on Earth and they know who Michael Jordan is. Why is this so? his brand of shoes, basketball shorts, socks, shirts, sweatshirts, and condoms (That's my sorry attempt at a joke but would you really be surprised to see that happen?). All in all Michael Jordan is what made basketball what it is today every young basketball player strives to be him and that shows in todays modern NBA.

Larry Bird: Larry Bird is my favorite player of all-time...I am 20 years old Larry Bird retired before I was even born. That is the lasting effect that he has had on the game and on me (If you ever play pick-up ball with me you'll notice at a young age I modeled my jumper off of Larry Bird's). Averaged 24ppg, 6apg, and 10rpg throughout his career with the Celtics and also won 3 championships and 3 MVP awards. I wish there was more people I could talk to about Larry Bird but there just aren't, all anyone ever wants to talk about is dunks and alley-oops. Let me invite you to search on YouTube "Larry Bird Pass" there are a multitude of videos so take your pick and just watch the ability of this man passing the basketball unreal really. He was unbelievably un-athletic but the reason he was so good is his drive to practice the fundamentals of the game. He wasn't fast, strong, and he couldn't jump but he was good at dribbling, passing, rebounding, shooting, and defense so take your pick on what player you want on your team, an uber athletic guy with limited basketball skills, or an un-athletic player with all the skills. Your call.


As promised I'll explain myself when I said MJ was the greatest of all-time and not LeBron. My thought on this situation is that you cannot call a player the GOAT if he hasn't retired yet. A lot of this is contributing to the mainstream media that always compare LeBron and MJ when it's just unnecessary, they played in different eras with different players defending them it's like comparing apples to oranges in my opinion. I can't say whether or not LeBron will become the GOAT but I can say that once he does retire he'll be on my Mount Naismith.


-NS(@NolanPSchmidt)