If you were watching NBA basketball during the JFK, LBJ, and Nixon presidential era, you must have fallen off your chair when ABC/ESPN broadcaster Jeff Van Gundy recently proclaimed Kobe Bryant the greatest Lakers’ player of all-time. Hell, he doesn’t even make my top four (yet).

What makes Van Gundy’s comment even more surprising is that he was born in 1962 and comes from a basketball family. His father, Bill, was head coach at Brockport State University, so I know he recalls the names West and Baylor – not to mention Magic and Kareem.

Truth be told, I’m not a big fan of Kobe. However, there’s no doubt he’s a great player – and, arguably, the best player in the NBA today. However, the greatest player in Lakers’ history? C’mon Jeff.

Being a Celtics’ fan since the Russell era, I’ve seen or listened to all the great Celtics-Lakers match-ups. Young NBA fans believe it was the Bird-Magic confrontations that made this rivalry what it is today, but it started long before that duo were even out of diapers. From the 1961-62 to 1968-69 seasons, they played each other in six of the eight NBA Finals. They also matched-up in 1959, when the Lakers played in Minneapolis. The Bird-Magic era was indeed exciting and helped save the NBA, but it was just a continuation of the game’s greatest rivalry.

So, after 50 years of NBA history behind me, I offer my Top 10 Lakers of all-time. However, two things to note about my list: Wilt Chamberlain only played four full seasons for the Lakers (he was hurt during the 1969-70 season. Plus, I consider Wilt more a Warrior/76er). And, I never saw George Mikan play.
1.    Jerry West
2.    Earvin “Magic” Johnson
3.    Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
4.    Elgin Baylor
5.    Kobe Bryant
6.    Shaquille O’Neil
7.    Gail Goodrich
8.    James Worthy
9.    Wilt Chamberlain
10.    George Mikan

There have been great rivals in pro sports, but none compares to the championship confrontations between the Celtics and Lakers.

Since the first finals in 1947, when the Philadelphia Warriors defeated the Chicago Stags, there have been 61 NBA champions. The Celtics and Lakers have combined to win 30 of those titles – with the Celtics owning 16 and the Lakers 14, including 5 as the Minneapolis Lakers. It will soon be 31 championships.

As a reminder, the Lakers moved to Los Angeles in 1960. Prior to their move, the Minneapolis Lakers won 5 championships in 6-years from 1949-1954. They were led by the great George Mikan. The 6′10″ Mikan was voted one of the 50-greatest NBA players of all-time in 1996. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1959.

Since 1959, the Celtics-Lakers have played against each other in the finals 10-times, with the Celtics winning 8. The dominance of the Celtics began during the Russell-era when, from 1957-1969, Boston won 11 Championships in 13-years. Seven of those titles were versus the Lakers.

In the 70’s, the Celtics and Lakers played in the Finals 5-times (none versus each other). The Lakers played in 3 – winning once (’72), while the Celtics won both of their appearances (’74 and ‘76).

However, it was their dominance of the 1980’s that is best remembered by most. Those Bird-Magic years were unforgettable. During that decade, the Lakers appeared in 8 Finals – winning 4. The Celtics played 5 – winning 3. They each played in 4 finals in-a-row; the Lakers’82 –’85, and the Celtics ‘84 – ‘87. Their head-to-head battles were legendary. The Celtics won in ‘84, and the Lakers in ‘85 and ‘87. And, if not for the crazy shot LA fans will never forget – by Houston’s Ralph Sampson, they would have also played in 1986, which was won by the Celtics over the Rockets.

So here we are … Celtics versus Lakers one more time. It may not be Bird, McHale and Parish versus Magic, Kareem and Worthy… but there are plenty of stars to satisfy the NBA marketing team.

I can already hear the Celtics’ fans chanting … “BEAT LA”.

Posted by Don Gilbert

Who will win the NBA title? Vote now at www.HOFN.com.

It’s March Madness - so what better time to talk about college basketball’s greatest players? A poll by www.HOFmagazine.com provides a consensus list of the Top 10 college players of all-time from which to choose. The list consists of (alphabetically):

• Lew Alcindor, UCLA
• Larry Bird, Indiana State
• Bill Bradley, Princeton
• Wilt Chamberlain, Kansas
• Pete Maravich, LSU
• Oscar Robertson, Cincinnati
• Bill Russell, San Francisco
• David Thompson, NC State
• Bill Walton, UCLA
• Jerry West, West Virginia

Again, the poll question asks who is the greatest - not who’s your favorite. That’s an important distinction. For me, my favorite college basketball player was Bill Bradley. But my greatest Top-5 is as follows:

• 5. Oscar Robertson
• 4. Pete Maravich
• 3. Bill Russell
• 2. Lew Alcindor ( Kareem Abdul-Jabbar)
• 1. Bill Walton

Choosing between Walton and Alcindor was difficult. I give the slight edge to Walton for his rebounding and more aggressive style of play. However, being a three-time Player of the Year with two National Titles, plus leading his UCLA team to an 88-game winning-streak certainly helped!