To the now-generation basketball fans, excuse me for being more than 30 years old. When I played hoops, or anything else for that matter, I wore Converse “Chuck Taylor” canvas sneakers. The first time I bought “basketball shoes” was circa 1969. They were Adidas. And while I thought they were cool, they were also too damn heavy. So when ranking my greatest NBA players of all-time, I actually took into consideration players pre-1980. Hell, pre-1960. After all, the list is “all-time.”

As I read today’s columns and blogs about the game’s greatest players, I’ve concluded that writers are either aiming at the younger-than-30 crowd or have little knowledge of the truly great players from yesteryear. Many in the now-generation actually include Kobe and LeBron in their top 5 list of best ever. Of course, that’s nonsense. Maybe LeBron will soon be included (once he wins a championship or two), but he’s not there yet. As for Kobe, he’s certainly a great player and could be in the top 10 by the time he retires, but forget the top 5.

I realize athleticism plays a role in comparing NBA players of today to those who wore Converse canvas sneakers but, rest assured, Russell, Wilt and The Big “O” take a back seat to no one in today’s game. Maybe the game has changed, but great basketball players endure. Larry Bird was a good athlete, but he was a great basketball player.

So, if you’re younger than 30 or living in Chicago, you might want to click off now, as I give you my top 5 greatest NBA players of all-time.

5. Larry Bird
4. Wilt Chamberlain
3. Oscar Robertson
2. Michael Jordan
1. Bill Russell

Tough to keep off the list: Kareem, Magic, Dr. J. and Jerry West.

Were has the time gone?

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

When did ABC/ESPN become the PR team for Kobe, Inc?

How tired are you of the references “the best player on the planet,” or those silly comparisons to Jordon? Please. Kobe hasn’t even been the best player on the floor. That distinction belongs to Paul Pierce. Even more sickening…how many times are we to be subject to the piece on Kobe at home portraying the good family man? Are we to dismiss his admitted adulterous sexual encounter in Eagle, Colorado on July 1, 2003? I know that incident is old news and should be put to rest – and it would be, if not for the “family man” campaign imposed by Kobe’s ABC public relations team. He’s trying too hard to convince the pubic he’s something we all know he’s not. Maybe if he bought me a $4M diamond ring, as he did his wife after his Colorado indiscretion, I’d forgive him, too.

It seems apparent that Kobe wants and needs to be liked. With apologies to LeBron James, Kobe is the best player in the league…but, likeable? Magic or Jerry West he’s not. First, he runs Shaq out of town – then he wants out of LA himself. Even Lakers’ fans had enough of Kobe prior to the start of the season. However, it’s amazing what a few W’s can do for fickle fans.

As the Finals heads back to Boston for game six, let’s hope we’ve seen the last of the Kobe campaign and just see a great game.

We’ve all seen and heard enough about the rich Celtics - Lakers traditions. Well, almost. How can this championship round go on without hearing the names Chick Hearn and Johnny Most? It can’t.

Considered the two greatest basketball radio-broadcasters of all-time, Hearn and Most were the voices of these two great franchises - and as much a part of their glorious history as Russell, West, Bird and Magic.

Johnny Most announced Celtics games “high above courtside”� (his traditional opening remark), from 1953 to 1990. Chick Hearn could be heard calling Lakers games from 1965 to 2002, including a consecutive-game streak of 3,338. Between the two, there were 25 championships (16 by Most and 9 by Hearn), and nearly 90-years of radio-broadcasting. Most passed away in 1993. Hearn in 2002.

Hearn was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003. He was also inducted into the American Sportscasters Hall of Fame in 1995 - and has a star on the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame. Most was inducted into the media-category of the New England Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002, and was awarded the Curt Gowdy Media Award by the Basketball Hall of Fame trustees. That he’s not an actual Hall of Famer is a travesty.

Hearn is credited for numerous basketball sayings - called “Chickisms,”� including “slam dunk,”� “air-ball,”� and “no harm, no foul.”� My personal favorite was “ticky-tack”� foul. Most was best known for his raspy voice and villainizing of Celtics opponents. His famous call: “Havlicek stole the ball”� lives in NBA and Celtics lore.

I grew up listening to Johnny Most - and grew old admiring Chick Hearn. There will never be anyone like them again.

Celtics versus Lakers just isn’t the same without them.