NBA 75th Anniversary Team

• 1. The Voting Panel And Methodology

  ›

  A panel of 88 media members, current and former players, coaches, general managers, and team executives voted to create the list. The NBA announced this group in October 2021 to honor the league's 75th anniversary. They revealed 25 names on the first two days of voting. The final 26 names appeared during the last day from October 19 through the 21st of October 2021. This process resulted in a total of 76 players instead of the original target of 75. A tie in the voting forced the committee to add an extra member to the roster. The league stated these individuals were chosen as pioneers who helped shape and define the game.

  146813

• 2. Combined Championships And Awards

  ›

  Players selected for the team combined for 158 NBA championships throughout their careers. Their collective tally includes 62 Most Valuable Player awards and 48 Finals MVP awards. All 50 members of the previous 1996 top 50 team received spots on this new list. Two notable omissions from that earlier selection, Bob McAdoo and Dominique Wilkins, made the cut here. Bill Russell, Bob Cousy, George Mikan, and Bob Pettit are the only four players named to all four NBA anniversary teams. Derrick Rose remains the only former league MVP not included on any team as of 2020. Eleven active players joined the group during the 2021, 22 season when the announcement occurred.

  791542

• 3. Public Criticism And Exclusions

  ›

  Widespread rumors suggested Kyrie Irving was originally on the list before his exclusion. His then-team, the Brooklyn Nets, prematurely posted a congratulatory announcement about him. LeBron James later called the snub a damn shame in a public statement. Andre Iguodala agreed with the sentiment on Twitter, stating Irving is at least top 20. Former coach Stan Van Gundy described Dwight Howard's omission as absolutely ridiculous. Klay Thompson posted an Instagram message claiming he believed himself to be top 75 all-time. Steve Kerr expressed hope that both Thompson and Draymond Green would have been selected for the honor.

  4445464750

• 4. The Fifteen Greatest Coaches List

  ›

  A separate panel of 43 current and former NBA coaches compiled the list of fifteen greatest coaches. This group collaborated with the National Basketball Coaches Association to finalize their choices. Eight members of the Top 10 Coaches from 1996 were selected again for this updated roster. Original selections Bill Fitch and John Kundla did not make the final cut. Nine of the fifteen coaches were alive when the list was announced in 2021. Four active coaches named include Steve Kerr, Gregg Popovich, Doc Rivers, and Erik Spoelstra. Seven members have since passed away, including Red Auerbach who died in 2006 and Lenny Wilkens who died in 2025.

  6364656667

• 5. Legacy Of The Original Fifty Players

  ›

  All fifty players from the 1996 anniversary team were included in the new 2021 selection. Two players previously left out of the 1996 list, Bob McAdoo and Dominique Wilkins, were added here. Wilkins was the only nine-time All-Star excluded from the earlier top 50. He was also the only six-time All-NBA selection to miss that initial cut. McAdoo was a two-time champion and the only former league MVP omitted from the first group. The Boston Celtics had the most overall players on the combined lists with twenty names. The Los Angeles Lakers followed closely with fifteen total selections across both eras.

  79