by Mary Byrd

Created on: May 07, 2008

Who are the all time top NBA scorers and why are they great?

Easy the top 10 all time highest scorers are as follows:
1. Kareem Abdul-Jabber - 38,387 points
2. Wilt Chamberlain - 31,419
3. Karl Malone - 30,599
4. Michael Jordan - 29,277
5. Moses Malone - 27,409
6. Elvin Hayes - 27.313
7. Oscar Roberson - 26,710
8. Dominique Wilkins - 26,669
9. John Havlicek - 26,395
10. Alex English - 25,613

The hard part what makes them great? But do numbers tell the whole story? Each of the above players brought an indescribable quality to the game and each player had his own distinct playing style.

When researching this article I thought for sure Michael Jordan would be the all time top scorer. After all, who can forget how Michael Jordan seemed to deny the existence of gravity and hang in the air as he stretched to make his goals? Jordan was 5 time Most Valuable Player and won 6 championships.

Who would not be amazed when Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points in a single game? Will this record ever be broken? Chamberlain's holds more records than any other player. He holds the record for most points scored in a season, 4000, most rebounds in a game, 55, highest season scoring average, 50.4, and most career rebounds, 22,924. Wilt also had many blocked shots, but records were not kept at the time he played for blocked shots.

Will any player ever break Kareem Abdul-Jabber's incredible scoring record? Known as Lew Alcindor before he changed his name, he won 3 NCAA championships for UCLA. He was Rookie of the Year, and won a championship his first year as a pro. In 1974 he was traded to the LA Lakers and had several good seasons, but when a guy named Earvin "Magic" Johnson was drafted in 79, magic things happened and the Lakers won 5 NBA championships and were in the finals 8 times.

In my opinion, probably the greatest all around player is Oscar Roberson, who averaged an incredible triple double for the entire 1961-62 season. The Big "O," as he was called, averaged a remarkable 30 points per game, with 12 rebounds, and 11 assist. He played his entire career with the Cincinnati Royals and the Milwaukee Bucks.

Players come and go, many are fabulous players but frizzle out after a couple of years. Each of the 10-top scorers had long careers. Each realized there was more to the game than the final numbers. Each had a humility and a sense of responsibility to their fans and future generations of player. Each gave a legacy that will be hard to match or surpass in the future. How many of our current rooster of players will match these incredible men? The score is still out and it will be interesting to see what this and the next generation of players accomplish.

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