Top 14 NBA players of all time

A year and a half ago, I made a top 25 NBA players list. So really this is a "condensed" and "updated" list.

I do top 14 players because I think these 14 players are clearly the top 14 to play in the NBA. It's hard to choose a top 10 or a top 15 but a top 14 is clear to me.

1. Bill Russell
2. Michael Jordan
3. Wilt Chamberlain
4. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
5. LeBron James
6. Magic Johnson
7. Larry Bird
8. Oscar Robertson
9. Shaquille O'Neal
10. Tim Duncan
11. Hakeem Olajuwon
12. Moses Malone
13. Kobe Bryant
14. Jerry West

Links:
A chronological look at when these 14 players were the best in the league

Here is my top 25 list from a year and a half ago.

PS - Before you complain about Bill Russell having a good team, may I remind you Michael Jordan also had a great team. When MJ retired the first time in 1993, the Bulls were one questionable call away from advancing to the Eastern Conference finals and perhaps winning the whole thing and Scottie Pippen was the second runner up in MVP voting. The Bulls were legit contenders without MJ, Pippen was one of the best players in the league, and Phil Jackson is perhaps the greatest coach in NBA history. Magic's Lakers even made the playoffs after Magic retired. The Celtics, however, had never won a ring before Bill Russell and missed the playoffs for two years in a row after Russell. In fact, no other team ever fared so well after losing an all time great player in their prime than the Bulls fared without MJ (LINK).

The Year After

A look at the "year after" from NBA teams after losing an all-time NBA great in their prime:

• Bill Russell
• Final year with Celtics - Wins a ring. 
• First year without him - Miss playoffs with 34-48 record.
• Wilt Chamberlain
• Final year with Warriors - Lost in NBA finals
• First year without  him - Miss playoffs with 17-63 record.
• Final year with 76ers - Lost 7 game series in Conference Finals to Bill Russell
• First year without him - First round playoff exit losing 4-1.
• Final year with Lakers - Lost in NBA finals.
• First year without him - First round playoff exit losing 4-1.
• Magic Johnson
• Final year with Lakers - Lost in NBA finals
• First year without him - First round playoff exit losing 3-1.
• Michael Jordan
• Final year with Bulls (before coming back)- Won a ring.
• First year without him - Bulls were one questionable call away from moving on to the Conference Finals.
• Shaquille O'Neal
• Final year with Lakers - Lost in NBA finals
• First year without him - Miss playoffs with 34-48 record.
• LeBron James
• Final year with Cavaliers (before coming back) - Lost 6 game series in second round.
• First year without him - Miss playoffs with 19-63 record 
• Final year with Heat - Lost in NBA finals.
• First year without him - Miss playoffs with 37-45 record

PS - Some names I didn't include because they were far past their prime when they left their teams, so it would be an unfair comparison to see their "final year" compared to the "year after" (Kobe Bryant, Oscar Robertson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, etc....)

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Before seasons mixed with after seasons