Finals MVP at age 24, that was his first of three NBA championships with the Heat, for whom he is the all-time franchise leader in points, assists, steals, win shares, and All-Star appearances
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- Appearance in Just Wright
- As part of 2003 NBA draft class
- As rookie with great postseason performance
- Labeled as the next Michael Jordan
- Never named NBA league MVP
- On ’12-’13 Miami Heat (greatest teams)
- On 2004 U.S. Olympic team
- On 2008 U.S. Olympic team
- One of the greatest players of the 21st century
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FULL archive
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Air Apparent: Seven players who were once labeled as the next Michael Jordan
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All the commissioner’s men: Nine enduring NBA conspiracy theories
Like JFK or the Beatles, Michael Jordan is so ingrained in the consciousness of American culture that he was bound to be initiated with at least one conspiracy. But he’s not the only NBA figure or team that’s inspired (relatively) crackpot theories.
Us against the world: Ranking the 18 U.S. FIBA World Cup teams
First contested in 1950 and formerly called the FIBA World Championships, the quadrennial World Cup of basketball has hosted many of the greatest American players of all time, though the U.S. team has earned the gold medal just five times in 18 tries. With the latest edition coming up later this summer, we rank those previous U.S. World Cup teams, from worst to best, based on both talent level and results.
Mostly valuable: 17 greatest players who never earned NBA league MVP
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Class consciousness: Nine greatest NBA Draft classes of the lottery era (since 1985)
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All the ultimate barn burners, buzzer beaters, back-and-forth battles, incredible moments, and individual dominance are present in this list of the 75 greatest games in NBA history.
Gold standards: Ranking the 18 U.S. men’s Olympic basketball teams
From the original “dream team” that brought home gold from Berlin in 1936 (with James Naismith watching) to the legendary 1992 edition to the latest American champions in 2016, we rank the 18 U.S. men’s basketball teams based on both their performance at the Olympics and their roster as a whole.
Lights! Camera! Shaq-tion!: 21 films that star (or prominently feature) NBA players
Many of the NBA’s biggest stars have attempted to transfer their talents to the silver screen, with results ranging from better to worst. Mostly worst. With LeBron James’ Space Jam 2 reportedly in the can, we take a look back at 21 of the most prominent examples.