To answer that question, let’s head to the Black Hills and see the legendary faces carved into immortality, joining George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Theodore Roosevelt.
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Northwest Division
Denver Nuggets (Denver Rockets) - Alex English, Dan Issel, Carmelo Anthony, David Thompson….tough call to leave off Fat Lever and worth noting that Nikola Jokic will soon be replacing the Skywalker.
Utah Jazz (New Orleans Jazz) - Karl Malone, John Stockton, Pete Maravich, Adrian Dantley …. Both Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert are poised to join this list but will have to duke it out first.
Oklahoma City Thunder (Seattle Supersonics) - Gary Payton, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Jack Sikma…..honorable mention to franchise greats like Spencer Haywood, Ray Allen, Shawn Kemp, Gus Williams, and Downtown Freddie Brown.
Minnesota Timberwolves - Kevin Garnett, Kevin Love, Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins.
Pacific Division
Los Angeles Lakers (Minneapolis Lakers) - Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, Jerry West, Elgin Baylor….this was a very difficult choice given the legends that have played for the Lakers but these four get the nod because they spent their entire hall-of-fame careers with the Lakers and delivered incredible results.
For example, the youngsters out there might not know that Elgin Baylor ranks first in team history in scoring average (27.4) and second in rebounding (13.5). No doubt you could make a strong case for others so I’ve decided to make a little compromise and head to the back side of the mountain to carve out the Mount Rushmore of Laker centers: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O’Neal, Wilt Chamberlain, George Mikan.
Los Angeles Clippers (San Diego Clippers, Buffalo Braves) - Bob McAdoo, Blake Griffin, Chris Paul, Randy Smith….McAdoo and Smith were stars for the old Buffalo Braves and Smith barely edges out DeAndre Jordan for the final spot.
Sacramento Kings (Kansas City Kings, KC-Omaha Kings, Cincinnati Royals, Rochester Royals) - Oscar Robertson, Jerry Lucas, Nate Archibald, Mitch Richmond.
Phoenix Suns- Alvan Adams, Steve Nash, Kevin Johnson, Walter Davis… the Greyhound got the final spot edging out the Matrix, S.T.A.T., and the Round Mound of Rebound. Sandblasting should be starting shortly to add the current face of the franchise - Devin Booker.
Golden State Warriors (San Francisco Warriors, Philadelphia Warriors) - Wilt Chamberlain, Rick Barry, Steph Curry, Chris Mullin…although it would probably only be fair to have a shooting contest between Chris Mullin, Klay Thompson, and Kevin Durant for the final spot on Splash Mountain.
Southwest Division
Houston Rockets (San Diego Rockets) - Hakeem Olajuwon, Elvin Hayes, Moses Malone, James Harden….this decision was pretty easy but that doesn’t mean there weren’t others with impressive resumes like Calvin Murphy, Rudy Tomjanovich, Tracy McGrady, Yao Ming, and Ralph Sampson.
Dallas Mavericks - Dirk Nowitzki, Rolando Blackman, Derek Harper, Mark Aquirre….with the exception of Dirk, not another true superstar in franchise history. The triple J’s - Jason Kidd, Jimmy Jackson, Jamal Mashburn - had their moments but never realized their full potential with the Mavs. Needless to say, Luka Doncic is well on his way to joining Dirk as the next Mavs superstar etched in stone.
Memphis Grizzlies (Vancouver Grizzlies) - Marc Gasol, Pau Gasol, Zach Randolph, Mike Conley... a pretty pedestrian group. Chisels are already out working on Ja Morant’s sculpture.
New Orleans Pelicans (New Orleans Hornets) - Anthony Davis, Chris Paul, Jrue Holiday, David West….do the young guns like Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram have a chance to knock Holiday and West off the mountain?
San Antonio Spurs (Texas Chaparrals, Dallas Chaparrals)- Tim Duncan, David Robinson, George Gervin, Tony Parker…Tony edges out Manu for the final spot and Kawhi couldn’t make it all the way up the mountain because of load management.
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
Toronto Raptors - Kyle Lowry, DeMar Derozan, Vince Carter, Chris Bosh……We the North.
Boston Celtics - Bill Russell, Larry Bird, Bob Cousy, John Havlicek…..while not quite as impressive as the Lakers this is another franchise that could make the case for another Fab 4 - Dave Cowens, Paul Pierce, Kevin McHale, Sam Jones.
Philadelphia 76ers (Syracuse Nationals) - Julius Erving, Allen Iverson, Charles Barkley, Hal Greer….. Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons have work to do but are certainly capable of scaling the mountain.
Brooklyn Nets (New Jersey Nets, New York Nets, New Jersey Americans) - Jason Kidd, Brook Lopez, Buck Williams, Vince Carter….thank goodness that Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving have crossed the Brooklyn Bridge because this franchise hasn’t had true star power since Rick Barry and Dr. J in their early ABA days.
New York Knicks - Patrick Ewing, Walt Frazier, Willis Reed, Bernard King….King gets the slight edge over Carmelo Anthony in a match-up of two of the most prolific scorers in franchise history - strictly a numbers game - King averaged 26.5 and Melo 24.7
Central Division
Milwaukee Bucks - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Sidney Moncrief, Marques Johnson….Marques gets the edge over Bob Dandridge and Michael Redd because he was one of Michael Jordan’s favorite players growing up - I was paying attention during the 10 hours of the Last Dance.
Chicago Bulls - Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Derrick Rose, Artis Gilmore….Dennis Rodman had a shot but we couldn’t find him - maybe in Vegas or at a WWE event.
Detroit Pistons - Isiah Thomas, Bob Lanier, Dave Bing, Joe Dumars…. Michael can’t keep Isiah off this Dream Team.
Miami Heat - Dwyane Wade, Alonzo Mourning, LeBron James, Chris Bosh……probably should have left room for Erik Spoelstra’s favorite player - Udonis Haslem
Orlando Magic - Dwight Howard, Shaquille O’Neal, Tracy McGrady, Nick Anderson….if not for injuries, no doubt there would be a Penny carved out of granite as well.
Washington Wizards (Washington Bullets, Capital Bullets, Baltimore Bullets, Chicago Zephyrs, Chicago Packers) - Wes Unseld, Elvin Hayes, John Wall, Bradley Beal….Wall and Beal edge out some fine guards like Earl Monroe, Phil Chenier, Jeff Malone, and Gilbert Arenas.
Charlotte Hornets - Larry Johnson, Mugsy Bogues, Kemba Walker, Dell Curry…..not exactly a star-studded crew – Michael Jordan is certainly no Jerry Krause when it comes to evaluating and signing talent.
Atlanta Hawks (St. Louis Hawks, Milwaukee Hawks, Tri-City Blackhawks) - Bob Pettit, Dominique Wilkins, Zelmo Beatty, Lou Hudson….Trae’s career is too Young at this point but he has a chance to be the next great face in Hawks history.