10. Anthony Parker
The former Bradley standout had a less than sensational start in the NBA, and after a few years of warming the bench behind players like Allen Iverson, he decided to take his game over to Israel. Parker signed with Maccabi Tel Aviv and was originally supposed to replace Deron Sheffer. Instead, Parker built a legacy, and earned a place among the Euroleague's top-50 contributors; a list which includes Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni, Spurs guard Manu Ginobili, and former NBA superstars Toni Kukoc, Vlade Divac, and Drezan Petrovic.
While in Israel, Parker earned the highest honor in the Euroleague by being named MVP in 2004-2005. He posted 18.0 PPG, 5.3 rebounds per game and 3.6 assists per game. In 2005-2006, he was named MVP for the second year, and then left Europe to return to the NBA. Parker left a legacy in Europe that Israel will not soon forget. He is now a member of the Toronto Raptors in the NBA, and is looking to add an NBA Championship to his resume before returning to Europe to close his career.
9. Allen Iverson
Iverson is easily the biggest scorer of the post-Jordan era, and his averages don't lie. He trails only Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain with a career average of 27.7 points per contest. He was the king in Philadelphia, and in 2000-2001 he was named the MVP, and went on to lead his team to the NBA finals. Allen Iverson isn't only a great player, and a prolific scorer, he is also a player who reached unbelievable levels of popularity with his signature corn-rows, tattoos, and killer cross-over.
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3 months ago
i dont understand what you mean by "influential"...can u explain how u made this list...what criteria and stuff...
3 months ago
As in influencing the way we perceive Basketball. I remember an article in 2004 or something in SLAM discussing something like this and wanted to write about it. Vince Carter, Lebron James, and Yao Ming for instance have done a lot to change people's ideas of basketball, draw in new markets, and are all insanely popular. For instance, Tim Duncan may be the best power forward to play the game, but some could argue that he hasn't been as influential as someone like even Rafer Alston, who pioneered an entirely new style of basketball. The same way the FAB-5 was a very influential group, or Vlade Divac in the 90's for bridging that US/ Yugoslavia gap, or MJ for making basketball famous worldwide. It really has to do with someone's contributions to the game of basketball which have created some form of growth. I could argue that Duncan's the best player in the world, but due to his reserved nature, and lack of fanfare, he's never been as influential as some lesser players who have a bigger following. I wouldn't call it the most popular, but popularity, and the height of that popularity at it's peak has a lot to do with "influence". I hope I'm making sense. I know it's a little confusing, but overall, the game is turning into a global game, and every player on this list (with the exception of Alston to some degree) is a global icon for the game of Basketball, and has done something to enspire basketball globally, either by paving the way for a country like Yao, or selling out arenas and capturing the imagination of the whole world like Carter and Lebron.
3 months ago
I agree with most of your choices, but I have to disagree with a few.
1. Yao Ming is undoubtedly a huge phenomenon, but it has little to do with how he plays the game. His decent success in the NBA and especially being the first Chinese basketball player are what make him noteworthy, but it is hardly influential. Case in point: Kobe is more revered and celebrated in China than Yao himself.
2. Rafer Alston is truly one of the pioneers of street ball culture. The problem is that street ball culture has a limited scope. Only die hard ballers truly immerse themselves in this basketball-lifestyle. The majority of the world are not these kinds of people and do not know much about it, hence using the term influential is a bit reaching. The distinction is critical here: Rafer is certainly an influential person to a segment of basketball afficionados, but this group is not what the world has in mind when it thinks of basketball. Case in point: how many people really knew about Rafer until recently?
3. Vince Carter is again, like Rafer, someone who embodies a very limited scope. Vince's main claim to fame is his flashy and incredible dunking ability, but little else. People will occasionally wonder how good Carter could have become if he reached his potential, but the only largely significant impression Carter has left on people is his dunking prowess.
4. Lebron has great potential to be one of the most influential players, but that has not really happened yet. What Lebron does have is widespread media exposure and attention. There is a difference between hype and influence.
This leads to my final conclusion: in the last decade, the post-Jordan era, the player who has made the most impact on the world in terms of basketball is Kobe. It's no coincidence given the similarities between Kobe and Jordan. If you go around the world, people will not be mentioning Yao Ming or Lebron when asked about American basketball. They will be effusing about Kobe's game. Kobe is to basketball as Ronaldino is to soccer. This is a hard concept to fathom for Americans because they do not know anything about how the rest of the world receives Kobe as a basketball player. The Olympics was the first glimpse of such phenomenon, but that is only the tip of the iceberg. The fact is that Kobe, not Lebron, not Yao Ming, not anyone else, is the most influential. Why, forget the international stage. Even in the US, most young children and teenagers are out on the streets trying to emulate Kobe, not Lebron.
3 months ago
Thanks for the feedback. However, I have been to many places across the world over these past ten years. I have seen a bigger craze for Vince Carter at his height than I have for any athlete since, (with the exception of Yao). If we're to simply forget the Chinese market of over 1 billion people, 300 million of which play basketball, we're simply being racist. The fact is, that in 2003-2005, a large number of Vince Carter voters were from China, and due to his work in the Olympics, he made himself a global icon. I saw a Vince Carter jersey in Nepal, it was one of three jerseys readily available in Italy, and in Serbia, I found only Serbian players, Vince Carter, and Yao Ming (in 2003). So... while I agree that I may be a little out of the loop on the Alston situation due to the numbers he influenced, I am basing his inclusion on more of the fact that he actually pioneered a new art-form in bball, and a new style of the game. So, we can credit Dr. J for taking the game to the air, but we could credit Alston for reinventing the game for streetballers all over the world. Now... I don't have numbers to back the claim that there are a LOT of people who knew a LOT about Skip in 2002-2005, I can safely say I've played bball in TO, NY, and Oakland, and everyone was talking about Skip... and I had to have the ball put behind my head to really drive the point home. I think Kobe has been a little quieter, and he was rising when that sexual assault case came about and when he lost the marketing power, he in my opinion fell below Lebron... who has been famous since he was 13 years old. I mean.. if you can have ESPN cover a guy's High school game, when they refuse to cover teams like Toronto who is actually in the NBA and a playoff team, you know you're talking about a big deal. If popularity in China was the criteria alone (as you state for Kobe) T-Mac would be a top-5 guy on this list... but he hasn't really made a mark on this game. He hasn't changed it, or paved a way for future generations. He hasn't been a huge winner, and outside of scoring a bunch of points, he's accomplished nothing.
3 months ago
Thanks for your reply to my comment. You see, you're really reinforcing my point. China was not the only criteria Kobe had in his pocket. It is literally international worship for Kobe. And yes, I do agree that a lot of people were talking about Alston, but that was what I was trying to explain. There may be a lot of people who know him, but as a percentage of a larger group of people who follow basketball in the world, it is very small. That is why I do not consider him as influential (even though as a basketball artist, I do consider him greatly influential). About Lebron, you are once again strengthening my point that Lebron does have great media attention in the US, but marketing power does not equate to influence. Lebron may have the endorsements, but relative to Kobe in terms of basketball culture, he is not inspiring as many people.The only reason why Kobe's media presence may not be as large as Lebron's in the US stage is because of his court troubles. But beyond the US, it's not Lebron or Carter or Yao, it's Kobe. This isn't simply opinion because I happen to appreciate Kobe's game. It's from witnessing people's reactions around the world through international friends and their accounts of people in their country. Like I said, the Olympics showed only the tip of the iceberg of how much people around the world look to Kobe as the master craftsman of basketball. All in all, we probably have different ideas of what being influential is, hence our several disagreements.
3 months ago
Kobe is not the most influential basketball player! Why? Look at what kinds of awards he has or had received in the past!! MVP! Best High School Basketball player out of nation? A Gold medalist? Defensive First Team? NBA First Team? What else??? No champion by himself! No Final MVP! No European MVP! I will say, even Dwayne Wade is better than him in accomplishment! See how young he received Final MVP!
Let's talk about the MVP last season, you really think KOBE deserve it! If you do, please look at the record. The team were down when Andrew Bynum were injured(Hardly win one game). Not until when Gasol came in, and then the Lakers started to come back. KOBE had help! Odom, he is great player. He is like 6'10 Pippen. So i don't understand why some people always talk about KOBE IS BEST PLAYER in the world. I agree that he is best player in ONE on ONE. He is not a good team player. He is an excellence defender, but I really believed that the MVP from last season should belong to Chris Paul. Kobe should have won MVP in previous season, but not the past. Like the season he got 81 point.
Talk about Gold medalist, O MY GOD!! Who is on the redeem team? ah? Manu's team weren't as good as the redeem team back in 2004. Manu was too good back then, that no one in world could stop him, so He won the GOLD + the MVP! What does it tell you, Ump! I tell you!!! Even Arena came in to the redeem team this year, they would still win the Gold! They won gold not because KOBE, but the team desire and sprite. Do you understand that??
Plus KOBE is no way compare to Jordan. Jordan never had scored below the team average!!! Jordan got 6 rings + 6 final MVP + 3 season MVP + two GOLD metal!! When you talk about which basketball player had the most influence in the world. KOBE can never compare with Jordan. Look back on 1992 dream team video!! EVERYONE wants to be 23 or like Mike? Who wants to be #8 or #24?? Think about it, man!!
3 months ago
Correction
Even Arena came in to the redeem team this year(replacing KOBE)
Jordan's shooting percentage never had below the team shooting percentage average!
3 months ago
I feel sorry for Martin. Pity those who don't have enough brain cells.
3 months ago
I reckon Kobe is only influential because he reminds people of Jordan. It's really the ghost of Jordan's legacy that intrigues people. Kobe came from the same mold as Jordan; that's what inspires people. Jordan influenced Kobe to the utmost degree; tries to walk and talk like him even.
3 months ago
I suppose people forget how much Dr. J influenced Jordan. Just like Jordan himself even said recently, without Dr. J and other players, Jordan wouldn't have been able to do the things he did. And without Jordan, Kobe wouldn't be able to do the things that he's been doing. There's no shame in learning from the best who came before you.
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