In a guest appearance on the Pat Bev Podcast, former All-Star point guard Gilbert Arenas revealed his list of the NBA’s top five generational talents. With a mix of old names and new, the players all share the same characteristic of being a physical freak of nature.
“Wilt [Chamberlain], you got Magic [Johnson], you have Jordan, [Shaquille O’Neal], LeBron James, Victor Wembanyama, and Kevin Durant. I know Zion and Ja are supposed to be generational.”
STARTING 5 OF GENERATIONAL TALENTS! Presented by @NewAmsterdam pic.twitter.com/S16kIEjHkj
— Pat Bev Pod (@PatBevPod) June 7, 2024
Arenas caused great debate in the NBA community when he shared his take on “generational” NBA talents. In his mind, the term refers to players whose game is unable to be mimicked, such as Giannis Antetokounmpo and others who have physical advantages that are impossible to replicate.
While Arenas himself was once an All-Star for the Wizards (averaged 20.7 points for his career), he wouldn’t consider himself generational because his skills are all learnable and they are common across the basketball world.
In the case of 4x MVP Wilt Chamberlain, it’s hard to deny that the 7’1″, 275-pound big man was generational. He was unstoppable in his time, combining his size with unbelievable strength to set countless statistical records that still hold strong today. His impact and dominance on the court were unreachable, and certainly the type of thing that comes around only once in a decade.
Throwback to Wilt Chamberlain blocking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s skyhook twice in a row. 🤯🔥
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) September 7, 2023
Magic Johnson, a 5x NBA champion, wasn’t as big or as strong as Chamberlain, but he was bigger than the average point guard at 6’7″. His versatility famously allowed him to start at center in Game 6 of the 1980 Finals and it was an advantage that helped him sustain a Hall of Fame career for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Arenas also named 39-year-old LeBron James as a generational talent and while it may seem like a stretch at first, remember that nobody in the league had the combination of LeBron’s speed, athleticism, and strength and it helped him impose his will in the paint time and time again.
The same case can be made for 6’6″ guard Michael Jordan. He wasn’t taller than the big men on the floor but his unbelievable athleticism and unbeaten willpower allowed him to get the edge over most opponents. His career as a 6x champion, 5x MVP, and 14x All-Star is the stuff of legends and stands today as one of the most impressive runs in NBA history.
Shaquille O’Neal, a 4x champion, is another obvious choice for this exercise given that his raw power and strength forced the NBA to change its rules. He dominated the league during his prime with the Lakers, averaging 27.0 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game
In the new generation, former No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama is the only one who got the nod from Arenas and it’s fitting given his status as a 7’4″ stretch big man. And while Zion Williamson and Ja Morant could have taken that title for themselves, they have yet to prove they are on the same level.
While I agree with Arenas’ point about success through natural talent vs. hard work, I think his definition of a “generational” talent is far too strict. While guys like Stephen Curry, Nikola Jokic, Kobe Bryant, and other NBA superstars may not have had the same natural advantages as others, they still had an influence on the game that cannot be easily replicated. There will never be another Stephen Curry, just like there will never be another LeBron James.
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