Ron Artest spent 15 years in the NBA, earning an All-Star appearance, an All-NBA team selection, a Defensive Player of the Year award, and 4 All-Defensive team selections.
He has played with plenty of world-class talent, including LeBron James.
But on his list of the top-five players ever, King James was noticeably absent and it sent shockwaves throughout the community. Here’s his list, as it was posted on Twitter:
Top five @NBA players ever
1. Bill Russell – 12 rings
2. Kareem Abdul Jabar- Number 1 in points , 6 MVP’s , 6 rings
Wilt chamberlain- averaged 50pts and 25rebs
4. MJ – 6 rings
5. Bean – 5 rings
Final list for all people and networks
This is the one and only correct list
— Coach Metta (@MettaWorld37) June 20, 2020
At first glance, it’s clear that Metta made his rankings based on titles. Whoever won the most got the most credit, which is why Russell and Kareem rank so high and, probably, why LeBron is not there at all.
For as good as James is, he’s only got 3 rings — which falls lower than Kobe, Mike, Kareem, Russell, and a lot of other greats. Of course, in the case of Wilt Chamberlain, his ridiculous averages are clearly an exception.
Needless to say, the controversial list got a lot of attention by fans.
— Ari (@AriPearlstein) June 20, 2020
https://twitter.com/JoinGreenLeaf/status/1274376023984005120https://twitter.com/rbutler88/status/1274375490057506820
It will be interesting to see how/if World-Peace changes his ranking if James wins another one or two more rings in L.A.
