Every NBA team has had its fair share of good players come and go. The NBA Eastern Conference Central Division is one of the most storied divisions in the NBA. The division’s teams are the Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks.
In this article we will look at each of the five teams best player of all time.
Chicago Bulls: Michael Jordan
Michael “Air” Jordan is not only the greatest Bull of all time, he’s also the greatest player in the history of the NBA. Jordan has six NBA titles under his belt and was named the Finals MVP in all six outings.
Jordan was a 10 time NBA scoring champion averaging over 30 points per game. Jordan won league MVP five times and made the all defensive team nine times.
Jordan’s most iconic moment has to be the 1997 “Flu-Game”. In game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals against the Utah Jazz. MJ said he had not been feeling well before the game and it was later found out that he had the flu and was very sick. Jordan scored 38 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals as the Bulls won the game.
Cleveland Cavaliers: LeBron James
You could debate whether LeBron James is better than Michael Jordan or not, but you cannot dispute that James is the best Cavalier of all time. In 11 seasons with the Cavs, James won one NBA title, two MVPs and one scoring title.
James’s most iconic moment has to be coming back from a 3-1 game deficit in the 2016 NBA Finals against the 73-9 Golden State Warriors. The most iconic play from that series has to be when James blocked Andre Iguodala’s lay-up.
The Cavs would go on to win the Finals in seven games and bring a championship back to Cleveland for the first time ever.
Detroit Pistons: Isiah Thomas
Isiah Thomas is the GOAT of the Pistons and wins out in a close race between some of his teammates like Bill Laimbeer. Thomas leads the Pistons all time in points, assists and steals.
Thomas was the leader of the Bad Boy Pistons teams of the late 80s and early 90s. Thomas helped the Pistons win two NBA titles back to back in 1989 and 1990. Thomas was named finals MVP for the 1990 Finals. Thomas has also made the All-Star game 12 times.
Indiana Pacers: Reggie Miller
Reggie Miller is the only player out of these five that has never won a ring. However Reggie Miller can still go up against the best players in the NBA including the previously mentioned Micahel Jordan.
Miller has scored over 25,000 points in 18 seasons with the Pacers. Miller also led the league in free throw percentage four times. Miller also played all 82 games in four seasons.
Back to the previously mentioned statement about going up against Michael Jordan, that actually happened. In the 1998 Eastern Conference Finals Miller hit a buzzer-beater three to win the game over Michael Jordan who was guarding him.
The Pacers would, unfortunately, go on to lose the series in seven games.
Milwaukee Bucks: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Some may argue that the greatest Bucks player is already Giannis Antetokounmpo but Kareem had it a little tougher and succeeded in a very difficult time. Kareem won three league MVPs in six seasons with the Bucks and helped them win the Finals in 1971.
Kareem averaged over 30 points and over 15 rebounds per game. Kareem held the Bucks all-time points and rebounds title until Giannis broke it.
Even though Giannis has broken some of Kareem’s records and has helped to bring a title back to Milwaukee 50 years after Kareem did it, he still has a little ways to go.
