The 27 Best NBA Players Born in the 1950s

Hall of Fame centers, scoring machines and defensive specialists share one birth decade here, and most of them starred in the late 1970s and 1980s.

1. 1
   Magic Johnson

   Lakers point guard born in 1959 who won five NBA titles in the 1980s and MVP awards in 1987, 1989 and 1990.
   1000pts
2. 2
   Larry Bird

   Celtics forward born in 1956 who won three straight MVP awards from 1984 to 1986 and three NBA titles.
   852pts
3. 3
   Bob McAdoo

   Buffalo Braves big man born in 1951 who won the 1975 NBA MVP and three straight scoring titles.
   738pts
4. 4
   Tom Chambers

   Forward born in 1959 who was the 1987 All-Star Game MVP and made four All-Star teams.
   715pts
5. 5
   Moses Malone

   Center born in 1955 who won three NBA MVP awards and was Finals MVP for the 1983 champion 76ers.
   639pts
6. 6
   Julius Erving

   Forward born in 1950, known as Dr. J, who won the 1981 NBA MVP and the 1983 title with Philadelphia after an ABA career.
   624pts
7. 7
   Dennis Johnson

   Guard born in 1954 who was 1979 Finals MVP with Seattle and won two more titles with Boston.
   624pts
8. 8
   World B. Free

   Guard born in 1953 as Lloyd Free who averaged over 28 points per game in back-to-back seasons for San Diego.
   571pts
9. 9
   Michael Cooper

   Lakers guard born in 1956 who won five titles and the 1987 Defensive Player of the Year award.
   571pts
10. 10
    Jack Sikma

    Seattle SuperSonics center born in 1955 who won the 1979 title and made seven All-Star teams.
    571pts
11. 11
    Bobby Jones

    Forward born in 1951 who was named to eight NBA All-Defensive First Teams and won the 1983 Sixth Man of the Year.
    571pts
12. 12
    Sidney Moncrief

    Milwaukee Bucks guard born in 1957 who won the first two Defensive Player of the Year awards, in 1983 and 1984.
    511pts
13. 13
    George Gervin

    San Antonio Spurs guard born in 1952, nicknamed the Iceman, who won four NBA scoring titles.
    443pts
14. 14
    Kevin McHale

    Celtics power forward born in 1957, a two-time Sixth Man of the Year and three-time NBA champion.
    443pts
15. 15
    Maurice Cheeks

    Philadelphia 76ers point guard born in 1956 who started on the 1983 championship team and made four All-Star teams.
    443pts
16. 16
    Alex English

    Denver Nuggets forward born in 1954 who scored more points than any NBA player during the 1980s.
    365pts
17. 17
    Paul Westphal

    Phoenix Suns guard born in 1950 who made five All-Star teams and three All-NBA First Teams.
    365pts
18. 18
    Bill Laimbeer

    Detroit Pistons center born in 1957 who won the 1989 and 1990 titles and led the NBA in rebounding in 1986.
    365pts
19. 19
    Bill Walton

    Center born in 1952 who won the 1977 title and Finals MVP with Portland and the 1978 NBA MVP.
    365pts
20. 20
    Darryl Dawkins

    Center born in 1957 who went straight from high school to the 76ers in 1975 and shattered two backboards with dunks in 1979.
    365pts
21. 21
    Bernard King

    New York Knicks forward born in 1956 who won the 1985 scoring title and scored 60 points on Christmas Day 1984.
    365pts
22. 22
    Jamaal Wilkes

    Forward born in 1953 who won one NBA title with Golden State and three with the Lakers.
    275pts
23. 23
    Rolando Blackman

    Dallas Mavericks guard born in 1959 in Panama who made four All-Star teams.
    275pts
24. 24
    Robert Parish

    Center born in 1953 who played 1,611 regular-season games, among the most in NBA history, and won four titles.
    275pts
25. 25
    Adrian Dantley

    Utah Jazz forward born in 1955 who won NBA scoring titles in 1981 and 1984.
    275pts
26. 26
    David Thompson

    Denver Nuggets guard born in 1954 who scored 73 points in a game on the final day of the 1977-78 season.
    170pts
27. 27
    Andrew Toney

    Philadelphia 76ers guard born in 1957, nicknamed the Boston Strangler, who made two All-Star teams.
    0pts

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