Some of these players carried golden generations to world titles; others turned a single tournament into a personal scoring clinic. Every era since the first edition in 1950 gets a say.
1Oscar FurlongArgentine forward and MVP of the first World Cup in 1950, won by Argentina at home.1000pts
2Amaury PasosBrazilian star named MVP of the 1959 World Cup and a two-time world champion.898pts
3Pau GasolMVP of the 2006 World Cup as Spain won its first world title.898pts
4Theodoros PapaloukasGreek playmaker who orchestrated the famous 2006 semifinal win over Team USA.857pts
5Bogdan BogdanovićSerbian guard who starred at the 2019 World Cup and led Serbia to the 2023 final.800pts
6Dirk NowitzkiGerman forward named MVP and top scorer of the 2002 World Cup, where Germany took bronze.734pts
7Luis ScolaArgentine forward with the second-most World Cup points ever, still starring at the 2019 tournament.734pts
8Kyrie IrvingMVP of the 2014 World Cup after a 26-point final against Serbia.659pts
9Miloš TeodosićSerbian passer who steered Serbia to the 2014 World Cup final.659pts
10Peja StojakovićSharpshooter who won World Cup gold with Yugoslavia in 2002 in Indianapolis.659pts
11Dražen PetrovićYugoslav guard who starred in the 1986 bronze and 1990 gold-medal World Cup runs.571pts
12Krešimir ĆosićInnovative Yugoslav centre who won World Cup gold in 1970 and 1978.571pts
13Shaquille O'NealNamed MVP of the 1994 World Cup as 'Dream Team II' won gold in Toronto.571pts
14Oscar SchmidtBrazilian scorer who holds the all-time World Cup points record with 843 across five tournaments.571pts
15Kevin DurantMVP of the 2010 World Cup who set a US tournament scoring record on the way to gold.571pts
16Ricky RubioSpanish point guard named MVP of the 2019 World Cup won by Spain in Beijing.571pts
17Sergei BelovSoviet guard who won World Cup gold in 1967 and 1974 and was the 1974 tournament's top star.571pts
18Toni KukočVersatile forward named MVP as Yugoslavia won the 1990 World Cup in Argentina.467pts
19Marc GasolSpanish centre who won World Cup gold in 2006 and again as a leader in 2019.467pts
20Ivo DaneuSlovenian guard named MVP as Yugoslavia won its first World Cup at home in 1970.467pts
21Wlamir MarquesBrazilian forward who won back-to-back World Cups in 1959 and 1963, MVP of the latter.467pts
22Dino RađaCroatian big man who took gold with Yugoslavia in 1990 and bronze with Croatia in 1994.467pts
23Manu GinóbiliLeader of Argentina's golden generation, silver medallist at the 2002 World Cup.467pts
24Luka DončićSlovenian star among the top scorers of the 2023 World Cup.467pts
25Arvydas SabonisSoviet centre who won World Cup gold in 1982 and silver in 1986 as a teenager.343pts
26Nikos GalisGreek scoring machine who led the 1986 World Cup in scoring with over 33 points per game.343pts
27Yao MingChinese centre who dominated the paint at the 2002 and 2006 World Cups.343pts
28Hedo TürkoğluLeader of the Turkey side that reached the 2010 World Cup final on home soil.343pts
29Andrés NocioniArgentine forward from the 2002 silver-medal team and a fixture through the 2010 World Cup.343pts
30Dejan BodirogaSerbian forward who won gold in 1998 and was the leader of Yugoslavia's 2002 title team.343pts
31Vlade DivacCentre who won World Cup gold with Yugoslavia in 1990 and again in 2002.0pts
32Dennis SchröderMVP of the 2023 World Cup as Germany won its first world title.0pts
33Juan Carlos NavarroSpanish guard and key scorer of the 2006 world champions.0pts
Photo credits
- Theodoros Papaloukas — José Hilla Juliá, CC BY 3.0
- Bogdan Bogdanović — All-Pro Reels, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Dirk Nowitzki — Keith Allison, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Luis Scola — Basketinside il basket a 360°, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Kyrie Irving — Originally uploaded by Icealien33 Cropped by Ytoyoda, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Miloš Teodosić — Christopher Johnson, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Peja Stojaković — Chrishmt0423, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Krešimir Ćosić — SpeedyGonsales, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Shaquille O'Neal — TechCrunch, CC BY 2.0
- Oscar Schmidt — Sérgio (Savaman) Savarese, CC BY 2.0
- Kevin Durant — Clément Bardot, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Ricky Rubio — Erik Drost, CC BY 2.0
- Toni Kukoč — Jeramey Jannene from Milwaukee, WI, United States of America, CC BY 2.0
- Marc Gasol — Patrickpedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Wlamir Marques — Elza Fiúza/ABr, CC BY 3.0
- Manu Ginóbili — Mike, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Yao Ming — World Travel & Tourism Council, CC BY 2.0
- Hedo Türkoğlu — Mike, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Andrés Nocioni — Augustas Didžgalvis, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Dejan Bodiroga — shaka, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Vlade Divac — Medija centar Beograd, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Dennis Schröder — Steffen Prößdorf, crop by CalDoesIt, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Juan Carlos Navarro — Elemaki, CC BY 3.0
