The All-Time All-Time

RankPlayerPositionSport
1Tom BradyQBNFL
2Wayne GretzkyCNHL
3Barry BondsOFMLB
4Roger ClemensSPMLB
5LeBron JamesSFNBA
6Michael JordanSGNBA
7Jerry RiceWRNFL
8Babe RuthOFMLB
9Gordie HoweRWNHL
10Peyton ManningQBNFL
11Kareem Abdul-JabbarCNBA
12Magic JohnsonPGNBA
13Lawrence TaylorLBNFL
14Ted WilliamsOFMLB
15Randy JohnsonSPMLB
16Shaquille O’NealCNBA
17Willie MaysOFMLB
18Ray LewisLBNFL
19Mario LemieuxCNHL
20Hank AaronOFMLB
21Tim DuncanPFNBA
22Bobby OrrDNHL
23Greg MadduxSPMLB
24Emmitt SmithRBNFL
25Patrick RoyGNFL
26Kobe BryantSGNBA
27Reggie WhiteDENFL
28Kevin DurantSFNBA
29Alexander OvechkinLWNHL
30Sidney CrosbyCNHL
31Alex RodriguezSSMLB
32Larry BirdSFNBA
33Bruce SmithDENFL
34Mike Schmidt3BMLB
35Aaron RodgersQBNFL
36Joe MontanaQBNFL
37Karl MalonePFNBA
38Jaromir JagrRWNHL
39Steph CurryPGNBA
40Albert Pujols1BMLB
41Mark MessierCNHL
42Drew BreesQBNFL
43Deion SandersCBNFL
44Ty CobbOFMLB
45Clayton KershawSPMLB
46Martin BrodeurGNHL
47Mike TroutOFMLB
48Pedro MartinezSPMLB
49James HardenSGNBA
50Anthony MunozOTNFL
51Hakeem OlajuwonCNBA
52Brett Favre QBNFL
53Phil EspositoCNHL
54Nicklas LidstromDNHL
55Barry SandersRBNFL
56Rod WoodsonCBNFL
57Ray BourqueDNHL
58Dominik HasekGNHL
59Lou Gehrig1BMLB
60Bruce MatthewsOGNFL
61David RobinsonCNBA
62Wilt ChamberlainCNBA
63JJ WattDENFL
64Aaron DonaldDTNFL
65Rogers Hornsby2BMLB
66Mickey MantleOFMLB
67Jean BeliveauCNHL
68Stan MusialOFMLB
69Bobby HullLWNHL
70Joe GreeneDTNFL
71Maurice RichardRWNHL
72Kevin GarnettPFNBA
73Kawhi LeonardSFNBA
74Walter JohnsonSPMLB
75Alan PageDTNFL
76Lefty GroveSPMLB
77Derrick BrooksLBNFL
78Walter PaytonRBNFL
79Jim BrownRBNFL
80Dirk NowitzkiPFNBA
81Guy LafleurRWNHL
82Mariano RiveraRPMLB
83Doug HarveyDNHL
84Moses MaloneCNBA
85Bill RussellCNBA
86Justin VerlanderSPMLB
87Ronnie LottSNFL
88Max ScherzerSPMLB
89Frank RobinsonOFMLB
90Ed ReedSNFL
91Jimmie Foxx1BMLB
92Tom SeaverSPMLB
93Marshall FaulkRBNFL
94LaDainian TomlinsonRBNFL
95Manny RamirezOFMLB
96Randy MossWRNFL
97Terrell OwensWRNFL
98Charles BarkleyPFNBA
99Jerry WestPGNBA
100Julius ErvingSGNBA

Leave a Reply

Hi (hopefully) awesome reader! I welcome your comments. However, please be aware that I make all of my arguments using facts, statistics, and logic. Unfortunately, the average comment on a top-100 list goes something like this:

"UR StooPid. (Insert player) is trash. I've watched (pick a sport) for (pick a number of years) and (pick a player) is better than everyone. UR DUMB. HAHA6969."

–Some Jabroni

As cognitively stimulating as this species of comment is, it ends up being a missed opportunity to share a nuanced perspective. I reply to all comments that show even the most basic levels of thought and humility. The people who make the comments like the example above are under the assumption that the three seconds of thought that popped into their brains after reading the list is more than the 1000s of hours that I put into creating and maintaining the lists. I would be happy to defend any placement, or make an adjustment if one is warranted. If you are a jabroni, like the one above, then your comment will die in the lonely void of the unpublished comments section.

For everyone else, I look forward to your comments!

P.S. The theme of this site and the top-100 lists is that athletes from previous generations have historically been grossly overrated by sports publications in a way that is statistically improbable. Click on the "About" dropdown menu to see just how badly the average top-100 list disproportionately favors athletes from older generations when leagues were smaller, race quotas existed, and globalization wasn't a thing. Also, please consider reading "The History" section of the sport you are commenting on.

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