NBA's 50th Anniversary Team (called 50 Greatest Players in NBA History)

Here you have information about the selection made by the NBA in 1996 of the greatest players of its first 50 years of history.

NBA 50 Greatest Players Logo

In 1996 and for the NBA's 50th anniversary, the league asked a blue-ribbon panel of former players and coaches, media, current and former general managers and team executives to select the all-time 50 best players and made a list officially called "50 Greatest Players in NBA History".

Panelists were asked to select the players without regard to position and ranking and were not allowed to vote for themselves.

NBA Commissioner David Stern announced the players at a press luncheon on Oct. 29, 1996, in New York City at the Grand Hyatt Hotel, which occupies the site of the former Commodore Hotel, where the original NBA charter was signed on June 6, 1946.

This list was made for a special celebration and was not updated until 2021 when the NBA released its 75th Anniversary Team, so you won't find here superstars like Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, Lebron James, Kevin Durant, etc.

This is the NBA's 50th Anniversary Team (or 50 Greatest Players in NBA History), made in 1996, ordered alphabetically: