Three Superstars of Today Named As NBA Releases First 25 of Greatest 75 Players Of All-Time

The NBA has announced the first installment of its list of the 75 Greatest Players in league history, as they celebrate their 75th anniversary season. Three superstars of today are on this first list, including Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant and James Harden—all MVPs in recent years. Now before anyone gets their shorts in a knot, keep in mind that these 25 are no particular order, other than alphabetically.

First 25 members from the NBA's official Top 75 list: pic.twitter.com/HUnerRqjkE
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) October 19, 2021

It's impossible to tell yet who might have been left off, as there are still 50 names to be revealed; 25 more on Wednesday, and 25 on Thursday.

The NBA named its 50 Greatest Players back in 1996, to celebrate its 50th anniversary, so we can already see who some of the newcomers to the list are; in addition to Giannis, KD and Harden, Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki have gotten the call as well. Those two started their careers together in Dallas. Nash went on to win two MVPs with the Phoenix Suns, while Nowitzki went on to a legendary 21-year career, all with the Mavs, including an MVP and an NBA title.

Although many are speculating that 25 players from the last 25 years will be added overall, this might not necessarily be the case.

There were some glaring omissions from the original list of 50, namely Dominique Wilkins and Bob McAdoo, so it's possible that they get added this time. It's also not out of the realm of possibility that voters considered more than, or less than, 25 players of the past 25 years worthy of the honor, which could bump some of the original 50 off the list, or add some extras.

The voters included former and current players, coaches, executives and media members.