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"I hate to squeeze Magic out, but…" - Spencer Haywood names his Top 5 players of all-time
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- "I hate to squeeze Magic out, but…" - Spencer Haywood names his Top 5 players of all-time
Spencer Haywood had the talent and early success to become one of the greatest basketball players ever.
At just 19, he joined the ABA and dominated immediately, winning Rookie of the Year, All-Star Game MVP and league MVP — all in his debut season. When he moved to the NBA, he was an MVP candidate, an All-Star and an All-NBA member in four of his first five seasons.
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However, cocaine destroyed his NBA career.
During his recent appearance on the "All the Smoke" podcast, Haywood reflected on his basketball journey and named the five individuals who, in his view, reached the level of greatness he was destined for — the top five players of all time.
"I don't know in this order, but I'll just give you five: Kareem, Michael Jordan, LeBron James …God, I hate to squeeze Magic out, but... Yeah, I got to go with my home boy," said Haywood.
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Magic made Spencer's Top 5
Haywood mentioning Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Jordan, and LeBron James as his first names was no surprise. The three are considered the main protagonists in the never-ending debate about who the greatest player of all time is.
Abdul-Jabbar was the gold standard during the 1970s, when the GOAT concept was not yet in discussion. Jordan took that mantle in the following decade, redefining greatness for a new generation, while James has since emerged as the most prominent challenger to the Chicago Bulls legend's legacy.
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Then there's Magic Johnson, whom, although hesitant at first, Haywood included in his Top 5.
Haywood played for the Los Angeles Lakers during the 1979-80 season and witnessed how Johnson, as a rookie, took control of the team and transformed them into one of the most dominant NBA dynasties ever, leading them to five titles during the 1980s.
Although it was arguably the worst year of his career, Haywood talked about how easy it was to play basketball alongside Johnson .
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"I would come off the curl. Normally, I think it's going to take a second or two to receive the ball. But when I came off the curve, and the ball was in my hand, all I had to do was lay it in. It was easy ball. It was easy, beautiful basketball," he said .
Haywood picks Bryant
Haywood was stuck at four names, and when Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson asked him who would complete his Top 5, he chose the late Kobe Bryant , who came to visit him and sit with him early in his career to pick his brain, the way he did with other all-time greats. He also discussed Bryant's desire to make a movie about his life.
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"I spent some time with Kobe before he passed. We were working on the movie of my life because he thought it would be something that he would want to produce and make it happen perfectly. And then he passed, God rest his soul and his great daughter. But yeah, that was something special," he said to Vince Carter in an ESPN interview in 2023.
Overall, it's hard to argue with Haywood's five. After all, all five are among the greatest players the NBA has ever seen, and they deserve to be in this conversation.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Oct 6, 2025, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
