An all-time NBA starting five has been one of the more highly-contested debates in basketball circles for quite some time. Now, former President Barack Obama has revealed his own list.
During an appearance on the Netflix docuseries “Starting 5,” Obama named Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Hakeem Olajuwon and Kevin Durant as the members of his all-time starting five.
Obama certainly didn’t hesitate to begin his starting five with Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan. That’s not a huge surprise considering Obama is originally from Chicago. Jordan is also one of the greatest players to ever step on a basketball court.
The former president also liked the idea of having Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James on his squad. He stated that James would bring the ball up the court and handle the primary ball-handling duties in a point-forward role. Obama also believes that James can perform a lot of the same things that Lakers legend Magic Johnson could do, and would be a terrific distributor of the basketball.
Including Golden State Warriors sharpshooter Stephen Curry and Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant may not be a huge surprise. Both have affected the modern game in so many ways, and Obama even went as far as to call Curry “the greatest shooter of all-time, bar none.”
Perhaps the biggest surprise on the list may have been Houston Rockets Hall of Fame center Hakeem Ojajuwon. There are certainly a ton of options at the center position, including Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O’Neal, Bill Russell and David Robinson.
“At center, I’m going to put Hakeem ‘The Dream’ Olajuwon, whose game I think translates to today’s game,” Obama said. “He was such an amazing athlete, an anchor on defense. He’s going to give you everything you need out of the center position.”
Olajuwon definitely has the resume to make an all-time starting five. After all, Olajuwon averaged 21.8 points and 11.1 rebounds throughout his NBA career and was a two-time NBA Finals MVP.
Obama’s group is a nice mix of some of the sport’s most impactful players from different eras. It would be hard for anyone to omit a player of Jordan’s caliber considering all that he accomplished. It’s a matter of opinion, but Obama’s squad definitely would be able to go toe-to-toe with any starting five that could be assembled.
