The mental aspect is just as important. Teams: San Francisco/Golden State Warriors (1963-74), Chicago Bulls (1974-76), Cleveland Cavaliers (1976-77), Key stats: 964 G, 15.0 PPG, 15.0 RPG, 2.7 APG, 42.1 FG%. Stats: 25.7 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 9.5 APG in 14 seasons with Cincinnati Royals (1960-61 to 1969-70) and Milwaukee Bucks (1970-71 to 1973-74). "If you played Monday through Saturday and didn't have a fight, you knew you had to be ready for Sunday because you'd surely have a fight. Stats: 18.9 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 3.4 APG in 18 seasons with Milwaukee Bucks (1996-97 to 2002-03), Seattle SuperSonics (2002-03 to 2006-07), Boston Celtics (2007-08 to 2011-12) and Miami Heat (2012-13 to 2013-14); NBA's all-time leader in career 3-point field goals. There are just not players like Sprewell who come along everyday, and his stint with the Knicks came with the vow that he was a changed man. Isaiah Rider Guard Isaiah Rider of the Portland Trailblazers stands on the court. This was at a time when the 76ers guard acted in a way that stood out from many of the other, more straight-laced, stars such as Michael Jordan, Grant Hill, Tim Duncan, and Ray Allen. 1 overall pick coming out of Cincinnati, and he showed that with his abilities on the defensive end. Teams: Boston Celtics (2003-11), Oklahoma City Thunder (2011-15), Cleveland Cavaliers (2015, 2018), New Orleans Pelicans (2015-16). For the 1990s video-game kids, he also was one of three players on the original "NBA Jam" who could consistently rebound. Johnsons nickname "Gladiator" is one of the most appropriate in league history. Kyrie Irving believes adjusting his aggression level can help get Dallas back on track. "You'd have a fight a week," Johnson told Sports Illustrated in 1992. Starks may have been a little short on height, but he was never short on heart. A legitimate presence in the middle, Robinson embodied all of the characteristics that make up an ideal center. The Celtics won the title in seven games. Accomplishments: Four-time All-Star, four-time All-NBA, 1967 NBA champion. The moment Thomas toughness was no longer in doubt was at the end of his tenure with the Celtics, when he was on the verge of getting close to a max contract in free agency in the offseason. Rodman always was willing to do that little extra to get a rebound or make a defensive play, which usually meant sacrificing his body by diving for a loose ball. Not only was he one of the greatest players in the history of the game, but his obvious passion for basketball was very obviously on display at all times. Oakley squared up with a whos who of NBA tough guys and had an epic series of throwdowns with Hall of Famer Charles Barkley. Mourning doesnt get the love among the new generation of hoop-heads that he should, as some of his numbers are mind-boggling. That was just the break he needed. 6. Bottom line: At one point in NBA history, no player was tougher or more intimidating than Larry Johnson, the No. Martins innate toughness came from a pretty awful place. Marches to the beat of his own drum? Accomplishments: 10-time All-Star, four-time All-NBA, 1950-51 Rookie of the Year, 1952 All-Star MVP, two-time scoring champ, 1956 NBA champion. Later in his career, Payton managed to shake off his reputation for being brash and became a steady presence in the locker room. If you want a firsthand look at what that meant, feel free to cue up his 2015 documentary, "Muse," which chronicles his comeback from tearing his Achilles tendon. He had his number retired by two of the three places he played in his college and pro career, the University of Evansville and Chicago Bulls. His intensity was on obvious display every time he dribbled the ball up the floor and with every single move he made. Stats: 18.7 PPG, 12.9 RPG, 1.8 APG in 10 seasons with New York Knicks (1964-65 to 1973-74). Laimbeer also was durable. Stats: 19.2 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 2.9 APG in 10 seasons with San Antonio Spurs (2011-12 to 2017-18), Toronto Raptors (2018-19) and LA Clippers (2019-20 to 2020-21)*. Accomplishments: 11-time All-Star, 11-time All-NBA, 1992-93 MVP, 1991 All-Star MVP, 1986-87 rebounding champ. Havlicek died in April 2019 at 79 years old. After missing Game 6 of the 1970 NBA Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers with a torn thigh muscle, Reed was almost certainly a scratch for Game 7. Double check. To put it in perspective, Foust scored the winning basket for the Fort Wayne Pistons in the lowest-scoring NBA game of all-time, a 19-18 win over the Minneapolis Lakers, a year in which he averaged 13.5 points. Accomplishments: 11-time All-Star, 10-time All-NBA, 1958-59 Rookie of the Year, 1959 All-Star MVP. Teams: Washington Bullets (1980-85), Detroit Pistons (1985-89, 1996-98), Philadelphia 76ers (1989-91, 1999), New Jersey Nets (1992-96), Key stats: 1,117 G, 6.9 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 1.0 APG, 49.3 FG%. Accomplishments: 12-time All-Star, 12-time All-NBA, nine-time All-Defensive team, 1993-94 MVP, two-time Defensive Player of the Year, two-time Finals MVP, two-time rebounding champ, three-time blocks champ, two-time NBA champion. Stats: 25.1 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 6.5 APG in 12 seasons with Oklahoma City Thunder (2009-10 to 2011-12), Houston Rockets (2012-13 to 2020-21) and Brooklyn Nets (2020-21)*. Teams: Portland TrailBlazers (1976-80, 1987-88), New Jersey Nets (1980-81), New York Knicks (1981-82), Phoenix Suns (1982-85), Los Angeles Lakers (1985-86), Seattle SuperSonics (1986-87), Key stats: 1,021 G, 14.6 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 2.4 APG, 47.1 FG%. Bottom line: One of 18 children, Steven Adams had a rough childhood in New Zealand after his father died in 2006, but basketball took him off the streets of his hometown and put him in a gym. You know who else thought McDaniel was tough? Key stats: 1,270 G, 20.8 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 4.8 APG, 43.9 FG%, NBA titles: 8 (1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1974, 1976). 1 overall and started off his career as a player who made his name by living above the rim. Bottom line: NBA fans who got to know Dennis Rodman in the 1980s, when he first joined the league, were able to appreciate his innate toughness before his life off the court overshadowed his game. Hes also on track to break the NBA career minutes played record in that same span. Key stats: 525 G, 9.8 PPG, 7.6 RPG, 1.2 APG, 58.9 FG%. Stats: 18.4 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 7.5 APG in 14 seasons with Boston Celtics (1950-51 to 1962-63) and Cincinnati Royals (1969-70). Bottom line: When you go down the list of the greatest enforcers in NBA history, make sure you put some respect on Maurice Lucas name. In 2011, President Barack Obama awarded Russell the Presidential Medal of Freedom for his work as a pioneer for civil rights. Bottom line: Most of Americas introduction to Gary Payton came via one of the most iconic Sports Illustrated covers of all time, when he was a senior at Oregon State University in 1990. It seems hard to be one without people thinking youre not also the other. They didnt get that way because they could score or rebound. Accomplishments: 15-time All-Star, 15-time All-NBA, 15-time All-Defensive team, two-time MVP, three-time Finals MVP, 2000 All-Star MVP, 1997-98 Rookie of the Year, five-time NBA champion. Teams: Boston Celtics (1997-98), Toronto Raptors (1998-99), Denver Nuggets (1999-2000, 2008-11), Minnesota Timberwolves (2000-02), Detroit Pistons (2002-08, 2013-14), New York Knicks (2011), Los Angeles Clippers (2011-13), Key stats: 1,043 G, 15.2 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 5.4 APG, 41.5 FG%. The two-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year averaged 13.1 rebounds per game, which stands among the NBAs best career marks. Bottom line: Michael Jordans toughness was the stuff of legend, and the five-time NBA Most Valuable Player was legendarily hard on teammates. Bottom line: Kenyon Martin was the last college senior to be picked No. Accomplishments: Two-time All-Star, two-time All-NBA, eight-time All-Defensive team, two-time Defensive Player of the Year, seven-time rebounding champ, five-time NBA champion. Teams: Detroit Pistons (1962-1968), New York Knicks (1968-1974), Key stats: 875 G, 16.1 PPG, 11.0 RPG, 2.9 APG, 43.2 FG%. Although hes turned around his reputation and now does heralded work within the community, Washingtons intensity will never be forgotten. Bottom line: Steve Nash seemed like he was made of pure scrap iron for most of his NBA career, bouncing around the court and off of other players like he was inside of a pinball machine. He never made it past the second round of the playoffs but was an eight-time All-NBA Defensive Team selection and three-time All-Star. Bottom line: Theres a long lineage of forwards rounding out championship trios in the NBA based on their ability to blend with generational talent and still cut their own swath. Western Conference Finals MVP. Accomplishments: 10-time All-Star, seven-time All-NBA, 1968 All-Star MVP, 1967 NBA champion. A ridiculous shot-blocker in his own right, Rollins really knew how to bring it when his opposition tried to challenge him. Stats: 20.6 PPG, 12.2 RPG, 1.3 BPG in 19 NBA seasons with Buffalo Braves (1976-77), Houston Rockets (1976-77 to 1981-82), Philadelphia 76ers (1982-83 to 1985-86; 1993-94), Washington Bullets (1986-87 to 1987-88), Atlanta Hawks (1988-89 to 1990-91), Milwaukee Bucks (1991-92 to 1992-93) and San Antonio Spurs (1994-95); also played two ABA seasons with Utah Stars (1974-75) and Spirits of St. Louis (1975-76). Defensive Player of the Year. Alex English was a high-volume scorer throughout the prime of his careerhe took home a scoring title in 1983. Skiles also, famously, took a swing at Shaquille O'Neal in the locker room. Stocktons style of play was physical and attacking. Bottom line: Its not a coincidence that NCAA Division II Virginia Union put two players on this list because one of them, Charles Oakley, recommended the other one, Ben Wallace, to the school after seeing him at a basketball camp. O'Neal became an All-Star 15 times and earned the 1999-2000 MVP . Stats: 19.2 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 4.0 APG in 15 seasons with Syracuse Nationals/Philadelphia 76ers (1958-59 to 1972-73). Iverson grew up in abject poverty and was sentenced to five years in prison as a senior in high school for a bowling alley assault, serving four months before he was granted clemency by the governor of Virginia. Johnson died of a massive heart attack in 2007 at the age of 52 and was posthumously inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010. Adams found a home on a basketball court, where he developed his game based on physicality and tenacity and quickly established himself as one of the toughest players in the NBA. Williams spent his first eight seasons with the Nets but became a household name during his seven seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers. *All stats/accomplishments for active players are entering the 2021-22 season. You never wanted to challenge Mount Mutombo. While Barkleys attitude and off-the-court antics had their detractors, one thing no one ever questioned was his toughness. Stats: 16.1 PPG, 11.0 RPG, 2.9 APG in 12 seasons with Detroit Pistons (1962-63 to 1968-69) and New York Knicks (1968-69 to 1973-74). In an era of players jumping teams, hes managed to stay with the Miami Heat for his entire career. Which threw even more fuel on his fire. He was unstoppable back when he played, and hed probably be unstoppable now if he was in his prime. Or the likes of Tracy McGrady, Vince Carter. In the NBA, some of the greatest players of all time have also been some of the toughest as well as some of the most beloved. CP3s commitment to excellence is what makes him such an intense player, and he is visibly upset with every loss he endures throughout his career. Accomplishments: 12-time All-Star, six-time All-NBA, two-time All-Defensive team, 1968-69 scoring champ, two-time rebounding champ, 1978 NBA champion. "Pistol" Pete Maravich. Teams: Philadelphia 76ers (1996-2006, 2009-10), Denver Nuggets (2006-08), Detroit Pistons (2008-09), Memphis Grizzlies (2009), Key stats: 914 G, 26.7 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 6.2 APG, 47.5 FG%. Bottom line: Xavier McDaniel set a baseline for what it meant to be tough when he was still playing for Wichita State University and became the first player in NCAA history to lead the nation in points and rebounds in 1984-85. Teams: Chicago Bulls (1999-2002), Indiana Pacers (2002-06), Sacramento Kings (2006-08), Houston Rockets (2008-09), Los Angeles Lakers (2009-13, 2015-17), New York Knicks (2013-14), Key stats: 991 G, 13.2 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 2.7 APG, 41.4 FG%. Bottom line: Its unfortunate that Allen Iversons career became known for him being an enigma and an unfortunate soundbite ("Practice?") The NBA standings in the Western Conference are extremely tight.