Kobe or LeBron? Who do you got?
Perhaps Kevin Garnett or Dwight Howard would be your pick?
Or maybe it's Moses Malone.
Wait, what?
No, the question is not who is the best player in the NBA today, although Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Garnett and Howard have all been in the conversation over the past few seasons.
The question is, who is the best NBA player to go straight from high school to the pro level? Now Malone, a Hall of Famer, is starting to make a little more sense.
While Malone was one of the first to go straight from high school to the pro level, the trend really picked up steam after Garnett made the jump in 1995. Bryant followed the next year and James arrived in 2003. The NBA really hasn't been the same since.
During the past four seasons, a high school-to-pro player has been the key cog on at least one of the teams in the NBA finals. If James can get the Miami Heat to the finals this year, that will make five seasons in a row.
The high school-to-pro players have also claimed three of the last four NBA MVP awards with James winning two and Bryant one.
This year, eight teams in the playoffs had starters who never played college ball, including the Heat (James), the Magic (Howard), the Lakers (Bryant, Andrew Bynum), the Celtics (Garnett), the Knicks (Amar'e Stoudemire), the Thunder (Kendrick Perkins), the Hawks (Josh Smith) and the Nuggets (J.R. Smith).
The NBA put a stop to the high school-to-pros pipeline after the 2005 draft, leaving Amir Johnson the answer to the trivia question, "Who was the last high school player to be drafted by the NBA?"
So who are the top high school-to-pro players of all time? Not surprisingly, putting together a first team out of just such a group is practically a no-brainer. Surprisingly, however, going much deeper than a second team can be a challenge, since the talent level among the 50 or so players to go straight to the NBA thins out after about the top 15.
That being said, here's a look at our choice for the all-time high school-to-pro players in NBA history.
FIRST TEAMG - Kobe Bryant, Lower Merion (Ardmore, Pa.), 1996Averaged 30.8 points and 12 rebounds per game in leading Lower Merion to a 31-3 record and a state championship. His 2,883 career points were more than Philadelphia legend Wilt Chamberlain and as a result he won numerous national player of the year honors. Taken with the 13th pick by the Charlotte Hornets but was traded on draft day to the Los Angeles Lakers.
G - LeBron James, St. Vincent-St. Mary (Akron, Ohio), 2003James was anointed the top player in the country when he was just a sophomore, earning All-USA Today honors that season. He was twice named the national player of the year and he led his team to a mythical national championship. He scored 2,657 career points and averaged 31.6 points and 9.6 rebounds as a senior. Selected No. 1 overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers.
C - Moses Malone, Petersburg (Va.), 1974He didn't get drafted by the NBA, but Malone did go straight from high school to professional basketball. He joined the ABA's Utah Stars in 1975 after graduating from Petersburg High School in 1974. Considered one of the all-time great players in NBA history and is a three-time league MVP.
F - Tracy McGrady, Mt. Zion Christian Academy (Durham, N.C.), 1997McGrady was a late bloomer in high school, but gained national attention after transferring to Mount Zion Christian Academy his senior year after attending Auburndale in Florida. Named the National Player of the Year by USA Today, McGrady went with the No. 9 pick to the Toronto Raptors. Was a seven-time NBA all-star.
F - Kevin Garnett, Farragut (Chicago), 1995Earned national player of the year honors at Farragut Career Academy after transferring from Mauldin (S.C.) following his junior season. Led Farragut to a 28-2 record and scored 2,553 career points with 1,809 rebounds. Picked fifth in the draft by the Minnesota Timberwolves, Garnett is a 14-time NBA all-star.
SECOND TEAMG - Monta Ellis, Lanier (Jackson, Miss.), 2005Named the Parade Magazine National Player of the Year, Ellis went to the Golden State Warriors in the second round with the 40th overall pick. Ellis scored a whopping 4,167 career points and was a four-time all-state pick in Mississippi.
G - Brandon Jennings, Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.), 2008Like Moses Malone, Jennings was not drafted by the NBA straight out of high school, but he never attended college and instead played a year in Europe before being drafted No. 10 overall in 2009 by the Milwaukee Bucks. Jennings averaged 32.7 points per game as a senior and was the MaxPreps National Player of the Year. He began his high school career at Dominguez (Compton, Calif.) but finished at Oak Hill Academy.
C - Dwight Howard, Southwest Atlanta Christian, 2004The first overall pick by the Orlando Magic, Howard was the national player of the year in nearly every major poll. He averaged 25 points, 18 rebounds and 8.1 blocks per game as a senior while leading his team to a state championship in Georgia. He is a three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year winner.
F - Amar'e Stoudemire, Cypress Creek (Orlando, Fla.), 2002The No. 9 overall pick by the Phoenix Suns in the 2002 draft, Stoudemire attended six high schools before finally graduating from Cypress Creek. He is a six-time NBA all-star.
F - Jermaine O'Neal, Eau Claire (Columbia, S.C.), 1996The six-time NBA all-star was picked 17th overall by the Portland Trailblazers in 1996. He averaged 22.4 points and 12.4 rebounds per game as a senior and was named the player of the year in South Carolina.
