Top 10 NBA players who have been on one team throughout their entire career

​

Stephen Curry and Giannis Antetokounmpo might also end up being remembered as the most loyal NBA players

As far as player movement across teams is concerned, the NBA has emerged as one of the world's busiest sporting leagues in recent years. In past eras, quite a few superstars were known as one-team players and remained with a single franchise throughout their careers. Over the past decade, however, only a handful of NBA players have stayed loyal to a single team.

ACTIVE NBA LOYALTY RANKINGS (minutes played)
1. Stephen Curry GSW 23,859
2. John Wall WAS 20,545
3. Klay Thompson GSW 20,340
4. Damian Lillard POR 19,907
5. Bradley Beal WAS 16,779
6. Andre Drummond DET 16,711
7. Tristan Thompson CLE 15,651
8. Giannis Antetokounmpo MIL 15,220

— Darryl Howerton (@darrylhowerton) July 12, 2019

This can be attributed to players forcing a move in search of greener pastures. At other times, the General Manager of a team might not think a player fits the roster and could choose to move him.

The greatest NBA Players to stay loyal to a single franchise

In this article, we look at some of the greatest NBA players who have proven their loyalty to a single franchise throughout their career. While there are a couple of current NBA stars such as Stephen Curry and Giannis Antetokounmpo who may finish their careers with a single team, only retired players have been considered for this list.

#10 Isiah Thomas

Isiah Thomas is one of the greatest point-guards of NBA history, and played for the Detroit Pistons throughout his career. Isiah Thomas was nicknamed the “baby-faced assassin” and led the Pistons to two consecutive NBA championships, in 1989 and 1990.

OTD, 1982: One year after losing 61 games, the new-look Pistons and their franchise rookie Isiah Thomas headed to LA to take on the Laker dynasty. Kareem & Magic were just too much on this day, but Isiah and new trade acquisition Vinnie Johnson gave them a glimpse of the future: pic.twitter.com/taqQKWhNTK

— Keith Black (@Charlottean28) January 22, 2021

Isiah Thomas is a two-time NBA finals MVP and a 12-time NBA All-Star. He played 13 seasons in an era when the NBA was dominated by Michael Jordan and his Chicago Bulls’ side, but is still known as one of the best two-way point guards ever.

​

#9 Dirk Nowitzki

The German international is widely known as the best ever European recruit to play in the NBA, and is the most recent player to make this list as well. Dirk Nowitzki is regarded as one of the best power forwards the NBA has ever seen. He spent 21 years playing for the Dallas Mavericks, with whom he won a single championship in 2011 and was the NBA MVP in 2007.

Let’s all take a moment to appreciate Dirk Nowitzki..

-Career 20.5 PPG on 47.1% FG
-14x All Star
-1 NBA Championship
-21 Seasons with Dallas (Loyal)
-6th on the all time scoring list
-One of 7 players with 30K points pic.twitter.com/aOXSEea2A6

— Gianni (@Gianni2225) October 17, 2019

Dirk is a 14-time NBA All-Star, and constantly rejected interest from other teams to stay with the Mavs. Dirk Nowitzki is also acknowledged as the best player in Dallas Mavericks' history.

​