"There was one overriding factor in Milwaukee Bucks general manager John Hammond's decision to take 19-year-old point guard Brandon Jennings in the first round of last week's NBA draft.

Despite the unknowns surrounding Jennings after he skipped college and rode the bench in Italy for a year, Hammond is convinced the quicker-than-quick former prep scoring machine has a chance to become a special player in the NBA.

As we shall see, that was sound thinking on Hammond's part because it takes a special player - or players - to win an NBA championship and right now the Bucks don't have one.

Guard Michael Redd is a premier scorer and center Andrew Bogut is a solid all-around player when healthy, but there is no A-list NBA star on Milwaukee's roster. Jennings has a chance to give the Bucks that type of player in time.

Given the questions about Jennings' ability to make good decisions in a half-court offense, compensate for his slight build and curb an attitude that goes well beyond confident, there are no guarantees of that happening. Jennings could end up being a bust, an average player or, worse, a problem player. But he has a chance to become a great player, and those are few and far between in the NBA.

Of course, Hammond will take the hit if Jennings doesn't live up to his potential. Some have already labeled Jennings the biggest reach in the draft. But while Hammond could have made a safer pick, he deserves kudos for rolling the dice when presented with a rare opportunity to draft a player who almost everyone agrees has the upside to become an elite NBA player.

In most drafts, there are a precious few players who have a combination of size, skill, athletic ability and feel for the game that give them a chance to become a transcendent player, one capable of carrying a team all the way to the title. Some drafts have five or six such players, some have none.

In my estimation, this year's draft had three players with that kind of potential: Blake Griffin, Tyreke Evans and Jennings. Griffin was taken with the first pick, Evans the fourth and Jennings the 10th.

That's not to say Jennings will become a great player for the Bucks, only that he has a chance to become a great player. But if he does develop into one, the Bucks will have a chance to finally become the title contender Hammond hopes to build. In fact, it's the only way that will happen.

A glance through the history books confirms that all-time greats are necessary to win NBA titles.

In 1996, the league employed apanel to determine the 50 greatest players in its first 50 years. It was a good list, but the only player on it who is still playing is Shaquille O'Neal. A generation of stars has emerged since then.

I'm going to add 13 modern players to the all-time list for the 13 seasons that have passed since the top 50 were chosen. It is open to argument, of course, but the 13 I've chosen are: Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter, Tim Duncan, K