The top five players in the NBA is an elite caliber to be included in. We wrap up this five-part series with the NBA’s very best. While the order may be shuffled depending on who is asked, these names all belong at this caliber. The NBA has become a player’s league. Contracts and trades are built in order to satisfy the players and put them at an advantage. Perhaps no other players in the NBA have the level of influence as these five. Without further ado, the top five players in the NBA.
Top 5 Players In The NBA
5. Anthony Davis
In his first year as a Los Angeles Laker, the Anthony Davis experiment has already proved to be a success. It would be a massive shock if Davis did not sign an extension in LA this offseason. It seems he found a place to settle and compete for the next decade in one of the largest markets in the NBA. Whether fans want to call the Lakers Davis’ team or LeBron James’s team, that duo is the strongest in the league and it proved so under a massive spotlight in the playoffs.
Davis is the best big man in the NBA today, and very few would argue with that point. He is a generational talent that was overdue for NBA success. While LeBron is on the back nine of his career, Davis is stepping into his prime. With one NBA championship under his belt, there may be many more on the horizon.
The addition of Davis on this Lakers team put them over the top. The entire NBA will be coming to knock LA off the top of the mountain next year. Davis and company will be ready to repeat as the City of Angels hopes to milk out every opportunity they have left with LeBron James playing at this level.
4. Stephen Curry
Despite having dominated the NBA for the last six seasons, the NBA missed Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors this year. Curry is one of the most creative and unique players that has ever taken the floor in the NBA. He has almost single-handedly created the modern NBA style of play. Never before have we seen the three-point shot become so coveted and so widely utilized by players of all positions.
We see it in AAU, high school, college, and all the way to the NBA with each passing draft class. Curry is one of the best shooters in the league. He has one of the tightest and flashiest handles in the game. That is what the next generation of the NBA is about. The next wave of young talent can shoot the lights out and handle with the greatest of ease like we have never seen. The direct comparison to this would be Trae Young. You can see Curry’s influence on a player like him, and there are going to be many more like him that come after.
With Curry, Klay Thompson, and the Warriors returning to the title picture next season, we get to see Dub Nation under a large microscope once again and another layer of the game that was dearly missed this past year in a season that we will never forget any time soon.
3. Kevin Durant
Speaking of players that the NBA dearly missed this past year, Kevin Durant will return to the floor after over a year of inactivity due to a torn Achilles. He will make his debut with the Brooklyn Nets over a year after signing the contract. The team took their blows this year as they waited for the Former MVP and two-time Finals MVP to rehab. Now that he will be back with plenty of rest under him, the NBA will be reminded of who Kevin Durant is.
Unfortunately for him, Durant is coming back from one of the most devastating and impactful injuries that an NBA player and withstand. A torn Achilles is a type of injury that hobbles players and places limitations of their capabilities, often times hindering them from ever returning to the kind of player they previously were. Look at Kobe Bryant and DeMarcus Cousins. Will KD suffer the same fate upon return?
If Durant returns next year and is even just 75-80% of his former self, then that player is still incredibly scary. He may start off a little rocky, and there will be a fair share of overreactions, but don’t count out Durant. Fortunately for him, the type of game he plays should not have much of an impact from what an Achilles injury is. Much of his game is shooting, as he isn’t a flashy dunker pulling off crazy acrobatics mid-flight.
The NBA is better when Durant is apart of it. He will surely be on a revenge tour to get back to the top of the association come 2021.
2. Giannis Antetokounmpo
The reigning league MVP is quickly taking the mantle at the top of the NBA. When the days of LeBron James in the NBA are gone and away, the throne will be waiting for Giannis Antetokounmpo as he carries the league into the next generation. The Greek Freak won his second consecutive MVP award this past year in addition to the league’s Defensive Player of the Year award. He is arguably the best two-way player in the NBA today, and his game has become physically unguardable.
NBA teams around the league will keep a watchful eye of Giannis and the Milwaukee Bucks this season, as he is set to hit free agency next offseason. The Bucks know it is a real possibility that he may walk next year, so they may look to move him for a haul of assets. The Bucks have had consecutive playoff runs ending in disappointment, especially after finishing with the league’s best regular season record. If the team is not able to put together a championship run this season, then they risk losing their franchise superstar.
Antetokounmpo might be considered the best player in the NBA right now by many, as he was awarded the league’s most prestigious individual award it has to offer the last two seasons, but as long as the player who comes in at number one is still in the league, it will always be his to lose.
1. LeBron James
Coming in a number one is a face that the NBA is all too familiar with. King James regained the throne this past season, securing his fourth NBA championship and joining an elite group of NBA greats. He became the third player to win a ring on three different organizations. And, he’s the very first in NBA history to win the Finals MVP on three different teams.
At age 35, James continues to play at the same level he has his entire career. Many had their doubts about the Lakers being able to come together to win a ring during the regular season. James erased all doubt. He showed that as long as he is in the league, any team he is on has a fighting chance of winning. The Lakers did just that.
While he is as dominant as ever, LeBron is still on the back nine of his career. The end of his reign is supposedly looming. Unless the plan is to play at this level for another decade or so with his son soon to join the NBA. In the meantime, the NBA belongs to LeBron James. He will look to add more to his already illustrious resume next season.
Main Photo:
Embed from Getty Images
