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Talent wins in the NBA and the best way to accumulate great talent is to have the best starting 5 that you possibly can. Not only you need to have the best talent, they also need to mesh and be compatible with each other to have the maximum chance of succeeding on the floor.
There are 30 teams in the league but the fans generally have an idea which of those 30 teams will be playing late in May or in early June.
NBA is truly a player driven league. What we are trying to do today is having a countdown of the top 5 starting 5 in the league today. But before we do that, there is one rule we all will follow: No players are injured. Everyone is fit and ready to go. And just like Batman, we will not break that rule.
Now that is clear, let the countdown begin!
#5: Philadelphia 76ers
Point Guard: Ben Simmons
Shooting Guard: Markelle Fultz
Small Forward: Robert Covington
Power Forward: Dario Saric
Center: Joel Embiid
Trusting the process, are we?
After years of misery, the Philly fans have reasons to be optimistic about the future. And what reasons they are!
Joel Embiid looks like Hakeem Olajuwon with a 3-point shot while Ben Simmons has a LeBronesque game. Robert Covington seems to be the perfect 3-and-D guy while Dario Saric and Markelle Fultz are the extra ball-handlers that seem a necessity in today's game.
Not wanting to jump the gun but the next dynasty might lie in the city of brotherly love.
#4: Boston Celtics
Point Guard: Kyrie Irving
Shooting Guard: Jaylen Brown
Small Forward: Gordon Hayward
Power Forward: Marcus Morris
Center: Al Horford
A perfect team for the modern generation of basketball. Completely switchable on defense while having multiple playmakers to carry the team on the offensive side of the ball.
Led by one of the best coaches in the game, Brad Stevens, the C's have both the singular and collaborative talent to keep winning in this league for a long time.
With most of their core is young, the 16-time World Champion, in the words of Steve Kerr, seems destined to be a team of the future in the Eastern Conference.
#3: Cleveland Cavaliers
Point Guard: Isaiah Thomas
Shooting Guard: J.R. Smith
Small Forward: LeBron James
Power Forward: Jae Crowder
Center: Kevin Love
When you have LeBron James in the squad, you are always in the contention for one of the best squad in the world.
With Isaiah Thomas manning the point guard position, and Kevin Love starting at the center spot with a knockdown shooter like J.R. Smith at the 2 position, the offensive firepower is off the charts. And this is before talking about your prototype 3-and-D wing in Jae Crowder.
The squad might be a little suspect at the defensive end but as the saying goes the best defense is offense.
#2: Houston Rockets
Point Guard: Chris Paul
Shooting Guard: James Harden
Small Forward: Trevor Ariza
Power Forward: Ryan Anderson
Center: Clint Capella
Headed by arguably the best backcourt in the league, the Houston Rockets seem destined to be the primary contender to challenge the Golden State Warriors supremacy.
James Harden seems to be having another MVP-worthy season while Chris Paul is the Point God we all have come to know.
An elite floor spacer in Ryan Anderson and the perfect roll big-man in Clint Capella gives them the variety on offense that few teams have. While Trevor Ariza, in addition to locking guys up and knocking down the long, brings the championship experience from his Lakers years.
And when two of your playmakers are as gifted as Chris Paul and James Harden, they elevate the level of your team to unforeseen level.
#1: Golden State Warriors
Point Guard: Stephen Curry
Shooting Guard: Klay Thompson
Small Forward: Kevin Durant
Power Forward: Draymond Green
Center: Zaza Pachulia
Who else was going to top this list?
The World Champions still are the standard by which the rest of the league measure themselves. They have 4 future Hall-of-Famers in their starting lineup. And the best part, they all four are in the middle of their prime.
The Splash Brothers with Kevin Durant have the shot-making and shot-taking capability like never before. Any of them could go for 50 and it would not be a surprise.
And that is before we talk about the defensive demon that is Draymond Green.
The combined playmaking and shooting on this team, quite frankly, should be illegal.
Till the team from the Bay Area have these four superstars, the rest of the league is light years behind.
Guess the Lakers players!
