The NBA or National Basketball Association is the top American basketball league all across the globe. Its operations, functioning and above all its teams are what makes it stand out as the supreme basketball league. People’s enthusiasm over sports never dampens and it is equally true in the case of the NBA. Everyone gets hooked to the screen once the NBA teams start their gameplay. There are many players within the NBA who are equally talented as their partners but based upon their overall performances, we have tried to select the the top 5 NBA players of all time.
Here are the top 5 players in the NBA that have managed to hold our attention for long because of their unparalleled game expertism.
Giannis Antetokounmpo
Giannis Antetokounmpo has emerged as the top player in the NBA. There was tough competition between him and Kevin Durant to standout as the best player in the NBA. He took down the Bucks in the 7-game series all by himself. Although his co-players Kyrie Irving and James Harden were absent from the game, he managed to push the boundaries single-handedly.
Following the postseason, it is hard not to imagine Giannis in the top position. He got to the top of the NBA mountain peak by winning a championship and securing the Finals MVP award. Giannis even has been a two-time MVP winner and was also the 2020 NBA Defensive Player of the Year. He turned out to be the first NBA player to have scored 200 points, 100 rebounds and 50 assists.
He hits 70% of free throws and the rest of them he shoots from behind the arc. His jump shots are nearly impossible to guard. Such capabilities put him to the top position in the NBA game series.
Kevin Durant
Kevin Duran had the major issue of an Achilles injury in the 2019 NBA finals. Typically, a player who suffers from such an injury has no hope of finding his ailing feet back, restored to their original state. The pandemic provided Durant with the time he needed to recover himself and start playing. After 18 months, he was back into the field.
His performance against the Boston Celtics has not been well received. He couldn’t keep up the standards expected of him. The playoff series can be taken to be his worst performance of his career. There was a total of 21 turnovers in the series. Although the defenders were mirroring his steps during the throwing of kitchen sink by the Celtics defensively, it is no reason for his poor performance.
However, let us not judge Kevin Durant solely by this performance. Consider the fact that he led the league in scoring at 27.9 PPG prior to his Achilles injury. Kyrie Irving was missing the major portion of the season and James Harden was not performing as expected. If we take these two facts in view, we will understand Kevin Durant did the best he could. So, we placed him in the top 2 position in the top 5 NBA players of all time.
LeBron James
LeBron James has been performing exceptionally well since the 2004-2005 season. We can find evidence of his good performances through his 18 consecutive All-NBA and All-Star appearances.
LeBron James was sidelined because of his injuries in the last two seasons. The Los Angeles Lakers bounced back in 2021 in the first round itself and did not participate in the 2022 playoffs. LeBron James can be called the most talented player to occupy the 3rd position in the list of NBA players.
He was able to secure 30.3 PPG average per game in 2022 which is the highest scoring average in his game of 15 years. At 37 years, he is still a tough competition and a dominant player in NBA. The expectations from him often exceed limits considering his immense potential. His influence couldn’t be felt for two consecutive seasons. Hopefully, 2022-2023 will have something nice in store for us.
Stephen Curry
There were reports about Stephen Curry’s early demise in the NBA games. It seemed convincing that with the fall of Stephen Curry, the end of Golden State Warriors is near. However, all such assumptions were largely exaggerated versions of reality. After skipping a few seasons, he is back with his usual fervor to take the sports field by storm.
After shooting 43.7% career lows from the field and 3-point range, Stephen Curry has been consistent in appearing for the 6th Finals in a period of 8 years. He has outdone himself in his performance in the years 2014-2017 but not in recent times. However, he remains to be in the no.1 position of every counter team’s scouting report and gameplan. Curry’s presence seems enough for his team to make it resistant against challenges.
Despite all such exaggerations, Stephen Curry still remains one of the best players in the NBA team. He stood as the best defender for 6 consecutive game series that earned him the Final MVP Award. His excellent shooting strokes were enough to terrorize the opposing defenses. There is simply no chance of Curry slowing down. You can see him performing better with each passing game.
Nikola Jokic
Nikola Jokic had won two MVP awards and played all of the seasons without his teammates Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr who suffered injuries. If his co-players become fit to join the game, there may not be the usual MVP buzz surrounding him. His competence remains unquestionable and he couldn’t have performed better than he did on the basketball floor.
He secured 30 points, 19 rebounds and 8 assists in just 32 minutes. Surely, he has been named aptly as the “league MVP”. His efforts to win his team Denver Nugget, a title cannot be ignored and therefore he remains to be contending for a higher position among the NBA’s top players.
The Final Thought
These top 5 NBA players of all time are not just highly skilled as a team but they manage equally well to hold the ground in their co-player’s absence. Everyone or the other suffers some injuries during the game but their comeback is often with doubled-up fiery zeal. The best example can be witnessed from Kevin Durant’s Achilles injury. The team spirit is something which never dies and continues to inspire other players all around the world.
Hopefully, this article has been able to help you understand why these top 5 NBA players of all time do stand the test the time and manage to be the most effective player that they are.
