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NBA's Top 20 Players Right Now

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I agree, his defense is bad...

All that I ask is that people understand one can quantify to what degree Kyrie's defense costs the Cavs; and it is not anywhere near equal to Kyrie's offensive contributions.

Moreover, if poor defender's don't belong in the Top 10, then Harden has no business there either.

Harden's Offense this year has been off the charts, but he gets knocked down a few pegs to me because of the lack of defense.

Its really a hard list to put together which is why I keep reading this thread but have not put together a list.
 
1. LeBron James
2. Russell Westbrook
3. Anthony Davis
4. Kawhi Leonard
5. Kyrie Irving
6. Steph Curry
7. Kevin Durant
8. Chris Paul
9. Jim Harden
10. Greek Freak
11. Paul George
12. Demarcus Cousins
13. James Butler
14. Kevin Love
15. Blake Griffin
16. Draymond
17. Derozan
18. Klay
19. John Wall
20. Rudy Gobert


A few notes about my list

1. For the most part I tried to stick to the theme of "if I were starting a team for a year who would I pick in what order" which is how I interpret best. There can obviously be better fits on certain teams, so I try to look at it as starting from a blank slate

2. I highly value playoff performance/clutch factor. That's why Kyrie ranks ahead of Steph. But this isn't just a list of top 20 playoff performers because my team has to actually get to the playoffs before I can worry about their performance there. So it is kind of a balance. For example if I knew I were in the finals and I was drafting Irving would be #2 for me, but Irving hasn't shown he can carry a team to the playoffs like Russ is showing now

3. Fuck all of you guys for leaving off Gobert. I think he is clear cut better than Gasol. Gobert is gonna be a star
 
Making lists like these is pretty damn hard in my opinion. I think it's way easier to make a list that is top-10 by position instead of trying to compare the impact of a guard like James Harden to a big guy like Cousins.
 
Thomas is on a tear right now. Just use my list guys. It's clearly the correct one.
 
52 points is a great scoring night, but 0 assists? :chuckle: Thomas can score though. I think that's all he can really do though.
He had 0 assists? Lol that's actually kind of awesome.
 
52 points is a great scoring night, but 0 assists? :chuckle: Thomas can score though. I think that's all he can really do though.

Now if that doesn't sound like someone....

Fwiw, his assist numbers are better than Irvings this season, but not by much. He was a good scorer who is currently having the season of a great scorer. And scoring is, simply, the most important aspect of basketball. And he's been awesome at it through 30 games.
 
Now if that doesn't sound like someone....

Fwiw, his assist numbers are better than Irvings this season, but not by much. He was a good scorer who is currently having the season of a great scorer. And scoring is, simply, the most important aspect of basketball. And he's been awesome at it through 30 games.

Well, yeah, I remember all the angst over some of Kyrie's 1 assist games. Given, I'd never lobby Kyrie was this awesome pass-first point guard in the past, that he was virtually the shooting guard on the team anyways with LeBron operating the offense.

His assist numbers should be better than Kyrie's BTW. He's the point guard. Kyrie has to share, often deflect to LeBron running the offense.

On a side note: I find it troubling for Boston that they need 52 points from Thomas, and they barely beat an awful team like Miami.

I really don't think Boston is that good. A playoff team, sure. The media badly wants them to be a threat. But they aren't one at all to us, or Toronto even.

As for Thomas, he's having his best season ever no question. I do like the guy for the record. You got to admire a guy of his size, and his ability to be an all-star level player is pretty spectacular at this level.

I am skeptical he will remain at this pace scoring wise. Given he's not a great outside shooter and has to absorb lots of contact. Eventually, given his size, I think he'll wear down as the season goes.

I don't think it's a good thing for Boston he's having to average so many points either. That to me speaks to their lack of other top offensive options.
 
Well, yeah, I remember all the angst over some of Kyrie's 1 assist games. Given, I'd never lobby Kyrie was this awesome pass-first point guard in the past, that he was virtually the shooting guard on the team anyways with LeBron operating the offense.

His assist numbers should be better than Kyrie's BTW. He's the point guard. Kyrie has to share, often deflect to LeBron running the offense.

On a side note: I find it troubling for Boston that they need 52 points from Thomas, and they barely beat an awful team like Miami.

I really don't think Boston is that good. A playoff team, sure. The media badly wants them to be a threat. But they aren't one at all to us, or Toronto even.

As for Thomas, he's having his best season ever no question. I do like the guy for the record. You got to admire a guy of his size, and his ability to be an all-star level player is pretty spectacular at this level.

I am skeptical he will remain at this pace scoring wise. Given he's not a great outside shooter and has to absorb lots of contact. Eventually, given his size, I think he'll wear down as the season goes.

I don't think it's a good thing for Boston he's having to average so many points either. That to me speaks to their lack of other top offensive options.

It's not like Kyrie was averaging 8 assists a game before LeBron got here, you know?

As for Boston, they aren't a threat to the Cavs, and I don't think the media thinks they are. It seems to me the media is very resigned to the fact that this whole season is for show and the FInals is basically set. I see very, very few people trying to build Boston up into a legit threat, outside of people within the Boston media (like Bill Simmons).

I do, however, think they are a threat to Toronto. Since returning to full health, they've been playing really good basketball, and I think they match up extremely well with Toronto.
 
IMO James Harden is a better player than Steph Curry & Kevin Durant, here's why.

Curry lives and dies by his 3 point chucking, Hes not a good playmaker/passer or decision make. James Harden is light years ahead of him in the department, not to mention Hardens versatility on offense is not comparable, hes great at attacking the rim drawing fouls, taking the midrange or shooting the 3PT shot, unlike the one trick pony that is Curry, it really shouldn't even be a discussion at this point.

Durant might be considered a slightly better scorer (the gap is very small) or defender, but no way in hell Durant will ever have the overall impact Harden is having this year on the floor, AVG 29-8-12 with a 26-9 team record, put Durant in and remove Harden from that team & you all know that record will completely plummet, Durant can't be a playmaker and Carry an offense like Harden, Durant is just a scorer.

Also Kevin Durant was never an elite defender, yes he is playing in a better system this year and blocking more shots but opponents overall are only shooting 2% worse when he is defending them, so the "hes a better defender" than harden argument cannot outweigh the huge edge Harden has on the offensive side compared to Durant.

If you're saying Durant is a better player than Harden this season you must be bias or just hate James Harden :chuckle:, I would argue that Harden has been a better player than Durant these last 2 seasons not just this year but that's debatable, but this year its not even close when you look at overall impact and how Harden is carrying his team.
 
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It's not like Kyrie was averaging 8 assists a game before LeBron got here, you know?

And where did I imply that? I was saying using Thomas' assists being higher than Kyrie this season, is well, pointless. One guy plays as the sole point guard, the other doesn't on his team. Different roles. Comparing the two is pointless.

If Kyrie keeps up this recent pace of play, then may be he's now turned the corner as a point guard. Remains to be seen. I think if you average anywhere between 6-7 assists on the same team as LeBron, that's pretty good considering you're not ever going to be the primary playmaker.


As for Boston, they aren't a threat to the Cavs, and I don't think the media thinks they are. It seems to me the media is very resigned to the fact that this whole season is for show and the FInals is basically set. I see very, very few people trying to build Boston up into a legit threat, outside of people within the Boston media (like Bill Simmons).

I do, however, think they are a threat to Toronto. Since returning to full health, they've been playing really good basketball, and I think they match up extremely well with Toronto.

Toronto is much better IMO and should handle Boston given Lowry and DeRozan don't choke in the playoffs.
 
Pretty amazing that OKC had Harden Durant Westbrook and didnt win a ring and then broke it all up.
 
Back on topic: Giannis may end at being #2 behind Lebron by the end of the year. Thank god that team can't shoot 3's: you put him on a team with spacing like the Cavs and I'm not sure how you stop him. Bucks fans must feel like Cavs did during those first few Lebron years.

The thought that the Cavs could've drafted this guy instead of Bennett makes me feel ill. He's a tremendous player.
 
Man, Isiah is just beasting right now, he has to be a top 20 player.
 

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