Top 5 Point Guards In The NBA Today
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Figuring out the Top 5 Point Guards in the NBA is not an easy task. It’s because the point guard position has arguably changed the most out of all the positions, especially within the last 5-6 years, due to the arrival of bigger, more athletic, and explosive guards in the league. Players such as, Derrick Rose and Russel Westbrook have revolutionize the PG’s role in their own way. Which has paved the way for younger PG’s such as D’Angelo Russell and Emmanuel Mudiay.
Just to explain how much the position has changed, we’ll compare the scoring of PG’s in the NBA. In the 2009-2010 NBA season, there wasn’t one Point Guard on the Top Ten List for points per game. Currently, there are four PGs in the Top Ten of scoring in this 2016-2017 season. Not to mention, Kyrie Irving at #11 and Kemba Walker at #13. You see my point?
Now, when you look at all the PG’s in the NBA, you see a variety of styles, skill sets, and approaches to the game. That creates exciting matchups every night. Just to keep it simple for this article, we’ll only use a few types [terms] of Points Guards as we go through the countdown. The first type of Point Guard is a ‘True Point Guard’ or ‘Old School Point Guard’. These are your Chris Pauls or Mike Conleys that have that ‘Pass First Mentality’. Other players that fall into this category are Ricky Rubio and George Hill. These guys are ‘Floor Generals’ or ‘Coaches on the Court’. They run the teams, usually leads the team in assists and also get their share of buckets, too, but that’s not their main role.
The other type of Point Guard in the NBA is this new wave of PGs we mentioned earlier. They may not be exactly a ‘Shoot First’ or ‘Pass First’ Point Guard, but they are a huge threat to score, because they have same shooting and scoring ability as a Shooting Guard combined with the quickness and ball handling of their fellow PGs. We’re now referring to guys like Steph Curry, Kyrie Irving, and Damian Lillard.
So now that you know the types of Points Guards that populate the NBA today, let me quickly explain how we got to these rankings. When deciding where these players should be ranked, we looked at a few things. For example, their stats (obviously), their role on their team, and their overall skill set. This made for a great debate but we believe we got it right….
Honorable Mention (No Particular Order)
Isiah Thomas
Kemba Walker
Mike Conley
Kyle Lowry
John Wall
Top 5 Point Guards In The NBA Today
#5 Damian Lillard
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Portland Trailblazers, #0, 6’3” from Weber State
Damian Lillard is one of my favorite players. He’s athletic, shifty, a matchup nightmare, and one of the most clutch players in the NBA today. Night after night, Dame goes out and competes. He’s fearless when driving to the basketball and never hesitates to shoot even with a defender playing tight defense. Even after getting snubbed out off the All-Star game last season, Damian has continued to take the league by storm and is a shoo in for this season, if he stays healthy.
As much as I love his game, this is the highest we could rank him at this moment. He has seen some success in the playoffs, but not enough to move him up the ranks. With the development of CJ McCollum and a growing Portland team, they will still struggle against the powerhouses like the Warriors and Spurs come playoff time.
#4 Chris Paul
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L.A. Clippers, #3, 6’0” from Wake Forest
CP3 is the best hands down ‘True Point Guard’ in the league today. He’s mastered the pick and roll, always at or near the top of the league in steals, and probably has the best two guys to lob the ball up to in the NBA. You also can’t sleep on his scoring ability as he could go off for 30+ points any given night.
With this being his 11th season, Chris Paul has matured into one of the greatest PG’s of all time. His team has made deep runs into the playoffs, but have been plagued by injury the last few years. With that being said, CP3 comes in at #4 on the top 5 Point Guards in the NBA right now. Keep in mind we are talking about the present. If we had this same convo 2 or 3 seasons ago, Chris Paul would be in the argument for #1.
#3 Kyrie Irving
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Cleveland Cavaliers, #2, 6’3” from Duke
Uncle Drew, Mr. Ankle Breaker, Mr. I Get Buckets….Kyrie Irving is an absolutely show stopper. Kyrie has proved that he has the best handles in the NBA today and uses them to put defenders in a blender. It amazes me on how skillful Irving has become with the ball. It seems as if every time he touches the ball, fans expected some kind of highlight.
Kyrie Irving is probably the best pound for pound finisher in the lane. He has the ability to evade defenders and use both his right and left hand with ease. He is also one of the best at creating space for this shots and proven to be a reliable scorer late in the 4th quarter.
Coming in at #3 is solid spot for Irving. He is an NBA Champion and still has more room to grow. What’s “stopping” him from moving up in the ranks is not his lack of skills, but the dynamics of his team. Playing along side LeBron James has taken some of the ‘Point Guard Duties’ off of Kyrie’s shoulders. While making his life easier, we couldn’t possibly put him ahead of the next two players.
#2 Stephen Curry
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Golden State Warriors, #30, 6’3” from Davidson
Steph “The Chef” Curry. What else can you say about the Two-Time NBA MVP? After winning an NBA Championship, then breaking the Bulls Regular Season Wins Record, along with breaking his own 3-Pointers Made Record, Curry has skyrocketed into an NBA mogul.
With the best jumper in NBA history and handles out of this world, Steph along with the GSW are the most exciting ticket in town. Curry has become an inspiration for players all over the world, because he doesn’t have the size nor athleticism these other NBA Superstars have. Yet, he puts up huge numbers night in and night out. I’d argue that his best skills isn’t his finishing or ball handling or even his shooting. I’d say it is his confidence. Steph Curry not only attempts unthinkable shots, but he’s making them. He can heat up at any moment and go on runs by himself as we’ve seen time after time.
When it’s all said and done, Steph Curry will go down as the greatest shooter of all time. But let me explain why he’s at #2, instead of the #1 like you probably had him at. One of the biggest knocks on Steph Curry is not showing up in the NBA Finals. Even the year they won, he had his moments, but his team carried him to that title. Hence, Andre Iguodala winning the Finals MVP. Now with the addition of superstar Kevin Durant, that just turns into another mouth to feed. Don’t get me wrong, Durant has made their team better and a front runner for the NBA Title, but KD will be taking shots from Steph, Klay, and Draymond. Leaving Curry at the #2 spot on the Top 5 Point Guards in the NBA Today.
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#1 Russell Westbrook
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