The point guard position is evolving, and with that comes various multi-faceted players bringing the ball up the court for their respective teams. Here are the top five NBA point guards I’d want to have to lead my team right now.
5. Chris Paul, Phoenix Suns
After a couple of lowly years in Houston, CP3 revived his career with Oklahoma City before going to Phoenix where he has helped turn the Suns into a perennial favorite.
He’s made the All-Star game the last three seasons and leads the league in assists this year. Even though he may be aging, he’s the prototypical point guard that every NBA franchise would love to have.
He dishes the ball out to shooters and is one of the best defensive guards in the league, shutting down opposing ball-handlers.
Even though he’s dealt with some minor injuries, he’s come back each time and been just as consistent and steady as an NBA player can hope to be in his 17th season.
4. Damian Lillard, Portland Trail Blazers
Dame is the definition of loyalty. He’s said he never wants to leave Portland, and even though they’ve struggled to get over the hump to achieve ultimate success, Lillard loves the state of Oregon.
Eventually, he may have to leave against his will as he recently saw his best friend and teammate CJ McCollum get traded to New Orleans at this season’s trade deadline. With a franchise in rebuild mode, it just may happen to Lillard.
Though he’s been injured much of this season, we can’t forget how good of a player Lillard is. He’s one of the most clutch players of the last decade and he can shoot from just about anywhere.
One of the most feared opponents, Lillard takes up an entire team’s gameplan, and they still can’t stop him.
3. Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
The youngster is ranked ahead of Lillard here because it’s a list of players I’d want right now, and Dame’s injury and his questionable return have NBA followers worried. The Grizzlies have locked in the two-seed in the West, an achievement pretty no one other than maybe some of the people in the franchise themselves thought possible.
Ja is the main reason for this year’s surprise resurgence in Tennessee. The third-year guard has been getting MVP shouts and Most Improved Player shouts all year long as he jumped from an under 20 ppg scorer to a 27 ppg scorer.
He’s also increased his rebounding margin and his overall shooting efficiency, even though he takes way more shots than he used to.
This offense relies on Ja, but the effect he has on the players around him is why he’s number three on this ranking.
Without Morant, the Grizzlies are still one of the best teams in the NBA. His ability to improve the guys around him has allowed some of his other role players to become reliable scorers.
Ja is one of a kind, and the now one-time All-Star has many more accolades headed his way in future seasons.
2. Steph Curry, Golden State Warriors
Having Curry at two instead of one may garner some harsh criticism, but Curry has had a bit of a dip in efficiency and scoring. When that happens, it’s pretty much all of Curry’s game, so he suffers a bit in these types of rankings.
Curry is still the best shooter of all time though, and that can’t be argued. He’s helped lead his team to another very good regular season as he competes alongside his older, now healthy longtime teammates, and the young guns that the Warriors have drafted with their picks over the last few years.
Curry has turned Jordan Poole into a scoring star, and he’s still the most unguardable player in the league.
As we witnessed in the All-Star game, when he hit 16 threes, everyone can only hope to defend Curry, but it’ll never be good enough to stop him completely.
1. Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks
Luka-Magic is truly something unique to see. Though we all expect him to win an MVP soon, and he hasn’t quite produced the season to do so, he’s a complete anomaly at his position.
Now in his fourth year, appearing in his third straight All-Star game, Doncic doesn’t look like the type of player to evoke fear in the eyes of an opponent. His apparent lack of speed and agility and overall athleticism was his biggest weakness heading into draft night.
But boy, has he proved the doubters wrong. He’s finished with around eight or nine assists a game the last three years while consistently averaging 28 points a game.
He’s also improving his three-point efficiency as he helps his teammates get better around him. Dallas hasn’t had a whole lot of help for Doncic, trading their highest name profile player Kristaps Porzingis to Washington a couple of months ago. But Doncic has made the players around him better by simply getting them the ball at their spots.
His impact is impossible to describe in words, and watching his games are a thing of beauty.
