Basketball
3 Greatest Players in the NBA Today
3 Greatest Players in the NBA Today
As the NBA season for 2022/23 reaches its climax, fans are eager to see which team will come out on top and lift the Larry O’Brien trophy at the end of the campaign. The Western Conference finals have just gotten underway, with the Denver Nuggets taking an early one-game lead in the series courtesy of a triple-double from Serbian sensation Nikola Jokić. Over in the Eastern Conference, the seventh-seed Miami Heat will face off against the second-seed Boston Celtics, who were defeated by Steph Curry and his Golden State Warriors in the finals last season.
Between 2006 and 2020, the aforementioned Heat was one of the dominant forces in the league. They reached six NBA Finals Series during that time frame, winning three of them. And they have already put in a number of herculean efforts throughout the playoffs so far this postseason, including dismantling the top-seed Milwaukee Bucks by four games to one.
But despite the heroics from the Florida-based outfit, the latest NBA odds currently make them the rank outsiders for glory this term. They are priced at a whopping +1600 (15/1), while their opponents on the east coast are the +110 (11/10) favorites. Jokić’s Nuggets can be backed at +150 (6/4) and if you fancy LeBron to lead his Lakers to another championship crown, you can back them at +500 (4/1).
This season, a number of new heroes have announced themselves to the sporting world. The Celtics’ Jayson Tatum has been one of the stars of the show at the TD Garden while Austin Reaves has finally provided some much-needed support to LeBron James over in Los Angeles. That pair will definitely feature on this list in years to come, but for right now, here are the players that we feel are the best players in the NBA today.
Giannis Antetokounmpo – Milwaukee Bucks
The Greek Freak, Giannis Antetokounmpo, has been a force to be reckoned with in the NBA for a number of years now. The 28-year-old power forward was awarded MVP honors in back-to-back campaigns in 2019 and 2020. A year after his most recent MVP success, he led his Milwaukee Bucks to a first Larry O’Brien trophy in 40 years and secured the MVP award in the finals to boot.
With a wingspan of 7’3″ and a height of 6’11”, he is almost impossible to stop when driving to the basket. He recorded 28.1 points, 11 rebounds, and 5.9 assists per game last term and was in scintillating form once again this season, leading his side to second place in the Eastern Conference. Unfortunately, however, he was stunned by the Miami Heat in the first round of this season’s playoffs, and he will have to go back to the drawing board if he plans on adding another championship ring to his collection.
Kevin Durant – Phoenix Suns
Kevin Durant shocked the basketball world back in February when he was traded from the Brooklyn Nets to the Phoenix Suns in a blockbuster deal that saw Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson, and 4 first-round draft picks head in the opposite direction. The Arizona-based outfit has placed all of its eggs in the Kevin Durant basket, and they will be hoping that he can come up trumps when it matters the most. The 34-year-old is reaching the twilight years of his career, however, he remains one of the most versatile players in the league.
Durant is often praised for his incredible skill on the court and his agility, height, and shooting abilities consistently place him among the league’s elite players. Whether he’s scoring points from beyond the three-point line, crossing over defenders, or making jaw-dropping dunks, there’s no denying his talent as well as his overall impact on the sport.
LeBron James – Los Angeles Lakers
This season, it looked for long periods as though LeBron James would have to settle for personal achievements, rather than team success. Earlier in the campaign, he managed to topple Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s long-standing record of most points scored in NBA history. But despite that, his Los Angeles Lakes were languishing toward the bottom of the Western Conference.
That was until the end of the campaign at least. The Crypto.com Arena side picked up eight wins in their final ten games of the season to sneak into the playoffs, and they have since dispatched both the second-seed Memphis Grizzlies and the reigning champion Golden State Warriors to set up a showdown with the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference finals.
King James is without a doubt one of the best players in history, perhaps only rivaled by Michael Jordan. His legacy in the sport is already secured courtesy of his four NBA titles, four NBA MVP awards, 19 NBA All-Star appearances, and two Olympic gold medals. He is a force to be reckoned with because of his immense stature, athleticism, basketball IQ, and scoring prowess, and if he manages to add a fifth championship ring to his collection this term, the case for him being the greatest player in the history of the game will only grow stronger.
We hope you enjoyed the article “3 Greatest Players in the NBA Today.” Who do you think is currently the best NBA player? Let us know!
Read more on sports below:
- The toughest athletes in sport
- What is the oldest extreme sport?
- The biggest talking points in the English Football League this season
-
News4 weeks ago
The Best Male Tennis Players of All Time
-
Uncategorised1 month ago
What Dinosaur Has 500 Teeth?
-
Football4 weeks ago
10 of the most underrated footballers in the world right now
-
Football1 month ago
Players with the most goals in a Premier League season
-
News1 month ago
The Fastest Rugby Players Ever
-
Football1 month ago
The Best Penalty Takers of All Time
-
Football1 month ago
Who is the Fastest Football Player in the World?
-
Football1 month ago
Chelsea’s Possible Lineup For Next Season