Golden State Warriors: SI ranks Curry, Durant, and Green in Top 10
Golden State Warriors have three top-10 players according to Sports Illustrated’s new Top 100 Players list: Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, and Draymond Green.
If you have even so much as dipped a toe into Basketball Twitter, like a reluctant swimmer testing the water temperature, then you probably saw the debate that has swept the community over the last few days. Sports Illustrated has been ranking the Top 100 players in the NBA ahead of the season, something that is no small task, might I add. And the reaction has been as reasonable and civilized as one would expect.
The main source of division was New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony and where he ranks amongst his peers. Then C.J. McCollum tweeted that players should rank journalists and, in a hilarious turn of events, many writers, reporters, analysts, and journalists supported that idea. Still, the lists must go on.
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Sports Illustrated had a few misses. When you’re trying to put together a comprehensive list of this size, you’re going to have some. Trying to weigh a guard versus a big man with no context is probably a recipe for disaster.
The only sure sure things lie in the Top 3, probably Top 4 in the entire league. SI got it right. They have LeBron James at the top spot. While he’s not the player he was a few years ago and he just got outplayed in the NBA Finals, he deserves the top spot.
The two guys behind him are closing in quickly. SI named Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry the second best and third best players in the league, respectively. The two champs are sitting near the top.
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Curry and Durant dominated everybody on their way to a 16-1 record in the postseason, tied for the all-time best. Of course, they had some help. Draymond Green was a key figure, especially through the first three rounds where he absolutely dominated.
Green is ranked 10th in the league, according to SI. He’s the reigning Defensive Player of the Year. He’s also responsible for facilitating a large portion of Golden State’s offense while providing the energy for the entire game. Green is certainly worthy of Top 10 consideration and it’s almost surprising to see a non-scorer get recognized like this.
Curry and Durant are two of the league’s few superstars and Green is the league’s best defender. They were great in the regular season, but they all turned it up a notch in the playoffs as they led their team to a championship. These rankings are accurate and well-deserved.