10. Stephen Curry
Oh, how the mighty have fallen... albeit not that far. To be honest, however, the addition of Durant to Golden State has hurt Curry's production so much that I almost didn't put the guard on this list. Steph's PER of 23.46 ranks 20th in the league; and in VA (Value Added) and EWA (Estimated Wins Added) he hardly fairs better, ranking 16th in each. To compare, Curry's 2015-16 PER of 31.56 smoked the rest of the competition, as did his top-ranking EWA and VA statistics en route to one of the most dominant seasons in modern history, the Warrior's second consecutive MVP, and a record-breaking 73-9 team mark.
Sure, maybe we could expect a little bit of a decline in numbers due to the addition of Kevin Durant. But Curry's decline in shooting efficiency rests entirely on his shoulders; if anything, in fact, KD's addition should have helped them even more. Instead, after posting the league's best True Shooting Percentage last year at 0.669, Steph's 0.634 ranks just 19th in the league. His 50.4 FG% from last year has dropped to 46.6, and his jaw-dropping 45.4 three-point percentage has fallen to 40.3% thus far this season.
Don't get me wrong: Curry's still an absolute beast and among (or maybe the) top superstar that the NBA has to offer. He and Durant have led their Golden State Warriors to a 30-5 record (0.857), the league's best. But frankly that record is perhaps the main reason why Curry even cracked this list at this point in the season over other deserving studs.
Oh, how the mighty have fallen... albeit not that far. To be honest, however, the addition of Durant to Golden State has hurt Curry's production so much that I almost didn't put the guard on this list. Steph's PER of 23.46 ranks 20th in the league; and in VA (Value Added) and EWA (Estimated Wins Added) he hardly fairs better, ranking 16th in each. To compare, Curry's 2015-16 PER of 31.56 smoked the rest of the competition, as did his top-ranking EWA and VA statistics en route to one of the most dominant seasons in modern history, the Warrior's second consecutive MVP, and a record-breaking 73-9 team mark.
Sure, maybe we could expect a little bit of a decline in numbers due to the addition of Kevin Durant. But Curry's decline in shooting efficiency rests entirely on his shoulders; if anything, in fact, KD's addition should have helped them even more. Instead, after posting the league's best True Shooting Percentage last year at 0.669, Steph's 0.634 ranks just 19th in the league. His 50.4 FG% from last year has dropped to 46.6, and his jaw-dropping 45.4 three-point percentage has fallen to 40.3% thus far this season.
Don't get me wrong: Curry's still an absolute beast and among (or maybe the) top superstar that the NBA has to offer. He and Durant have led their Golden State Warriors to a 30-5 record (0.857), the league's best. But frankly that record is perhaps the main reason why Curry even cracked this list at this point in the season over other deserving studs.
9. Jimmy Butler
Jimmy Butler has done everything in his power -- and then some -- to keep his Chicago Bulls afloat in the playoff race, but unfortunately has received very little help from his teammates that are not named Dwyane Wade (and even he has made his limitations clear in his old age) in doing so. Butler is averaging 24.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.7 steals per game on very respectable shooting splits of 45.3/33.6/87.7 (FG% / 3P% / FT%). His efforts have earned him basketball's 10th-best PER at 26.53, and he has made it clear that his team would absolutely suffer without him: he ranks fourth in both Value Added and Estimated Wins Added. Still it's not enough, however, as his Bulls rank 10th in the East with a mediocre 17-18 (0.486) record.
Jimmy Butler has done everything in his power -- and then some -- to keep his Chicago Bulls afloat in the playoff race, but unfortunately has received very little help from his teammates that are not named Dwyane Wade (and even he has made his limitations clear in his old age) in doing so. Butler is averaging 24.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.7 steals per game on very respectable shooting splits of 45.3/33.6/87.7 (FG% / 3P% / FT%). His efforts have earned him basketball's 10th-best PER at 26.53, and he has made it clear that his team would absolutely suffer without him: he ranks fourth in both Value Added and Estimated Wins Added. Still it's not enough, however, as his Bulls rank 10th in the East with a mediocre 17-18 (0.486) record.
8. LeBron James
LeBron turned 32 on December 30th, and this new post-30 LeBron isn't the one that dominates the league with individual jaw-dropping stat-lines and PER numbers. He now dominates the league in a different sense: with his team rather than with himself.
By any metric, of course, LeBron James in and of himself is easily enjoying another top-10 individual season: his PER of 26.42 ranks eleventh among all qualified players, and his Value Added and Estimated Wins Added figures are good for eighth across the NBA thus far this season. His season averages of 25.6 points, 8.7 assists, and 7.9 rebounds per game on the surface don't stand out as too jaw-dropping when compared with the stat lines that Russell Westbrook or James Harden are posting these days, and his percentages -- 51.1/38.4/67.8 (FG% / 3P% / FT%) -- are again solid for James' own standards.
[Actually, the free throw percentage, it should be noted, is quite the strange anomaly to a rather consistent 74-ish percentage that James has had in years past and is the lowest such mark of his career; one would reasonably expect that over the course of the season, LeBron's odd 68.4% free throw percentage will regress to his own personal mean].
But its clear that James has molded himself into the ultimate team player. His 38.4 three-point percentage -- a very high mark relative to the league average of one or two percentage points over a third -- is the second-highest such mark of LeBron's career. 38.4%, in fact, is 4.3 percentage points higher than The King's career average and a drastic improvement over last season's dismal 30.9%. Becoming a deadly three-point threat has allowed James to move to more of an off-ball role on offense if need be; after all, he does play on the same team as Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love. Speaking of which, James' 8.7 assists per game is also the highest of his career, which speaks volumes about his new type of team-first offensive role. Thus James is not quite padding his stats like some of the others on this list, but he does rank among the best in the most important statistic of all: his Cleveland Cavaliers are 26-7 (0.788) and tops in the Eastern Conference.
LeBron turned 32 on December 30th, and this new post-30 LeBron isn't the one that dominates the league with individual jaw-dropping stat-lines and PER numbers. He now dominates the league in a different sense: with his team rather than with himself.
By any metric, of course, LeBron James in and of himself is easily enjoying another top-10 individual season: his PER of 26.42 ranks eleventh among all qualified players, and his Value Added and Estimated Wins Added figures are good for eighth across the NBA thus far this season. His season averages of 25.6 points, 8.7 assists, and 7.9 rebounds per game on the surface don't stand out as too jaw-dropping when compared with the stat lines that Russell Westbrook or James Harden are posting these days, and his percentages -- 51.1/38.4/67.8 (FG% / 3P% / FT%) -- are again solid for James' own standards.
[Actually, the free throw percentage, it should be noted, is quite the strange anomaly to a rather consistent 74-ish percentage that James has had in years past and is the lowest such mark of his career; one would reasonably expect that over the course of the season, LeBron's odd 68.4% free throw percentage will regress to his own personal mean].
But its clear that James has molded himself into the ultimate team player. His 38.4 three-point percentage -- a very high mark relative to the league average of one or two percentage points over a third -- is the second-highest such mark of LeBron's career. 38.4%, in fact, is 4.3 percentage points higher than The King's career average and a drastic improvement over last season's dismal 30.9%. Becoming a deadly three-point threat has allowed James to move to more of an off-ball role on offense if need be; after all, he does play on the same team as Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love. Speaking of which, James' 8.7 assists per game is also the highest of his career, which speaks volumes about his new type of team-first offensive role. Thus James is not quite padding his stats like some of the others on this list, but he does rank among the best in the most important statistic of all: his Cleveland Cavaliers are 26-7 (0.788) and tops in the Eastern Conference.
7. DeMarcus Cousins
Cousins' situation regarding this list here is very similar to that of Jimmy Butler's: outstanding player, sub-par team. Indeed, the center's 27.80 PER checks in at fourth in the league, and he ranks seventh in VA and EWA as well. DeMarcus' 29.0 points per game are the third-highest in basketball (just behind Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook), and his 10.2 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 1.4 blocks per game aren't too shabby either as "Boogie" evolves into not just an elite offensive force, but an elite defensive force as well.
The most interesting addition to Cousins' game, however, is his three-point shooting. It is beyond rare to find someone who is seven feet tall and drops 30-and-10 games on a consistent basis that also connects on 1.8 threes per game at a very efficient 38% clip. This amazing newfound inside-out game makes DeMarcus one of the most difficult players to guard in basketball, no matter the defender.
However, the fact remains that his Sacramento Kings are headed for another forgettable season at 14-19 (0.424). Until Boogie can snap his team's decade-long playoff drought, he'll have a very hard time working his way up any list like this -- which is unfortunate, because it's just simply not his fault at this point.
Cousins' situation regarding this list here is very similar to that of Jimmy Butler's: outstanding player, sub-par team. Indeed, the center's 27.80 PER checks in at fourth in the league, and he ranks seventh in VA and EWA as well. DeMarcus' 29.0 points per game are the third-highest in basketball (just behind Anthony Davis and Russell Westbrook), and his 10.2 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 1.4 blocks per game aren't too shabby either as "Boogie" evolves into not just an elite offensive force, but an elite defensive force as well.
The most interesting addition to Cousins' game, however, is his three-point shooting. It is beyond rare to find someone who is seven feet tall and drops 30-and-10 games on a consistent basis that also connects on 1.8 threes per game at a very efficient 38% clip. This amazing newfound inside-out game makes DeMarcus one of the most difficult players to guard in basketball, no matter the defender.
However, the fact remains that his Sacramento Kings are headed for another forgettable season at 14-19 (0.424). Until Boogie can snap his team's decade-long playoff drought, he'll have a very hard time working his way up any list like this -- which is unfortunate, because it's just simply not his fault at this point.
6. Kawhi Leonard
I really don't have anything negative to say about this superstar (for a change): Kawhi Leonard plays on a successful team (his San Antonio Spurs enjoy the league's second-best record at 27-7 [0.794]), shoots efficiently, and ranks highly in the advanced statistics. This utter absence of any noticeable drawback in his superstar-ness is the reason why I gave Leonard the nod over the others below him in this third tier of these rankings (yes, you'll find that the top five in this list are considerably ahead of anyone else; and that goes double for the top two). Kawhi, however, fails to crack the uber-elite top-five at the moment due to his eighth-ranked PER at 26.95 and ninth-ranked EWA and VA across the NBA. Leonard is currently posting very nice averages, with career bests in several categories: 24.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 2.0 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game. As aforementioned, he has efficient shooting percentages to go with those stats as well, namely splits of 46.6/32.0/92.0 (FG% / 3P% / FT%). Extraordinary for sure, but not quite extra-extraordinary.
I really don't have anything negative to say about this superstar (for a change): Kawhi Leonard plays on a successful team (his San Antonio Spurs enjoy the league's second-best record at 27-7 [0.794]), shoots efficiently, and ranks highly in the advanced statistics. This utter absence of any noticeable drawback in his superstar-ness is the reason why I gave Leonard the nod over the others below him in this third tier of these rankings (yes, you'll find that the top five in this list are considerably ahead of anyone else; and that goes double for the top two). Kawhi, however, fails to crack the uber-elite top-five at the moment due to his eighth-ranked PER at 26.95 and ninth-ranked EWA and VA across the NBA. Leonard is currently posting very nice averages, with career bests in several categories: 24.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 2.0 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game. As aforementioned, he has efficient shooting percentages to go with those stats as well, namely splits of 46.6/32.0/92.0 (FG% / 3P% / FT%). Extraordinary for sure, but not quite extra-extraordinary.
5. Anthony Davis
I could very easily have put Anthony Davis as high as third on this list -- his season thus far has just been that good. He ranks fifth in both PER and EWA, posting a 27.56 mark in the latter to date. Davis' per game stats, furthermore, are nothing short of absolutely special: 28.9 points, 11.8 rebounds, 2.6 blocks, and 1.4 steals to go along with 49.1% shooting form the floor and a surprisingly-high, given the big man's 6'10" frame (and 7'6" wingspan), 79.3% mark from the free throw line. Of course, however, the only drawback when evaluating AD's superstar-ness is his team, the Pelicans, who are unfortunately suffering another lost season at 14-22 (0.389).
I could very easily have put Anthony Davis as high as third on this list -- his season thus far has just been that good. He ranks fifth in both PER and EWA, posting a 27.56 mark in the latter to date. Davis' per game stats, furthermore, are nothing short of absolutely special: 28.9 points, 11.8 rebounds, 2.6 blocks, and 1.4 steals to go along with 49.1% shooting form the floor and a surprisingly-high, given the big man's 6'10" frame (and 7'6" wingspan), 79.3% mark from the free throw line. Of course, however, the only drawback when evaluating AD's superstar-ness is his team, the Pelicans, who are unfortunately suffering another lost season at 14-22 (0.389).
4. Kevin Durant
I have to hand it to KD: coming into this season, he faced all the pressure in the world after ditching Oklahoma City this summer, and everyone wanted him to fail -- he was indeed the ultimate NBA villain on the ultimate NBA super-team (which is pretty much a synonym for 'villain' these days). So how did he respond? Try: by turning in the most efficient season of his career.
It's not just the raw numbers that jump out at you, although they are nonetheless impressive: 25.7 points, 8.7 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.1 steals per game -- but that's not necessarily anything out of the ordinary by Durant's standards, although both his rebounding and block averages are the highest of his career, which is a testament to the new team-first role that he has embraced in Golden State.
But more to the point of "team-first", as I had mentioned before, is Durant's efficiency. Indeed, KD's 0.592 Effective Field Goal Percentage mark not only ranks eleventh in the league thus far this season, but also as by far the highest in the forward's own personal career. True Shooting Percentage, which accounts for free throws (unlike efg%) as well as threes and field goals, gives Durant a 0.647 mark, which is also good for eleventh in the league. For context, KD has put up shooting splits of 53.7/39.3/86.2 to date, flirting with another 50/40/90 season.
Hence Durant has put his Warriors above all else, and I commend him for it, seeing a considerable drop-off in points per game, and his efforts have yielded results. This is true not only on an individual basis -- Durant ranks sixth in the league in both PER (27.45) and EWA -- but also on a team basis: to date, KD has been the best player on the league's best team, leading the Golden State Warriors to a 30-5 (0.857) record.
I have to hand it to KD: coming into this season, he faced all the pressure in the world after ditching Oklahoma City this summer, and everyone wanted him to fail -- he was indeed the ultimate NBA villain on the ultimate NBA super-team (which is pretty much a synonym for 'villain' these days). So how did he respond? Try: by turning in the most efficient season of his career.
It's not just the raw numbers that jump out at you, although they are nonetheless impressive: 25.7 points, 8.7 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.1 steals per game -- but that's not necessarily anything out of the ordinary by Durant's standards, although both his rebounding and block averages are the highest of his career, which is a testament to the new team-first role that he has embraced in Golden State.
But more to the point of "team-first", as I had mentioned before, is Durant's efficiency. Indeed, KD's 0.592 Effective Field Goal Percentage mark not only ranks eleventh in the league thus far this season, but also as by far the highest in the forward's own personal career. True Shooting Percentage, which accounts for free throws (unlike efg%) as well as threes and field goals, gives Durant a 0.647 mark, which is also good for eleventh in the league. For context, KD has put up shooting splits of 53.7/39.3/86.2 to date, flirting with another 50/40/90 season.
Hence Durant has put his Warriors above all else, and I commend him for it, seeing a considerable drop-off in points per game, and his efforts have yielded results. This is true not only on an individual basis -- Durant ranks sixth in the league in both PER (27.45) and EWA -- but also on a team basis: to date, KD has been the best player on the league's best team, leading the Golden State Warriors to a 30-5 (0.857) record.
3. Giannis Antetokounmpo
If expectations were sky-high for "The Greek Freak" heading into this season, he must be in outer space right now. Antetokunmpo has shattered even the most ridiculous of expectations, posting the second-best PER in the league at 28.89 and ranking third in EWA and VA, en route to one of the most statistically dominant across-the-board seasons in recent memory. The young Milwaukee Buck has posted averages of 23.8 points, 9.0 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.9 blocks, and 1.9 steals per game on very efficient shooting splits of 53.6/29.5/77.6 (he doesn't take very many threes anyways). As a result, Giannis has essentially single-handedly willed Milwaukee into the thick of the East's playoff race, currently sitting sixth in the conference at 17-16 (0.515). The scariest part? He's only 22 years old.
If expectations were sky-high for "The Greek Freak" heading into this season, he must be in outer space right now. Antetokunmpo has shattered even the most ridiculous of expectations, posting the second-best PER in the league at 28.89 and ranking third in EWA and VA, en route to one of the most statistically dominant across-the-board seasons in recent memory. The young Milwaukee Buck has posted averages of 23.8 points, 9.0 rebounds, 5.9 assists, 1.9 blocks, and 1.9 steals per game on very efficient shooting splits of 53.6/29.5/77.6 (he doesn't take very many threes anyways). As a result, Giannis has essentially single-handedly willed Milwaukee into the thick of the East's playoff race, currently sitting sixth in the conference at 17-16 (0.515). The scariest part? He's only 22 years old.
2. Russell Westbrook
It's hard to use the right words to describe Westbrook's remarkable season to date: he is currently on track to become the first player since Oscar Robertson in 1962 to average a triple-double over the course of a season. Indeed, Russ is cruising towards an absolutely historic season with averages of 30.9 points, 10.5 assists, 10.4 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game. Granted, however, his efficiency has taken a hit, as his field goal percentage has dropped 2.6 percentage points from last year and his turnovers are up to 5.4 per game, albeit his three-point percentage has since risen; his current shooting splits are: 42.8/32.5/82.0. Still, Westbrook is crushing the competition with a 30.10 PER, and ranks just behind James Harden in Estimated Wins Added and Value Added.
Of course, it is the absence of Kevin Durant -- now in Golden State -- that makes such a jaw-dropping per-game stat line as the one above possible. However, Westbrook's Thunder have suffered without KD: despite the superstar point guard's best efforts, his team sits at a good-but-not-great 21-14 (0.600) and seventh in the West; a far cry from last year's 55-27 (0.671) mark, which was good for third in the conference and one game away from an appearance in the NBA Finals.
Westbrook has done far more than his fair share -- and more than even any gargantuan expectation placed upon him in the pre-season -- for this Oklahoma City team, and by the literal definition of the term, is very arguably the "Most Valuable Player" in basketball. Furthermore, that ridiculous stat line -- averaging a triple double with 30+ points per game to boot -- is absolutely not to be overlooked, and this season could very well go down in the history books as one of the greatest invididual performances ever if Russ keeps up the pace. However, with all of that being said, the turnovers and inefficient shooting continue to plague number zero, and I found the top spot difficult to give to someone whose team is 5.5 games back of another very deserving superstar...
It's hard to use the right words to describe Westbrook's remarkable season to date: he is currently on track to become the first player since Oscar Robertson in 1962 to average a triple-double over the course of a season. Indeed, Russ is cruising towards an absolutely historic season with averages of 30.9 points, 10.5 assists, 10.4 rebounds, and 1.3 steals per game. Granted, however, his efficiency has taken a hit, as his field goal percentage has dropped 2.6 percentage points from last year and his turnovers are up to 5.4 per game, albeit his three-point percentage has since risen; his current shooting splits are: 42.8/32.5/82.0. Still, Westbrook is crushing the competition with a 30.10 PER, and ranks just behind James Harden in Estimated Wins Added and Value Added.
Of course, it is the absence of Kevin Durant -- now in Golden State -- that makes such a jaw-dropping per-game stat line as the one above possible. However, Westbrook's Thunder have suffered without KD: despite the superstar point guard's best efforts, his team sits at a good-but-not-great 21-14 (0.600) and seventh in the West; a far cry from last year's 55-27 (0.671) mark, which was good for third in the conference and one game away from an appearance in the NBA Finals.
Westbrook has done far more than his fair share -- and more than even any gargantuan expectation placed upon him in the pre-season -- for this Oklahoma City team, and by the literal definition of the term, is very arguably the "Most Valuable Player" in basketball. Furthermore, that ridiculous stat line -- averaging a triple double with 30+ points per game to boot -- is absolutely not to be overlooked, and this season could very well go down in the history books as one of the greatest invididual performances ever if Russ keeps up the pace. However, with all of that being said, the turnovers and inefficient shooting continue to plague number zero, and I found the top spot difficult to give to someone whose team is 5.5 games back of another very deserving superstar...
1. James Harden
There was a pretty clear two-horse race for the top spot between Harden and Westbrook, and despite Westbrook's jaw-dropping triple-double averages, I felt obliged to give this spot to the well-deserving Houston guard. Off of his ridiculous stat lines of 28.5 points, 12.0 assists, 8.5 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 3.1 threes per game on efficient shooting splits of 45.2/36.2/84.5 (FG% / 3P% / FT%), the Rockets have suddenly found themselves at 27-9 (0.750), good for the West's third and the NBA's fourth-best record; a dramatic turnaround from 41-41 (0.500) last year. Anyways, breaking down the advanced statistics, it was very difficult to crown a winner for this list between Westbrook and Harden, who were miles ahead of the competition (top row is Harden):
There was a pretty clear two-horse race for the top spot between Harden and Westbrook, and despite Westbrook's jaw-dropping triple-double averages, I felt obliged to give this spot to the well-deserving Houston guard. Off of his ridiculous stat lines of 28.5 points, 12.0 assists, 8.5 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 3.1 threes per game on efficient shooting splits of 45.2/36.2/84.5 (FG% / 3P% / FT%), the Rockets have suddenly found themselves at 27-9 (0.750), good for the West's third and the NBA's fourth-best record; a dramatic turnaround from 41-41 (0.500) last year. Anyways, breaking down the advanced statistics, it was very difficult to crown a winner for this list between Westbrook and Harden, who were miles ahead of the competition (top row is Harden):
For me, however, the bottom line is always team wins -- it is the ultimate statistic in every sport, the culmination of all other statistics into one, all-important determiner of succcess. Houston may have the edge, but it's hard to say definitively that James Harden's supporting cast of Eric Gordon, Ryan Anderson, Trevor Ariza, and Clint Capela is too far ahead of Russell Westbrook's: Victor Oladipo, Enes Kanter, Steven Adams, Andre Roberson. Given that Harden has his Rockets 5.5 games ahead of Westbrook's Thunder (21-14; 0.600), I must give The Bearded One the benefit of the doubt by the slimmest of margins; nonetheless, both superstars have been absolutely outstanding and amazing to watch this season.
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