Kevin Durant broke the media this week after releasing his idea of the most unstoppable superteam. As a superstar who has played on a few superteams over his career, probably Durant knows best. And to be fair, his superteam certainly looks unbeatable.
Starters: LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Hakeem Olajuwon
Bench: Stephen Curry, Magic Johnson, Tracy McGrady, Dirk Nowitzki, Shaquille O’Neal, Anthony Davis, Kevin Garnett
But looking at Durant’s choices of starters and 7 bench players, some teams can be formulated to defeat them as crazy as that sounds. By creating 3 superteams based on 5 dominant starters and a bench of 7 other superstars, we have found a mix of talent that would take down Durant’s.
It won’t be easy, since Durant has a mix of leaders, scorers, and lockdown defenders. But in the end, Durant’s superteams will fall. Here are the 3 superteams that would take down Kevin Durant’s superteam.
Superteam 1.0: The Most Dominant Team Ever
Starters: Stephen Curry, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Shaquille O’Neal
Bench: Allen Iverson, Magic Johnson, Dwyane Wade, Larry Bird, Tim Duncan, Hakeem Olajuwon, Wilt Chamberlain
Durant’s lineup is very difficult to beat, especially the starters. They have a ton of size and can be hard to match up with when a prototypical point guard like Stephen Curry is in the lineup. But Curry, despite his size, will make a killing on offense playing alongside Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant.
Both superstar guards demand a ton of attention on the court which opens up Curry’s shooting. Durant’s team has massive defenders like James and Jordan, but neither can space the floor as well as Curry can. Durant’s team has mainly Kobe and Durant himself who can cause significant damage from the three, but neither compare to Curry. That is a massive advantage for SuperTeam 1.0.
The presence of Shaquille O’Neal down low neutralizes Hakeem Olajuwon as much as possible, so the matchup difference is between Durant and Curry. Another interesting matchup is between Dwyane Wade and Tracy McGrady, 2 dominant scorers who will go at each other, but Wade has a more solid defensive game which is another plus for Superteam 1.0
Superteam 2.0: The Los Angeles Greats… With Michael Jordan
Starters: Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain
Bench: Shaquille O’Neal, Elgin Baylor, LeBron James, Jerry West, Pau Gasol, James Worthy, Michael Cooper
This all-Lakers legends team would take down Kevin Durant’s superteam. By focusing only on the all-time Lakers, it is clear to see the talent that has played for the iconic franchise. Magic Johnson has to start at the point alongside Kobe Bryant, as they are the two greatest Lakers who have ever lived. Magic matches up well with LeBron while running the offense through Kobe.
Of course, no lineup is complete without Michael Jordan. Even if the remaining 11 players are Lakers, Jordan has to start. His leadership and scoring ability makes him a seamless fit with the rest of the Lakers. Where Superteam 2.0 has the edge over Durant’s is inside the paint.
Kareem and Wilt will completely dominate Durant and Hakeem inside. Durant is too frail to handle Kareem or Wilt, and they will dominate the boards. They are simply too large with Shaq coming off the bench and can throw multiple lockdown defenders such as Worthy and Cooper to defend Durant’s scorers.
Superteam 3.0: The 90s Classics
Starters: John Stockton, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Karl Malone, David Robinson
Bench: Charles Barkley, Gary Payton, Patrick Ewing, Shaquille O’Neal, Reggie Miller, Clyde Drexler, Grant Hill
By focusing on the 90’s stars, Superteam 3.0 would take down Durant’s superteam. This lineup takes a different turn by starting John Stockton, a 6’1″ point guard, against the sheer size of LeBron James at the point. This seems like a mismatch, but Stockton’s play alongside Karl Malone is too dominant to ignore. When looking at the best players from the 90s, Stockton and Malone have to start.
Pairing the duo with their nemesis Michael Jordan would be overkill. They are too dominant on both ends of the court, especially with Jordan’s own sidekick Scottie Pippen joining them. This superteam is too dominant defensively, and The Admiral completes a talented lineup that is unstoppable on the break. On offense and defense, they have plenty of depth too.
Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, and Shaquille O’Neal provide a ton of size down low. Gary Payton is there to bother Durant’s scorers as well, while Grant Hill and Reggie Miller are bonafide scorers. The 90s had incredible talent and with the mix of two superstar duos in the starting lineup, they would take down Kevin Durant’s superteam.
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