Ranking The Top 10 Best Benches In The NBA

You can’t win an NBA Championship unless you have a strong second unit that can help the starters catch a breather every now and then so they hold on to leads, or even better, pull off a comeback.

Obviously, starters get most of the credit when the team wins and the second unit is to blame when they get blown out early on, which isn’t always an accurate narrative, to say the least.

Even so, some teams naturally have stronger second units than others, either because starters aren’t as good as them, or because they build such strong chemistry as a whole that they’re difficult to take off the court.

That being said, let’s take a look at the top 10 best benches in the NBA.

10. Indiana Pacers

Edmond Sumner, Tyreke Evans

Doug McDermott, TJ Leaf, Domantas Sabonis

The Indiana Pacers have been quite a pleasant surprise this season, building on last year’s success even with Victor Oladipo in the shelf until the end of the campaign and holding on to a top 5 seed in the Conference.

Most of that success has come thanks to their strong bench, as Evans, McDermott, and especially Sabonis have pretty much outplayed the starters. They’re scoring 39.6 points in only 18.5 minutes per game.

They’re one star away of being Championship contenders, but the Pacers are right on track to succeed.

9. Boston Celtics

Terry Rozier, Jaylen Brown

Gordon Hayward, Semi Ojeleye, Aron Baynes

Brad Stevens thrives off his long rotation, and the Boston Celtics have so much talent on their roster, that they can brag about having Gordon Hayward, Terry Rozier and Jaylen Brown coming off the bench.

Perhaps Boston’s biggest problems is how stacked they are right now, but the team’s second unit has been superb, scoring 39.7 points per game on 44% shooting in just 19.1 minutes per game.

8. Atlanta Hawks

Jaylen Adams, Deandre Bembry

Taurean Prince, Omari Spellman, Alex Len

The Atlanta Hawks are still a couple of years away from being considered a legit threat in the Eastern Conference, but there’s no doubt the team has been doing great things to build their roster.

The Hawks may not have strong names on their second unit (or their starters, as a matter of fact), but still, they’re scoring 42.5 points per game on 45% shooting in roughly 18 minutes a night.

7. Charlotte Hornets

Tony Parker, Malik Monk, Mikal Bridges

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Bismack Biyombo

The Charlotte Hornets have been quite mediocre for years, but the team went to great lengths to finally build a strong second unit with some very interesting youngsters in Mikal Bridges and Malik Monk.

Tony Parker’s addition has also been a major factor for this team’s second unit, while Bismack Biyombo is a solid rim protector for them as well. So far, they’ve been scoring almost 42.9 points per game.

6. Miami Heat

Justise Winslow, Dwyane Wade

Rodney McGruder, Joe Johnson, Bam Adebayo

The Miami Heat has been able to climb all the way back to a playoff spot even despite the fact that Goran Dragic has been in the shelf for months and Dion Waiters hasn’t been as sharp as usual.

Most of that success has come thanks to their second unit led by Dwyane Wade and Justise Winslow. So far, the Heat’s bench is scoring 43.2 points on just over 20 minutes a night, not bad for a “last dance”.

5. Sacramento Kings

Yogi Ferrell, Bogdan Bogdanovic

Harry Giles, Frank Mason III, Marvin Bagley

I’m really proud (and surprised) of the Sacramento Kings. They’ve truly made the most of the DeMarcus Cousins trade, and we just have to give Vlade Divac a lot of credit for the way he’s built this roster.

Moreover, the team’s second unit has been superb, scoring 43.4 points in just 19 minutes per game, and the Kings are on the verge of finally coming back to the playoffs, and even better, leave the Lakers out of them.

4. Cleveland Cavaliers

Jordan Clarkson, Cameron Payne

Jaron Blossomgame, Deng Adel, Tristan Thompson

The Cleveland Cavaliers have been a major disaster. There’s simply nothing good you could say about this team, at least at first glance. Even so, their second unit has been slightly better than their starters.

Jordan Clarkson keeps improving as an efficient scorer, while Tristan Thompson has always been a dominant rebounder. Somehow, the Cavaliers bench is scoring 43.8 points in 44% from the floor.

3. New York Knicks

Emmanuel Mudiay, Kadeem Allen

Allonzo Trier, Lance Thomas, Mitchell Robinson

The New York Knicks just decided to give up on this season. They’re blatantly tanking to get Zion Williamson, and that’s a huge bummer considering how well their second unit played early on the season.

Mudiay has been confident and aggressive, undrafted rookie Allonzo Trier has been a great scorer in isolation, and Mitchell Robinson looks like a huge steal with his rebounding and rim protection abilities.

With 44.1 points in 20.9 minutes, the Knicks bench is one of the best in the league.

2. Brooklyn Nets

Shabazz Napier, Caris Levert

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, DeMarre Carroll, Ed Davis

The Brooklyn Nets have been quite a pleasant surprise, and even though D’Angelo Russell and Spencer Dinwiddie have gotten most of the credit, it’s been a team effort all year long for the Nets.

This team is bound to make the playoffs against all odds and their second unit has been quite strong, especially in the defensive end. So far, they’re scoring 47.7 points in 21 minutes per game.

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1. Los Angeles Clippers

Landry Shamet, Lou Williams

Jerome Robinson, Sindarius Thornwell, Montrezl Harrell

And finally, Doc Clippers have been such a strong second unit, that his team almost fares better with them on the court than sitting out. Led by Lou Williams, they just have been unstoppable all year long.

Despite their lack of stars, the Clippers might mess around and make the playoffs, and that’s mostly thanks to their second unit, that’s currently scoring 52.7 points on 48% shooting and 36% from deep.