The talent level in the NBA has probably never been higher than it is now and that combined with the rules, makes it extremely hard to guard the very best players.
JJ Redick tried his hand at naming the top five hardest players to guard in the NBA today and he left out both LeBron James and Luka Doncic.
“Let’s start with No. 5… Kevin Durant. 55-40-90 season. Three seasons at 55% or more from the mid-range, no player in NBA history has ever done that,” Redick said on First Take. “7 feet tall, got a handle, scores all over the basketball court. He’s my 5th hardest player to guard right now.”
“No. 4, Joel Embiid. Led the league in scoring the last two seasons. Gets to the free-throw line better than anybody right now in the NBA. It is one of the reasons he is so hard to guard and when he imposes his physical will on his opponents, he’s nearly unstoppable.”
“No. 3, Steph Curry. On the ball, we saw that L.A. Lakers series, playing pick and roll, Golden State able to get whatever they want. Off the ball, the hardest player in the NBA to guard. You’ve got to be attached to him, he can get his shot off in a second. Steph Curry is my No. 3.”
“I didn’t love my ranking of (Nikola) Jokic at 5 last time, I’m putting him 2 right now, Nikola Jokic. Triple double machine, nine postseason triple-doubles, averaging a triple-double 16 games into this triple-double.”
“And No.1, Jokic and Giannis (Antetokounmpo), I’m gonna go 1A, 1B. I can’t decide between these two. Giannis puts all the pressure on your defense. Just constant attack in transition, in the half-court, requires multiple bodies in front of him. As Stan Van Gundy says, build a wall.”
.@jj_redick's top five hardest NBA players to guard ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/A4PEELLZTr
— First Take (@FirstTake) June 2, 2023
That is a pretty impressive list and all five individuals shone in this campaign. Kevin Durant averaged 29.1 PPG on 56.0% shooting from the field while Joel Embiid led the league at 33.1 PPG and shot 54.8% from the field. Stephen Curry, meanwhile, put up 29.4 PPG while shooting 49.3% from the field and 42.7% from beyond the arc.
Nikola Jokic had the lowest scoring average by a fair bit compared to the rest at 24.5 PPG but he shot a ridiculous 63.2% from the field. We have seen in these playoffs that teams have no answer for him when he decides to be aggressive. Lastly, Giannis Antetokounmpo averaged 31.1 PPG and shot 55.3% from the field.
The Case For Luka Doncic And LeBron James
While Embiid led the league in scoring, Doncic was right behind him at 32.4 PPG and he shot 49.6% from the field. Considering how many difficult shots Doncic tends to take, the fact that he still shot nearly 50% from the field is quite impressive. Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups called him the toughest player to guard and there would be many who would share that sentiment.
As for LeBron, before he suffered that foot injury in February earlier this year against the Dallas Mavericks, he was almost unstoppable on the court. He still finished the season with averages of 28.9 PPG on 50.0% shooting from the field and who knows how much better those numbers could have been had he not been playing with a torn tendon.
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