The NBA is evolving at a faster pace than many had envisioned and is creating new stars with every draft class that is coming in. The NBA hasn’t felt this packed with talent in years and fans are enjoying it. However, nostalgia strikes even the best of us.
NBA fans on Twitter were dealt with their dose of nostalgia while getting into an argument over which point guard in their prime would be the best. The options were Kyrie Irving, Damian Lillard, Russell Westbrook, and John Wall. The conversation got really interesting.
Which Point Guard are you building your team around?
*all in their prime pic.twitter.com/tiBO25IfhJ
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) October 17, 2022
Kyrie
— Honest KD Fan (@TrolledbyJoe) October 17, 2022
EASILY. the best player. best winner. only person to take their team to the WCF as #1 option. puts up curry numbers. jus doesn’t have klay and dray and iggy and kd. if he did he’d be talked about in the same light as steph
— Nick Mile$ aka The Most High (@yonickmiles) October 17, 2022
in their prime you take Russ
— ☘️𓂀أحمد (@psychedelicnoel) October 17, 2022
russ easy
— KiLBJJ ⁵ ²³ (@KiLBJJ) October 17, 2022
he had that
— CantGuardBook (@CGBBURNER) October 17, 2022
https://twitter.com/CFB_JohnnyBurke/status/1582024844790890497
the one with a ring and legendary finals performance kyrie orving
— denver 2024 champs (@Stepbackfor3) October 17, 2022
Westbrook no debate at all. And stop disrespecting him
— soslamy23 (@susan1234456789) October 17, 2022
— Kalyb Champion (@Bucketscenter1) October 17, 2022
The one that won a mvp…
— Mo Kromah (@MO_WANTED) October 17, 2022
Prime is Russ or Kyrie ngl
— 𝚌𝚊𝚕𝚎𝚋 (@ezysnpxr) October 17, 2022
Dame and it’s not close
— J (@bklnfin3st) October 17, 2022
As all basketball debates go, this was dominated by subjectivity and fans had many picks across these 4. It is hard to have a wrong pick as all these players in their absolute prime were the best players in the league. While Westbrook and Wall have slowed down in recent years, it doesn’t change the fact that they dominated the league in their prime.
The Story Behind All 4 Point Guards
Kyrie Irving came into the NBA in 2011 as the 1st overall pick in that year’s draft. He has gone on to become an NBA Champion and hit one of the most important game-winner in NBA history. He is also a multiple-time All-Star and is expected to add to his accolades if the Brooklyn Nets can stay afloat after a drama-filled summer.
Damian Lillard is returning from an injury that saw him most of the 2021-22 season. His long-time backcourt partner CJ McCollum is gone, but the Blazers have added players like Jerami Grant to help Lillard this summer. The furthest Dame has gone in the playoffs was the 2019 Western Conference Finals, hitting an iconic series-winner on the OKC Thunder in the first round.
Russell Westbrook is the only player here to have won an MVP. In his prime, Westbrook was unstoppable and putting up numbers that we hadn’t seen in generations. The all-time leader in triple-doubles might have never made it back to the highs of his 2012 NBA Finals appearance, but has had an incredible career.
John Wall is returning from a season-long absence as the possible 6th man for the title-favorite Los Angeles Clippers. Wall’s prime was cut short by injuries, but prior to that, Wall was one of the most electrifying point guards in the NBA and on track to be a mainstay as an All-Star.
All these players are not the same as they were during their years of domination in the 2010s, but they are all still incredibly capable of delivering today, even if some have regressed faster than others.
