The NBA has so much talent on display at the moment, that it is a little bit crazy. Luka Doncic is the one who is heading up the new wave of NBA superstars while Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic have been hailed for showing just how valuable a truly great big man can be.
While the three of them are clearly trending upward, the same cannot be said about Anthony Davis, James Harden, and to a lesser extent, Kawhi Leonard. These three have dealt with injuries the last couple of years, which has led to their stock falling a bit around the league, so when NBA fans were asked to choose who would go to the bench among these six players, a couple of names stood out compared to the rest.
Who comes off the bench? pic.twitter.com/kNVAATuXo6
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) August 26, 2022
“Harden gets cut off the team lmao”
“AD clearly a tier below the others”
“jokic, having the 2 way players like kawhi, AD, and Embiid to surround Luka would be insane. Jokic is much better than Harden rn but i’m not tryna have 3 bigs”
“No need to choose. AD won’t be healthy.”
“James Hardens son Luka off the bench”
“Street Clothes never getting off the bench.”
“Harden and it’s not close.”
“Luka-Harden-Kawhi-Jokic-Embiid lineup go crazyyyy”
“Right now Davis if everyone is in their prime Jokic”
“The dude who’s obsessed with strippers, chokes every season in the playoffs, and BFFs with Lil Baby”
“Kawhi cuz he missed a year”
“Has to be AD cuz you can’t run him at the 3 and he’s not making it over Jokic or Embiid”
“Easy. Harden he’s never or will he ever won anything or contributed to any team in a positive way. He’s a team killer.”
“Having Luka and Harden on the floor together is basically playing 4v5 on offense and not much better on defense so I’d have to say either one of them and I’m leaning towards Luka”
“Pretty sure the guy who hasn’t played in almost 2 years should come off the bench but that’s just me”
“Jokic unfortunately. On a team with a solid PG embiid would be the better choice if I had to choose between the 2 for his defense”
“All healthy? Put Harden on the bench, he not close to any of these players if they’re all healthy”
“Only one good choice … Luka”
“With James & Luka playmaking you don’t really need Jokic. Also AD & Embiid just works better defensively.”
“AD cuz when he gets in the game he’s gonna get hurt anyways”
Anthony Davis and James Harden were the popular choices here, and that isn’t surprising considering their recent struggles. The Lakers and the Sixers will be hoping that these two can play at somewhere near their best level next season, as that would go a long way towards helping them compete for a title.
Davis has actually ramped up his offseason training after all the criticism that has come his way, while Harden looks to be in the best shape that he has been in for a while, so there is perhaps cause for some optimism with both of them.
