Over the past few months, we have created lineups and full teams based on how many NBA championships they won in their career. We continue that series today with a look at our all-time two-ring starting lineup and bench. The 2-ring team may just be the best team we have constructed so far. The offensive and defensive abilities of this lineup will be a tall task for any of the other lineups we have built so far to overcome. The 2-ring team may just be the victor in the end when we do our tournament of champions.
Unlike the 0-ring team and 1-ring team we have already built, the 2-ring team has zero weaknesses throughout the starting lineup and the bench. At the end of our introduction to the lineup and what each player brings to the table, we will discuss and determine if this team built together could have won more than the 2 rings they have in their career. This lineup is sure to intrigue the most diehard of basketball fans, so get ready to dive in.
This is the all-time 2-ring team’s starting lineup and full bench.
Guard – Isiah Thomas
Career Stats: 19.2 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 9.3 APG, 1.9 SPG, 0.3 BPG
Career Achievements: 1x Finals MVP, 12x All-Star, 2x All-Star Game MVP, 5x All-NBA Team Selection
We get things started with Isiah Thomas as our starting point guard for the all-time two-ring team. Thomas provides a wide assortment of skill and championship pedigree to a lineup full of talent. One of Thomas’ most underrated traits is the way he had the ball on a string when he was commanding the offense of the Bad Boy Pistons. Thomas also brings a toughness element to the team and will serve as a leader on and off the court. With the ability to score and make plays at a high level, Thomas is the perfect way to start this lineup.
Thomas led the Pistons to back-to-back NBA titles in 1989 and 1990, and they could not have done it without him. In 1989, Thomas helped lead Detroit to a 4-game sweep of the Lakers in the NBA Finals. His teammate Joe Dumars would win Finals MVP, but Thomas did his part with 21.3 PPG, 7.3 APG, and 1.5 SPG. In 1990, Thomas finally earned a Finals MVP trophy in a 5-game series win over the Trail Blazers in the Finals. He averaged 27.6 PPG, 7.0 APG, and 1.6 SPG to claim the award.
Forward – Kawhi Leonard
Career Stats: 19.2 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 2.9 APG, 1.7 SPG, 0.6 BPG
Career Achievements: 2x Finals MVP, 2x Defensive Player Of The Year, 5x All-Star, 1x All-Star Game MVP, 5x All-NBA Team Selection, 7x All-Defensive Team Selection
Instead of your typical 2-guard lineup, we are going to put the best talent forward and go with Kawhi Leonard in our second spot. Leonard brings a host of skills to the table to round out our incomparable backcourt. Leonard will be the first line of defense on the perimeter, and I cannot think of many other players I would want in that position. He will also provide a good amount of scoring from the mid-range and a weapon on fast breaks with his ability to finish at the rim.
During the 2010s, there were not 3 better two-way players in basketball than Kawhi Leonard. In 2014, Leonard won Finals MVP with the Spurs in a 4-game sweep over the Miami Heat led by LeBron James. Leonard took home the award on the back of his defensive efforts against LeBron and how the Spurs were able to at least contain him during those 4 games. In 2019, Leonard led the Raptors on an improbable run to their first NBA championship over the Warriors. Leonard earned Finals MVP honors with 28.5 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 4.2 APG, and 2.0 SPG.
Forward – Kevin Durant
Career Stats: 27.3 PPG, 7.1 RPG, 4.3 APG, 1.1 SPG, 1.1 BPG
Career Achievements: 2x Finals MVP, 1x MVP, 1x Rookie Of The Year, 12x All-Star, 2x All-Star Game MVP, 10x All-NBA Team Selection
The offensive firepower really begins to gain steam with the addition of Kevin Durant to our team. Over the better part of the last 2 decades, Kevin Durant has developed into one of the best scorers and overall players in NBA history. He can score at a high volume from anywhere on the floor and, even at 7’0’’, displays the playmaking ability and ball-handling ability of a guard. Durant is the perfect option to run our offense through and will carry the bulk of the offensive load.
Durant’s abilities have allowed him to participate in 4 NBA Finals in his career while claiming his 2 NBA titles. Durant’s first victory in the NBA Finals would come in 2017 with the Golden State Warriors. Durant would claim Finals MVP in the series with 35.2 PPG, 8.2 RPG, 5.4 APG, and 1.6 BPG. Durant would win back-to-back championships and Finals MVP awards in 2018 once again with the Golden State Warriors. In his second victory over LeBron James and the Cavaliers, Durant averaged 28.8 PPG, 10.8 RPG, and 7.5 APG.
Center – Hakeem Olajuwon
Career Stats: 21.8 PPG, 11.1 RPG, 2.5 APG, 1.7 SPG, 3.1 BPG
Career Achievements: 2x Finals MVP, 1x MVP, 2x Defensive Player Of The Year, 12x All-Star, 12x All-NBA Team Selection, 9x All-Defensive Team Selection
With this lineup, we decided to go a bit tall with the starters as we slide Hakeem Olajuwon into the 4th spot. There is no shortage of what Olajuwon brings to this lineup as it begins to unfold as the most dominant lineup ever. Hakeem can be regarded as the best defensive player of all time with his ability to block and alter shots as well as deny and snatch away entry passes into the paint. He is also an unstoppable scorer in the paint using his fancy footwork and patented Dream Shake.
Olajuwon earned his two rings in 2 of the greatest playoff runs of all time. In 1994, Olajuwon led the Rockets on a steamroll run to the NBA Finals, where they met the Knicks. Olajuwon and Patrick Ewing battled for 7 games until Hakeem’s Rockets came out on top. Olajuwon earned the Finals MVP award with 26.9 PPG, 9.1 RPG, and 3.9 BPG. The following season, Olajuwon and the Rockets had a tough season and ended up as the 6 seed heading into the playoffs. It was business as usual for Hakeem as he led the Rockets to another NBA title over the Orlando Magic in 4 games. Olajuwon earned his 2nd Finals MVP with 32.8 PPG, 11.5 RPG, 2.0 SPG, and 2.0 BPG.
Center – Wilt Chamberlain
Career Stats: 30.1 PPG, 22.9 RPG, 4.4 APG
Career Achievements:1x Finals MVP, 4x MVP, 1x Rookie Of The Year, 13x All-Star, 1x All-Star Game MVP, 10x All-NBA Team Selection, 2x All-Defensive Team Selection
Who better to round out our starting lineup than a man who dominated his era like no other? Wilt Chamberlain was an unstoppable scoring and rebounding machine from the moment he speed foot into the NBA. Wilt crippled the competition almost to a fault, as it took a long time for him to win his first title on the back of his incredible individual achievements. Chamberlain is the final piece to the puzzle in forming the most dominant two-way lineup of all time.
Wilt finally got over the championship hurdle in 1967 against the Golden State Warriors. The series lasted 6 games, with Wilt’s 76ers emerging victorious. Hal Greer, Chet Walker, and wali Jones took care of the scoring as Wilt took care of everything else to lead them to victory. He averaged 17.7 PPG and 28.5 RPG in the series. He captured his final title and 1st Finals MVP in 1972 with the Lakers. Wilt led Los Angeles to victory in 5 games with 19.4 PPG and 23.2 RPG in the win.
Bench
Guard – Walt Frazier
Career Stats: 18.9 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 6.1 APG, 1.9 SPG, 0.2 BPG
Career Achievements: 7x All-Star, 1x All-Star Game MVP, 6x All-NBA Team Selection, 7x All-Defensive Team Selection
The first addition to this already-stacked lineup off the bench is Walt Frazier. What Frazier brings to the team is elite play on both sides of the ball. Frazier was one of the best defensive point guards of his time, with a nose for the ball and the ability to jump passing lanes. On offense, Frazier was an elite playmaker who made everyone around him better. His instincts and basketball IQ were through the roof, and he was a driving force behind 2 NBA championships.
Frazier would not win any of the 2 Finals MVPs in his series with the Knicks, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t have a case for one. During the 1970 Finals, Frazier had his most memorable performance in Game 7 and delivered the championship to New York. Frazier finished with 36 points and 19 assists in the game and averaged 17.6 PPG, 7.7 RPG, and 10.4 APG for the series. Three years later, Frazier would help the Knicks to a 2nd NBA championship. The Knicks beat the Lakers in 5 games, with Frazier averaging 16.6 PPG, 6.8 RPG, and 5.2 APG.
Guard – Ray Allen
Career Stats: 18.9 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 3.4 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.2 SPG
Career Achievements: 10x All-Star, 2x All-NBA Team Selection
This Ray Allen pick may be a bit controversial and met with some pushback, but it is definitely the right choice. Many fans remember Allen for his incredible ability to shoot the 3-point shot at a high volume and high efficiency. While that trait is a huge plus to our lineup, it isn’t the only one that Allen provides. At his peak with Milwaukee and Seattle, Allen was also an avid shot-creator and defender. Allen was athletic, with great leaping ability and quick lateral movement.
Allen didn’t win a championship until he was ankle to get to the Boston Celtics with Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett in 2008. Allen and the Celtics took on Kobe and the Lakers in a 6-game series that the Celtics would claim victory in. Allen averaged 20.3 PPG and 1.3 SPG in the series. Allen’s second title came well past his best days with the Miami Heat in 2014. Allen was still as clutch as they come as he saved the series at the end of Game 6 with a game-tying 3-pointer that sent the game into overtime. Allen and the Heat wrapped up the series in Game 7 to give Ray his second NBA championship.
Forward – Pau Gasol
Career Stats: 17.0 PPG, 9.2 RPG, 3.2 APG, 0.5 SPG, 1.6 BPG
Career Achievements: 1x Rookie Of The Year, 6x All-Star, 4x All-NBA Team Selection
With our 3rd spot off the bench, size and strength begin to reign supreme once again. Paul Gasol provides the first of three big additions from this point forward. Gasol was an extremely skilled big man on offense who could control possessions from the high post. Gasol was a consistent threat to knock down short to mid-range jumpers, but he was also good as a passer from that spot. Gasol was also a savvy defender who blocked his fair share of shits at his very best.
In 2008, Gasol was traded from the Memphis Grizzlies to the Los Angeles Lakers. Gasol would help Kobe Bryant, and the Lakers reach the NBA Finals that season but fall short in 6 games to the Celtics. The 2009 season was a different story as Gasol and company went back to the Finals. The Lakers would finish the Magic in 5 games, with Gasol putting up 18.6 PPG, 9.2 RPG, and 1.8 BPG. The very next season, Gasol and the Lakers would get a chance to avenge their 2008 loss to the Celtics. Gasol and the Lakers battled Boston to a 7-game series, this time behind 18.6 PPG, 11.6 RPG, and 2.6 BPG from Gasol.
Center – Willis Reed
Career Stats: 18.7 PPG, 12.9 RPG, 1.8 APG, 0.6 SPG, 1.1 BPG
Career Achievements: 2x Finals MVP, 1x MVP, 1x Rookie Of The Year, 7x All-Star, 1x All-Star Game MVP, 5x All-NBA Team Selection, 1x All-Defensive Team Selection
Heart, determination, skill, and finesse. These are the things that encapsulate what Willis Reed was the source of for the Knicks during the 60s and 70s. Reed was a defensive anchor in the paint for the Knicks as well, a perfect complement to Walt Frazier’s perimeter pressure. Reed was a force to be reckoned with on the glass for rebounds as well and threw his weight around on offense to dominate the low post.
Willis Reed has one of the most inspiring performances in NBA history during the 1970 NBA Finals. After absolutely controlling the Lakers for the first 4 games, Redd suffered a thigh injury that would sideline him for Games 5 and 6. Reed would jog gingerly onto the court for Game 7, igniting the spirit of the New York crowd. He knocked down 2 shots but sparked a championship effort for his 1st NBA title. Reed earned his 2nd Finals MVP in the 1973 championship series. Redd and the Knicks defeated the Lakers in 5 games behind Reed’s 16.4 PPG and 9.2 RPG.
Center – David Robinson
Career Stats: 21.2 PPG, 10.6 RPG, 2.5 APG, 1.4 SPG, 3.0 BPG
Career Achievements: 1x MVP, 1x Defensive Player Of The Year, 1x Rookie Of The Year, 10x All-Star, 10x All-NBA Team Selection, 8x All-Defensive Team Selection
David Robinson is still, to this day, one of the more underrated centers in NBA history. To cap off our lineup, we have added one of the most skilled big men of the 90s on both sides of the basketball. Robinson was an assassin on defense as a shot-blocker and disruptor in the paint. Teams had to game plan around Robinson on offense as well. He was extremely athletic and fast, ran the floor, and could score in a multitude of ways in the paint.
To be fair, Robinson won his 2 championships as a second option alongside Tim Duncan later in his career. Robinson was still a big factor in the 1999 title against the Knicks. In the 5-game series, Robinson added 16.6 PPG, 11.8 RPG, and 3.0 BPG. He was at the very end of his rope in 2003 when the Spurs faced the New Jersey Nets. Duncan was once again MVP, but Robinson averaged 10.8 PPG, 7.3 RPG, and 1.8 BPG. As a defensive and offensive weapon, Robinson is the perfect way to bring this lineup to a close.
How Would This Team Perform On The Court?
The structure and foundation of this team make it the most dominant lineup that we have possibly ever put together. The offense of this 2-ring team begins and ends with Kevin Durant and Wilt Chamberlain in the starting lineup. Those 2 will be our primary scorers while Hakeem, Kawhi, and Isiah reap the benefits of the attention they attract. On defense, this team is as elite as it gets. You have possibly the best defender ever in Hakeem Olajuwon, next to Wilt in the paint. Then, you have the perimeter defensive abilities of Kawhi Leonard and Thomas to round it out.
The dominance of this lineup does not end with our starters. Off the bench, the backcourt of Walt Frazier and Ray Allen will be deadly, especially with Frazier’s playmaking and Allen’s shooting. Gasol, Reed, and Robinson are the perfectly skilled trio to rotate in and out with Olajuwon and Chamberlain. The way this two-ring lineup stacks up so far, I believe this is the best lineup in this series so far but let us know what you think.
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