Top 5 NBA Players

The Sporting News published their list of the Top 50 NBA Players this week and unsurprisingly the Pistons are not represented. As fond as I am of Tayshaun, it would be hard to argue he is currently among the league’s elite.

I do take minor issue with the order of the top five. TSN has them as follows:

The names seem mostly right, though I’d suggest Gasol over Howard because he’s a more complete player right now. But the difference is splitting hairs.

Despite his prodigious talent LeBron has clearly slipped in my eyes after his meek departure from last year’s playoffs was followed by a shaky start to this season on South Beach.

Watching Durant over the past year has convinced me he is the league’s most lethal scorer and likely heir apparent to Kobe as its premier crunch-time player.

DWade has likewise shown the ability to close in big moments, a trait that still appears to elude LeBron thanks to his still-improving long-range jump shot.

My list of the top five NBA players based on how good they are this very moment would look like this:

Next on TSN’s list: Melo, Dirk, Deron Williams, Nash and Gasol.

I’d probably go with Howard, Williams, Nash, Dirk, and Derrick Rose.