Ranking The Best NBA Duos: Top Full Guide
15 Jul 2024
It's that time of year again. The NBA regular season is coming to a close, and the playoffs are just around the corner. As Redsarmy head into the stretch run, it's time to start thinking about which duos will be the best in the league come playoff time.
There are a lot of great players in the league, but not all of them are lucky enough to have a great partner. This article will examine the best NBA duos and why they are so good.
The argument against integrating Curry and Green boils down to a lack of balance. Curry seems to be doing most of the hard lifting, which is correct. Anyone who saw the Warriors' most recent championship run saw Steph take entire control of many series while Green's performance fluctuated.
However, in most of these partnerships, one teammate will outperform the other, and there is now a decade of data showing Curry and Green are more difficult to defeat than anybody.
Karl Malone and John Stockton played 18 seasons together for the Utah Jazz, putting up unprecedented statistics.
Malone and Stockton finished the regular season 900-506 and won an additional 85 playoff games. They had a total victory share of 477.5 in the playoffs and regular season. Malone topped the NBA in total points throughout their time together, scoring nearly 6,000 more than Michael Jordan.
Malone averaged 25.4 points and 10.2 rebounds per game as a pick-and-roll partner, while Stockton averaged 13.5 points and 10.8 assists.
Only Jordan and the Chicago Bulls prevented them from reaching the summit.
That's amusing! We have a fresh, untested pair of twin towers almost in the top five. Regarding uniqueness (sorry for the spoilers), Gobert and Towns are the only two-center entries here. Don't get positional overlap mixed up with skill duplication. These two are as unlike as like-sized athletes can be, which is part of the fascination.
Gobert is a rim-protecting powerhouse in his own right, compensating for the faults of his other four colleagues and ensuring a top-10 rating on defense regardless of the supporting group involved.
What greater companion could there be for KAT, one of the greatest attacking big men of all time?
We're just speculating here, but Gobert seems to be the kind of complement Towns need, and vice versa. We'll see how things look in October, but the EPM from last year predicts big things for Minnesota.
Together, Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain were almost unstoppable. They established a Los Angeles Lakers trio with Elgin Baylor that is still regarded as one of the best duo in NBA history.
However, West and Chamberlain combined for 37.6 points per game as the Lakers won the championship in 1972. During that stretch, Chamberlain led the team in rebounding (21.0 per game), while West averaged 8.9 assists per game.
West and Chamberlain went 214-74 in the regular season and 43-25 in the playoffs when playing together. However, they only won one championship.
Steph Curry and Kevin Durant flared brightly and quickly, like a supernova.
The rest of the NBA didn't stand a chance once Durant joined the Warriors in the summer of 2016. The Warriors dominated the competition in their first season with KD, going 16-1 in the playoffs and winning the NBA championship.
They did it again the next season, but the waves were rougher. A third championship would have been theirs if Durant had not torn his Achilles tendon in Game 5 of the 2019 NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors.
Curry and Durant averaged 52.1 points, 11.4 assists, and 6.6 3-pointers per game during their time together. Curry had a true shooting percentage of 64.3, while Durant had a percentage of 64.0. In terms of effective field goal percentage, the three Warriors teams of Steph and KD rank first, second, and third in NBA history.
Overall, Curry and Durant have a case for being the most skilled combo in history, but their brief time together knocks them down a notch.
This is an unexpected outcome considering Davis labored through yet another injury-plagued season, appearing in just 40 games after appearing in only 36 the previous year. In other words, the eye-test folks might make a compelling case for LeBron and AD to be NBA duos ranked higher.
Davis averaged 23.2 points, 9.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 2.3 blocks per game while shooting 53.2 percent from the field. AD, at 29 and now seeming to be a player with something to prove, has the potential to make this rating look absurd.
James, on the other hand, is unstoppable. Last season, his plus-6.1 EPM was sixth in the league, averaging 30.3 points per game with little support. In his next age-38 season, he, too, might improve his stats.
That would be a ridiculous concept if we were talking about anybody else. But, based on the previous 19 years, the only thing that seems absurd is anticipating a slide from superstar status for the four-time MVP.
You may argue that Manu Ginobili should be in this slot alongside Duncan instead of Parker, but I'll go with the more experienced point guard.
Duncan and Parker shared four championships, going 733-269 in the regular season and 131-81 in the playoffs. Every season they played together, won at least 50 games, and reached the playoffs.
Only a Ray Allen 3-pointer saved them from winning five championships and climbing the rankings.
Do you remember these guys?
We haven't seen Kawhi Leonard (plus-6.9 in 2020-21), and Paul George (plus-4.4) play together in over a year, but putting them in the top five seems correct. The Los Angeles Clippers feature two of the top wings in the NBA.
If anything, this viewpoint may understate how effective George and Leonard may be together. We used 2020-21 for Leonard since he lost all of last season due to a ruptured ACL—an ailment that is no longer a guaranteed career-ending disaster.
If we included George's plus-5.0 statistic from 2020-21, when he last played alongside Kawhi, these two would have placed one position higher, with a combined total of plus-11.9. The assumption that the finest pairings boost one another is supported anecdotally and statistically in this situation.
Leonard was more accurate from the field and three-point line when he played alongside George two seasons ago than when he played alone. His assists per 100 possessions were greater, and he had fewer turnovers.
George also shot better from the field and from deep, and his assist-turnover splits were greater while sharing the floor with his superstar colleague, as were Leonard's. That symbiotic relationship resulted in an incredible plus-18.1 net rating in their combined minutes.
The Clippers had a plus-4.4 when Leonard went alone. George had a plus-3.3 in his minutes without Leonard.
That's a lot of decimal points for what should be a simple argument. When Leonard and George are healthy—and let's hope they are this season—they are as deadly as two-person units.
The Causeway Street pair was spectacular.
Bird and McHale were teammates for 12 seasons with the Boston Celtics, earning three NBA titles. During that period, Bird and McHale were second and sixth in regular-season win shares and second and fourth in playoff win shares.
Larry Legend averaged 24.6 points per game, 9.9 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game, and Kevin McHale averaged 18 points and 7.4 rebounds per game.
Bird's all-around offensive arsenal, from his smooth stroke to his passing and ball fakes, helped him become one of the top ten players in NBA history, while McHale is one of the league's finest power forwards.
The sample size is tiny, and Joel Embiid (plus-7.3) carries a far bigger burden than James Harden (plus-3.8), but the findings are difficult to dismiss. This is partly due to Harden's absence in the 2022 playoffs, which adds to a disturbing pattern of big-game disappearances.
The numbers don't care, and it's fair to say that's one of the biggest issues with having statistics drive these rankings. However, statistics show that Harden and Embiid were the Philadelphia 76ers' most successful high-volume tandem, even in playoffs that most will remember for Harden's awful performance.
In the 2022 playoffs, the Sixers posted a plus-5.4 net rating with Embiid and Harden on the field, the team's highest score among duos who saw at least 300 minutes of court action. For comparison, the champion Warriors' plus-4.9 net rating was the greatest of any postseason club.
We heard it first: Harden and Embiid are superior to the Warriors. Reroute the championship rings and banners to Philadelphia!
The 76ers' superstars have more to prove in the playoffs than everyone else we'll cover. However, the notion that they cannot achieve at the top level may be exaggerated.
Those who have given up on Harden's or Embiid's ability to stay upright for an entire postseason won't care. Still, those two also completely dominated during their brief time together during the regular season, compiling an obscene plus-15.9 net rating that ranked second in the league among pairings that logged at least 600 minutes together.
It also doesn't hurt that Harden and Embiid were the league's most dominating pick-and-roll duo last season. There's nothing abstract about how effectively they operate together in direct collaboration.
We'll preface this by saying that Curry and Thompson aren't done, but what they've accomplished already ranks them among the top duos in the history of the NBA.
They won three championships together and advanced to the Finals five times in a row. They took the idea that jump shooting teams couldn't win championships and tore it apart limb by limb. So far, they've combined to go 395-130 in the regular season and 77-34 in the playoffs.
Curry has averaged 25.1 points, 6.8 assists, and four 3-pointers made per game throughout their time together, while Thompson has averaged 19 points and three triples. They guided the Warriors to a record 73 victories in 2016 and permanently altered the basketball game.
They are ranked fifth not just because of what they have done but also because of what they can yet achieve at their peak.
Kevin Durant (+6.4) and Kyrie Irving (+5.7): I'm here for a good time, but not for long.
Unfortunately, even the good moments were few and far between for KD and Kyrie, who only played 44 games with the Brooklyn Nets over three seasons. During that time, they only won one postseason series.
So, why are Irving and Durant here, particularly given the likelihood that they won't be teammates in Brooklyn for much longer?
Pure brilliance. Talent that, according to last season's data, albeit admittedly based on small sample size, generated a greater combined EPM than all but two other duos.
So, if we're prepared to include Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, who didn't play together last year, we can't ignore Irving and Durant, who combined for a plus-13.1 net rating in 17 games.
The issues with this couple were never on the floor. The Brooklyn experiment failed due to personality clashes, vaccine positions, and injuries. Nothing we observed from either of them indicated a deterioration in talent, and neither is dealing with health concerns that would preclude them from being available on Day 1 of the 2022-23 season.
If Irving and Durant end up playing for the Nets (or another club) by some strange and impossible coincidence, they will still be considered one of the finest one-two punches in the league.
In the much more probable scenario in which they separate, this may serve as a farewell to Durant, Irving, and what could have been.
Four seems like a low number for the Heatles dynamic pair.
James and Wade only won two championships, but they were the most unstoppable tandem we'd ever seen. James averaged 26.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 6.7 assists per game at his best, while Wade averaged 22.2 points and 5.3 rebounds. They complimented each other well, earning a plus-10.1 per 100 possessions while on the floor together.
The only thing keeping these two out of the top three is their NBA Finals defeats to the Spurs and Dallas Mavericks.
Jamal Murray hasn't played in 15 months, but all indications point to his resuming his pre-injury form when he returns for the 2022-23 season.
Murray will join twice-crowned MVP Nikola Jokic as the two-person leading edge of a potential contender when he returns.
Jokic (plus-9.3) led all players in EPM this season, falling 1.2 points shy of Stephen Curry and Draymond Green's combined total and surpassing Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown's combined total (plus-8.6).
Murray (plus-3.3 in 2020-21) will undoubtedly carry a lower burden than his superstar teammate, but the 25-year-old guard is no slouch. He was one of nine players in his final healthy season to average at least 20.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists while shooting over 40.0 percent of his threes.
If Murray hasn't yet earned the title of superstar, don't be shocked if he does this season.
Murray also gets credit for defending Jokic from critics, asking Complex Sports' Adam Caparell: How badly do you want him? For you to be satisfied, he essentially has to go up and dunk between his legs. He accomplishes all that a winning and championship squad needs, which is self-explanatory. He is the Most Valuable Player every time he gets onto the floor.
Jokic should be immune to criticism after two MVPs and the largest deal in NBA history, but Murray's words testify to the depth of their cooperation.
Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar spent ten seasons with the Lakers, winning five championships, three MVPs, and 19 All-Star appearances.
Johnson was the Showtime Lakers' creator, while Abdul-Jabbar was the seasoned center with a powerful post move. They combined a regular-season record of 506-179 and a playoff record of 110-47.
Johnson averaged 19.4 points, 11.4 assists, and 7.4 rebounds per game while leading the 80s, while Abdul-Jabbar averaged 20.2 points and 7.4 assists.
They prevented Bird and McHale from winning further championships and were the perfect one-two punch until they were surpassed by the two at the top of the list.
At a combined plus-12.6 EPM, Giannis Antetokounmpo (plus-7.3) and Jrue Holiday (plus-5.3) equaled Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. However, several circumstances contribute to the Milwaukee Bucks' pair comfortably breaking the deadlock.
Most significantly, Antetokounmpo and Holiday have won a championship together, something Jokic and Murray have yet to do. Nothing honors a collaboration more than raising a trophy after a successful championship run.
Aside from that, we don't have to use Holiday's 2020-21 EPM to generate our total amount, as we did with Murray. There's no need to be concerned about Holiday's ability to regain form; he's probably coming off the finest season of his illustrious career, replete with personal bests in true shooting %, win shares, and value over replacement player (VORP).
Another plus for Giannis and Jrue: is equal credit allocation. Holiday's plus-5.3 EPM is comparable to Antetokounmpo's plus-7.3. (Khris Middleton, who some may have thought was Antetokounmpo's better teammate, concluded best duos in NBA 2021-22 with a plus-2.3 rating.)
The difference is less here than with Jokic and Murray, and the other top-five duo with comparable individual ratings is Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
Concerning Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, Antetokounmpo and Holiday are the finest defensive tandem in this league. The former has a DPOY award and has been named to the All-Defensive first team every year since 2018-19, while the latter has over 1,200 career thefts and four All-Defensive selections (two firsts, two seconds) in the previous five years. Despite his successes, Holiday is still considered underestimated by his colleagues.
Andre Iguodala told Eric Nehm of The Athletic that he's the greatest defender in the NBA. One of the finest defenders I've ever seen and the best of his generation.
It's difficult to disagree with Holiday's admirers after seeing him make game-saving plays yearly.
Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant were perhaps the finest guard-big duo in Los Angeles for eight seasons in the history of NBA.
They won three championships and could have won many more if not for egos. O'Neal topped the NBA in win shares during his physical peak, while Bryant was sixth. Shaq averaged 27 points and 11.8 rebounds per game, while Bryant averaged 21.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 4.3 assists as a rookie.
During their three-peat run, they were even more dominating. During those three postseasons, O'Neal averaged 29.9 points and 14.5 rebounds per game, while Bryant averaged 25.3 points per game.
To cap off his domination, O'Neal averaged 35.9 points and 15.2 rebounds per game in those three NBA Finals.
There's no knowing what the ceiling might have been if they'd remained together.
The Chicago Bulls won six NBA championships in the 1990s, led by the most dominating player. But Michael Jordan couldn't have done it without Scottie Pippen's help.
Except for Jordan's stint playing baseball, the Bulls' dynamic combination was the ideal complement to one another, and they wreaked havoc on the NBA from 1987 through 1998.
Jordan and Pippen were first and second in playoff victory shares throughout their career together. Jordan averaged 31.5 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 5.6 assists per game, while Pippen had 17.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game.
They had the greatest winning % in the NBA at the time, leading the Bulls to a then-record 72 victories in 1996.
They are, without a doubt, the best basketball duos combo in history.
Starting off this list is one of the league's currently the best duo in the NBA, with Jameer Nelson, an All-Star quality point guard, and Dwight Howard, the NBA's most powerful center.
Both players work well together, with Nelson usually looking for Howard in the middle and Dwight always ready to finish around the basket.
Nelson got his first All-Star appearance in 2009, while Howard has been a consistent All-Star since 2007. These two were also instrumental in helping the Orlando Magic to their first NBA Finals trip since 1995 in 2009.
Two players never reached the top, and two whose careers were unexpectedly cut short due to injury. Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming may not have reached the championship game, but they did give some entertaining basketball in Houston from the mid to late 2000s.
You couldn't put up much of a fight against Yao at 7'6". Yao may have been considered one of the finest centers in league history if injuries had not utterly wrecked four of his last five seasons. He was skilled in the post and had a midrange game to go with it. During his stint with Houston, he averaged up to 25 points and 11 rebounds a game.
The Rockets didn't obtain McGrady from his time with the Orlando Magic, but they did get a good wing player capable of scoring at least 20 points on any given night.
Houston might win up to 55 games with these two but never go beyond the semifinals.
Alex English and Kiki Vandeweghe, members of the high-powered offensive Denver Nuggets teams from the 1980s, made certain that no points were wasted during their time with the club.
In his last season with the Nuggets, Vandeweghe averaged 29 points per game, while English averaged a more modest 26 points per game as the team's backup. They combined 55 points of their team's total output, which is more than any other tandem in the NBA, including Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Amar's Stoudemire, and Carmelo Anthony.
Aside from a couple of postseasons and a trip to the playoffs, the Nuggets didn't have much success with this pair.
The first of many situations on this list where Hakeem Olajuwon appears is himself and his connection with teammate and point guard Kenny Smith.
Smith was alongside Olajuwon during the Rockets' heyday when they won two consecutive championships in 1994 and 1995 amid Michael Jordan's retirement and subsequent recuperation phase.
"The Jet" wasn't a productive point guard, but he was dependable and just what the Rockets needed from an Olajuwon colleague. During his stint with the Rockets from 1990 to 1996, he scored a handful of clutch jumpers and averaged 18 points and seven assists per game.
Olajuwon was preoccupied with dominating the paint and making most great centers seem like novices. He was named Finals MVP for both titles, with Olajuwon scoring up to 28 points per game during his tenure with Smith.
One of the league's best defensive presences and one of the league's top scorers at the time proved to be critical components to the Atlanta Hawks' success.
Not a lot of success, but Dominique Wilkins and Kevin Willis led the Hawks to greater success than they had seen since the days of Bob Pettit.
Between 1984 and 1994, Wilkins led the Hawks and the NBA in scoring, averaging as much as 31 points per game and more than 30 points per game on two occasions. He had averaged at least 21 points per game in all but one season with the Hawks, and that year was his rookie season when he only averaged 18 points.
Willis, his partner, was a powerful inside presence and a fantastic rebounder, averaging up to 16 rebounds per game, with five coming on the offensive board. Willis averaged up to 19 points each game before the two were dissolved.
The Hawks won 57 games twice with Wilkins and Willisa, an accomplishment that no Hawks club has equaled since.
From 1963 through 1970, Jerry Lucas and Oscar Robertson were teammates who created one of the league's greatest duos and may have won a pair of championships if not for the league's unstoppable centers in Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell.
Nonetheless, Lucas and Robertson were productive colleagues. While Robertson drew notice by almost averaging triple-doubles season after season, Lucas was a powerhouse in the paint and on the boards, averaging as many as 21 rebounds per game and even having consecutive 20-20 seasons.
Every season he spent with the Royals, Lucas averaged at least 17 boards.
With Lucas by his side, Robertson was busy playing the position of facilitator and topping the league in assists for three straight seasons.
Steve Nash and Amar'e Stoudemire were undeniably one of the finest pick-and-roll duos to playing the game of basketball, with an unmistakable synergy that enabled the two to operate together more seamlessly than any other tandem.
Nash's style had been polished from his days in Dallas, and he could pick and select his passes in an approach designed not to enable defenders to respond quickly enough to halt the Phoenix Suns' offensive possession. Nash's court awareness was unparalleled among point guards, and having an athlete like Stoudemire on his side added to that.
Stoudemire was a scoring monster who could slash better than any other big forward in the NBA until Blake Griffin was brought in.
The Suns would win 62 games but never make it to the Western Conference finals.
Guard/forward Paul Arizin and center Wilt Chamberlain are two Hall of Famers who played together for three years.
There's no way to explain how these two didn't win titles together.
Even though those three years with Chamberlain were the twilight of his career, Arizin averaged more than 22 points per game. When you combine that with Chamberlain averaging over 37 points per game in his first three seasons, you have two guys averaging over 60 points per game.
It's scarier when you realize the two combined for almost 70 points per game in Arizin's last season, which also happened to be the year Chamberlain averaged 50 points per game.
With just four seasons together, Moses Malone and Julius Erving made certain to win the title when the opportunity arose.
After all, the championship they won in 1983 came just four years before Erving retired.
The two established synergy and worked well together in their first season together, guiding the Philadelphia 76ers to a 65-17 record and the assurance of "fo-fo-fo," which is essentially the equivalent of saying we're going to defeat you and you should be glad that's all you're getting from us.
It's a hefty promise to make, but Malone almost delivered on his assurance by only losing one game in three series. The defeat did not come in the finals, as the Magic Johnson-led Los Angeles Lakers swept them.
The Sixers would remain title contenders for the next three seasons but would never reach that level again.
The pairing of Joe Dumars and Isiah Thomas produced an incredible combination packed with some of the most efficient offense and hard-nosed defense you'll ever find on one squad, forming the finest backcourt ever bestowed onto the NBA floor.
From 1985 through 1994, these two understood how to run an offense to near perfection, with Dumars taking over scoring and Thomas accomplishing just as much scoring while also being one of the league's finest facilitators.
Thomas averaged more than 20 points per game in his first two seasons alongside Dumars, but that dropped as the shooting guard took over those responsibilities.
Dumars would average up to 24 points per game during his tenure with Detroit, with both players completing their whole careers with the club where they both achieved success.
The two would win consecutive championships in 1989 and 1990, with one of those victories coming after finishing the regular season 63-19 and then going 15-2 in the playoffs, with both losses coming against the Chicago Bulls in the conference finals.
They would divide the two Finals MVPs.
Bob Cousy and Bill Russell were easily the most successful combination in the game's history, revolutionizing many elements throughout their time together.
Cousy invented slowing down an attack and executing true set plays. In contrast, Russell invented defense by preventing as many shots as possible while still playing good individual defense. One of his most notable successes was the defense he routinely played on Wilt Chamberlain, which seemed to be the only tough defensive Chamberlain would face.
Cousy and Russell were teammates from 1956 through 1963, but it was when Russell came that propelled Cousy and the Boston Celtics over the top. While Cousy was busy running an effective offense with Tom Heinsohn and Sam Jones, Russell was busy playing the defense that enabled the Celtics to win games in a generally fast-paced sport loaded with nothing but offense.
Russell would lead the league in rebounding for three straight seasons, and the two would win six championships together.
They surely don't have the most awkward appearances.
Center George Mikan and forward/center (look it up) Jim Pollard was one of the first tandems to dominate the league for practically their whole careers.
Mikan was the league's first superstar in an era when rebounds were recorded, making it impossible to assess exactly how productive a player he was.
He led the league in scoring during the first three years of his career, averaging as much as 28 points a game, and he also led the league in rebounding for two consecutive seasons once they began keeping count.
Pollard wasn't as productive as Mikan, but he was an important part of a dynasty. During their seven seasons together as players of the Minneapolis Lakers, he averaged up to 16 points and nine rebounds per game.
In addition, they won five titles.
Ranking the NBA's Best Superstar Duos Right Now
1. Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors
The Dubs' partnership was the last cut on the list, as their plus-10.5 fell just one point shy of the No. 5 combination. If we had excluded competitors who did not compete last season, Golden State's four-time champion colleagues would have finished in the top five. They easily top the chemistry and mind-meld categories for whatever it's worth. No teammate complements each other's strengths and compensates for each other's flaws.
The argument against integrating Curry and Green boils down to a lack of balance. Curry seems to be doing most of the hard lifting, which is correct. Anyone who saw the Warriors' most recent championship run saw Steph take entire control of many series while Green's performance fluctuated.
However, in most of these partnerships, one teammate will outperform the other, and there is now a decade of data showing Curry and Green are more difficult to defeat than anybody.
2. Karl Mal one and John Stockton
Karl Malone and John Stockton played 18 seasons together for the Utah Jazz, putting up unprecedented statistics.
Malone and Stockton finished the regular season 900-506 and won an additional 85 playoff games. They had a total victory share of 477.5 in the playoffs and regular season. Malone topped the NBA in total points throughout their time together, scoring nearly 6,000 more than Michael Jordan.
Malone averaged 25.4 points and 10.2 rebounds per game as a pick-and-roll partner, while Stockton averaged 13.5 points and 10.8 assists.
Only Jordan and the Chicago Bulls prevented them from reaching the summit.
3. Rudy Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves
That's amusing! We have a fresh, untested pair of twin towers almost in the top five. Regarding uniqueness (sorry for the spoilers), Gobert and Towns are the only two-center entries here. Don't get positional overlap mixed up with skill duplication. These two are as unlike as like-sized athletes can be, which is part of the fascination.
Gobert is a rim-protecting powerhouse in his own right, compensating for the faults of his other four colleagues and ensuring a top-10 rating on defense regardless of the supporting group involved.
What greater companion could there be for KAT, one of the greatest attacking big men of all time?
We're just speculating here, but Gobert seems to be the kind of complement Towns need, and vice versa. We'll see how things look in October, but the EPM from last year predicts big things for Minnesota.
4. Wilt Chamberlain and Jerry West
Together, Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain were almost unstoppable. They established a Los Angeles Lakers trio with Elgin Baylor that is still regarded as one of the best duo in NBA history.
However, West and Chamberlain combined for 37.6 points per game as the Lakers won the championship in 1972. During that stretch, Chamberlain led the team in rebounding (21.0 per game), while West averaged 8.9 assists per game.
West and Chamberlain went 214-74 in the regular season and 43-25 in the playoffs when playing together. However, they only won one championship.
5. Steph Curry and Kevin Durant
Steph Curry and Kevin Durant flared brightly and quickly, like a supernova.
The rest of the NBA didn't stand a chance once Durant joined the Warriors in the summer of 2016. The Warriors dominated the competition in their first season with KD, going 16-1 in the playoffs and winning the NBA championship.
They did it again the next season, but the waves were rougher. A third championship would have been theirs if Durant had not torn his Achilles tendon in Game 5 of the 2019 NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors.
Curry and Durant averaged 52.1 points, 11.4 assists, and 6.6 3-pointers per game during their time together. Curry had a true shooting percentage of 64.3, while Durant had a percentage of 64.0. In terms of effective field goal percentage, the three Warriors teams of Steph and KD rank first, second, and third in NBA history.
Overall, Curry and Durant have a case for being the most skilled combo in history, but their brief time together knocks them down a notch.
6. LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers
This is an unexpected outcome considering Davis labored through yet another injury-plagued season, appearing in just 40 games after appearing in only 36 the previous year. In other words, the eye-test folks might make a compelling case for LeBron and AD to be NBA duos ranked higher.
Davis averaged 23.2 points, 9.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 2.3 blocks per game while shooting 53.2 percent from the field. AD, at 29 and now seeming to be a player with something to prove, has the potential to make this rating look absurd.
James, on the other hand, is unstoppable. Last season, his plus-6.1 EPM was sixth in the league, averaging 30.3 points per game with little support. In his next age-38 season, he, too, might improve his stats.
That would be a ridiculous concept if we were talking about anybody else. But, based on the previous 19 years, the only thing that seems absurd is anticipating a slide from superstar status for the four-time MVP.
7. Tim Duncan and Tony Parker
You may argue that Manu Ginobili should be in this slot alongside Duncan instead of Parker, but I'll go with the more experienced point guard.
Duncan and Parker shared four championships, going 733-269 in the regular season and 131-81 in the playoffs. Every season they played together, won at least 50 games, and reached the playoffs.
Only a Ray Allen 3-pointer saved them from winning five championships and climbing the rankings.
8. Kawhi Leonard and Paul George
Do you remember these guys?
We haven't seen Kawhi Leonard (plus-6.9 in 2020-21), and Paul George (plus-4.4) play together in over a year, but putting them in the top five seems correct. The Los Angeles Clippers feature two of the top wings in the NBA.
If anything, this viewpoint may understate how effective George and Leonard may be together. We used 2020-21 for Leonard since he lost all of last season due to a ruptured ACL—an ailment that is no longer a guaranteed career-ending disaster.
If we included George's plus-5.0 statistic from 2020-21, when he last played alongside Kawhi, these two would have placed one position higher, with a combined total of plus-11.9. The assumption that the finest pairings boost one another is supported anecdotally and statistically in this situation.
Leonard was more accurate from the field and three-point line when he played alongside George two seasons ago than when he played alone. His assists per 100 possessions were greater, and he had fewer turnovers.
George also shot better from the field and from deep, and his assist-turnover splits were greater while sharing the floor with his superstar colleague, as were Leonard's. That symbiotic relationship resulted in an incredible plus-18.1 net rating in their combined minutes.
The Clippers had a plus-4.4 when Leonard went alone. George had a plus-3.3 in his minutes without Leonard.
That's a lot of decimal points for what should be a simple argument. When Leonard and George are healthy—and let's hope they are this season—they are as deadly as two-person units.
9. Larry Bird and Kevin McHale
The Causeway Street pair was spectacular.
Bird and McHale were teammates for 12 seasons with the Boston Celtics, earning three NBA titles. During that period, Bird and McHale were second and sixth in regular-season win shares and second and fourth in playoff win shares.
Larry Legend averaged 24.6 points per game, 9.9 rebounds, and 6.5 assists per game, and Kevin McHale averaged 18 points and 7.4 rebounds per game.
Bird's all-around offensive arsenal, from his smooth stroke to his passing and ball fakes, helped him become one of the top ten players in NBA history, while McHale is one of the league's finest power forwards.
10. Joel Embiid and James Harden
The sample size is tiny, and Joel Embiid (plus-7.3) carries a far bigger burden than James Harden (plus-3.8), but the findings are difficult to dismiss. This is partly due to Harden's absence in the 2022 playoffs, which adds to a disturbing pattern of big-game disappearances.
The numbers don't care, and it's fair to say that's one of the biggest issues with having statistics drive these rankings. However, statistics show that Harden and Embiid were the Philadelphia 76ers' most successful high-volume tandem, even in playoffs that most will remember for Harden's awful performance.
In the 2022 playoffs, the Sixers posted a plus-5.4 net rating with Embiid and Harden on the field, the team's highest score among duos who saw at least 300 minutes of court action. For comparison, the champion Warriors' plus-4.9 net rating was the greatest of any postseason club.
We heard it first: Harden and Embiid are superior to the Warriors. Reroute the championship rings and banners to Philadelphia!
The 76ers' superstars have more to prove in the playoffs than everyone else we'll cover. However, the notion that they cannot achieve at the top level may be exaggerated.
Those who have given up on Harden's or Embiid's ability to stay upright for an entire postseason won't care. Still, those two also completely dominated during their brief time together during the regular season, compiling an obscene plus-15.9 net rating that ranked second in the league among pairings that logged at least 600 minutes together.
It also doesn't hurt that Harden and Embiid were the league's most dominating pick-and-roll duo last season. There's nothing abstract about how effectively they operate together in direct collaboration.
11. Steph Curry and Klay Thompson
We'll preface this by saying that Curry and Thompson aren't done, but what they've accomplished already ranks them among the top duos in the history of the NBA.
They won three championships together and advanced to the Finals five times in a row. They took the idea that jump shooting teams couldn't win championships and tore it apart limb by limb. So far, they've combined to go 395-130 in the regular season and 77-34 in the playoffs.
Curry has averaged 25.1 points, 6.8 assists, and four 3-pointers made per game throughout their time together, while Thompson has averaged 19 points and three triples. They guided the Warriors to a record 73 victories in 2016 and permanently altered the basketball game.
They are ranked fifth not just because of what they have done but also because of what they can yet achieve at their peak.
12. Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving
Kevin Durant (+6.4) and Kyrie Irving (+5.7): I'm here for a good time, but not for long.
Unfortunately, even the good moments were few and far between for KD and Kyrie, who only played 44 games with the Brooklyn Nets over three seasons. During that time, they only won one postseason series.
So, why are Irving and Durant here, particularly given the likelihood that they won't be teammates in Brooklyn for much longer?
Pure brilliance. Talent that, according to last season's data, albeit admittedly based on small sample size, generated a greater combined EPM than all but two other duos.
So, if we're prepared to include Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, who didn't play together last year, we can't ignore Irving and Durant, who combined for a plus-13.1 net rating in 17 games.
The issues with this couple were never on the floor. The Brooklyn experiment failed due to personality clashes, vaccine positions, and injuries. Nothing we observed from either of them indicated a deterioration in talent, and neither is dealing with health concerns that would preclude them from being available on Day 1 of the 2022-23 season.
If Irving and Durant end up playing for the Nets (or another club) by some strange and impossible coincidence, they will still be considered one of the finest one-two punches in the league.
In the much more probable scenario in which they separate, this may serve as a farewell to Durant, Irving, and what could have been.
13. LeBron James and Dwyane Wade
Four seems like a low number for the Heatles dynamic pair.
James and Wade only won two championships, but they were the most unstoppable tandem we'd ever seen. James averaged 26.9 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 6.7 assists per game at his best, while Wade averaged 22.2 points and 5.3 rebounds. They complimented each other well, earning a plus-10.1 per 100 possessions while on the floor together.
The only thing keeping these two out of the top three is their NBA Finals defeats to the Spurs and Dallas Mavericks.
14. Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray
Jamal Murray hasn't played in 15 months, but all indications point to his resuming his pre-injury form when he returns for the 2022-23 season.
Murray will join twice-crowned MVP Nikola Jokic as the two-person leading edge of a potential contender when he returns.
Jokic (plus-9.3) led all players in EPM this season, falling 1.2 points shy of Stephen Curry and Draymond Green's combined total and surpassing Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown's combined total (plus-8.6).
Murray (plus-3.3 in 2020-21) will undoubtedly carry a lower burden than his superstar teammate, but the 25-year-old guard is no slouch. He was one of nine players in his final healthy season to average at least 20.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists while shooting over 40.0 percent of his threes.
If Murray hasn't yet earned the title of superstar, don't be shocked if he does this season.
Murray also gets credit for defending Jokic from critics, asking Complex Sports' Adam Caparell: How badly do you want him? For you to be satisfied, he essentially has to go up and dunk between his legs. He accomplishes all that a winning and championship squad needs, which is self-explanatory. He is the Most Valuable Player every time he gets onto the floor.
Jokic should be immune to criticism after two MVPs and the largest deal in NBA history, but Murray's words testify to the depth of their cooperation.
15. Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar spent ten seasons with the Lakers, winning five championships, three MVPs, and 19 All-Star appearances.
Johnson was the Showtime Lakers' creator, while Abdul-Jabbar was the seasoned center with a powerful post move. They combined a regular-season record of 506-179 and a playoff record of 110-47.
Johnson averaged 19.4 points, 11.4 assists, and 7.4 rebounds per game while leading the 80s, while Abdul-Jabbar averaged 20.2 points and 7.4 assists.
They prevented Bird and McHale from winning further championships and were the perfect one-two punch until they were surpassed by the two at the top of the list.
16. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday
At a combined plus-12.6 EPM, Giannis Antetokounmpo (plus-7.3) and Jrue Holiday (plus-5.3) equaled Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. However, several circumstances contribute to the Milwaukee Bucks' pair comfortably breaking the deadlock.
Most significantly, Antetokounmpo and Holiday have won a championship together, something Jokic and Murray have yet to do. Nothing honors a collaboration more than raising a trophy after a successful championship run.
Aside from that, we don't have to use Holiday's 2020-21 EPM to generate our total amount, as we did with Murray. There's no need to be concerned about Holiday's ability to regain form; he's probably coming off the finest season of his illustrious career, replete with personal bests in true shooting %, win shares, and value over replacement player (VORP).
Another plus for Giannis and Jrue: is equal credit allocation. Holiday's plus-5.3 EPM is comparable to Antetokounmpo's plus-7.3. (Khris Middleton, who some may have thought was Antetokounmpo's better teammate, concluded best duos in NBA 2021-22 with a plus-2.3 rating.)
The difference is less here than with Jokic and Murray, and the other top-five duo with comparable individual ratings is Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
Concerning Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, Antetokounmpo and Holiday are the finest defensive tandem in this league. The former has a DPOY award and has been named to the All-Defensive first team every year since 2018-19, while the latter has over 1,200 career thefts and four All-Defensive selections (two firsts, two seconds) in the previous five years. Despite his successes, Holiday is still considered underestimated by his colleagues.
Andre Iguodala told Eric Nehm of The Athletic that he's the greatest defender in the NBA. One of the finest defenders I've ever seen and the best of his generation.
It's difficult to disagree with Holiday's admirers after seeing him make game-saving plays yearly.
17. Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant
Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant were perhaps the finest guard-big duo in Los Angeles for eight seasons in the history of NBA.
They won three championships and could have won many more if not for egos. O'Neal topped the NBA in win shares during his physical peak, while Bryant was sixth. Shaq averaged 27 points and 11.8 rebounds per game, while Bryant averaged 21.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 4.3 assists as a rookie.
During their three-peat run, they were even more dominating. During those three postseasons, O'Neal averaged 29.9 points and 14.5 rebounds per game, while Bryant averaged 25.3 points per game.
To cap off his domination, O'Neal averaged 35.9 points and 15.2 rebounds per game in those three NBA Finals.
There's no knowing what the ceiling might have been if they'd remained together.
18. Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen
The Chicago Bulls won six NBA championships in the 1990s, led by the most dominating player. But Michael Jordan couldn't have done it without Scottie Pippen's help.
Except for Jordan's stint playing baseball, the Bulls' dynamic combination was the ideal complement to one another, and they wreaked havoc on the NBA from 1987 through 1998.
Jordan and Pippen were first and second in playoff victory shares throughout their career together. Jordan averaged 31.5 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 5.6 assists per game, while Pippen had 17.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game.
They had the greatest winning % in the NBA at the time, leading the Bulls to a then-record 72 victories in 1996.
They are, without a doubt, the best basketball duos combo in history.
19. Jameer Nelson and Dwight Howard
Starting off this list is one of the league's currently the best duo in the NBA, with Jameer Nelson, an All-Star quality point guard, and Dwight Howard, the NBA's most powerful center.
Both players work well together, with Nelson usually looking for Howard in the middle and Dwight always ready to finish around the basket.
Nelson got his first All-Star appearance in 2009, while Howard has been a consistent All-Star since 2007. These two were also instrumental in helping the Orlando Magic to their first NBA Finals trip since 1995 in 2009.
20. Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming
Two players never reached the top, and two whose careers were unexpectedly cut short due to injury. Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming may not have reached the championship game, but they did give some entertaining basketball in Houston from the mid to late 2000s.
You couldn't put up much of a fight against Yao at 7'6". Yao may have been considered one of the finest centers in league history if injuries had not utterly wrecked four of his last five seasons. He was skilled in the post and had a midrange game to go with it. During his stint with Houston, he averaged up to 25 points and 11 rebounds a game.
The Rockets didn't obtain McGrady from his time with the Orlando Magic, but they did get a good wing player capable of scoring at least 20 points on any given night.
Houston might win up to 55 games with these two but never go beyond the semifinals.
21. Alex English and Kiki Vandeweghe
Alex English and Kiki Vandeweghe, members of the high-powered offensive Denver Nuggets teams from the 1980s, made certain that no points were wasted during their time with the club.
In his last season with the Nuggets, Vandeweghe averaged 29 points per game, while English averaged a more modest 26 points per game as the team's backup. They combined 55 points of their team's total output, which is more than any other tandem in the NBA, including Dwyane Wade, LeBron James, Amar's Stoudemire, and Carmelo Anthony.
Aside from a couple of postseasons and a trip to the playoffs, the Nuggets didn't have much success with this pair.
22. Hakeem Olajuwon and Kenny Smith
The first of many situations on this list where Hakeem Olajuwon appears is himself and his connection with teammate and point guard Kenny Smith.
Smith was alongside Olajuwon during the Rockets' heyday when they won two consecutive championships in 1994 and 1995 amid Michael Jordan's retirement and subsequent recuperation phase.
"The Jet" wasn't a productive point guard, but he was dependable and just what the Rockets needed from an Olajuwon colleague. During his stint with the Rockets from 1990 to 1996, he scored a handful of clutch jumpers and averaged 18 points and seven assists per game.
Olajuwon was preoccupied with dominating the paint and making most great centers seem like novices. He was named Finals MVP for both titles, with Olajuwon scoring up to 28 points per game during his tenure with Smith.
23. Dominique Wilkins and Kevin Willis
One of the league's best defensive presences and one of the league's top scorers at the time proved to be critical components to the Atlanta Hawks' success.
Not a lot of success, but Dominique Wilkins and Kevin Willis led the Hawks to greater success than they had seen since the days of Bob Pettit.
Between 1984 and 1994, Wilkins led the Hawks and the NBA in scoring, averaging as much as 31 points per game and more than 30 points per game on two occasions. He had averaged at least 21 points per game in all but one season with the Hawks, and that year was his rookie season when he only averaged 18 points.
Willis, his partner, was a powerful inside presence and a fantastic rebounder, averaging up to 16 rebounds per game, with five coming on the offensive board. Willis averaged up to 19 points each game before the two were dissolved.
The Hawks won 57 games twice with Wilkins and Willisa, an accomplishment that no Hawks club has equaled since.
24. Oscar Robertson and Jerry Lucas
From 1963 through 1970, Jerry Lucas and Oscar Robertson were teammates who created one of the league's greatest duos and may have won a pair of championships if not for the league's unstoppable centers in Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell.
Nonetheless, Lucas and Robertson were productive colleagues. While Robertson drew notice by almost averaging triple-doubles season after season, Lucas was a powerhouse in the paint and on the boards, averaging as many as 21 rebounds per game and even having consecutive 20-20 seasons.
Every season he spent with the Royals, Lucas averaged at least 17 boards.
With Lucas by his side, Robertson was busy playing the position of facilitator and topping the league in assists for three straight seasons.
25. Steve Nash and Amar'e Stoudemire
Steve Nash and Amar'e Stoudemire were undeniably one of the finest pick-and-roll duos to playing the game of basketball, with an unmistakable synergy that enabled the two to operate together more seamlessly than any other tandem.
Nash's style had been polished from his days in Dallas, and he could pick and select his passes in an approach designed not to enable defenders to respond quickly enough to halt the Phoenix Suns' offensive possession. Nash's court awareness was unparalleled among point guards, and having an athlete like Stoudemire on his side added to that.
Stoudemire was a scoring monster who could slash better than any other big forward in the NBA until Blake Griffin was brought in.
The Suns would win 62 games but never make it to the Western Conference finals.
26. Paul Arizin and Wilt Chamberlain
Guard/forward Paul Arizin and center Wilt Chamberlain are two Hall of Famers who played together for three years.
There's no way to explain how these two didn't win titles together.
Even though those three years with Chamberlain were the twilight of his career, Arizin averaged more than 22 points per game. When you combine that with Chamberlain averaging over 37 points per game in his first three seasons, you have two guys averaging over 60 points per game.
It's scarier when you realize the two combined for almost 70 points per game in Arizin's last season, which also happened to be the year Chamberlain averaged 50 points per game.
27. Julius Erving and Moses Malone
With just four seasons together, Moses Malone and Julius Erving made certain to win the title when the opportunity arose.
After all, the championship they won in 1983 came just four years before Erving retired.
The two established synergy and worked well together in their first season together, guiding the Philadelphia 76ers to a 65-17 record and the assurance of "fo-fo-fo," which is essentially the equivalent of saying we're going to defeat you and you should be glad that's all you're getting from us.
It's a hefty promise to make, but Malone almost delivered on his assurance by only losing one game in three series. The defeat did not come in the finals, as the Magic Johnson-led Los Angeles Lakers swept them.
The Sixers would remain title contenders for the next three seasons but would never reach that level again.
28. Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars
The pairing of Joe Dumars and Isiah Thomas produced an incredible combination packed with some of the most efficient offense and hard-nosed defense you'll ever find on one squad, forming the finest backcourt ever bestowed onto the NBA floor.
From 1985 through 1994, these two understood how to run an offense to near perfection, with Dumars taking over scoring and Thomas accomplishing just as much scoring while also being one of the league's finest facilitators.
Thomas averaged more than 20 points per game in his first two seasons alongside Dumars, but that dropped as the shooting guard took over those responsibilities.
Dumars would average up to 24 points per game during his tenure with Detroit, with both players completing their whole careers with the club where they both achieved success.
The two would win consecutive championships in 1989 and 1990, with one of those victories coming after finishing the regular season 63-19 and then going 15-2 in the playoffs, with both losses coming against the Chicago Bulls in the conference finals.
They would divide the two Finals MVPs.
29. Bob Cousy and Bill Russell
Bob Cousy and Bill Russell were easily the most successful combination in the game's history, revolutionizing many elements throughout their time together.
Cousy invented slowing down an attack and executing true set plays. In contrast, Russell invented defense by preventing as many shots as possible while still playing good individual defense. One of his most notable successes was the defense he routinely played on Wilt Chamberlain, which seemed to be the only tough defensive Chamberlain would face.
Cousy and Russell were teammates from 1956 through 1963, but it was when Russell came that propelled Cousy and the Boston Celtics over the top. While Cousy was busy running an effective offense with Tom Heinsohn and Sam Jones, Russell was busy playing the defense that enabled the Celtics to win games in a generally fast-paced sport loaded with nothing but offense.
Russell would lead the league in rebounding for three straight seasons, and the two would win six championships together.
30. George Mikan and Jim Pollard
They surely don't have the most awkward appearances.
Center George Mikan and forward/center (look it up) Jim Pollard was one of the first tandems to dominate the league for practically their whole careers.
Mikan was the league's first superstar in an era when rebounds were recorded, making it impossible to assess exactly how productive a player he was.
He led the league in scoring during the first three years of his career, averaging as much as 28 points a game, and he also led the league in rebounding for two consecutive seasons once they began keeping count.
Pollard wasn't as productive as Mikan, but he was an important part of a dynasty. During their seven seasons together as players of the Minneapolis Lakers, he averaged up to 16 points and nine rebounds per game.
In addition, they won five titles.