Pre-2019-20 Rank: #5, Pre-2020-21 Rank #5, Pre-2021-22 Rank #5, Pre-2022-23 Rank #3.  Pre-2023-24 Rank #3.

*Peak Period: 2013-14 to 2020-21.  We are giving Curry eight seasons, as he only played five Games in 2019-20.

Steph Curry moves in at #2, and the master of the three-point shot reinvented the game.  It was Curry’s style of play that taught teams that you could win NBA Championships from behind the arc, a style thought inconceivable only years before.  The all-time leader in three-pointers has four titles, ten All-Stars, and two MVPs, the perfect elixir for a first-ballot entry. 

If this were based on influence, Curry would be number one.  How fortunate are we that we still have him for years to come?

Pre-2019-20 Rank: #3, Pre-2020-21 Rank #4, Pre-2021-22 Rank: #3, Pre-2022-23 Rank: #4, Pre-2023-24 Rank: #4.

*Peak Period: 2007-08 to 2013-14.

There is no doubt that Chris Paul will enter the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame on his first try, and he should.  With a resume of 12 All-Stars, 11 All-NBA Selections, five Assists Titles and six Steals titles, and the statistical landmark as the first player to compile 20,000 Points and 11,000 Assists, Springfield will roll out the red carpet for the legendary Guard.

Saying all of that, what would he have given up for a Title?  It is not that he has not been close, as he was on an excellent Clippers team and a Suns team that made the 2021 Finals, but he is now in a journeyman phase where he adds a veteran presence.  This year, he joined the San Antonio Spurs, his seventh team, and is still looking for that elusive NBA Championship.

Paul might challenge Charles Barkley and Karl Malone for the unofficial title of the best player never to win a ring.

Pre-2019-20 Rank: #6. Pre-2020-21 Rank: #6, Pre-2021-22 Season Rank: #6, Pre-2022-23 Season Rank: #7, Pre-2023-24 Rank: #8.

*Peak Period: 2013-14 to 2019-20.

At one time, Russell Westbrook was the master of the Triple-Double, a perennial MVP candidate (he won it in 2016-17), and proved he could lead a team deep into the playoffs.  A member of the NBA 75^th Anniversary Team, Westbrook was a nine-time All-NBA Selection, nine-time All-Star, two-time Scoring Champion, and three-time Assists Champion.  All of that equates to the Point Guard entering the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame on his first shot, and it should erase any narrative that the last three years have given.

Bluntly, when Westbrook joined the Lakers in 2021, his shot-making skills did not follow, and his overall playmaking skills have eroded.  He begins this year in Denver as a reserve player on a contending team chasing the only accolade that has eluded him: an NBA Championship. 

Regardless of what happens in Los Angeles and Denver in the future, the legacy he laid out in Oklahoma City was legendary.

2021-22 Pre-Season Rank: #42, 2022-23 Pre-Season Rank: #27, 2023-24 Pre-Season Rank: #14.

*Peak Period: 2018-19 to 2023-24.  Doncic has only played six seasons and is still in his peak period.

Luka Doncic was the 2019 NBA Rookie of the Year, and since then, he has embarked on a five-year run during which he has been an All-Star, a top-ten MVP finisher, and a First-Team All-NBA Selection. Last season, the Slovenian superstar won his first Scoring Title (33.9) and brought the Mavericks to a surprising NBA Final, his second.

Doncic continues to improve and looks like a future MVP.  Can he also be a future NBA Champion?  2025 could bring both.

Pre-2019-20 Rank: #19, Pre-2020-21 Rank: #13, Pre-2021-22 Rank: #11, Pre-2022-23 Rank: #11, Pre-2023-24 Rank: #12.

*Peak Period: 2014-15 to 2020-21

When Damian Lillard joined the Milwaukee Bucks in 2023, it ended the run of one of the best players the Portland Trail Blazers ever had.  In Portland, Dame was a six-time All-NBA Selection (one First Team, four Second Team, and one Third Team), and from 2017-18 to 2020-21, finished in the top eight in MVP voting.  With that said, Lillard could only reach one Western Conference Final, and frustration naturally ensued.

Milwaukee was supposed to be Lillard’s best chance at an NBA Championship, but his pairing with Giannis Antetokounmpo did not result in much for year one.  Like Paul George (who is above Lillard by one spot), a title will make the difference between first ballot and a bit of a wait.

Pre-2019-20 Rank: #15, Pre-2020-21 Rank: #14, Pre-2021-22 Rank #14, Pre-2022-23 Rank #14, Pre-2023-24 Rank: #15.

Peak Period: 2014-15 to 2020-21.

For many years, Kyrie Irving has been the most polarizing player in Basketball, and at times, all North American sports.  It has never been about his play, as he is a multi-time All-Star, a three-time All-NBA Selection at Point Guard who can take over a game.  He helped LeBron James win the NBA Championship in Cleveland, and when he wanted to be the alpha, he was primarily applauded when he became a Boston Celtic in 2017, but that was when things became weird for the former Uncle Drew.

Irving pledged to bring greatness to Boston, but despite two All-Star years (and no deep playoff run), he signed with their rival Brooklyn, where a super team formed with him, Kevin Durant, and James Harden.  The big three fell apart as quickly as they came together, with Irving’s Brooklyn run marred by his refusal to get the jab and alleged antisemitism.  Irving, who marches to his tune, may have alienated many fans, but he is true to his convictions, knowing that it would (and did) cost him millions in endorsements.  He would force his way out of Brooklyn and, in his first full year in his fourth team, the Dallas Mavericks, where, along with Luka Doncic, he went to the NBA Finals.

With all his past (and maybe future) controversies, Irving might have to do more than most to ensure a spot in Springfield, and if he adds a ring in Dallas, his biggest haters will struggle to keep him out.

Pre-2019-20 Rank: #20, Pre-2020-21 Rank: #20, Pre-2021-22 Rank #21, Pre-2022-23 Rank #21, Pre-2023-24 Rank: #23.

*Peak Period: From 2013-14 to 2019-20.

When Kyle Lowry was traded from the Houston Rockets to the Toronto Raptors, the rep on the Point Guard was that he was a moody malcontent.  The change of scenery erased that quickly, and he became the heart and soul of a team that won the 2019 NBA Championship and was a six-time All-Star.   The master of taking a foul, only received MVP votes one year (10^th in 2016), and he has some compiling work to do with his new team, Philadelphia, to have any severe shot at the Hall of Fame.

We can confidently say that the Toronto Raptors will announce his jersey retirement the second he retires—or, at least, they better!

Pre-2021-22 Rank: #47, Pre-2022-23 Rank: #43, Pre-2023-24: #40

Peak Period: From 2016-17 to 2023-24.

Every team wants a player like Jrue Holiday.

Jrue Holiday was an All-Star in 2013 (his last season in Philadelphia), and it took another ten, which coincidentally was his last year in Milwaukee, to earn a second trip.  In between, Holiday joined a particular group that won an NBA Championship (with Milwaukee) and an Olympic Gold Medal (with the United States) in the same year.  

How do you top that?

You do it again.

Last season, his first in Boston, Holiday played a substantial role in the Celtic’s record-breaking 18^th Title, and months later, he again won Gold for the United States. 

Holiday may never be a superstar, but he is one of the most coveted roster players of the last ten years.  That could be worth a look from the powers that be in Springfield.

Pre-2019-20 Rank: #38, Pre-2020-21 Rank: #42, Pre-2021-22 Rank: #41, Pre-2022-23 Rank: #41, Pre-2023-24 Rank #41.

Peak Period: From 2012-13 to 2018-19.

It took 14 seasons before Mike Conley Jr. finally made his first All-Star Game. Frankly, it felt a bit like a lifetime achievement award, but it was one that so many of us were happy to see him obtain.  Conley does not have the stats, the elite period, or the rings to get into Springfield, but he is one of the most respected players of all time, as shown by his two Teammate of the Year Awards and four Sportsmanship Awards.  If there were a Hall of Fame of Class, Conley would be the first ballot. 

If Minnesota captures an NBA Championship in 2025, we won’t be alone in being happiest for Mike Conley Jr.

Pre-2023-24 Rank: #50.

Positional Notes:  Gilgeous-Alexander also played at Shooting Guard.

Peak Period: From 2018-19 to 2023-24.  Gilgeous-Alexander has only played six years, and has not completed a maximum Peak Period.

We can only imagine how it feels for Los Angeles Clippers fans every time they watch SGA play, as they had him as a rookie and gave him up for Paul George, who is no longer there. 

Gilgeous-Alexander had a breakout 2022-23, during which time he was a First-Team All-NBA player with a 30-plus PPG. Last year, he was the MVP runner-up, was a First-Team All-NBA player again, and now leads OKC into this season as a top contender. 

The sky is the limit for this young Canadian.

Pre-2019-20 Ran: #28. Pre-2020-21 Rank: #35, Pre-2021-22 Rank: #36, Pre-2022-23 Rank: #36, Pre-2023-24 Rank: #31.

Peak Period: From 2012-13 to 2018-19

The narrative on John Wall has taken a pounding over the last few years.  Wall lost the entire 2019-20 Season due to a torn ACL, and he was surprisingly traded to the Houston Rockets, where he was decent, but he sat out the year after.  He joined the Clippers in 2022-23, but all he did was cement that he is a shell of what was once the most exciting Point Guard in the NBA.  He has not played since, and may never again.

Pre-2022-23 Rank: #49, Pre-2023-24 Rank: #48.

Peak Period: From 2018-19 to 2023-24.  Young has only played six seasons and is this still in his Peak Period.

Trae Young has been one of the better Point Guards over the last six seasons, and the three-time All-Star led Atlanta to the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals, but they haven’t come close since, and Young has been pegged as inconsistent.  As he was a straight-up draft day trade for Luka Doncic, it is impossible to separate the two, and a change of scenery might help Young more than any other player in basketball.

Peak Period:  From 2018-19 to 2023-24.  Brunson has only played six seasons and is still in his Peak Period.

Jalen Brunson was a two-time National Champion at Villanova and former College Player of the Year, but that only translated into a Second-Round Pick by Dallas in 2018. Brunson was with Dallas for four years, but he became a superstar when he signed with the New York Knicks in 2022.

In his two seasons with the Knicks, he received MVP votes in both campaigns and was a Second Team All-NBA Selection last year.  The Knicks are on the rise, and Brunson is leading the charge.  He could see the most considerable rank jump 12 months from now.

Peak Period: From 2020-21 to 2023-24.  Haliburton has only played four seasons and is thus in his Peak Period.

Tyrese Haliburton began his career with Sacramento, but a trade to Indiana in the middle of the 2021-22 Season sparked the Point Guard to greatness.   Haliburton went to the All-Star Game the last two seasons, and was a Third Team All-NBA player and Assists per Game leader.  Haliburton is one of the top players under 25, so he should skyrocket this list if he is healthy.