Who will be the best of the 2020's?

[Danger in Texas]

Now it's fair to agree Bird/Magic have the 80's, MJ has the 90's, Kobe/Duncan has the 00's and LeBron has the 10's (with . All of these guy basically controlled the league for each of their respective eras. They had tools which were just unmatched and, at times, unplayable for their era.

Well, who will be that player for the next decade? Who will be the guy who takes the league by the scruff of the neck and win some MVPs/championships to be 'the' player of the decade?

Personally, I know he's only been in the league for half a season, but I think Luka controls the league for the majority of the decade, in particular the second half. He just has the clutch gene, the stroke, the defense and the competitiveness to become a superstar of the league. Other than that, I think it's Simmons who controls the league whilst Philly wins a couple of rings at the beginning of the decade, and maybe someone like Giannis has one or two standout seasons, a bit like Isiah for the 80's, Hakeem for the 90's or Curry for the 10's.

Who do you think will be the big names of the 20's, and why?

 

[Sab22]

Lonzo ball

 

[Judd2Sewell]

He's about to feast on this league

 

[Santoz]

Now it's fair to agree Bird/Magic have the 80's, MJ has the 90's, Kobe/Duncan has the 00's and LeBron has the 10's (with . All of these guy basically controlled the league for each of their respective eras. They had tools which were just unmatched and, at times, unplayable for their era.

Well, who will be that player for the next decade? Who will be the guy who takes the league by the scruff of the neck and win some MVPs/championships to be 'the' player of the decade?

Personally, I know he's only been in the league for half a season, but I think Luka controls the league for the majority of the decade, in particular the second half. He just has the clutch gene, the stroke, the defense and the competitiveness to become a superstar of the league. Other than that, I think it's Simmons who controls the league whilst Philly wins a couple of rings at the beginning of the decade, and maybe someone like Giannis has one or two standout seasons, a bit like Isiah for the 80's, Hakeem for the 90's or Curry for the 10's.

Who do you think will be the big names of the 20's, and why?

Doncic has already been traded by one club in his short career. He'll bounce around the league bringing a lofty turnover count to match the lofty expectations clubs have of his play.

Easily the most generational euro the league has at the minute is Kristaps & when he finds full fitness the Knicks will dominate the East for the next decade.

 

[Danger in Texas]

Doncic has already been traded by one club in his short career. He'll bounce around the league bringing a lofty turnover count to match the lofty expectations clubs have of his play.

Easily the most generational euro the league has at the minute is Kristaps & when he finds full fitness the Knicks will dominate the East for the next decade.

Doncic is a rookie, those kinds of errors are probably to be expected at this age, just like Durant was very inefficient in his rookie year. The turnovers will be fixed. He’ll be better than Kristaps, who might win a title at some point if he gets another top level star (Knox won’t be top level). He won’t find it as easy to carry his franchise

 

[mickelboy182]

Giannis

 

[djrossie16]

LaMelo Ball

 

[Judd2Sewell]

Doncic is a rookie, those kinds of errors are probably to be expected at this age, just like Durant was very inefficient in his rookie year. The turnovers will be fixed. He’ll be better than Kristaps, who might win a title at some point if he gets another top level star (Knox won’t be top level). He won’t find it as easy to carry his franchise

Giannis and the Joker are ahead of KP at the moment. Doncic will be right up there after another season or two.

 

[Danger in Texas]

Giannis and the Joker are ahead of KP at the moment. Doncic will be right up there after another season or two.

I love Jokic, but I don’t think he’s an iconic player of the decade. Would love to see him team up with someone like Giannis or Doncic eventually to win a ring or three, as he’d be the perfect second superstar due to the fact he doesn’t need to score big to be effective

 

[mickelboy182]

The idea of Jokic as a secondary piece is comical... They still sleep on this guy.

 

[Judd2Sewell]

The idea of Jokic as a secondary piece is comical... They still sleep on this guy.

I get what he's saying in that the Joker will seemingly play a role that benefits the team.

IMO he could average 30 points p/g no problem given his talent, but he is obviously one of the least selfish star players... Probably ever. When he puts up >15 shots he scores big, but we've seen that he is always getting others involved - which is why over the last few seasons we regularly have such an even spread of scorers, we regularly have several players scoring 10-20. Other teams have one or two players that really dominate the scoring each night.

IMO he's undoubtedly a top 10 player in the league right now, and would be top 5 in the MVP consideration (top 3 really). So he's showing everyone that he's the key piece to a top side.

 

[Judd2Sewell]

^

To add to that, the Joker is one of the most unique Centres to ever play the game.

He's really unlike any of the current Centres as his skillet would allow him to work with literally any of the other top players in the league (fellow Centres being the exception). He also elevates the games of those around him.

 

[Danger in Texas]

The idea of Jokic as a secondary piece is comical... They still sleep on this guy.

Don’t get me wrong, I think Jokic right now is top 10 in the league, and who knows how he’ll elevate his game from here (matter of how, not if). The great thing is he barely relies on athleticism, so I think his prime is going to be very, very long

What I’m thinking is that I can see him at some point becoming a sidekick to a guy who’s a top flight scorer (I can see someone like Doncic, Giannis or maybe Mitchell being that guy) because he’s unselfish to the extent that he really shouldn’t be a top 10 player, but yet he is. He’s without doubt one of the best 1v1 guys in the league, easily the best passing big man, and can score big when needed - imagine having a guy like that as the second piece on a championship squad

^

To add to that, the Joker is one of the most unique Centres to ever play the game.

He's really unlike any of the current Centres as his skillet would allow him to work with literally any of the other top players in the league (fellow Centres being the exception). He also elevates the games of those around him.

This is basically my point - he’s so unique that his skill set would work with literally anyone. Partnering him with a killer scorer would be an unbeatable matchup that IMO produces multiple rings

 

[Judd2Sewell]

Hopefully Maple Jordan can become that guy for us, as his game is based on scoring with playmaking as a secondary skill set.

He's shown that he can get really hot and score big, he plays with balls. He's only 21 too (younger than Donovan Mitchell for reference), so he's got time to continue to improve his game.

 

[fidstar]

So far we have GA, Jokic and Doncic. All of which were probably the first 3 names that came to mind for me as well. Three special players.

But we need to see at least something in the playoffs, as that's were it matters. Jokic and Doncic (obviously) haven't played in them yet, and GA hasn't made it past the first round in a terrible Eastern Conference. If in the West, GA probably hasn't played in the playoffs in his career.

I'm thinking GA, but he has a weakness in his game, which makes me question if it can be him (the other guys you mention in OP didn't have a weakness that was as big as GA has not having a jump shot).

 

[Danger in Texas]

So far we have GA, Jokic and Doncic. All of which were probably the first 3 names that came to mind for me as well. Three special players.

But we need to see at least something in the playoffs, as that's were it matters. Jokic and Doncic (obviously) haven't played in them yet, and GA hasn't made it past the first round in a terrible Eastern Conference. If in the West, GA probably hasn't played in the playoffs in his career.

I'm thinking GA, but he has a weakness in his game, which makes me question if it can be him (the other guys you mention in OP didn't have a weakness that was as big as GA has not having a jump shot).

It’s funny with Giannis, I just can’t see him ever getting a chip myself. His lack of jump shot is going to hurt him if he can’t get shooters around him, and I don’t think the Bucks are currently competent enough to get a suitable roster to surround Giannis. You could say the same for Simmons really, but he’s as transcendent a point guard as I’ve seen in a long time otherwise, and having Embiid by his side helps (Embiid vs Jokic is a very even argument too, in actual fact)

A very early call, but the wildcard is Zion. He’s the one guy with absolute ‘face of the league’ potential - an excitement machine that comes along very rarely. Obviously has some refining to do but to be as built as he is combined with his athleticism - that’s some good potential

 

[OrdinaryJoel]

Zion

 

[Scallop Industry Thug]

The top 10 players in 2025?

Giannis
AD
Doncic
Embiid
Jokic
Tatum

And 4 guys probably still on college.

Zion is so different we can't really be certain.

 

[fidstar]

I'm not sold on Zion. Strange sizing to be an automatic No 1 great (e.g. like Shaq/LeBron/Duncan)

 

[Scallop Industry Thug]

I'm not sold on Zion. Strange sizing to be an automatic No 1 great (e.g. like Shaq/LeBron/Duncan)

We'll know eventually. He's big, but in other ways not big. He's skilled, but can't shoot. I'm not sure if he's bad shape, or just built like a truck.

 

[Danger in Texas]

We'll know eventually. He's big, but in other ways not big. He's skilled, but can't shoot. I'm not sure if he's bad shape, or just built like a truck.

Zion’s still got some baby fat but he is certainly built. Thing is he’s almost be a top 3 athlete in the league as soon as he’s drafted, which is a big point of difference. Hard to say yet, but the odds aren’t against him IMO

 

[Danger in Texas]

The top 10 players in 2025?

Giannis
AD
Doncic
Embiid
Jokic
Tatum

And 4 guys probably still on college.

Zion is so different we can't really be certain.

Am I the only one who sees a PG-level player in Tatum? Very good, but not an all timer

 

[Santoz]

The top 10 players in 2025?

Giannis
AD
Doncic
Embiid
Jokic
Tatum

And 4 guys probably still on college.

Zion is so different we can't really be certain.

Porzingis should be in there somewhere if he can manage not to injure himself.

 

[Scallop Industry Thug]

Zion’s still got some baby fat but he is certainly built. Thing is he’s almost be a top 3 athlete in the league as soon as he’s drafted, which is a big point of difference. Hard to say yet, but the odds aren’t against him IMO

Im not being a dickhead, but how do you know?

 

[Danger in Texas]

Porzingis should be in there somewhere if he can manage not to injure himself.

Tend to agree to an extent. I see it as similar to the 00’s where there could be a number of faces:

Doncic - Kobe
Embiid - Shaq
Giannis - LeBron
AD - Garnett
Simmons - Kidd
Jokic - Duncan
Porzingis - Nowitzki
Mitchell - Wade

Obviously not direct player comparisons at all, and there are some big name 00’s players not there (Nash, T-Mac, AI, CP3 etc) but impact-wise these players could be similar