The Greatest (Functional) Starting Five

[Ed Monix]

My idea about selecting the greatest functional starting line-up is the notion that these five players actually have to co-exist. This isn’t purely an on paper idea of greatness, it’s as if you could teleport players from specific seasons in NBA history and get them to play together.

PG Stephen Curry (2021-22)

SG Michael Jordan (1995-96)

SF Larry Bird (1985-86)

PF Tim Duncan (2002-03)

C  Bill Russell (1961-62)

[LilRip]

As blasphemous as it sounds, I’d swap out Duncan for KD. In this era, three point shooting and switchability are at a premium. Generally though, good lineup. All of them move well without the ball, have good vision, and the only bad defender is Curry.

[Surferdad]

As blasphemous as it sounds, I’d swap out Duncan for KD. In this era, three point shooting and switchability are at a premium. Generally though, good lineup. All of them move well without the ball, have good vision, and the only bad defender is Curry.

If the OP's idea is that they have to play together well, in the current NBA era, then I would keep Duncan over KD.

I might pick Jerry West over Curry for PG.

[smokeablount]

As blasphemous as it sounds, I’d swap out Duncan for KD. In this era, three point shooting and switchability are at a premium. Generally though, good lineup. All of them move well without the ball, have good vision, and the only bad defender is Curry.

If the OP's idea is that they have to play together well, in the current NBA era, then I would keep Duncan over KD.

I might pick Jerry West over Curry for PG.

I know it’s the greatest sacrilege possible on this board, but I’d probably keep both Duncan and KD if we’re playing modern era.

KDs shooting is needed and Duncan gives you elite everything except shooting from distance.

Curry
MJ
Bird
KD
Duncan

For special games I wear my Mitchell&Ness Bill Russell throwback MVP jersey, sometimes with a suit. But Timmy was my favorite player growing up and in the modern era I think versatility matters. It isn’t like Duncan is a slouch on D, and he was always a PF/C.

[Big333223]

I have two teams that I like for this:

PG - Joe Dumars
SG - Michael Jordan
SF - Lebron James
PF - Kevin Garnett
C  - Hakeem Olajuwon

Jordan is the #1 option but Lebron handles the ball the most. Dumars can bring the ball up but he mostly defers to Lebron for playmaking. KG does a lot of spotting up from 18-20 feet on offense. On defense the team is unstoppable. They can switch everything and KG and Dream will absolutely shut down the rim.

My other team:

PG - Steph Curry
SG - Dwyane Wade (cira 2012-13)
SF - Kevin Durant
PF - Larry Bird
C  - Tim Duncan

4 guys who won MVP's but who don't take anything off the table and can fit with anyone including 3 of the best shooters of all time. I thought about KG for this team too because he also fits that description but what the team is missing is a slasher. I landed on Wade because I think someone like Jordan would demand the ball too much and disrupt what this construction is going for. Wade is '12 and '13 was an absolute menace on defense and learned how to be an off-ball threat playing with Lebron, his off-ball cutting is going to make this team sing on offense and everyone is incredibly smart on defense.

[Roy H.]

Kareem
Duncan
Bird
Jordan
Lebron

I'm tempted to put in a guy like Klay Thompson for MJ.

[Moranis]

I don't actually think Jordan would be good in this scenario.  Not a good enough shooter and the team has to be his posing some issues.

I'd probably go something like this

Magic - 87
West - 72
Lebron - 13
Bird - 84
Hakeem - 93

[A Future of Stevens]

PG - Curry
SG - Jordan
SF - 12' or 13' Lebron
PF - Bird
C - Hakeem

It is a fun thought experiment for sure. Hakeem is the craziest intersection of offense/defense skill dominance and I think he could excel next to anybody. (The Celtic in me wants to pick Russell for the sheer winning and defensive dominance.) Bird and Lebron could be interchangeable at the 3/4. Curry is an off ball god. And Jordan is the GOAT.

[jpotter33]

PG - Curry
SG - Jordan
SF - 12' or 13' Lebron
PF - Bird
C - Hakeem

It is a fun thought experiment for sure. Hakeem is the craziest intersection of offense/defense skill dominance and I think he could excel next to anybody. (The Celtic in me wants to pick Russell for the sheer winning and defensive dominance.) Bird and Lebron could be interchangeable at the 3/4. Curry is an off ball god. And Jordan is the GOAT.

I really like that lineup.

The only qualm may be that there's not much shooting outside of Bird and Curry, with MJ being a poor to average outside shooter and 12/13 Lebron being average at best, with Hakeem being a non-shooter.

In all honesty, I might replace Lebron with someone like 2017 KD. You have enough playmaking and passing with Curry, Jordan, and Bird already, and prime KD is only a slight downgrade defensively from prime Lebron, in my opinion. Thus, his extra shooting and spacing would be much more beneficial than the rest of Lebron's upgrades over KD.

[Jvalin]

Since basketball is a team game, elite team offense beats elite individual talent. The most effective team move is hands down the PnR. My goal would be to create the best possible PnR duo and fill out the lineup with 3 (s)wings who can play either on or off the ball.

• Best PnR ball handler of all time is likely Steve Nash thanks to his elite court vision + ball handling + shooting ability off the dribble. Can't get much better than that. I truly believe he was better than Steph simply because he was elite at everything on offense, whereas Steph is nothing special as a passer. Unfortunately for Nash, the NBA was reluctant to fully embrace the 3 in the 00s.
• Best roll man of all time is probably a toss up between Russ and KG. The former had elite physical tools but is actually unproven as a roll man cause the game was way different in the 50s/60s. The latter is a proven choice.

Best team offense

PG: Nash
SG: Klay
SF: Kawhi
PF: Bird
C: Russ / KG

Game plan is simple yet unstoppable: We spam the spread PnR. If only KG was a volume 3pt shooter to run a 5-out motion offense.

Best fit around Jordan

PG: Steph
SG: Jordan
SF: Spurs Kawhi (over Pippen thanks to his superior shooting ability)
PF: young Kirilenko (over Rodman and Bobby Jones for spacing purposes)
C: Jokic

Leaning heavily on individual talent

PG: Steph
SG: Jordan
SF: Bird
PF: Magic (these are defensive positions, he'd be the de facto PG on offense)
C: KG (wanted a mobile/switchable big with range)

[A Future of Stevens]

PG - Curry
SG - Jordan
SF - 12' or 13' Lebron
PF - Bird
C - Hakeem

It is a fun thought experiment for sure. Hakeem is the craziest intersection of offense/defense skill dominance and I think he could excel next to anybody. (The Celtic in me wants to pick Russell for the sheer winning and defensive dominance.) Bird and Lebron could be interchangeable at the 3/4. Curry is an off ball god. And Jordan is the GOAT.

I really like that lineup.

The only qualm may be that there's not much shooting outside of Bird and Curry, with MJ being a poor to average outside shooter and 12/13 Lebron being average at best, with Hakeem being a non-shooter.

In all honesty, I might replace Lebron with someone like 2017 KD. You have enough playmaking and passing with Curry, Jordan, and Bird already, and prime KD is only a slight downgrade defensively from prime Lebron, in my opinion. Thus, his extra shooting and spacing would be much more beneficial than the rest of Lebron's upgrades over KD.

That's why I went with that Lebron version. It was a 37% plus from 3 year and he was in his prime athletically. He also was used to playing with Wade and Bosh. Bird and Jordan are super charged versions of those. Plus Curry would be the goat version of Mario Chalmers. I just like Hakeem.

[Moranis]

PG - Curry
SG - Jordan
SF - 12' or 13' Lebron
PF - Bird
C - Hakeem

It is a fun thought experiment for sure. Hakeem is the craziest intersection of offense/defense skill dominance and I think he could excel next to anybody. (The Celtic in me wants to pick Russell for the sheer winning and defensive dominance.) Bird and Lebron could be interchangeable at the 3/4. Curry is an off ball god. And Jordan is the GOAT.

I really like that lineup.

The only qualm may be that there's not much shooting outside of Bird and Curry, with MJ being a poor to average outside shooter and 12/13 Lebron being average at best, with Hakeem being a non-shooter.

In all honesty, I might replace Lebron with someone like 2017 KD. You have enough playmaking and passing with Curry, Jordan, and Bird already, and prime KD is only a slight downgrade defensively from prime Lebron, in my opinion. Thus, his extra shooting and spacing would be much more beneficial than the rest of Lebron's upgrades over KD.

Lebron shot 40.6% on 3.3 attempts from 3 in 2013.  That was his career best, but in 12 he shot 36.2% and in 14 he shot 37.9%, so it wasn't a total outlier.  2013 was Lebron at his absolute apex.  Age 28, year 10.  His physical prime.  Unguardable and still playing elite defense (finished 2nd to Gasol for DPOY, while winning what should have been a unanimous MVP, but for 1 vote for Carmelo).  I really can't see how Lebron (and that season) isn't on this sort of team. 

[Celtics4ever]

PG Curry
SG  Jordan
SF  Bird
PF  Duncan
C  Russell

[johnnygreen]

As blasphemous as it sounds, I’d swap out Duncan for KD. In this era, three point shooting and switchability are at a premium. Generally though, good lineup. All of them move well without the ball, have good vision, and the only bad defender is Curry.

If the OP's idea is that they have to play together well, in the current NBA era, then I would keep Duncan over KD.

I might pick Jerry West over Curry for PG.

Where did OP mention current NBA era?

[footey]

I don't actually think Jordan would be good in this scenario.  Not a good enough shooter and the team has to be his posing some issues.

I'd probably go something like this

Magic - 87
West - 72
Lebron - 13
Bird - 84
Hakeem - 93

I like this but I'd have Curry 22 instead of West. Magic has to be in the starting 5 IMO.