Ranking the Top 5 Man Units in the League

[PhoSita]

The fact that you saw the Warriors benching their starters in the finals shows just how much bigger a part of the game this is becoming.

I'd argue that what the Warriors did was figure out at the last minute what their very best 5 man lineup was.

Depth makes a difference.  The best teams we've seen over the past few years have had the ability to play a variety of ways, which has been in part due to depth and in part due to the talent of the central players on that team.

Depth won't help you unless you have a really good lineup that has played together a lot, though.  The best teams tend to have the best 5 man units, and those units tend to get better the more they play together.


What made the KG-era Celtics so good, after all, was their trump-card 5 man lineup.  Even when the bench was crap, they could rely on that group to give them an edge.

[Who]

This is my top 10

#1 SAS = Parker, Green, Kawhi, Aldridge, Duncan
#2 GSW = Curry, Klay, Iggy, Draymond, Bogut
#3 CLE = Kyrie, Shumpert, LeBron, Love, Mozgov
#4 MEM = Conley, Lee, TA, Z-Bo, M.Gasol

#5 OKC = Westbrook, Roberson, Durant, Ibaka, Kanter
#6 LAC = CP3, Redick, Pierce, B.Griffin, D.Jordan
#7 HOU = Beverley, Harden, Ariza, Motiejunas, Howard

#8 PHO = Bledsoe, Knight, Tucker, Markieff, Tyson
#9 ATL = Teague, Korver, Thabo, Millsap, Horford
#10 UTA = Exum, Burks, Hayward, Favors, Gobert

[Csfan1984]

The fact that you saw the Warriors benching their starters in the finals shows just how much bigger a part of the game this is becoming.

I'd argue that what the Warriors did was figure out at the last minute what their very best 5 man lineup was.

Depth makes a difference.  The best teams we've seen over the past few years have had the ability to play a variety of ways, which has been in part due to depth and in part due to the talent of the central players on that team.

Depth won't help you unless you have a really good lineup that has played together a lot, though.  The best teams tend to have the best 5 man units, and those units tend to get better the more they play together.


What made the KG-era Celtics so good, after all, was their trump-card 5 man lineup.  Even when the bench was crap, they could rely on that group to give them an edge.

Well you could also say it wasn't best five players but in fact it was the best matchup. Style was a big part of why Warriors turned to that final 5. Eight quality players are needed or you are toast.

[PhoSita]

Eight quality players are needed or you are toast.

I agree, you need to have at least three versatile and productive bench players upon which you can rely.


Still, I like thinking in terms of 5 man lineup configurations and I think the ideal for any team is to put together a 5 man group that has logged lots of minutes together and is really strong on both ends. 

Once you've got that, putting together an effective supporting cast is important, but not nearly as difficult.

[PhoSita]

This is my top 10

#1 SAS = Parker, Green, Kawhi, Aldridge, Duncan
#2 GSW = Curry, Klay, Iggy, Draymond, Bogut
#3 CLE = Kyrie, Shumpert, LeBron, Love, Mozgov
#4 MEM = Conley, Lee, TA, Z-Bo, M.Gasol

#5 OKC = Westbrook, Roberson, Durant, Ibaka, Kanter
#6 LAC = CP3, Redick, Pierce, B.Griffin, D.Jordan
#7 HOU = Beverley, Harden, Ariza, Motiejunas, Howard

#8 PHO = Bledsoe, Knight, Tucker, Markieff, Tyson
#9 ATL = Teague, Korver, Thabo, Millsap, Horford
#10 UTA = Exum, Burks, Hayward, Favors, Gobert

I really hope the Thunder have a resurgence this year.  I don't know if it'll be the one you list here or the one I listed, but there's gotta be some 5 man unit for the Thunder that will put up crazy point differentials per-100 possessions, provided that Durant is healthy.

Would be nice to see Westbrook - Durant - Ibaka get most of a full season playing together and killing the league, then a full, healthy playoff run.  See what these guys can really do together.