NBA Season Preview: Best Starting 5 in the NBA

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2014-15 NBA SEASON PREVIEW CONTENT LIST

Atlantic: Celtics | Nets | Knicks | 76ers | Raptors |Division Preview
Central: Bulls | Cavaliers | Pistons | Pacers | Bucks | Division Preview
Southeast: Hawks | Hornets | Heat | Magic | Wizards | Division Preview

Pacific: Warriors | Clippers | Lakers | Suns | Kings | Division Preview
Northwest: Nuggets | Timberwolves | Thunder | Trail Blazers | Jazz | Division Preview
Southwest: Mavericks | Rockets | Grizzlies | Pelicans | Spurs | Division Preview

Top 10 by Position: PG | SG | SF | PF | C
Top 10 Lists: Sixth Men | Sophomores | X-Factors | Rookies | Games to Watch | Comeback | Contenders | Breakouts

Articles: Assessing the Cavaliers Trio | Important Season for James Harden | Return of Paul George? | Trading Rajon Rondo | Are the Nuggets This Season’s Suns? | NBA’s Best Starting Five | NBA’s Worst Starting Five | Now or Never for Durant and Thunder After Injury

Fantasy Basketball: Top 10 PGs | Top 10 SGs | Top 10 SFs | Top 10 PFs | Top 10 Cs | Sleepers, Studs, and Sinkholes | Analyzing the Schedule | BMF Mock Draft | Cavs and Cav-Nots | Like A Bosh | Rajon Injury Impact

Media Day: Clippers | Hawks | Kings | Knicks | Magic | Mavericks | Nets

The obvious answer here is the Cleveland Cavaliers, right? Wrong. Although the Cavs possess the most hype and flashiest starting five in the NBA, they do not have the best overall starting five. A starting five needs an elite player at every position and Anderson Varejo and Dion Waiters are not elite players, quite yet in the former’s case. With that being said, who is the best starting five in the NBA? Well, let’s find out.

5. Chicago Bulls

PG: Derrick Rose
SG: Jimmy Butler
SF: Mike Dunleavy
PF: Pau Gasol
C: Joakim Noah

The addition of Pau Gasol has transformed the Chicago Bulls’ starting five into one of the game’s elite groups. Gasol, alongside Joakim Noah, makes the Bulls’ frontcourt extremely dangerous and is arguably the best in the NBA. Derrick Rose is a former MVP, so when healthy he will make the Bulls a threat in the Eastern Conference once again. Jimmy Butler is young, but he is a very important piece to the Bulls’ starting five, while Mike Dunleavy provides veteran leadership at the small forward position.

4. Los Angeles Clippers 

PG: Chris Paul
SG: J.J Redick
SF: Matt Barnes
PF: Blake Griffin
C: DeAndre Jordan

The Clippers are another team that possess a crazy good starting five. Chris Paul is the best and his alley-oops to Blake Griffin are amazing to see. There are not too many teams in the league that are more exciting to watch live than the Clippers. Redick is a three-point machine, while DeAndre Jordan is a blocking monster, as well as a rebounding specialist who is making a name for himself as one of the best centers in the league. Matt Barnes is also a decent three-point shooter who can help spread the floor for the Clippers, which allows their team to be very dangerous.

3. Cleveland Cavillers

PG: Kyrie Irving
SG: Dion Waiters
SF: Lebron James
PF: Kevin Love
C: Anderson Varejo

Love and James are the best players at their respective position in the league, while Irving is an All-Star and one of the better point guards. Dion Waiters is a good shooting guard, but he isn’t close to Klay Thompson in Golden State. Also, Varejo has the potential to be a double-double machine, which makes their starting five very deadly. Although they may end up having the best team in the league this season, they do not have the best overall starting five.

2. Oklahoma City Thunder

PG: Russell Westbrook
SG: Reggie Jackson
SF: Kevin Durant
PF: Serge Ibaka
C: Kendrick Perkins

The Thunder have a very strong starting five that could arguably be the best in basketball. They have two players in Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant, who are arguably the best at their position for scoring, and also have Serge Ibaka, one of the best defensive players in the league. Reggie Jackson could turn into a very good starter, while Kendrick Perkins is decent. Steven Adams may end up being the starter come the middle of the season and if he plays to his potential he could easily end up being a better option than Perkins.

1. Golden State Warriors

PG: Stephen Curry
SG: Klay Thompson
SF: Andre Iguodala
PF: David Lee
C: Andrew Bogut

The best starting five overall in the NBA this season is the Golden State Warriors. They arguably have the best backcourt in the NBA with Steph Curry and Klay Thompson and are all going to improve with age and experience. Andre Iguodala is an excellent small forward, as not only does he have the ability to score big points every night, but is a great defender. David Lee, when healthy, is a former NBA All-Star and has the ability to put up a double-double every night. Last, but not least, is the big Australian, Andrew Bogut, who is one of the best defensive centers in the NBA. His defense is definitely the best part of his game, but he also possesses great athleticism and a strong passing ability that can make him effective on offense.