When I say the words, “starting five” what is the first thing that comes to your mind? Most
sports enthusiasts might think of their all-time lineup of NBA players, some might reminisce about high
school basketball, and others might think about cracking open a cold one because it’s 5 o’clock
somewhere. If your first thought is the latter then you might need help, if it’s the second then you need
to close the yearbook, but if you think the first then you’re in the right place. When I think starting five I
don’t just think of one team, like the 95-96 Bulls or the 16-17 Warriors. I think of a collection of players
throughout history that, if put together, would make up a starting lineup that is unstoppable. That is
where my mind first goes, however, my mind does not stay there long. Maybe it’s because the media
has overanalyzed that discussion, or maybe it’s a little bit of ADHD, but nonetheless, my mind wonders
to a big what if. What if we didn’t just apply this debate to NBA players? What if we applied this
question to everything?
That is why I’m writing this article. I want to start a conversation, and a series, of what the best
starting lineup of ________ would be. The guys from The Crossover have done this several times like they did back in season 1 episode 6 by asking their special guests, their dads, the question "what is your starting five rock bands?”. If you haven’t listened to that episode I definitely recommend it. For this series, I plan on hitting all starting fives, from the normal all-time NBA lineup to the oddball makes zero sense at all lineups. Before I begin I’d like to state that my lineups may not include the best player of all-time at each position. I am building a lineup that will be unstoppable, not just using players who are. I want my teams to work well together, so sorry James Harden but you’re probably not making the cut. That being said, I think it’s time to begin. For my first post I am going to do the All-Time NBA Lineup, yes I know that this is a little contradictory after talking a bunch of crap on that “overanalyzed discussion”. However, I think that it is necessary to start here to have a base.
All-Time NBA Lineup
PG- Steve Nash
SG- Ray Allen
SF- LeBron James
PF- Tim Duncan
C- Shaquille O’Neal
At first glance, I know that for a fact I will be crucified for not having Magic Johnson, Michael
Jordan, or Kobe Bryant on this lineup, but hear me out. I said I wanted to make lineups that would play
well together. I am not trying to take away from MJ being the best shooting guard of all-time and Magic
the best point, but they just don’t fit what I want for my team.
I’ll start with the point. Steve Nash. Steve Nash has been my favorite NBA player since I was a
kid, so I may be slightly biased. The guy knows how to run a team as well as he knows how to run
the pick and roll. Over his career, Nash has shot the three at a rate of 43% and made 90% of his free throws while averaging just under 9 assists. In my lineup I want the point guard to be able to shoot the
three and pass the ball. I don’t need a Damian Lillard or Allen Iverson to be a ball-dominant point guard.
Steve Nash can control the game while not needing to “get his”. The combination of Nash and Shaq or
Nash and Tim Duncan running the pick and roll is a scary thought. Steve also brings a toughness to the
team, the guy literally broke his nose in the middle of a game and instead of sitting out he just pushed it
back into place and kept playing.
Runner Up: Stephen Curry
For my two-guard, I had a lot of trouble deciding what exactly I would want, a star, a shooter, or
a slasher. I debated between the obvious three, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and Grayson Allen, but
again picked what I would want on my team, instead of who was the best shooting guard. Ray Allen
ended up being that guy. Sweet Baby Ray has a career three-point percentage of 40% along with the
most threes made in a career at 2,973. Ray has also one of the most clutch shots in the history of the
NBA under his belt with the corner three he drilled against the Spurs in game 6 of the 2013 NBA Finals. A team with both LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal would need a reliable spot-up shooter who can
defend at a high rate. The only reason that Grayson Allen didn’t get this spot is because I already have
enough star power with LeBron and Shaq, I wouldn’t want Grayson overshadowing them.
Runner Up: Grayson Allen
The small forward position is not debatable. For a single player to make ten finals appearances
with eight of those being consecutive is unreal. The thing that makes that stat even crazier is that
LeBron has done that with three different teams. He has been the one constant factor in the NBA finals
in 10 of the last 15 finals. Plain and simple the guy knows how to win. In his career, he is averaging just
under 27 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 7.4 assists and still getting better. This year alone, at the age of 36,
he is averaging 26 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists. LeBron “Fine Wine” James just gets better with age.
It’s hard for me to pick what year of LeBron I would want on this team, but if I had to I think I would pick the 12-13 Miami Heat LeBron wearing the white-hot jersey (the jersey doesn’t really matter I just think those are flipping sweet). LeBron would not be tasked with bringing the ball up the court on this team and could fly through the air catching lobs on the fast break from Steve Nash like he did with D-Wade. LeBron could also play as a slasher on this team being able to kick out to Ray Allen or dish it to Shaq underneath.
Runner Up: Kevin Durant
Timothy Theodore Duncan. The Big Fundamental. I mean just look at this guy’s resume. 5x NBA
Champ, 15x All-Star, 15x All-NBA, 15x All-Defensive, 3x Finals MVP, Rookie of the Year, and 2x MVP. In
the 15-16 season, Tim Duncan led the Spurs to a record of 67-15 going 40-1 at home while having the
second-highest overall defensive rating in the NBA of 95.7. I do have to say that I do not accompany the
name Tim Duncan with the words flash or pizazz, but I do think of the words winning and Rock Port
basketball. “Chin it Ethan”- Jim Skillen. The only competition that I had in picking my power forward was
Kevin Garnett and Dirk Nowitzki, both bring a different skill set to the team, but at the end of the day
Tim Duncan’s defense, basketball I.Q., and inside-out scoring fit my lineup perfectly.
Runner Up: Kevin Garnett
To round out my lineup I have Shaq. In my opinion, the most dominant center of all-time. In the
99-00 season the Big Diesel averaged nearly 30 points, 14 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 blocks. This was
while playing alongside Kobe Bryant who averaged 23 points that year. Shaq knew how to play well with
others while still dominating the paint. If Steve Nash can make highlight-reel passes with Amar’e
Stoudemire or LeBron with D-Wade, just imagine what the two could do with Shaquille O’Neal. Shaq’s
inefficiency from the free-throw line is his only downfall but that is why I have both Nash and Allen in
this lineup to pick up his slack.
Runner Up: Hakeem Olajuwon
Now that we have the boring part out of the way it’s time to have some fun. As I said, this is
the real reason I’m writing these articles. I hope that you have enjoyed this lineup and I look forward to
continuing this series in the weeks to come. If you have any suggestions for starting fives please send
them into the “Give us a holler.” section and the fellas at The Crossover will get them to me.
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