Anyone can list the best players in the NBA, but basketball is as much about chemistry as it is talent. Within each of the league’s 30 teams is a hierarchy, and how well each of the five players on the court understands and performs his role within that hierarchy is every bit as important as his individual skill.
Ideally, a lineup has its superstar, a deferential co-star, a third star who owns his role, a fourth option and a fifth starter to tie it all together — clear Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. In this series, we rank the five best players from each tier for a broader look across the league. How close does your team come to an ideal lineup?
No. 1 options | No. 2 options
No. 3 options: The Third Stars Who Own Their Roles
What is a No. 3? He is still a star, at least on a good team, but he is sacrificing some faction of his game for the greater good of the team. He usually leans into his greatest skill, whether that is flame-throwing 3s or defending like crazy. Ideally, it is both, and if you ask more from your third star, he answers the call.
There is a balance to downsizing your role and remaining as efficient as ever, and it is the third star’s responsibility to strike it. Think of Kevin Love on the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers. He arrived from a lottery team in Minnesota, where he was the No. 1 — and an entirely different player at that, doing most of his damage inside of 8 feet — but transitioned into a 3-and-D weapon behind LeBron James and Kyrie Irving.
The greatest teams in NBA history featured Hall of Fame talents who might have been even more productive on lesser rosters. You know them well: Robert Parish, James Worthy, Dennis Rodman, etc. They managed to understand their position in the pecking order and find their own way to thrive in it.
Without further ado, your five best No. 3s …
1. Paul George, Philadelphia 76ers
George has been a No. 1 and a No. 2 on teams that reached the conference finals, and in Philadelphia he will presumably be the No. 3, acquiescing to recent MVP Joel Embiid and rising star Tyrese Maxey. How well George adjusts to that role will go a long way toward dictating how well the Sixers play this season.
He has the skill set. George is a four-time All-Defensive wing who shot 43.5% on catch-and-shoot 3s last season, and if that is all he has to do in the space created by Embiid and Maxey, Philly is going to crush.
If there is ambiguity about who is second billed, ripples can disrupt chemistry across a roster. George is a nine-time All-Star who has subjugated his skill for fellow veterans Russell Westbrook and Kawhi Leonard. Will he do the same for Maxey, who is an unfinished product (albeit an electric one in its current state)?
You get the feeling George is comfortable on the periphery, but if (when?) Embiid misses time, someone will have to serve as the Sixers’ No. 1, and Maxey was not prepared for that last season. Enter George, who has grown accustomed to spot duty as a primary option — a luxury few No. 3s can provide. That said, shifting back and forth between roles can be a difficult path to navigate, even for a 34-year-old.
2. Rudy Gobert, Minnesota Timberwolves
For all the jokes about Gobert, not many players star in their roles as well as he does. He is asked to defend, and he is a four-time Defensive Player of the Year. He is far less effective defending in space than he is as a rim protector, creating all sorts of issues against small-ball lineups, and he was benched by his home country at points in the Olympics, but he was the anchor of the NBA’s best defense last season.
Offensively, Gobert is no better than a fifth option, catching lobs and cleaning up misses around the basket. He is so talented defensively, though, that he is paid to be Minnesota’s third star, and for that he holds a certain gravitas on the roster. Mike Conley and Jaden McDaniels may attempt more shots and use a greater percentage of the team’s offensive possessions, but neither of them can compete with Gobert’s résumé as a three-time All-Star; nor are they a greater subject of an opponent’s game plan against them.
3. Kristaps Porziņģis, Boston Celtics
It remains shocking that the Celtics cruised to the championship largely without Porziņģis. Sure, their opponents had their own injury concerns, but for the majority of the playoffs Boston was missing a 7-foot-3 rim protector who can score efficiently from every level — unquestionably one of the league’s best third stars. Porziņģis averaged 24.4 points per 36 minutes on 52/38/86 shooting splits and warranted consideration for an All-Star nod last season, some six years after he made his first appearance.
Health is what keeps him from climbing higher on this list. Knee injuries prevented him from making multiple All-Star appearances in that span, and a rare injury to his lower left leg will likely sideline him until at least Christmas. That gives Porziņģis plenty of time to work his way into shape for another playoff run, and that is bad news for the rest of the league. Just rewatch Game 1 of the NBA Finals for proof.
4. Chet Holmgren, Oklahoma City Thunder
Holmgren is the equivalent of an early version of Porziņģis, full of possibility. He shot 37% on 4.3 attempts from 3-point range per game and held opponents 15% lower than their season averages on shots around the rim. That is all you need to do to be successful at 7-foot-1, and Holmgren can do so much more. He can put the ball on the floor, keep it moving on the pass and score it from every level.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gets most of the credit for Oklahoma City’s push for the Western Conference’s No. 1 seed last season, and rightfully so, but that young team was largely the same as the squad that failed to make the playoffs a year earlier. The Thunder reintegrated a healthy Holmgren, who played all 82 games, and suddenly they were and are a serious contender. This is what third stars do — unlock rosters.
5. Desmond Bane, Memphis Grizzlies
You could make a case here — or higher on this list — for Evan Mobley, DeMar DeRozan, Mikal Bridges or Draymond Green, but Bane is not a developmental project, adjusting to a new team or trying to turn back the clock. He is just Desmond Bane, a wildly underappreciated hooper, quietly averaging a 22-5-5 on 47/40/88 shooting splits over his past two seasons in Memphis. He was nearly an All-Star last season.
In the absence of Ja Morant last season, Bane became the primary option on an injury-riddled roster, and then he missed 40 games. It was a nightmare year in Memphis. This season, he will return to his role for a fringe contender, behind All-Stars Morant and Jaren Jackson Jr. When the three of them played together in 2022-23, the Grizzlies outscored opponents by 11.7 points per 100 possessions, winning 51 games. That is the team Memphis will be reintroducing to the basketball world, where Bane deserves your attention.
Honorable mentions
6. Evan Mobley, Cleveland Cavaliers
7. DeMar DeRozan, Sacramento Kings
8. Mikal Bridges, New York Knicks
The rest
9. Draymond Green, Golden State Warriors; 10. Myles Turner, Indiana Pacers; 11. Khris Middleton, Milwaukee Bucks; 12. Dejounte Murray, New Orleans Pelicans; 13. Fred VanVleet, Houston Rockets; 14. Bradley Beal, Phoenix Suns; 15. Coby White, Chicago Bulls; 16. Jalen Johnson, Atlanta Hawks; 17. Brandon Miller, Charlotte Hornets; 18. Michael Porter Jr., Denver Nuggets; 19. Klay Thompson, Dallas Mavericks; 20. Jalen Suggs, Orlando Magic; 21. Tyler Herro, Miami Heat; 22. Austin Reaves, Los Angeles Lakers; 23. Ivica Zubac, Los Angeles Clippers; 24. Immanuel Quickley, Toronto Raptors; 25. Cameron Johnson, Brooklyn Nets; 26. Malcolm Brogdon, Washington Wizards; 27. Jeremy Sochan, San Antonio Spurs; 28. John Collins, Utah Jazz; 29. Jaden Ivey, Detroit Pistons; 30. Scoot Henderson, Portland Trail Blazers.
