Jayson Tatum came to the 2024 Paris Olympics on an emotional high. He had just won his first NBA championship and the Boston Celtics rewarded their 26-year-old superstar with a supermax contract worth $315 million over five years. But when Tatum left Paris, he was feeling low despite winning his second Olympic gold medal.

Tatum played just 71 total minutes for Team USA, got two DNPs and appeared in just four games. USA Basketball head coach Steve Kerr benched Tatum in the Olympic opener against Serbia, and benched him again in the semifinals of the knockout round against the same Serbian squad.

The first game against Serbia was a blowout, but the same matchup was a nail-biter as Team USA needed ever bit of Steph Curry’s magical 36-point performance to advance to the gold medal game against host nation France.

Tatum did see some action against France, making one of three shots from the field and grabbing three rebounds in 11 minutes. Majority of Tatum’s minutes came in the first half as he rode the bench for much of the second half as Kerr rode Curry, LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Anthony Davis down the stretch.

Tatum finished the Olympics with averages he probably hasn’t seen since his AAU days. During the 2023-24 NBA season, Tatum averaged 26.9 points and 8.1 rebounds while earning All-NBA first team honors. During the Paris Olympics, Tatum averaged 5.3 points and 5.3 rebounds while shooting 38.1% from the field. He played fewer minutes than both of his Celtics teammates Jrue Holiday and Derrick White. Holiday, who started five of the six games, played 94 minutes while White played 79 minutes.

Despite winning gold, Tatum left Paris feeling empty. He told the Boston Globe that the Olympic experience was “challenging and humbling” at the same time, and he wouldn’t commit to playing for Team USA when the topic of the L.A. Olympics in 2028 came up.

“You feel like you deserve to play and the competitor in you wants to play,” Tatum told The Globe. “And [Steve Kerr] is the coach for a reason. He makes those decisions.”

Tatum tried to diffuse the situation by not making it about him. But his lack of playing time was one of the main storylines for Team USA. It was hard to ignore, and the narrative could spill into the 2024-25 season — especially when the Celtics play Kerr’s Golden State Warriors.

“I sacrificed and put a lot into this game and worked really, really hard,” Tatum said. “In the moment it is tough, so I’m not necessarily worried about fueling me for [for the season].”

Kerr absorbed much of the heat for the Tatum sideshow. His explanation was simple. It was a math problem. “It’s just hard to play 11 people, even in an NBA game,” Kerr told reporters.

To be fair, Kerr is absolute right. It’s uncommon to play 11 or 12 players in a 48-minute NBA game, yet alone a 40-minute FIBA-style competition. In the playoffs, rotations tighten even more to about seven or eight guys.

Kerr was dealt a bad hand by USA Basketball managing director Grant Hill, who was mainly responsible for constructing the 12-man squad. Hill used an old-style approach by loading the roster with a boatload of NBA All-Stars with the hope of overwhelming the competition instead of building on the team that competed in the 2023 FIBA World Cup. Hill completely moved away from the highly successful “program” approach implemented by former USA Basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski and former USAB head Jerry Colangelo.

As good as the U.S. roster was for the 2024 Summer Games — and it was pretty darn good with four MVPs wearing the Red, White and Blue — it was terribly flawed. There was too much duplication and not enough defined roles and floor balance. Outside of sharpshooters Curry and Booker, who were the only true floor spaces, the squad Hill created had too many iso-centric players more comfortable in one-on-one settings. LeBron and KD needed the ball in their hands to be effective, which in turn limited the touches for ball-dominant guys like Tatum, Anthony Edwards, Joel Embiid, and Tyrese Haliburton.

Despite the poorly constructed roster, Team USA escaped with the gold medal thanks to Curry’s heroics. Steph’s nine 3-pointers was the catalyst in the 17-point comeback against Serbia in the semifinals and his flurry of 3-pointers — four in the last three minutes to be exact — during crunch time against France sealed the gold medal.

Kerr won’t be around to coach the U.S. men’s national team for the next FIBA World Cup or the L.A. Olympics in 2028, but Hill will likely be the decision-maker again when it’s time to build a roster. Hopefully, Hill learned from his mistakes and bring back the program approach his former mentor Coach K and Colangelo flawlessly executed to avoid another Jayson Tatum situation.

Moments after helping the Boston Celtics capture the franchise’s 18th NBA championship banner, Jaylen Brown was awarded the Bill Russell trophy after being named the most valuable player of the NBA Finals. Brown graciously accepted the trophy from commissioner Adam Silver. Then, he gave a thoughtful and self-effacing remark.

“I share this with my brothers and my partner in crime Jayson Tatum,” said Brown, who has been playing alongside Tatum for seven seasons in Boston and both have absorbed a ton of criticism following three losses in the conference finals, including last year’s disappointing Game 7 loss at TD Garden to the Miami Heat.

“These last seven years have been a roller coaster, up and down. I had to listen to all the s*** that people said about me,” Tatum said.

Celtics general manager Brad Stevens had full faith in the resolve of his two superstars. He trusted that they’ll rebound from the playoff loss to the Heat and come back the following year with a vengeance. And they sure did.

Tatum and Brown played the entire 2023-24 season with massive chips on their shoulders and took out all their frustrations on the rest of the league. The Celtics blitzed through the regular season with a league-best 64 wins and lost just three games in the postseason.

“We’ve been through a lot, the losses, the expectations,” Brown told reporters. “The media have said all different types of things: We can’t play together, we are never going to win. We heard it all. But we just blocked it out, and we just kept going. I trusted him. He trusted me. And we did it together.”

Every championship team over the last four decades have had a great 1-2 punch. Tatum and Brown are the latest dynamic duo to etch their names on basketball lore. Where do Tatum and Brown rank on OneManFastBreak’s annual top-five list? Take a look at this year’s OMFB Furious Five.

***

Each year OneManFastBreak.net ranks the five best players in the NBA. The OMFB Furious Five pays homage to the five styles of Chinese martial arts: snake, crane, monkey, praying mantis, and tiger.

The ranking system is based on one man’s opinion and does not follow or conform to any standard format, with more emphasis placed on how each player and their respective teams performed in the postseason. Stars are born during the regular season, but legends are made in the playoffs.

In 2023, OMFB’s Furious Five featured Jimmy Butler (5), Stephen Curry (4), Joel Embiid (3), Giannis Antetokounmpo (2), Nikola Jokic (1).

Without further ado, here are the five best basketball players in the world.

***

5-JAYLEN BROWN
Boston Celtics, Guard-Forward

Brown wasn’t named to the All-NBA team or the All-Defensive team during the 2023-24 season. Think about that for a minute. The MVP of the 2024 NBA Finals and Eastern Conference finals MVP wasn’t voted on first-team, second-team or third-team All-NBA. Also, he was not named to first-team or second-team All-Defense.

To say that it was a snub was a major understatement. Brown is without a doubt one of the best two-way players in the NBA. He belongs in the top 15 on offense and top 10 on defense. He left little doubt about his status with one of the all-time great performances in the 2024 playoffs.

Against the Indiana Pacers in the conference finals, Brown averaged 29.8 points in the Celtics’ four-game sweep. Brown hit the series-defining shot in Game 1 when he drained a corner 3-pointer to send the game into overtime where Boston took control. From that point, the Pacers could never regain control of the series.

Against the Mavericks in the NBA Finals, Brown took on the defensive challenge of guarding the Dallas Mavericks’ all-world point guard Luka Doncic. He made Doncic earn every point and held the league’s best playmaker to 5.6 assists and 24% shooting from 3-point range. Brown could have easily gloated in front of the media when he had the mic during the postgame Finals pressers. But he took the high road and let his performances speak for themselves.

4-GIANNIS ANTETOKOUNMPO
Milwaukee Bucks, Forward

A calf strain forced Giannis Antetokounmpo to watch his Bucks get eliminated by the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the playoffs.

The two-time NBA MVP felt that he let his teammates down by not being on the court as the Pacers took full advantage of a Giannis-less Bucks squad and won the series in six games. Giannis vowed to do everything in his power to get his body right for the next season.

Antetokounmpo told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that missing the final 22 days of the Bucks season was one of the more difficult stretches of his 11-year career.

“I was trying to push myself and push myself and push myself to get to a place where maybe I can’t check the boxes, but maybe I can even go out there and help, but in our opinion it was not safe for me to be out there because I couldn’t run full speed,” Antetokounmpo said.

Prior to his injury, Giannis put together another outstanding season, averaging 30.4 points while shooting 61.1% from the field. The Bucks remain one of the top teams in the East, but they need a healthy Giannis to compete for a championship.

3-LUKA DONCIC
Dallas Mavericks, Guard

Doncic had one of best season’s of his young career, leading the league in scoring (33.9), finishing third in the MVP voting, and authoring the signature moment of the regular season when he dropped 73 points against the Atlanta Hawks. It was the fourth-highest point total in NBA history and trails only Wilt Chamberlain (100 and 78) and Kobe Bryant (81).

Luka was the driving force behind the Mavericks’ impressive run to the NBA Finals. It was the franchise’s first appearance in the Finals since Dirk Nowitzki led them there in 2011.

But Doncic’s body couldn’t hold up through the entire playoff grind as he physically struggled down the stretch with a plethora of injuries. He received a pain-killing injection ahead of Game 2 in the Finals and played through much of the playoffs with a sprained knee.

Doncic didn’t make any excuses when he was asked about his ailments.

“It doesn’t matter if I was hurt, how much was I hurt,” he told reporters following Dallas’ 106-88 loss in Game 5 at TD Garden. “I was out there. I tried to play, but I didn’t do enough.”

Some of basketball’s greatest players, including Nowitzki, lost the first time they made the NBA Finals. Nowitzki lost to the Miami Heat in 2006, but learned from that loss and got over the hump in 2011. Doncic will certainly take the painful lessons from his Finals loss and learn from them when he gets another shot. He understands that he has to stop complaining to the referees, play better defense, and get in better shape.

2-JAYSON TATUM
Boston Celtics, Forward

Tatum let his emotions pour out after the Celtics won the NBA title. He understood what it meant for him being the face of a storied franchise. He can now join the table reserved for Celtics greats such as Bob Cousy, Bill Russell, John Havlicek, Dave Cowens, Larry Bird, and Kevin Garnett. Winning an NBA title was a career-defining accomplishment for Tatum. “All the sacrifice was worth it,” he told reporters.

Tatum is generally known for his ability to put the ball in the basket. And he’s darn good at it. But critics were quick to point out his flaws after losing to Steph Curry’s Golden State Warriors in the 2022 NBA Finals and to Jimmy Butler’s Miami Heat in the 2023 Eastern Conference finals. Many pundits started doubting Tatum’s ability to lead a team and be able to handle the pressure of being a superstar. Even Mavericks coach Jason Kidd took a swipe at Tatum by telling reporters that Jaylen Brown was the Celtics’ best player.

Tatum absorbed all the blows and kept on grinding. He added layers to game to become more of a complete player. His play-making skills were on full display during the 2024 NBA Finals. Despite struggling from the field (38.8%), he impacted the game in multiple ways. He led Boston in rebounds (7.8) and assists (7.2), and took on the challenge of defending his position as the team’s primary 4-man.

“I think he makes everyone’s life easier,” Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said about Tatum. “One because of who he is as a person, the type of character he has. I think your franchise player has to be a cornerstone of what you do. It starts with his high character, just the way he carries himself as a person, as a dad, as a teammate.”

Tatum may not have collected any hardware during the 2023-24 season, but doesn’t need trophies to prove his greatness. He was Boston’s best player all season, leading team in scoring (26.9) and rebounding (8.1). Tatum could have easily been named Eastern Conference finals MVP after averaging 30.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, 6.3 assists in sweeping the Pacers. By comparison, Brown averaged 29.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists.

Tatum became the sixth player since 1980 to lead his team in points, rebounds and assists in the playoffs while winning a title. The other five were Larry Bird, Hakeem Olajuwon, Tim Duncan, LeBron James, and Nikola Jokic. That’s some pretty good company there.

And now, the No. 1 player in the world. Drum roll please . . .

1-NIKOLA JOKIC
Denver Nuggets, Center

Nikola Jokic has been so consistently brilliant that he could have easily been named MVP four straight years. The known as The Joker won his third regular-season MVP in four years, becoming just the ninth player in NBA history to win at least three MVPs, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (six), Michael Jordan (five), Bill Russell (five), Wilt Chamberlain (four), LeBron James (four), Larry Bird (three), Magic Johnson (three) and Moses Malone (three).

Jokic ranked 10th in points (26.4), fourth in rebounds (12.4) and third in assists (9.0) while missing just three regular season games. He became the second player to have at least 2,000 points, 900 rebounds and 700 assists in a season, joining Oscar Robertson who pulled off the feat in 1962.

Behind the Serbian big man, the Denver Nuggets won 57 wins and earned the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference. In a highly anticipated matchup against LeBron James and Anthony Davis in the first round of the playoffs, Nuggets eliminated the L.A. Lakers in five games with Jokic averaging nearly a triple-double (28.2 points, 16.2 rebounds, 9.8 points). The Jokic-Davis matchup pitted the league’s best offensive weapon against the league’s best defender. Even though the series went just five games, it shaved plenty of skin off the Nuggets.

In the conference semifinals, the Nuggets were stretched to the limit by the upstart Minnesota Timberwolves. The T-Wolves pulled off the improbable, winning Game 7 on Denver’s home court. Jokic did all he could to push the Nuggets forward, but he simply ran out of gas and got worn down by Minnesota’s trio of big men. Nuggets head coach Michael Malone said his team looked “dead tired” and blamed fatigue for blowing a double-digit lead in Game 7 against the T-Wolves. The Nuggets’ starting unit of Jamal Murray, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Michael Porter Jr., Aaron Gordon and Jokic played 958 minutes together in the regular season. That’s more than any other five-man lineup in the last six NBA seasons.

Time will tell where Jokic will land on the list of the greats. If his career ended today, his legacy is secure and his spot in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame is nearly guaranteed. He now wears the crown once held by Kareem, Russell, Wilt, Moses, Hakeem, Shaq, and Duncan as the game’s best and most dominant big man.

But Springfield can wait. The Joker still has plenty of greatness left in him, and he’s far from satisfied winning just one championship.

Eventually, some team is going to break the streak.

In the history of the NBA, when teams take a 3-0 lead in a best-of-seven playoff series, the likelihood of having a shot at winning the series is about as improbable as correctly choosing all six numbers in the lottery. It’s a 1 in 13,983,816 chance of winning.

The 2023 Boston Celtics looked at those odds and said, “So, you’re saying there’s a chance.”

Boston won the equivalent of nailing five of the six numbers in the Mega Millions jackpot and came within 48 minutes of pulling off a playoff comeback for the ages. The Celtics became the first NBA team since 2003 to dig out of an 0-3 hole and force a Game 7. It wasn’t just any series. It was the Eastern Conference finals.

However, like the previous 150 teams that tried to break the cycle, Boston came up short as it got destroyed by the Miami Heat 103-84 in Game 7 at TD Garden Arena.

It was a roller-coaster ride for the Celtics. In a matter of seven days, they went from being massive underachievers to a team on the brink of returning to the NBA Finals only to have it snatched away in one swoop after a shockingly poor performance in front of their loyal fans.

“We failed. I failed. We let the whole city down,” Celtics All-NBA forward Jaylen Brown said during his postgame media availability.

When the Heat took a 3-0 series lead in the conference finals, basketball fans and media pundits were tossing all sorts of narratives around the Celtics and none of them were good.
Talking heads were destroying first-year Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla for being too green and not meeting the moment. Brown’s name was being tossed around in trade scenarios, and the old ghosts that haunted superstar forward Jayson Tatum during last year’s NBA Finals seem to have popped up again.

Seven days later, Mazzulla’s job was no longer in danger. Brown could be in line for a lucrative contract extension and Tatum rediscovered his MVP form.

Once the Celtics decided to step on the gas, it became a series. It shouldn’t come as a surprise the Celtics beat the Heat in seven games. The Celtics finished with the second-best record in the regular season and were one of the betting favorites to reach the NBA Finals. The big surprise was how Boston found itself down 3-0 to an eighth-seeded Miami squad that barely made it out of the play-in tournament.

It’s unfortunate that the Miami Heat, a proud franchise with championship pedigree, found itself on the edge of a historic collapse. A loss to the Celtics are being up 3-0 in the series would have been a permanent stain on the franchise. It would have been a stain on Erik Spoelstra’s impressive coaching résumé, and it would have been a huge stain on the résumés of Miami two superstars — Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.

The Heat wouldn’t even be in the conference finals without Butler and Adebayo. They are the heart and soul of a Miami squad that entered the postseason as massive underdogs. The Heat earned the eighth and final spot in the East playoffs by beating the Chicago Bulls in the play-in tournament. The Heat then pulled off an improbable upset in the first round after knocking off the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks in five games. That upset now feels like an eternity.

Butler and Adebayo faded on the back end of the Boston series, as both looked fatigued.

Butler was in prime Playoff Jimmy form in the first two games of the series, scoring 35 and 27 points and playing lockdown defense on Tatum and Brown. But since then, Butler has struggled to find his shooting stroke. He scored 16 points in Miami’s Game 3 win at home, and things got progressively worse as the series extended. He was 9-for-21 from the field in a Game 4 loss. He took only 10 shots and finished with 14 points in a Game 5 loss. He was 5-for-21 in a Game 6 loss.

Adebayo also got off to great start in the first two games in Boston, taking full advantage of single coverage and doing plenty of damage in the paint (42 points and 25 rebounds). But since then, he has gone ice cold from field (13, 10, 16, 11 points) and hasn’t been as dominant on the glass. In Game 6, Bam was 4-for-16 from the field and couldn’t secure the pivotal rebound that led to Derrick White’s game-winning tip-in as time expired for a stunning 104-103 win.

The shooting struggles for Bam and Butler spilled over into Game 7, but both summoned enough strength and energy to impact the game on both ends and lead the Heat to a win. Miami became just the sixth team in 28 tries to win at the Garden in a Game 7. It was pure heart and determination, which embodies the Heat culture.

There were three key reasons why Miami knocked off Boston and advanced to the franchise’s seventh NBA Finals: Spoeltra’s coaching maneuvers, Heat role players stepping up, and Tatum injuring his left ankle in Game 7.

Spoelstra made all the proper adjustments throughout the series and thoroughly outcoached the rookie Mazzulla. Each time Mazzulla made a move, Spo had a counter. Mazzulla — who at 34 is the NBA’s youngest coach — and his staff couldn’t solve the Heat’s puzzling zone defense. Instead of attack the seams of the zone, Boston settled for contested 3-point shots. Over their final two games of the series, the Celtics shot a combined 16-for-77 from 3, including an abysmal 9-for-42 in Game 7.

Mazzulla’s big adjustment in the series was inserting White into the starting lineup to give the Celtics another shooter and ball handler. Spo countered that move by dropping 34-year-old Kevin Love out of the rotation and sliding super-sub Caleb Martin into the starting lineup. Spo wasn’t only beating Mazzulla with X’s and O’s, but he also was winning the motivational game. Moments after the Heat’s crushing defeat in Game 6, Spoelstra went on the podium and declared: “We wish we could tip this thing off right now. Right now! We want to tip this thing off and let’s play another 48 minutes. But we’ll wait another 48 hours and do this thing in Boston.”

Miami certainly did its thing in Boston in Game 7, and it was the Heat role players who got it started. Gabe Vincent, Max Strus, and Duncan Robinson played outstanding basketball in Game 7, but Martin absolutely played out of his mind. Martin, who came within one vote of winning the conference finals MVP trophy, was sensational in Game 7, scoring 26 points in 45 minutes and making 11 of his 16 shots from the field, including 4-for-6 from 3-point range.

“If you’re a real competitor, it’s in your soul, and that’s what Caleb is. He’s a competitor,” Spoelstra said about Martin, who averaged 19.3 points while shooting 60% from the field and 49% from 3-point range in the conference finals. Martin has never topped 9.6 points per game prior to this postseason and is a career 36% 3-point shooter.

The final big nail on the Boston coffin was Tatum’s ankle injury. He twisted his left ankle 26 seconds into Game 7 and was never the same. He injured it on the first play of the game when he collided with Vincent near the basket and landed awkwardly on Vincent’s foot. Tatum tried to play through the sprain, but his mobility was compromised and the limp got progressively worse as the game wore on. Tatum finished with 14 points on 5-for-13 shooting from the field, easily his worst game of the series and possibly the worst game of his young playoff career.

“It swelled up and it was just frustrating that I was kind of like a shell of myself,” said Tatum, who had a noticeable limp as he addressed the media. “It was tough to move. Just frustrating. Especially it happening on the first play.”

Tatum had averaged a series-high 27.2 points through the first six games.

Overcoming a 3-0 deficit in the postseason is extremely rare in major professional team sports. It has been done four times in the NHL (1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, 1975 New York Islanders, 2010 Philadelphia Flyers, and 2014 Los Angeles Kings), and it’s only been done once in MLB (2004 Boston Red Sox).

The NBA remains the only major sports league not to experience it, but it’s getting close.

The NBA’s 75th season was truly a special one, not just from a historical sense but also for what transpired during the course of the season.

Basketball’s greatest players were honored throughout the season, culminating in a giant celebration on Feb. 20, 2022 in Cleveland, Ohio, when the greats of the game gathered for All-Star weekend and participated in a once-in-a-lifetime ceremony.

Steph Curry was one of four active players who played in the NBA All-Star Game and took part in the halftime festivities honoring members of the NBA’s 75th anniversary team. The All-Star game came down to the final possession. Team LeBron defeated Team Durant, 163-160, LeBron James had an outstanding game, scoring 30 points including hitting the game-winning shot. But the Kobe Bryant trophy was awarded to Curry as the MVP of the All-Star Game. He had an otherworldly game. The Warriors’ superstar dropped a game-high 50 points and obliterated the ASG record for most 3-pointers made with 16. Curry was 16-for-27 from behind the 3-point line. He put on an absolute show in a building full of stars.

Curry became the NBA’s all-time leader in 3-pointers made two months earlier. On Dec. 14, 2021, Curry swished his 2,974th 3-pointer, surpassing Ray Allen’s all-time mark. Curry now sits alone at the top as the only player in NBA history with more than 3,000 3-pointers made (3,117), and he did in 826 games.

Safe to say, Curry enjoyed one helluva season. He became the all-time leader in 3-point shots. He was ASG MVP. He won his fourth NBA championship and his first NBA Finals MVP. And he hosted the 2022 ESPYs.

***

Each year OneManFastBreak.net ranks the five best players in the NBA. The OMFB Furious Five pays homage to the five styles of Chinese martial arts: snake, crane, monkey, praying mantis, and tiger.

The ranking system is based on one man’s opinion and does not follow or conform to any standard format, with more emphasis placed on how each player and their respective teams performed in the postseason. Stars are born during the regular season, but legends are made in the playoffs.

In 2021, OMFB Furious Five featured Nikola Jokic (5), LeBron James (4), Luka Doncic (3), Kevin Durant (2), and Giannis Antetokounmpo (1).

This year, there’s a major shakeup at the top of the OMFB rankings. Without further ado, here are the five best basketball players in the world.

5. JAYSON TATUM
Boston Celtics, Forward

Sometimes you have to go through the bullies on the block in order to get home. That is what Jayson Tatum did in the 2022 NBA playoffs.

He took on the challenge in the first round against Kevin Durant’s Brooklyn Nets and thoroughly outplayed Durant, sending the Nets star packing after an impressive four-game sweep. Tatum then took on the biggest bully on the block in reigning Finals MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo. After the Celtics lost a tough Game 5 at home and went down 3-2 to Giannis and the Bucks, Tatum said he was “excited” for Game 6 challenge on the road in Milwaukee. “I believe in the work that we put in, I believe in the work that I put in,” said Tatum, who had a memorable Game 6 performance in Milwaukee, exploding for 46 points on 17-of-32 shooting. He scored 11 points in a three-minute stretch in the fourth that thwarted a Bucks rally and pushed the Celtics to a 108-95 win.

Tatum tied Paul Pierce for the second most points in franchise history when facing elimination. Sam Jones’ 47-point game remains a Celtics record. Tatum’s teammate Jaylen Brown called the performance a signature moment in Celtics playoff lore. Boston went on to beat Milwaukee in Game 7 at home to advance to the conference finals for the third time in five seasons. Celtics forward Antoine Walker spoke highly of Tatum his Game 6 performance against the Bucks. “That was the best game of his career,” former Celtics forward Antoine Walker said about Boston’s newest superstar.

In an elimination game on the road, Tatum took it upon himself to be the star and put the team on his back. Tatum, 24, has established himself as one of the best players in the world.

4. NIKOLA JOKIC
Denver Nuggets, Center

When Nikola Jokic walks into a gym, he likely won’t get your full attention. His 6-11, 280-pound frame is the most impressive physical feature he displays. He won’t run past you or outjump you. He could easily be mistaken for one of the players in a YMCA Sunday league. But once the two-time NBA MVP steps on the court and displays his basketball skills, it’s pure magic (or pure Magic).

Jokic may be listed as a center but he might as well be a point guard the way he manipulates defenses. The Serbian big man can fill up a box score, averaging nearly a triple-double (20-10-7) during the 2019 and 2020 regular seasons. In the 2020 playoffs inside the Disney World bubble, Jokic averaged 24 points and 9.8 points while shooting 51 percent from the field. Jokic’s Nuggets advanced to the 2020 Western Conference finals where they were eliminated in five games by the eventual world champion L.A. Lakers.

Jokic raised his game to a whole new level in 2020-21 and 2021-22, becoming the first center since Tim Duncan to win league MVP. He has carried a hobbled Nuggets squad on his back the past two seasons while standout point guard Jamal Murray rehabs from an ACL injury. Jokic, who inked a historic $264-million contract extension to stay in Denver through 2028, won his second league MVP following a superb statistical season in 2021-22 (27.1 points, 13.8 rebounds, 7.9 assists). He’s the first NBA player to eclipse 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 500 assists in a season.

Philadelphia 76ers coach Doc Rivers called Jokic the best passing big man ever. “He has a little bit of everybody,” Rivers said. “He has all the footwork and the moves of an [Hakeem] Olajuwon, the lanky and goofy, like goofy intelligence of Kevin McHale. Shoot, man, he’s just good. He’s the best passing big that I’ve seen, I think, ever. I know [Bill] Walton was one of [the best passing centers ever].” When names like Olajuwon, McHale and Walton are thrown around as a comparison, it puts Jokic in elite company.

3. LUKA DONCIC
Dallas Mavericks, Guard-Forward

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is a star on ABC’s “Shark Tank.” He knows a good business product when he see’s one. Cuban sees a very good investment in Luka Doncic.

Cuban made sure Luka will be a Maverick for a long time, signing the Slovenian sensation to a five-year, $207 million extension during the 2021 offseason. “My goal is to win a championship,” said the 23-year-old Doncic, who has already won NBA Rookie of the Year and named to the All-NBA team multiple times. In his fourth NBA season, Doncic averaged 28.4 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 8.7 assists. He was even better during the playoffs, averaging 29-10-5 against Utah in the first round and 32-9-7 against Phoenix in the conference semifinals. In the conference finals against eventual champion Golden State, Doncic averaged 32.0 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 6.0 assists.

“He is one of the toughest players that I have ever seen in this league, and that goes back 35, 36 years,” former Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said of Doncic. “[Luka] is a great young player that is getting better each year. He has an irrepressible enthusiasm for the game, for his teammates, for winning. We’re so fortunate to have him. Now we have to get our roster healthy and get the right players around him.”

Jason Kidd is surely fortunate to have Doncic. With Luka leading the way, the Mavericks reached the conference finals in Kidd’s first year as Mavericks head coach. The signature moment came in the second round when Doncic took an undersized and undermanned Mavs squad into Phoenix and upset the top-seeded Suns in Game 7. It was Doncic’s finest moment in his young pro career. Doncic set the tone early by hitting his first three shots, including two 3-pointers. He snatched the Suns’ hearts by scoring 27 of his game-high 35 points in the first and leading Dallas to a huge 57-27 lead at halftime. The Mavs stunned the Suns with a 123-90 Game 7 blowout victory on the road.

“I think when you talk about Luka’s gift, he’s a special player,” Kidd said. “And for me, as a coach, it’s just to guide him. Be an extra set of eyes and ears to make the game as simple and as easy for him on the court. To give him the answers to the test so that he can do what he does at a very high level.”

So far, Luka is acing the test.

2. GIANNIS ANTETOKOUNMPO
Milwaukee Bucks, Forward

Giannis Antetokounmpo is a special breed. First of all, he is built like a Greek god. His freakishly physical stature (6-11, 242 pounds) allows him to do things on the basketball court mere mortals could only dream about. His combination of size, speed, and power makes him nearly impossible to stop.

Now, combine those traits with an incredible determination to do whatever it takes to win, it puts Antetokounmpo in rarified air. Giannis put himself in the conversation among the all-time greats after his MVP performance in the 2021 NBA Finals as he averaged 35.2 points, 13.2 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.8 blocks per game in the series against the Phoenix Suns, while shooting 61.8% from the field. He made the signature moment in the series when he blocked Deandre Ayton’s dunk attempt with 1:14 left in the fourth quarter of Game 4 that ignited a late Bucks surge that allowed them to tie up the series at 2 apiece after being down in an 0-2 hole. Then, Giannis put a bow on his historic Finals performance with a 50-point game in the series clincher that gave Giannis his first NBA title and ended Milwaukee’s five-decade championship drought.

All the skills Giannis tirelessly cultivated through the first 10 years of his professional basketball career in Europe and in the NBA paid off in the 2021 Finals as he produced one of the greatest performances in postseason history. “I had to do a little bit of everything. I had to defend, I had to rebound, I had to block. The performance illustrated Giannis’ greatness as a basketball player, but he’s well aware he’s far from being a finished product. Sounds ridiculous to even suggest that a multiple MVP winner still has room for improvement. But that is the case with the Greek Freak, who is only scratching the surface of his prodigious talent. He credits Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer for motivating him to be the best. “Coach Bud believed in me. [He] told me in order for me to win, to be great, I have to trust my teammates,” Giannis said. “I have to make the right pass. I cannot be stubborn. I gotta trust the process. It was a three-year process, but we got it done.”

Giannis told NBA TV: “I always think that I can improve,” Giannis said. “That’s the one thing I have been doing, and I’m gonna keep doing it. There are going to be times that I’m not going to improve anymore. But as long as I keep working hard, keep believing in myself, I think I will keep getting better. I can tell you right off the top of my head five things I could do better,” he added. “I could shoot more threes, catch and shoot threes so I can help my teammates space the floor better. I could be able to play-make more. I could improve my handles. Make my handles more tight. There’s a lot of things I can improve.”

To hear an MVP talk about all the things he needs to improve on is very refreshing. Giannis strikes a good balance of high level of confidence and humility. He understands the standards have been reset for him because of what he’s accomplished so far in his young basketball career. It was unfortunate Bucks forward Khris Middleton got hurt and wasn’t available in the 2022 conference semifinals against the Boston Celtics. Giannis was fantastic in the seven-game series, but in the end he couldn’t knock off the Celtics by himself. He needed his wing man. A healthy Bucks squad combined with a motivated Giannis should make the Bucks a title threat. Giannis is all about the work. Now that he’s tasted winning, he wants more and he’ll do whatever it takes to stay on top. “I’ll keep going. I can’t stop,” he said. “That’s my personality. I’m not stopping.”

And now, the No. 1 player in the world. Drum roll please . . .

1. STEPHEN CURRY
Golden State Warriors, Guard

Steph Curry admits he is the NBA’s “petty king.” He sees and hears and remembers all the disses, the slights, and the snubs. It doesn’t matter if they are done in jest. If Curry thinks he or any member of his inner circle gets disrespected, he will clap back.

When a Boston bar trolled Curry’s wife, Ayesha, by posting a sign saying “Ayesha Curry Can’t Cook” the NBA’s greatest 3-point shooter fired right back by wearing a T-shirt to a postgame press conference that read “Ayesha Curry CAN Cook.”

When ESPN talking heads like Domonique Foxworth and Kendrick Perkins both predicted that Curry will win “zero” championships after signing his $215 contract extension with the Warriors, Steph put it in his memory bank and saved the retort for the right occasion. After Curry and the Warriors clinched their fourth NBA title in eight seasons, Curry called out Foxworth and Perkins during a postgame session with the media.

“I clearly remember some experts and talking heads putting up the big zero on how many championships we’d have going forward because of everything we went through,” Curry said. “We hear all that, we carry all that and try to maintain a purpose, not let it distract you. But you carry that weight.”

Curry has had the weight of the world on his shoulders the past two seasons after Kevin Durant left for Brooklyn and Klay Thompson sidelined for 941 days after suffering two devastating injuries (Achilles and ACL tears). But Curry perservered and kept on pushing forward despite not having his Splash Brother by his side. He and Draymond Green were tasked with mentoring the younger players on the Warriors roster, accelerating their growth so the franchise could get back to hunting for titles.

When Klay returned to the lineup in January, the Warriors became whole again. Even though Klay, Steph and Draymond barely played together for the rest of the 2022 regular season, they knew it wouldn’t take long to get their groove back. Once they all got on the court, it was like riding a bike.

The Warriors advanced to the 2022 NBA Finals against the Boston Celtics. After the Celtics took a 2-1 lead in the series, Curry put the Warriors on his back and carried them to a title. Curry was absolutely brilliant in The Finals, averaging 31.2 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists in the series. He shot 43% from 3-point range and averaged 5.2 threes per game. He did all this while mainly being guarded by the reigning NBA defensive player of the year in Marcus Smart.

Curry was absolutely brilliant in The Finals, and his signature moment came in Game 4 when the Warriors went on the road in Boston needing a win to tie the series. Curry dropped 43 points, including seven 3-pointers, to lead the Warriors to a 107-97 win and snatched the heart out of the Celtics. The Warriors would never lose again in the series. Curry put a cap on his Finals performance with 34 points in the series-clinching 103-90 win in Game 6.

Curry was named the unanimous Finals MVP, the first of his career. It should have been his second Finals MVP, but for some strange reason the media inexplicably voted for Andre Iguodala in the 2015 NBA Finals. Iguodala had a nice series, but Steph was the real MVP in the 2015 Finals.

Curry didn’t need to win Finals MVP to validate his career. His legacy is secure. But having the Bill Russell trophy in his hands is the ultimate clapback to all his haters. Night, night folks!

Joel Huerto is the editor and publisher of OneManFastBreak.net. Follow him on Twitter @onemanfastbreak.

Lonzo Ball could be the star the Lakers need to rebuild their brand. (Getty Images)

The Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers are the two most storied franchises in the NBA. These two teams have a combined 33 championships and dozens of Hall of Famers. Now, they are in a rare position of drafting No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the 2017 NBA draft.

Boston is coming of a season in which it finished first in the Eastern Conference and reached the conference finals before losing to LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games. The Celtics are in need of frontcourt help, but they could bolster their talented backcourt with another playmaker. The Lakers are in the midst of their worst four-year run and coming off a 26-win season. L.A. has already gone through a major shakeup in the front office as Hall of Famer Magic Johnson takes over the reigns as head of basketball operations and added Kobe Bryant’s agent, Rob Pelinka, as the team’s general manager. The Lakers badly need a leader and face of the franchise, and they could pick one up in this year’s talent-rich draft.

OneManFastBreak.net ranks the eight best players in the 2017 draft:

LONZO BALL
Guard (6-6, 190)
NBA comparison: Jason Kidd
Scouting report: Lonzo Ball may wear No. 2 but he’s by far the No. 1 player in the draft. Thanks to his very opinionated father, Lonzo, 19, is the most highly publicized prospect in the draft. Whether he likes it or not, Lonzo is under a brighter light that any incoming NBA player but he seems to be unfazed by all the extra attention. Ball’s strengths far outweigh his weaknesses. Unlike the new breed of superstar point guards today like Steph Curry, Russell Westbrook and Kyrie Irving, Lonzo is a pure point guard. The Chino Hills (Calif.) native almost a throwback from the days when point guards were not the leading scorers. Ball led the NCAA in assists (7.6) in his one-and-done year in college, and he led UCLA to 31 wins and a berth in the Sweet 16. About the only knock on Ball — outside of daddy’s bombastic approach — is his unorthodox shot. But most teams say it’s not too big of a concern as long as it goes in. Contrary to popular belief, Ball is a very capable defender who rises to the challenge. Look at video from his matchups against Arizona’s Allonzo Trier and Oregon’s Dillon Brooks. Prior to Ball’s arrival in Westwood, the Bruins were 15-17 and missed the NCAA tournament. Ball not only changed the culture at UCLA but he also upgraded its style of play. Ball helped orchestrate the most explosive offense in college basketball, a fast-pace style reminiscent of the Showtime Lakers in the 1980s led by Magic Johnson. Ball is a special player with a unique skillset. It would be extremely hard for Magic and Pelinka to pass up on a local kid with star potential. If he comes close to living up to the hype his father, LaVar, has been preaching for months then Showtime is about to be unleashed at Staples Center.

JAYSON TATUM
Forward (6-8, 205)
NBA comparison: Rudy Gay
Scouting report: The 19-year-old Duke product could be the most versatile player in the draft. He can play all five positions, and handles the ball well for his size. He’s a natural small forward but can play power forward when teams downsize. He stands 6-8 but has an impressive 6-11 wingspan. Some scouts already view Tatum as a finished product. He may not be an explosive athlete, but he’s a smooth player who rarely plays out of control and has an array of offensive moves when isolated at the elbow. He only shot 36 percent from behind the 3-point arc, but with practice he could develop into a good long-range shooter because his form is exceptional. He has an advanced midrange game to go along with his ability to finish at the rim. Tatum’s draft stock soared when Duke made it’s incredible run during the ACC tournament. Tatum was a major force in the tournament, showing scouts what he’s capable of in the clutch when he took over the final two minutes of the ACC title game by having a hand in Duke’s final 10 points. The one knock on Tatum is his defense. He may struggle defending power forwards and quicker small forwards.

DE’AARON FOX
Guard (6-3, 171)
NBA comparison: Mike Conley
Scouting report: No college team pumps out more NBA-ready guards than Kentucky, and De’Aaron Fox is the latest in a long line of former Wildcats joining the Association. Kentucky coach John Calipari said the 19-year-old Fox “is going to be great at the next level.” Calipari added: “De’Aaron’s speed, length and ability to pick up defensively from 94 feet set him apart from his peers.” Fox is an ultra-quick guard who belies his wiry frame. He has John Wall-type end-to-end quickness that most NBA teams covet. He may not have a deep range on his 3-ball, but he can get to the cup almost at will and able to finish or draw fouls. He may not be John Wall yet but he’s comparable to another speedy lefty guard: Memphis Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley. Conley’s jumpshot is nowhere near where it is now compared to when he first entered the league, so Fox could use Conley as a barometer. Fox’s draft stock rose when he outplayed Lonzo Ball in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tourney. Fox scored 39 points and he looked like the best player on a court filled with pro prospects. The biggest knock on Fox, aside from his poor shooting range, is his recklessness. He tends to play at one speed and can get into trouble when he over dribbles. But most league execs will put up with his lack of discipline because you can’t teach speed.

LAURI MARKKANEN
Forward-Center (7-0, 225)
NBA comparison: Nikola Mirotic
Scouting report: The Arizona forward is very intriguing. Markkanen didn’t dominate the Pac-12 conference but scouts love his game. The big man from Finland has — dare we say — Dirk Nowitzki-type talent. He is the ideal stretch 4. Markkanen averaged 15 points per game and shot 42 percent from 3-point range in his lone season for Sean Miller’s Wildcats. He may not turn out to be Dirk but he could be a really good NBA forward with great potential. Markkanen is a pure shooter who can play power forward or center. Markkanen is a great fit in today’s NBA in which big man are now asked to float around the perimeter to space the floor and allow more dribble penetration by the guards. “For him not to be considered as one of the best freshmen in college basketball is a complete joke,” Miller said. “I will put him up against anybody, not just freshmen, toe-to-toe the quality of player he is. I don’t care if you’re from Russia, China, Finland, Japan, North Dakota, Florida, or New York City. If you have eyes and have seen Arizona play, there aren’t many players that play the way he plays.” We couldn’t have said it better. Whomever drafts Markkanen won’t be disappointed.

BAM ADEBAYO
Guard (6-9, 250)
NBA comparison: Julius Randle
Scouting report: Bam Adebayo was overshadowed by his more celebrated teammates De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk for much of the season, but don’t let his numbers fool you. He won’t wow you with statistics — he averaged 13 points and eight rebounds in his lone season at Kentucky — but he’ll wow you with his effort and energy. He’s got tremendous quickness for a player his size and has great determination on both ends. He’s at his best when he’s setting screens near the top of the circle and diving to the basket. And he can really finish strong at the rim. He handles the ball well for a big man, and can be a frontcourt playmaker at the next level. But what Adebayo does best is defend. Wildcats coach John Calipari said Adebayo is capable of guarding all five positions on the court. Kentucky has had a great run of big men during the Calipari era, from DeMarcus Cousins to Anthony Davis to Karl-Anthony Towns. Adebayo may not have the collegiate credentials as Cousins, Davis and Towns, but he has the potential to be a very good pro.

MARKELLE FULTZ
Guard (6-4, 190)
NBA comparison: Jrue Holiday
Scouting report: Fultz, 19, is the consensus No. 1 pick in almost all of the mock draft boards, but OMFB has some concerns about his one season at Washington. Sure, he put up gaudy numbers (23.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.9 assists), but the Huskies won just nine games and lost 22. That is a serious red flag. If the former DeMatha High School (Md.) standout is a can’t-miss prospect who could be the face of an NBA franchise, then why did his college team had such awful record and did even make the NCAA tourney? That is a question NBA general managers must ask when evaluating Fultz. The measurables are there. He’s got great size and strength for a playmaking guard, and has all the skills to be a dynamic scorer in the NBA. He has a ridiculous 6-9 wingspan, which helps him finish at the rim. He’s quick enough to get by most defenders and has enough range to shoot threes. He already has a Euro step to go along with his mid-range game. In his lone matchup with Lonzo Ball in the Pac-12, he scored 25 points on 9-of-19 shots from the field, grabbed six rebounds, dished out five assists, and knocked down five 3-pointers. But Washington got destroyed 107-66 in Seattle. Ball had 22 points with six rebounds and five assists. A statistically draw between Fultz and Ball, but Lonzo’s team came away with a blowout win.

JOSH JACKSON
Forward (6-8, 203)
NBA comparison: Andre Iguodala
Scouting report: The 20-year-old Kansas forward is an explosive, quick-twitch athlete who could become a solid two-way player in the NBA and most likely the next slam dunk champion. He has the size and quickness to matchup with any position except center. Jackson’s high motor and competitiveness are his greatest strengths, and has the potential to be an elite defender. He can play straight-up man and plays the passing lanes extremely well. Offensively, Jackson is somewhat of a mixed bag. He struggled early on before correcting his shooting woes during the latter part of the college season. He finished with a decent field-goal percentage (51 percent) and averaged 16 points per game. But one glaring stat on Jackson’s stat sheet is his free throws. He shot a mind-boggling 56 percent from the line, which leads many scouts to question his ability to knock down open jumpers on a consistent basis. Some draft boards have Jackson as high as No. 2 to the Lakers. But that’s a bit of a reach considering Jackson’s skillset is not truly off the charts. He’s a good athlete who could become a solid NBA starter, especially if he improves his outside shot.

JUSTIN JACKSON
Guard-Forward (6-8, 193)
NBA comparison: Nicolas Batum
Scouting report: When 22-year-old Jackson tested the NBA waters last spring, evaluators said he needed to improve his shot. He was a good player, but he needed to become a better threat from beyond the arc. So Jackson went back to UNC to work on his shot. The extra work paid off as he turned into a more than capable outside shooter on a national championship squad. Jackson made over a 100 threes during his junior season. He made just 63 total in his first two seasons at Chapel Hill. He averaged 18.4 points per game and also did great work on the defensive end. Jackson could end up playing the 2 or 3 spots at the next level. What may set him apart from the other prospects is his college resume. He’s a flat-out winner. Jackson came within one miracle 3-pointer by Villanova’s Kris Jenkins from winning back-to-back NCAA championships.