Ranking the Best Big 3s Ahead of 2025-26 NBA Season
Today's NBA isn't as Big 3-heavy as we've seen in previous years, with teams putting more emphasis on depth and overall versatility.
With stars like Jayson Tatum, Tyrese Haliburton, Damian Lillard and Kyrie Irving expected to miss most or all of next season due to injury, their collective absences put a damper on some potential Big 3s as well.
Still, there are plenty of power trios out there to watch in 2025-26, including a brand new one thanks to an offseason blockbuster trade.
Based on their net rating together last season, previous success, expected growth and a number of other factors, these are the best Big 3s approaching the new NBA season.
Honorable Mentions
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Los Angeles Lakers: Luka Dončić, LeBron James, Austin Reaves
2024-25 Net Rating: +1.3, 61st percentile
The trio with the lowest combined net rating on this list by far, the Lakers still deserve some recognition given that Dončić looks to be in far better shape now and will have a full training camp to adjust to his new teammates.
We could see the best version of Dončić to date, which is scary considering the 26-year-old has already averaged 33.9 points, 9.2 rebounds and 9.8 assists in a season. James is showing no signs of slowing down, even as he approaches age 41, and Reaves is coming off the best year of his career, averaging 20.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 5.8 assists.
Assuming James stays in LA, this is a dangerous group of stars (offensively, at least) who should have a much better net rating together with more reps.
New York Knicks: Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby
2024-25 Net Rating: +7.4, 85th percentile
The Knicks have a few different Big 3 versions, as Anunoby can be swapped out for Mikal Bridges or Josh Hart. The net rating with Brunson, Towns, and any of the other three was very similar.
Brunson and Towns were both named All-Star starters in the Eastern Conference last season and made the second and third All-NBA teams, respectively. Anunoby averaged 18.0 points per game and is one of the best wing defenders in the league.
Towns' struggles on defense will limit the defensive ceiling of any Knicks' Big 3, although this will be the second-best trio in the East next season.
Golden State Warriors: Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green
2024-25 Net Rating: +8.7, 87th percentile
The oldest Big 3 on this list, Curry, Butler and Green will average 36 years in age by the time the 2025-26 season begins.
Still, the Warriors went 22-5 with Curry and Butler following the latter's trade over from the Miami Heat last season and won a playoff round against the Houston Rockets.
With a whopping 454 total playoff games behind them and 14 NBA Finals appearances, this is an extremely battle-tested trio, even if age will be a concern.
5. LA Clippers: Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, Bradley Beal
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2024-25 Net Rating: +14.2, 97th percentile*
The LA Clippers had a sparkling net rating of plus-14.2 with just Kawhi Leonard and James Harden on the floor together last season. The addition of Bradley Beal only adds more offensive firepower—or Beal could even be swapped out for center Ivica Zubac (16.8 points, 12.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.1 blocks, sixth in Defensive Player of the Year voting) as the third member of this Big 3.
Both Leonard and Harden are years beyond their primes but remain extremely productive and mesh well together. Harden was an All-Star and made the All-NBA third team last season while finishing fifth in assists per game (8.7) to go along with his 22.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.5 steals.
Leonard's durability will continue to be an issue, although he looks to be fully healthy heading into the 2025-26 season and was brilliant in the playoffs against the Denver Nuggets with 25.0 points, 7.6 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.1 steals a game while shooting 53.7 percent overall and 40.5 percent from three.
Beal has become a bit of an afterthought the past two seasons with the Phoenix Suns on a bloated contract, but is arguably the best bargain in the NBA now with the Clippers for just $5.3 million.
Even while rotating between starter and bench in Phoenix, Beal still put up 17.6 points, 3.9 rebounds and 4.3 assists on 50.5/40.7/80.8 percent shooting splits the past two seasons. The only other NBA player to put up the same numbers on equal or better shooting efficiency was Kevin Durant.
The Clippers may be old, but they are deep and led by one of the best Big 3s in all of basketball, regardless of whether you include Beal or Zubac.
4. Houston Rockets: Kevin Durant, Alperen Şengün, Amen Thompson
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2024-25 Net Rating: +11.1, 93rd percentile*
The Houston Rockets already had a strong net rating when Alperen Şengün and Amen Thompson shared the floor last season (plus-11.1). The trade for Kevin Durant was also addition by subtraction, however, as Houston was a ridiculous plus-26.8 with Şengün, Thompson and no Jalen Green in 772 possessions last season.
Adding Durant in place of Green to a young, successful and elite defensive Houston Rockets team was the perfect fit for the 15-time All-Star.
The Phoenix Suns were a huge disappointment last season, masking what was an all-time great offensive campaign by Durant. By averaging 26.6 points on 57 percent shooting on two-pointers and 43 percent on threes, Durant became just the second player in NBA history to score at this volume on this great of efficiency. The other? Durant with the Brooklyn Nets in 2020-21.
Now, the four-time scoring champ has an even better supporting cast around him.
Şengün was a first-time All-Star last season at age 22, averaging 19.1 points, 10.3 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He's improved steadily on the defensive end, contesting the fifth-most shots per game at the rim last season while holding opponents to a career-best 58.5 percent shooting. One of the best passing big men in the NBA, Durant should be thrilled to play alongside Şengün.
Thompson made the NBA's All-Defensive first team at age 22 while averaging 16.0 points, 9.2 rebounds and 4.9 assists in his 42 starts while shooting 56.0 percent overall from the field. Thompson is quickly becoming one of the best defensive players in the NBA with his combination of size (6'7", 7' wingspan) and athleticism and will allow Durant to guard some of the easier forward matchups. If the outside shot comes around, Thompson is a future All-Star.
Durant's age (37 in September) will start to become a concern, although putting two young, emerging stars around him will lessen his responsibilities on both ends, allowing for fresher legs and continued offensive efficiency.
The Rockets are going to be really good next season and should have championship aspirations now with Durant.
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3. Cleveland Cavaliers: Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, Darius Garland
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2024-25 Net Rating: +10.1, 91st percentile
The only Big 3 where every member made the All-Star game last season, this young group of Cleveland Cavaliers is only going to be better going into Year 4.
Donovan Mitchell is in his prime at age 28, coming off a season in which he finished fifth in the MVP voting and was named to the All-NBA first team for the first time in his career.
His averages of 24.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 1.3 steals could have been even better had he not done the right thing in taking a step back for a player like Mobley to grow.
Mobley won Defensive Player of the Year last season at age 23 while taking a huge step offensively under new head coach Kenny Atkinson. He became a legitimate floor-spacing big (37.0 percent from three on 3.2 attempts per game) and made a career-best 62.1 percent of all shots inside the arc. A good passer for someone his size, Mobley could seemingly overtake Mitchell as the Cavs' best player in the next year or two.
And then, having Darius Garland as your third-best player is a luxury. The two-time All-Star joined Nikola Jokić as the only two players in the NBA to average at least 20 points and six assists while shooting at least 40 percent from three last season. One of the quickest guards in the league with a soft touch around the basket, Garland won't even turn 26 until 2026.
Led by two of the best offensive guards in the NBA and a big man who won DPOY honors, the Cavs have the best Big 3 in the East and one of the most promising trios in the entire league. A lack of playoff success has held them back to this point, although that has more to do with health than ability.
2. Denver Nuggets: Nikola Jokić, Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon
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2024-25 Net Rating: +14.8, 97th percentile
Only one member of the Denver Nuggets' Big 3 has ever been named to an All-Star team, which speaks more to the greatness of Nikola Jokić than anything.
With a sparkling net rating and a championship together, however, the Nuggets still have one of the best trios in the entire NBA.
Jokić is the best basketball player on Earth and is coming off the greatest season of his Hall of Fame career. Averaging an absurd 29.6 points, 12.7 rebounds, 10.2 assists and 1.8 steals, he also shot 62.7 percent inside the arc and a career-best 41.7 percent outside of it. He finished in the top-3 spots in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals last year—yet still didn't win MVP.
Jokić is one of the greatest centers of all time, with the list ahead of him shrinking by the season.
Murray is quietly coming off the highest-scoring season of his career (21.4 points) while chipping in 6.0 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 1.4 steals. He owns a playoff scoring average of 23.8 points per game, which is higher than players like Wilt Chamberlain, Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, James Harden, Russell Westbrook and many other all-time greats.
Aaron Gordon has become the perfect complement to both Jokić and Murray for the past four-and-a-half seasons and shot a career-high 43.6 percent from three last year. A strong, multi-positional defender, Gordon averaged 15.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists in his 42 starts.
This Big 3 is battle-tested, possesses the best player in the world and has blended perfectly well together, even if two members don't have the individual accolades of some other players on this list.
1. Oklahoma City Thunder: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren
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2024-25 Net Rating: +14.3, 97th percentile
The youngest Big 3 on this list is also the NBA's best, which should be terrifying for the rest of the league.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren average less than 25 years in age, yet between them stamped a championship, MVP, two All-Star appearances, a pair of All-NBA teams and an All-Defensive team on their resumes all in the last calendar year. Of course, the three were properly rewarded with a whopping $822 million in new contracts and extensions this offseason.
Gilgeous-Alexander just put together one of the greatest seasons we've ever seen by collecting a regular season MVP, Finals MVP, scoring title and championship ring like they were infinity stones. His 32.7 points, 5.0 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 1.7 steals per game stat line have only been matched by James Harden in NBA history.
Williams has perhaps the biggest riser of this group, a do-it-all-wing who made his first All-Star game, was named to the All-NBA third team and All-Defensive second team. A reliable second scoring option next to Gilgeous-Alexander, the 24-year-old has proven himself as a max player.
Holmgren wasn't eligible for any postseason awards, as injuries held him to just 32 games last season. Still, the 7'1" big man has become one of the best defenders in the NBA, holding opponents to just 44.0 percent shooting at the rim last season. This was the lowest mark of all 381 players who contested 50 shots or more.
Given their collective ages, it's scary how good this group can become, especially now that all are under contract with the Thunder for the next six years.
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