NBA Coach Says LeBron James, Steph Curry, Kevin Durant Aren't 'Top-5 Guys Anymore'
While LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant are still among the best players in the NBA even as they near the end of their legendary careers, there is a belief within the league that the new generation of stars has taken over as the cream of the crop.
ESPN's Tim Bontemps spoke anonymously with NBA scouts, coaches and executives this week to get their thoughts on the results of NBA Rank 2025, which is a list of the top 100 players in the league as voted on by ESPN reporters, editors, producers and analysts.
The aforementioned superstar trio cracked the top 10 with Curry at No. 7, James at No. 8 and Durant at No. 9, but they were surpassed by six younger stars in Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Dončić, Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama and Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards.
Those who talked to Bontemps seemed to largely agree with the placement of James, Curry and Durant on the list, with a Western Conference assistant coach saying, "They should be there. They're just not top-five guys anymore."
An Eastern Conference executive agreed, saying, "They're moving down for sure, but they should still be there."
Additionally, an Eastern Conference scout raised a reasonable point about their durability, saying, "They are for sure [top 10] as long as they are healthy, but that's no sure thing at this point."
It wasn't long ago that a strong case could be made for James, Curry and Durant being the three best players in the game.
They are all unquestionably first-ballot Hall of Famers, and they have combined for 47 All-Star selections, 10 NBA titles, seven NBA MVP awards, seven NBA Finals MVP awards and seven scoring titles.
James is the NBA's all-time leading scorer, Curry is the NBA's all-time leading three-point shooter and KD is eighth on the NBA's all-time scoring list.
Even though LeBron is now 40, Curry is now 37 and Durant will turn 37 on Monday, they were arguably Team USA's three best players when the Americans won Olympic gold in Paris last year.
They all did well to remain relatively healthy during the 2024-25 season as well with James and Curry playing 70 games each for playoff teams. Durant played in 62 games for a Phoenix Suns team that missed the postseason.
Durant was traded to the Houston Rockets during the offseason, and while he may be the go-to guy, he can also lean on the young core of Alperen Şengün, Amen Thompson and Jabari Smith.
Meanwhile, James is teamed with the No. 3 player in NBA Rank in Dončić, while Curry is part of a veteran core with Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green.
The Lakers, Warriors and Rockets all have a chance to do damage in the stacked Western Conference this season, and the fact that James, Curry and Durant continue to play at a high level is a huge reason why.
