Power Ranking Every NBA Starting Lineup After Blockbuster Karl-Anthony Towns Trade

Just when it seemed safe to start dropping takes on teams, conference standings, title favorites, and everything else we think about on the verge of an NBA season, the New York Knicks and Minnesota Timberwolves rocked the league with a blockbuster trade on Friday.

Karl-Anthony Towns is now in the Big Apple.

Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo are joining Anthony Edwards in Minny.

And the sudden reshaping of a pair of contenders (or at least fringe contenders) gives us ample reason to revisit the power rankings.

Typically, these are sorted by team and individual numbers, championship chances, recent performance and a healthy dose of subjectivity.

But for this edition, we're specifically sorting the NBA by the quality of each team's starting lineup (the one they'll likely use on opening night, so injuries are factored in), thanks in large part to the massive changes in New York's and Minnesota's.

Projected Starters: Malcolm Brogdon, Jordan Poole, Kyle Kuzma, Alexandre Sarr and Jonas Valanciunas There are real arguments to start Corey Kispert or Bilal Coulibaly at one of the wing spots.

Fans are probably itching to get a look at incoming rookie Bub Carrington at the 1.

But veterans often have the inside track on prospects for starting spots, in part because it probably makes them easier to trade a month or two into the season.

Potential suitors for Malcolm Brogdon, Jordan Poole, Kyle Kuzma and Jonas Valanciunas surely want to see how they look in action before giving up assets for them.

The exception, of course, is No.

2 pick Alexandre Sarr.

He's probably better suited to play the 5, but the way he played at summer league suggests he thinks he can survive as a forward.

Starting him at the 4 keeps that other spot open for JV, too.

None of the above are even fringe All-Stars right now, though.

You might argue that Brogdon, Kuzma or even Valanciunas have been at that level at certain points in their careers, but they're not now.

And a handful of players starting mostly by default (and because of age as much as talent) doesn't inspire a lot of confidence in this lineups potential to jell and win.

Projected Starters: Dennis Schroder, Cam Thomas, Dorian Finney-Smith, Cameron Johnson, Nicolas Claxton There isn't a single player on the Brooklyn Nets roster who seems completely safe from being traded.

Even Nicolas Claxton, who just extended his contract this past season, could be moved, in part because he might have the most value on the team.

That makes for a starting five with Dennis Schroder, Cam Thomas, Dorian Finney-Smith, Cameron Johnson and Claxton that might have a hard time finding continuity with each other.

If all five players are subconsciously (or maybe consciously) auditioning for other teams, playing team-first basketball won't come naturally.

The other issue, of course, is just a clear lack of talent.

All five of the above are solid.

But with the possible exception of Thomas, who's shown upside as a volume scorer, everyone is probably best suited as a fourth or fifth starter on a good team.

Veteran competence from Schroder, DFS, Johnson and Claxton, as well as the aforementioned explosiveness of Thomas, is going to lead to occasional wins, but Brooklyn is definitely going to collect more losses than victories.

Of course, the one player we haven't mentioned that you may have expected to see here is Ben Simmons.

If he really is healthy (as his camp is saying he is), there's probably some value in starting him and maybe boosting his trade value.

You could probably slot him in at either the point or power forward.

But he's just such a question mark after the last three years of injuries and holdouts.

And most teams, even tankers, start out leaning toward surer things.

Projected Starters: Keyonte George, Collin Sexton, Lauri Markkanen, Taylor Hendricks and John Collins Heading into the 2024-25 campaign, the Utah Jazz literally have just one individual player we can be sure will start.

Lauri Markkanen is a fringe All-NBA talent and one of the league's most unique finishers.

Despite appearing in just 55 games, he was top 40 in both total threes made and total dunks in 2023-24.

There's no wasted motion or dribbles on any of his touches either.

He's one of the game's most decisive, explosive and efficient offensive weapons.

After that, your guess might be as good as any.

John Collins moving over to starting center midseason seemed to clarify his role a bit.

And if the Jazz want to pile up losses in an effort to improve their odds of landing Cooper Flagg, they may want to keep Collins there in an effort to juice his trade value.

Unloading him in a rebuilding move would make plenty of sense.

At the point, getting Keyonte George some more developmental reps against starters makes sense.

He's coming off a decent rookie campaign in which he started 44 games, but he still has plenty of room to grow as a shooter and decision-maker.

Taylor Hendricks, the No.

9 pick in 2023, needs even more time.

And Utah can be more open about their tanking by plugging him into the first five right away.

That leaves the 2.

And while there's an argument to start Jordan Clarkson that sounds kind of like the one made for Collins, Collin Sexton may have more trade value than any of the movable vets.

Last season, he played as poised as he has at any point in his career, averaging 18.7 points, 4.9 assists and 1.6 threes in just 26.6 minutes, while shooting 39.4 percent from deep.

What does one great player, two veterans playing for trade value and two completely unproven sophomores add up to? One of the worst starting fives in the NBA, which is probably just fine for Utah right now.

Projected Starters: Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Simone Fontecchio, Tobias Harris and Jalen Duren There are a bunch of different ways the Detroit Pistons could go with their first five.

Starting one of the veteran shooters they just acquired (Malik Beasley and Tim Hardaway Jr.) over Jaden Ivey, a 22-year-old combo guard, makes sense from a short-term perspective.

The smart longer-term move would be to have Ivey and Ausar Thompson on the wings.

The combination above sort of splits the difference, by going with one player still on the way up and another more stable commodity in Simone Fontecchio and his outside shooting.

With the Italian sharpshooter and Tobias Harris at the forward spots, Cade Cunningham has more reliable shooting to pass to than he's typically had in starting lineups.

If he can finally live up to the hype surrounding him as a shooter coming out of college, Detroit might actually cause some problems for opponents this season.

Having a high quality rim-running 5 in Jalen Duren should help Cunningham, too.

As he cuts down the middle of the floor, he'll naturally pull defenses away from Cunningham and those shooters.

Of course, the Pistons probably won't be a surefire playoff team with this new starting five, but it should at least be more competitive.

Projected Starters: LaMelo Ball, Josh Green, Brandon Miller, Miles Bridges and Mark Williams It might be a little easier to get excited about this lineup if we hadn't just learned that Mark Williams is dealing with a foot tendon strain and LaMelo Ball hadn't spent most of the last two seasons on the shelf.

Struggles with availability for both could linger over this lineup and the Charlotte Hornets for much of 2024-25.

If they're healthy, though, Charlotte could be sneaky competitive.

Ball's combination of size, vision and playmaking ability is pretty unusual, even in the NBA.

And if he has a good rim-running 5 to play pick-and-roll with, defenses are going to have to key in on that two-man game.

That will give wings or forwards like Josh Green and Miles Bridges the opportunity to drive past rotating defenses or take open catch-and-shoot threes.

The X-Factor, of course, is Brandon Miller.

The 6'9" wing often looked like the next Paul George as a rookie in 2023-24, when he averaged 17.3 points, 2.5 threes and 2.4 assists, while shooting 37.3 percent from deep.

With his outside shot, slashing ability and defensive potential, he could be star as early as this season.

And if that happens, the Hornets might even challenge for a spot in the play-in tournament.

Projected Starters: Scoot Henderson, Anfernee Simons, Deni Avdija, Jerami Grant and Deandre Ayton Depending on which young guard you're higher on, there's an argument to start Anfernee Simons and Shaedon Sharpe in this backcourt, but Scoot Henderson was the more touted prospect and the third overall pick in 2023.

There's a certain investment in Henderson that suggests he might need to start, even if last season showed the team might be comfortable bringing him off the bench.

Alongside four solid scorers, Henderson can focus more on distributing than scoring (inefficiency largely doomed his rookie numbers), which could make his development a little smoother.

Simons and Jerami Grant are both proven 20-point-per-game scorers and high-level outside shooters.

Deni Avdija has long been a solid defender who came along on the other end in 2023-24.

And Deandre Ayton took a while to warm up to his new situation with the Portland Trail Blazers, but he wound up averaging a double-double for the sixth straight season.

If Portland doesn't end up trading some of the more experienced players here in an effort to collect more ping pong balls for the draft lottery, this lineup could actually be pesky.

That probably won't mean too many wins.

There isn't much depth beyond these five.

But this group will outscore opponents in some stretches.

Projected Starters: Josh Giddey, Coby White, Zach LaVine, Patrick Williams and Nikola Vucevic Josh Giddey is at his best with the ball in his hands, pushing in transition and orchestrating for teammates.

The opportunities to do that were drying up alongside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with the Oklahoma City Thunder, but he should be the primary playmaker again with the Chicago Bulls.

And he has at least three solid finishers in Coby White, Zach LaVine and Nikola Vucevic to set up, particularly if Vucevic can rediscover his jump shot.

LaVine may be sort off the radar after missing much of last season, but his high-volume scoring twice earned him All-Star nods, and he's still just 29 years old.

If he's even 90 percent of his pre-injury self, Chicago's starting five will be competitive.

What could take it from there to a real threat to make the playoffs (assuming LaVine and Vuc aren't moved in rebuilding trades) is a breakout from Patrick Williams.

He's hit 41.0 percent of his career three-point attempts, but that's on low volume, and his ancillary contributions are almost nonexistent.

If Williams becomes a more consistent double-digit scorer, a better rebounder or better at attacking off the bounce, the Bulls will be in better short-term shape.

Projected Starters: Immanuel Quickley, Gradey Dick, RJ Barrett, Scottie Barnes and Jakob Poeltl Injuries limited the amount of time they were able to play together, but the Toronto Raptors' young core trio typically outscored opponents after Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett came over from the Knicks to join Scottie Barnes.

The Raptors were plus-3.8 points per 100 possessions when all three were on the floor.

And though spacing may be a little tricky by adding Jakob Poeltl to that mix, his passing, offensive rebounding and rim protection make him a pretty easy choice at the 5 (though Kelly Olynyk's shooting has to be tempting for coach Darko Rajakovic).

The real key to Toronto outperforming expectations might be second-year wing Gradey Dick.

If he's a high-volume, high-efficiency three-point shooter, some of the spacing concerns that come from starting Barnes and Poeltl could be alleviated.

If Quickley and Barrett can creep up to the high 30s in three-point percentage, even better.

But the best-case scenario for this starting five probably doesn't move it much higher than the play-in range.

Projected Starters: Trae Young, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Zaccharie Risacher, Jalen Johnson and Clint Capela With Dejounte Murray now on the New Orleans Pelicans, the Atlanta Hawks offense is firmly back in the hands of Trae Young.

And generally speaking, that's been a good thing.

Since the start of his second season, Atlanta has put up 117.9 points per 100 possessions with Young on the floor and 110.4 when he's off.

And the lineup above is tailor-made for Young's pick-and-roll prowess.

Capela has tons of experience as the screen-setting and rim-running 5.

And at least in theory, all three of the players between them are floor spacers.

Bogdan Bogdanovic can even spare Young some occasional playmaking responsibility without taking too much (as Murray did).

Jalen Johnson continuing the breakout that started last season would obviously help, too.

He's a dynamic finisher around the rim whose three-point percentage crept up to 35.5 in 2023-24.

Really, the only question mark here is Zaccharie Risacher.

He's bumping De'Andre Hunter from the lineup in this configuration, which may seem like a stretch for an incoming rookie.

But Hunter has never provided a ton beyond 14-15 points per game (he's averaged just 4.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists for his career) and the top overall pick in the draft is tough to keep on the bench.

Projected Starters: Chris Paul, Devin Vassell, Jeremy Sochan, Harrison Barnes and Victor Wembanyama At the outset, I mentioned an effort to stick with players who'll be available on opening night, and I'm sort of backing off that here.

Devin Vassell is going to miss the season opener recovering from a foot injury, but he could be back in early November, and he's a critical part of the San Antonio Spurs' starting five.

Last season, when he, Tre Jones and Victor Wembanyama were all on the floor, San Antonio was plus-10.2 points per 100 possessions.

When those three played without Jeremy Sochan, the net rating skyrocketed to a whopping plus-16.8 .

And this summer, the front office made it even more challenging for coach Gregg Popovich return to his doomed-from-the-start experiment of having Sochan play some variation of point guard.

With Chris Paul on the roster, Wemby should now spending a lot more time alongside a real 1.

His minutes alongside Zach Collins last season served as pretty good evidence that Wembanyama should be playing center, too.

And with those two boxes checked, it's about filling out the lineup with players who complement that two-man game.

Vassell, with his outside shooting and occasional on-ball work, clearly does.

Veteran Harrison Barnes will likely have no problem spacing the floor for that duo.

And though Sochan struggled when his team tried to turn him into something he's not, as a fifth starter tasked with doing the less glamorous work (like crashing the boards, taking on tough defensive assignments or diving on the floor), he should be fine.

Projected Starters: James Harden, Terance Mann, Derrick Jones Jr., Kawhi Leonard and Ivica Zubac Kawhi Leonard is another player who probably won't be starting on opening night, but his return timeline also puts him close enough to that first game to include him here.

And without him, this group would go spiraling toward the bottom of the list.

Even with Kawhi, the Los Angeles Clippers look nowhere near as daunting as they have in the past.

When Paul George left, because the team was over the salary cap, there was no meaningful way to replace him.

So, L.A.

now has two post-prime stars in 35-year-old James Harden and 33-year-old (and oft-injured) Leonard.

Those two will be flanked by scrappy defenders and occasional three-point shooters in Terance Mann and Derrick Jones Jr.

On the nights when those two hit four or five threes, the Clippers might be pretty tough to beat.

But that will be about as reliable as these versions of Harden and Leonard.

The rock of this group might suddenly be Ivica Zubac, one of the league's better space-taking rim protectors and a budding finisher alongside Harden's playmaking.

Projected Starters: Fred VanVleet, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Jabari Smith Jr.

and Alperen Sengun The Houston Rockets are another team that could probably justify a wide variety of starting fives.

At some point this season, there will likely be arguments for one or more of Reed Sheppard, Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore to be promoted.

But for now, we'll default to the same five that started more games than any other for this team in 2023-24: Fred VanVleet, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Jabari Smith Jr.

and Alperen Sengun.

Those five fit together well, particularly if Jalen Green can play closer to how he did in March (when he averaged 27.7 points with a 61.3 true shooting percentage) than how he did in the rest of the season.

An every-night, sort-of alpha scorer may be the biggest need for that lineup, and Green has shown flashes that he's capable of being that.

Sengun certainly has some chops as a post and mid-range scorer, too.

But he may do nearly as much damage as a distributor as he does a scorer in coming years.

From there, surrounding those two with shooting and defensive versatility makes sense.

VanVleet and Smith can provide the former, while Brooks and Smith bring the latter.

Projected Starters: Terry Rozier, Tyler Herro, Jimmy Butler, Nikola Jovic and Bam Adebayo The most obvious potential snub here is Jaime Jaquez Jr.

He was much better than expected as a rookie and more of a ball-mover than Tyler Herro, who thrived off the bench in 2021-22, when he won Sixth Man of the Year.

But Herro is going into his age-25 campaign, has started almost every game he's played the last two seasons and will be making $29 million in 2024-25.

It might be hard to sell him on a reserve role right now.

And that's probably fine, too.

Herro has averaged at least 20 points in each of his last three seasons and can provide three-point shooting that this starting five desperately needs.

Traditional floor spacing isn't coming from stars Jimmy Butler (who looks to work in the mid-range and paint) and Bam Adebayo.

And Terry Rozier has been up and down from out there throughout his career.

That puts a fair amount of pressure on Herro and Nikola Jovic to knock down long jumpers, and both seem up to the task.

Herro's hit 38.5 percent of his career three-point attempts and Jovic shot 39.9 percent from deep last season.

Of course, this group is only going as far as Butler and Bam take it, though.

The latter is an underrated facilitator and one of the best and most consistent defensive presences in the NBA.

If the former is healthy and playing at or near the level he typically does in the playoffs, Miami could push for home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

Projected Starters: Dejounte Murray, CJ McCollum, Brandon Ingram, Trey Murphy III and Zion Williamson This group is small and potentially lacks long-range shooting.

Dejounte Murray and Brandon Ingram's three-point shots have been relatively shaky for years, and Zion Williamson basically stopped shooting them immediately after a career debut in which he hit four triples.

CJ McCollum and Trey Murphy III can get bombs up and in in droves, but there will still be possessions when things feel pretty cramped inside for the New Orleans Pelicans.

Still, the potential for versatility, particularly on the offensive end, is intriguing.

Right now, the Pelicans don't really have a starting-caliber center on the roster.

If that means starting Zion there as a sort of playmaking 5, opposing big men are going to be backpedaling a lot.

Williamson is one of the league's most dynamic drivers, cutters and finishers.

Few, if any, traditional centers are nimble enough to really bother him defensively.

And with the pressure he puts on the rim, everyone else in the lineup should have a little extra space to operate from the outside.

At least three of those other startersMurray, McCollum and Ingramcan run pick-and-roll with Zion, too.

Knowing the point of attack can come from anywhere can scramble a defense earlier in possessions.

On defense and the boards, this group could really struggle, but it has the potential to put up enough points to more than make up for that.

Projected Starters: De'Aaron Fox, Kevin Huerter, DeMar DeRozan, Keegan Murray and Domantas Sabonis Despite starting 134 of his 139 games since joining the Sacramento Kings, Kevin Huerter feels like far from a lock to start at the 2.

Malik Monk just signed a new deal with the team and lapped Huerter as a playmaker last season.

Keon Ellis' defensive versatility may be more needed than anything Monk or Huerter bring to the group.

But we'll default to Huerter, for now, because of his history with the team and this group's need for a high-volume floor spacer.

With DeMar DeRozan now on the Kings, they'll be starting two non-three-point shooters in him and Domantas Sabonis and one shaky one in De'Aaron Fox.

All three are crafty enough, particularly as passers, for this to still work, but it'll be nice to have a couple dedicated catch-and-shoot threats in Huerter and Keegan Murray alongside them.

The swing piece is likely Murray.

We know, more or less, what the star trio will provide.

Fox is one of the league's best downhill slashers, DeRozan can pick teams apart from the mid-range and Sabonis is a playmaking 5 whose passing would get a lot more shine in an NBA without Nikola Jokic.

If Murray supplements that with 13-14 points, a couple threes and a near-40 three-point percentage (right around his career levels), great.

But if he can stretch that production out a bit, do a little more damage off the bounce and make a bigger impact on defense, Sacramento can go from a potential play-in team to a threat to finish top six.

Projected Starters: Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam and Myles Turner The Indiana Pacers have one of the most playmaking-rich starting fives in the NBA.

And while that obviously has a lot to do with Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard and Pascal Siakam can provide an offensive wrinkle that will keep teams from selling out on Haliburton.

Both Nembhard and Siakam averaged over four assists in 2023-24 and should be able to feast against defenses scrambled by Haliburton.

The questions for Indiana, after finishing 24th on defense last season, are on the other end of the floor.

The Pacers have a good rim protector and perimeter defender in Myles Turner and Aaron Nesmith, but Siakam and Nembhard will need to be more consistent on that end for Indiana to push toward average.

If they wind up there and still score at or near the same rate they did in 2023-24, the Pacers will be a sleeper for another deep playoff run.

Projected Starters: Stephen Curry, Buddy Hield, Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga and Draymond Green There are cases for starting each of the youngsters Brandin Podziemski and Trayce Jackson-Davis, but the 2023-24 Golden State Warriors' most-used starting five featured Andrew Wiggins, Jonathan Kuminga and Draymond Green in the frontcourt.

And Buddy Hield is more of a Klay Thompson replacement than Podz.

Though this group is small, Green has long shown a willingness and ability to bother bigger players.

And the backcourt of Stephen Curry and Buddy Hield can pour in enough threes to keep pace with most opposing lineups.

Last season, that formula still worked.

Golden State was plus-6.2 points per 100 possessions when Curry, Klay and Green were all on the floor.

Hield keeps that formula alive, while Wiggins and Kuminga athleticism, the ability to pressure the rim and a little defensive versatility to the group.

Projected Starters: D'Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, LeBron James, Rui Hachimura and Anthony Davis There's no suspense here.

Incoming Los Angeles Lakers coach already told Zach Lowe that he's going to start D'Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves, LeBron James, Rui Hachimura and Anthony Davis.

In the 24 games L.A.

tipped off with those five in 2023-24, it went 18-6.

And it's not difficult to see why those five are so effective together.

There's a wealth of playmaking from Russell, Reaves and LeBron.

Those three and Hachimura bring a lot of spacing to deploy around AD.

And though the big man may still want to play more 4, the Lakers are more mobile and versatile when he's at the 5.

Davis is one of the league's best defensive anchors.

And even without the jump shot that helped L.A.

win the title in 2020, his scoring around the rim makes him a clear plus on offense, too.

Lack of depth may keep the Lakers in the play-in range this season, but this lineup will likely win its minutes.

Projected Starters: Jalen Suggs, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero and Wendell Carter Jr.

Last season, the Orlando Magic were plus-8.8 points per 100 possessions when Jalen Suggs, Franz Wagner, Paolo Banchero and Wendell Carter Jr.

were all on the floor.

And Kentavious Caldwell-Pope feels like an ideal addition to that group.

KCP is comfortable being little more than a floor spacer who won't take the ball out of Franz and Paolo's hands.

Running the offense through those two forwards, as opposed to a more traditional point man, is part of what makes the offense less predictable and potentially more explosive.

Having that kind of on-ball prowess from the frontcourt allows Orlando to deploy more of a defensive specialist at the 1, too.

And Suggs as quickly shot up the list of the league's best perimeter defenders.

With him and KCP on the floor, the Magic will be in the hunt for the top point-of-attack defense in the NBA.

From there, if they can just get solid rim protection and occasional scoring from Carter, this will be one of the better starting lineups in the league.

Projected Starters: Ja Morant, Desmond Bane, Marcus Smart, Jaren Jackson Jr.

and Zach Edey This is another lineup that brings plenty of familiarity and playmaking.

Ja Morant, Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr.

have now been together for four seasons, and the Memphis Grizzlies are plus-7.0 points per 100 possessions with all three on the floor during that span.

Morant's slashing, flanked by the shooting of Bane and Jackson, makes this a tough trio to slow down, especially when it's flanked by helpful role players.

Of course, that's where Marcus Smart and Zach Edey come in.

The former, if healthy, is almost certainly an upgrade over Dillon Brooks.

Smart is a smaller but more consistent, and slightly less dramatic, perimeter defender.

And though Brooks has the higher career three-point percentage, Smart's willingness to to take threes keeps defenses honest.

And he's a significantly better playmaker.

Memphis being able to initiate sets or possessions with Bane and Smart should take some pressure off Morant to carry the offense all game.

The bigger (both physically and philosophically) question mark is 7'4" incoming rookie Zach Edey.

In this lineup, he won't be asked to do a ton beyond finish spoon-fed dunks, rebound and cover the paint defensively (which will allow JJJ go back to his more natural roamer role on defense).

And if he can do that, Memphis will once again be a regular-season wins machine.

Projected Starters: Mike Conley, Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, Julius Randle and Rudy Gobert We've finally made it to one of those lineups that was dramatically shaken up by last week's trade.

And in the Timberwolves case, it's hard to sell the move as an upgrade.

Advanced numbers suggested Karl-Anthony Towns was slightly better than Julius Randle last season.

More important than that, he just fit this lineup better.

When Rudy Gobert is on the floor, wether with Minnesota or Utah, you want as much shooting as possible around him.

Towns fit that mold much better than Randle does.

The new power forward is also more of a ball-stopper.

And if he wants as much time to isolate as he's had at previous stops, Anthony Edwards will have fewer on-ball opportunities than he did in 2023-24.

That could slow his multi-year breakout a bit.

Add the offensive inconsistency of Jaden McDaniels and the age of soon-to-be-37-year-old Mike Conley, and it's fair to have some concern for this starting five, even after 80 percent of it went to the Western Conference Finals in 2024.

Still, Edwards has the potential to finish the upcoming campaign as a consensus top-10 player.

And having Gobert's rim protection flanked by the perimeter defense of Edwards and McDaniels gives Minnesota the chance to have another dominant defense.

Even if the Wolves' starters aren't quite as good as they were last year, the team is deeper and still equipped to win plenty of games.

Projected Starters: Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Max Strus, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen We're now entering Year 3 for the Cleveland Cavaliers' top four of Darius Garland, Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen.

The shortcomings for that group have gotten plenty of attention.

Garland and Mitchell are too small on defense.

The balance of power in terms of possessions and playmaking responsibility has been tricky.

And with the frontcourt, unless or until Mobley becomes a consistent outside shooter, things can get crowded inside.

When all four have been on the floor over the last two seasons, Cleveland is plus-2.6 points per 100 possessions, a number that comes up well short of several other configurations involving individual members of the group.

Just in terms of raw talent, though, there's plenty here.

Garland, Mitchell and Allen have all made All-Star teams.

Mobley has the potential to be named to one as early as this season.

And Max Strus is a good gap-filling forward who can get threes up in droves.

Projected Starters: Damian Lillard, Gary Trent Jr., Khris Middleton, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez If this lineup had slightly younger and/or healthier versions of Damian Lillard, Khris Middleton (who's coming off an offseason in which he had surgeries on both ankles) and Brook Lopez, this would be a contender for the top spot on this list.

But each of the above being maybe a half-step slower than their peak selves and potential injury risks brings some caution to this lineup.

Still, assuming Lillard's 2023-24 helped him adjust to a slightly less ball-dominant role, deploying those three and Gary Trent Jr.

around Giannis Antetokounmpo makes plenty of sense.

Giannis is one of the most dominant interior scorers in NBA history.

And when he's surrounded by shooting, opponents are in a real pick-your-poison scenario.

When your options are Antetokounmpo inside or four three-point shooters outside, there really isn't a good answer for defenses.

On the other end of the floor, Giannis is still one of the game's better free safety-like defenders.

Lopez takes up a ton of space inside.

But again, given those age and availability concerns, it's fair to worry about the perimeter defense.

Projected Starters: Tyus Jones, Bradley Beal, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Jusuf Nurkic There's a pretty strong case to bring Bradley Beal off the bench for this team.

In a vacuum, he's a better player than Grayson Allen, but there's more than enough usage and playmaking going to Tyus Jones, Devin Booker and Kevin Durant.

And Beal could dominate opposing second units.

That'd be a tough sell for a 31-year-old three-time All-Star making $50.2 million this season, though.

The Phoenix Suns will almost certainly start their three stars, Jusuf Nurkic and their incoming floor general.

And legitimate concerns about the division of labor for this group aside, it's undoubtedly one of the most talented starting lineups in the league.

Booker and Durant are two of the best three-level scorers in the NBA.

Beal should be able to dominate third-option defenders.

Nurkic is an underrated facilitator.

And Jones should have the entire group more organized than it was for most of last season.

Projected Starters: Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, Klay Thompson, P.J.

Washington and Dereck Lively II The Dallas Mavericks could keep Daniel Gafford in the starting five.

He played that role for the team that just went to the Western Conference Finals.

But second-year center Dereck Lively II is younger and more dynamic (particularly as a passer) on offense.

The earlier Dallas starts getting him game-starting reps with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, the better.

Everything else here is pretty obvious.

We now have plenty of evidence that Luka and Kyrie can thrive together.

And putting two switchable defenders (more theoretical for Klay Thompson, at this point) and outside shooters (more theoretical for P.J.

Washington on this one) on the floor with them makes sense.

This lineup has a perennial MVP candidate in Luka, one of the best second options in the NBA in Kyrie, a potential star at the 5 and two solid role players.

The Mavericks will absolutely be in the mix for another deep playoff run with this group in place.

Projected Starters: Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby and Karl-Anthony Towns Concerns about the defensive shortcomings of the top two scoring optionsJalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Townsare fair.

But that duo will be one of the most explosive one-two punches in the league, and they're surrounded by maybe the best possible supporting cast to cover their flaws.

Josh Hart, Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby are all plus defenders.

At points during his career, Anunoby has looked like a Defensive Player of the Year candidate.

The tenacity, switchability and length of those three, not to mention the outside shooting of Bridges and Anunoby, makes this one of the league's most talented and best-fitting starting lineups.

Going beyond complimentary descriptions and into legitimate title contention is mostly about Brunson and Towns, though.

If the guard can recreate the kind of production he had as a top-five MVP candidate in 2023-24, and the big can combine the defensive habits he picked up alongside Gobert to the offensive numbers he put up prior to the Gobert trade, the Knicks could represent the East in the Finals.

Projected Starters: Tyrese Maxey, Caleb Martin, Paul George, Kelly Oubre Jr.

and Joel Embiid Following the acquisition of Paul George and re-signing of Tyrese Maxey in free agency, the Philadelphia 76ers instantly had one of the league's most talented top trios with those two and Joel Embiid.

Dispersing that kind of talent at point guard, wing and center feels ideal.

Both of the smaller players can shoot and have plenty of experience playing with high-usage superstars.

Having them on the floor will make it more difficult for opposing defenses to try to sell out on Embiid, too.

Assuming decent health for all three, this trio could realistically average well over 70 points.

But it takes more than three players to contend, and with Philadelphia's books mostly clear heading into the summer, the front office had to nail the moves after Maxey and George.

Time will tell if it did, but it's fair to be optimistic about Caleb Martin and Kelly Oubre Jr.

as the fourth and fifth starters.

They have the length and lateral quickness to fit in a switch-heavy scheme with George.

And though their three-point percentages leave something to be desired, the confidence to get those attempts up will force defenses to pay attention out there.

Projected Starters: Jrue Holiday, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum and Al Horford With Kristaps Porzingis set to bet out till at least December, we have to go with the Al Horford version of this lineup.

And even then, it's probably the better starting five in the NBA.

Jayson Tatum is a top 5-15 player in the NBA.

Jrue Holiday, Derrick White and Jaylen Brown are all arguably top 50.

And though he's 38 years old, Al Horford is still moving well, hitting threes and providing plenty of communication and leadership on the defensive end.

It should come as no surprise that Boston went 10-3 when this lineup started games in 2023-24, but the record may have more to do with depth than you realize.

The Celtics were only plus-1.3 points per 100 possessions when these five were all on the floor.

They should be fine until KP is back, though maybe not as dominant as the regular starting five from last season.

Projected Starters: Jamal Murray, Christian Braun, Michael Porter Jr., Aaron Gordon and Nikola Jokic One of the summer's most analyzed moves was Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's departure for the Orlando Magic, but most of the takes expressed disappointment in or concern for the Denver Nuggets.

And while KCP was undoubtedly an important part of the Nuggets' success over the last two seasons, including his essential 2023 Finals performance, they're still bringing back their top four players.

That includes the best individual player in the world in Nikola Jokic.

Over the last two seasons, when he shared the floor with Jamal Murray, KCP, Michael Porter Jr.

and Aaron Gordon, the Nuggets were plus-10.2 points per 100 possessions (and that includes the playoffs).

The sample size is only 276 minutes, but that number climbs to plus-23.2 when the four remaining starters played without Caldwell-Pope.

Replacing him isn't as simple as those numbers suggest, but Christian Braun is younger, a better rebounder and a better option to defend bigger guards and wings.

It's slightly different than the lineup we've come to know over the last two seasons, but this should still be one of the best five-man units in the league.

Projected Starters: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Luguentz Dort, Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein There's a case for starting Alex Caruso over Luguentz Dort and sliding Jalen Williams over to the 3.

Caruso could also start for Isaiah Hartenstein, with Chet Holmgren at the 5.

There's even an argument to start both newcomers (Caruso and Hartenstein) alongside SGA, Williams and Holmgren.

The point is that the Oklahoma City Thunder are deeper, better and more positionally versatile than they were before the season started.

The lineup we settled on for this exercise features one of the game's best primary offensive options in Gilgeous-Alexander, a budding star in Williams and plenty of defense from the Dorture Chamber, Chet and Hartenstein.

This is also the big lineup that will almost certainly be necessary for an opponent like the Nuggets.

And it gives Holmgren the opportunity to develop some of his perimeter skills at the 4..

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