re: Who has the best starting 5 in basketball?

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Kawhi Leonard has not made an All-Star team. So they don't have "4 legit all stars."

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Tony parker is nowhere near a legit all star right now in his career. Give me the Rockets from this list fwiw.

iirc Lawson was 6th or 7th in the whole league in points created last season. (Points scored + (assists*2)). 3rd in the league in points on drives/game. He's an elite playmaker no matter how you look at it. His defense dings him a bit but for posters to say that someone like HOliday is better. Wow just wow.

Dwight, James, Trevor, coach Mchale, etc will take care of that. He causes a mess in the locker room D12 will whoop his arse and that'll be the end of that.

Ty Lawson Is the Most Underrated Point Guard in the NBA

February 24, 2015


Despite playing in the Mile High City, Ty Lawson is flying under the radar this season.

The 5’11” 195-pound point guard has silently put together a career year with the struggling Denver Nuggets.

Second to John Wall, Lawson is dishing 9.9 assists per game, and he’s only turned the ball over 136 times in comparison to Wall’s 206. He also ranks 15th in the NBA in double-doubles with 22, which is third best amongst guards—trailing Chris Paul (26) and Wall (30).

The Nuggets haven’t been as successful as Paul’s Los Angeles Clippers and Wall’s Washington Wizards, but without Lawson's contributions, Denver would be competing with the New York Knicks and Los Angeles Lakers for the NBA’s worst record.

Lawson's wins above replacement are 6.42, which is ninth best amongst 1's, and in the three games he's missed this season, the Nuggets are 0-3. In 2013-14, Denver went 7-13 without Lawson and 29-33 with him.

Lawson is a quick guard capable of getting into the paint on command. He's most effective in the pick-and-roll, breaking down defenses and feeding an open big man.

Aside from scoring 16.7 points per game to go along with his 9.9 APG, Lawson is posting a player efficiency rating of 19.53, via ESPN.com, with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.76 that trails only Paul's 4.27.

Lawson can push the ball in the open court and ignite plenty of fast breaks, which the Nuggets must continue doing in order to counteract their shooting woes and embrace their athleticism. Denver's pace, or possessions per 48 minutes, is fifth best in the league at 98.40, with Lawson's personally at 101.11.

He's second in assist opportunities per game with 20.3 to Rondo’s 20.5 (with the Boston Celtics), and he’s second in points created by assist per game with 23.2 to Wall's 23.5, via NBA.com.

Lawson is also second in free-throw assists per game with 0.9 to Wall’s 1.1—categorizing only players that have competed in at least 20 games thus far.

He’s averaged the third most minutes in the NBA this season with 36.7, he’s third in drives per game with 11.5 and third in team points per game on drives with 13.0, trailing only Tyreke Evans (13.2) and James Harden (14.2).

Lawson sports an adjusted production per 48 minutes of .305, which is fourth best amongst point guards—behind Westbrook's .333, Paul’s .407 and Curry’s .437, via Boxscore Geeks. His wins produced are also third best amongst 1s, checking in at 9.9 with Curry and Paul ahead of him with 13.5 and 14.2, respectively.

His win shares are down this season from 2013-14 with 5.6 to 6.3, but his turnover percentage has decreased to 14.6 percent from 16.9 percent the season prior, via Basketball-Reference.com.

Lawson has been unfairly snubbed and hasn’t received the praise he deserves. He’s become the league's most underrated point guard even though he's in the upper echelon of various statistical categories.

Lawson is silently having a tremendous season that would be even more prolific if he was surrounded by competent shooters. There isn't much more the 1 can do with Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler shooting 35.5 and 41.5 percent from the field, respectively.

Unless Denver fields a more competitive roster, Lawson's trajectory with the organization will continue down this underrated path. The Nuggets have two talented bigs in Faried and Nurkic, but their perimeter players are subpar, and there's little Lawson can do to remedy that ailment.

LINK

The Bleacher Report article was filled with good information and statistics. I guess if you can't beat the argument you have to attack the source.

Maybe you prefer Sports Illustrated?


The All-Ignored Team: Most overlooked players in NBA All-Star fan voting

December 18, 2013


1. PG: Ty Lawson, Nuggets

Our first selection is a classic victim of a positional logjam. The NBA is in the midst of a point guard golden age, and the Western Conference is overflowing with riches. This year's voting leaderboard included, in order: Chris Paul, Stephen Curry, Jeremy Lin, Russell Westbrook, Tony Parker, Ricky Rubio, Steve Nash and Damian Lillard. Point guards filled eight of the 10 available backcourt spots on the leaderboard and that doesn't even include Jrue Holiday, who was a 2013 All-Star in the East. Even if you toss out Lin and Nash as totally undeserving, we're still talking about the type of depth that's usually reserved for poetry reading circles and WW2 submarine tours.

The best name missing is Lawson, who has every reason to believe he should be in the All-Star reserves conversation, even if his chances of being selected are remote. He has plenty of angles covered: he's putting up career-year per-game numbers, his advanced stats confirm his significant impact and he's helped keep the transitioning Nuggets above .500 and in the West's crowded playoff picture.

"I think he's in the mix to be an All-Star," Durant told the Denver Post this week. "He's not one of those sexy names like Russell Westbrook or Stephen Curry. He just started to become one of those guys you depend on as a point guard."

As of Tuesday, Lawson, 26, ranks No. 6 among point guards with a 21.1 Player Efficiency Rating (better than Westbrook, Parker, Lillard and every single point guard in the Eastern Conference) and he is one of only four players to average at least 18 points and seven assists per game (Paul, Curry and John Wall are the others).

Most importantly, he's delivering while shouldering a heavier load than he's experienced during his five-year career. Lawson is the only member of this year's Nuggets to average at least 30 minutes a night and the two other players who fit that bill last year -- Andre Iguodala and Danilo Gallinari -- were lost to the Warriors and a knee injury without comparable individual replacements. Denver's offensive efficiency has taken a step back from fifth last season to tenth so far this season, and the Nuggets rely on a balanced attack that has six players averaging in the neighborhood of double figures on the year. It works because Lawson (and Andre Miller) are able to run the show and generate quality opportunities even if there isn't a clear No. 2 or No. 3 scoring option. Denver ranks No. 6 in assist percentage this season, paced by Lawson, who ranks No. 6 in assists per game and boasts a sterling 3-1 assist-to-turnover ratio.

The All-Ignored Team prefers Lawson over the likes of Holiday, Eric Bledsoe, Isaiah Thomas, Jeff Teague and Kemba Walker even if his defense leaves something to be desired. He has the right combination of experience, quickness, and reasonable outside shooting, but the key selling point is his natural instinct as a playmaker for himself and others. His handle and speed off the dribble ensure he spends plenty of time collapsing opposing defenses (creating opportunities for the shooters that will surround him) and he grades out very well as a pick-and-roll ball-handler (making him a good fit for the bigs on this squad).

LINK

I'm boom, he's Pels Bells.

Assuming everyone is healthy, I would have to go with the Thunder.

Sorry bro I don't claim to see every thread on here. IIRc there was only 1 Rockets fan who even posted in that thread. Rest assured had I seen it I would've placed Lawson where he belonged on the list.

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Rest assured had I seen it I would've placed Lawson where he belonged on the list.

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You're so certain he shoulda been on the list that you didn't even want that top 10 PG on your team.

Roger that.