Every decade or so, the NBA goes through the process of pruning its roster of bona fide superstars as Father Time and his pet, the injury bug, wreak havoc on established NBA veterans.
For the past decade, we’ve seen stars such as Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, Dirk Nowitzki, LeBron James, Kevin Garnett and others headline championship teams and serve as the face of the star-laden league. While James is still a fairly youthful 28, with plenty of basketball miles remaining, many of the others have traveled over the hump and are finally on the downsides of their careers.
Sure, one of the old fogeys could muster up enough juice to snatch another title or two, but they each hold batons of greatness in their hands, just waiting to pass it off to deserving youngsters.
With the league’s recent formula of success being to construct a Big Three (see Miami, Boston and Miami), let’s examine three young studs-in-the-making who will carry the torch of greatness throughout the next decade. (Young, but certified superstars like Kevin Durant, Blake Griffin and Russell Westbrook have been omitted.)
1. James Harden, Houston Rockets – 23 years old
Of course, Harden got a taste of the bright lights and the big stage as the third wheel during his time with the Oklahoma City Thunder. Despite his sixth-man role, Harden got buckets by the pound during the Thunder’s recent deep playoff runs. While his beard makes him one of the league’s most recognizable players, his dynamic game makes him one of the toughest players to guard.
After falling just short of the title last year, the Thunder opted to trade Harden to the Houston Rockets rather than meet his desire for a max contract for the third-best player on the team.
Out of the shadows of Durant and Westbrook, Harden is living up to expectations as a starter in H-town. He’s posting eye-popping stats of 26.5 points per game, 5.3 assists, 4.3 rebounds, 1.9 steals and is a cinch to make his first All-Star game this season.
If Houston continues to build up talent around him, he’ll be back on the big stage in June in no time.
2. Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers – 20 years old
When LeBron James up and left Cleveland for the sunny beaches of Miami, the Cavaliers were instantly transformed from a title contender to perennial lottery participants. Though the decline was swift and sharp, the Cavs caught a break by landing Irving with the 1st overall pick of the 2011 NBA Draft.
Like James, Irving was selected the Rookie of the Year during his first NBA season after averaging 18.5 points and 5.4 assists. Now in his sophomore campaign he’s upped his production and is putting up 23 points and 5.6 assists. Along the way he’s racked up an impressive array of SportsCenter highlights and even has an impressive “Uncle Drew” ad campaign for Pepsi Max.
Irvin’s biggest issue is that the rest of his team is pretty awful. Despite his production, the Cavs record is still garbage. But another trip to the lottery should secure him a solid sidekick and Cleveland could be making a return to the playoffs in a year or two.
3. Damian Lillard, Portland Trailblazers – 22 years old
After starring in the Big Sky Conference in college, not many people outside of college basketball junkies and draftnicks knew about Damian Lillard. Sure, he was drafted sixth overall by the Blazers, but Lillard went to Weber State. Even guys who recognized his talent were forced to question whether his skills would translate to The League after coming from such a small college.
Well, those questions were immediately answered in the preseason when Lillard was Co-MVP of the Summer League. He’s continued with his strong summer performance by posting an impressive stat line of 18.3 points and 6.5 assists per game as a rookie.
Even more impressive is that the young point guard has taken the reins of his team and has led them to a 20-17 record, meaning his team would be the 8th seed out West if the playoffs started today. This is after the team posted a lackluster 28-38 showing last season.
Lillard is handling his success with poise and is showing no signs of slowing down. He’ll be the runaway choice of Rookie of the Year.
