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Top Five Young Stars in the NBA

Why the League Is in Good Hands

By Kyle Jordan FergusonPublished 6 years ago 6 min read
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Whose got next can mean a lot of things. In the NBA, it has come to mean which player is next up to accelerate their career and take it to the next level.

The league has an array of young stars. This is in part due to the trend of drafting young players a year removed from high school based on potential. The hope is that by the time they reach the end of their rookie contract, they have given some indication of growth and superstar ability. The league appears to be getting younger and younger because of it. In the previous era, a veteran player was thought to be in his thirties, a player that in real life had accrued enough wisdom to serve as a valuable asset in the locker room. In today’s NBA, Derrick Rose at 29 is signing veteran minimum contracts. The game has changed for better or worse.

In terms of who has next in the league, there are criteria. To qualify, the player must not have already participated in an All-Star Game, averaged at least 15 points per game, and has been in the league for a maximum of four years. With that, there are a multitude of players to choose from given the landscape, but for time's sake, I will round out a solid five in no particular order.

Andrew Wiggins

You could make the case that Andrew Wiggins is already here, coming off a season in which he averaged 23.6 points and 4.1 rebounds per game. Andrew Wiggins, of all guard/forward position players outside of Giannis Antetokounmpo, is the most dynamic. At 6'8", 200 pounds, with a guard skill-set, he is set to embark on his quest to perennial All-Star status in this league.

Having just signed an extension to stay with the Timberwolves for five years, worth around $150 million, he will be around with Karl-Anthony Towns for years to come. Playing alongside Jimmy Butler and for a coach like Tom Thibodeau will force Wiggins to take the defensive end of the floor more seriously. With his talent and size, he has all of the tools to become an All-NBA performer.

Devin Booker

Devin Booker is the next in line at the two-guard spot. He is a prolific shooter who has the ability to put the ball on the floor and get to a spot to set up his jumper. His skill set and shooting touch indicate he will be a 20-point-a-night scorer in this league for a long time.

He scored a league-high 70 points in Boston on his way to averaging 22.1 points and 3.1 rebounds per game in only his second season in the NBA. The Suns drafted Josh Jackson on the other wing, who will be useful in hiding Booker defensively down the line, as he still needs to improve his on-ball defense.

Joel Embiid

Joel Embiid is hilarious and charismatic. He is also one hell of a ball player. Embiid got in the weight room during his layoff due to injury, and it showed. He is an athletic five with the ability to stretch the floor. In just 20 minutes, he averaged 20.2 points, along with seven rebounds per game. He has the potential to be a 20 and ten guy for a long time.

The only hinderance to his development and ultimately the team’s success will be the minute restriction the Sixers currently have on him. With that said, the Sixers are on their way to figuring it out. They got Ben Simmons back from injury for his rookie campaign and a point guard for the future in Markelle Fultz. Embiid and Jahlil Okafor should solidify the starting front court with Simmons sharing the ball-handling duties with Fultz.

Philadelphia also acquired shooting in JJ Redick and will still have Dario Saric coming off of the bench. The future is bright for the Sixers for a long time, given everyone stays healthy.

Karl-Anthony Towns

Karl-Anthony Towns is a problem, period. At 6'11", he can shoot the three, score from the low post, defend, and rebound. Averaging 25 and 12 in 2016, he leads this new class of young stars. He is the next addition to the stretch five phenomenon. A player at his age and his capability to do an array of different things on the floor is why he finds himself on this list.

Quietly, the Timberwolves have compiled a roster with a mix of young talent and seasoned veterans to make a push. The combination of Towns, Wiggins and Jimmy Butler should be enough to not just make the playoffs, but make a run once they get there.

Kristaps Prozingis

At 7'3", Kristaps Porzingis is a unicorn and the league’s first true stretch five. Arvydas Sabonis did it, Towns is doing it, and Dan Issel was early. But, Porzingis has the tools to be the best at it. He can put the ball on the floor to get by defenders, shoot the three at an elite level, as well as play with his back to the basket.

Porzingis averaged 18 and seven last season, shooting 35 percent from the three-point range. Now that Carmelo Anthony is in Oklahoma City, he will get the lion’s share of the shots, which should catapult his numbers. Given the Knicks will be tanking this season, as they do not have any real competitive pieces outside of Porzingis, it should be an exciting year to watch his growth as an individual player. How long he stays in New York remains to be seen, as before Carmelo was gone, his name popped up in trade rumors. Regardless, Porzingis is a name that will be mentioned among the top of this class of players for years to come.

Honorable Mention: Jabari Parker

Coming out of Duke as the number two pick, Jabari Parker has had an unlucky stretch. Before the knee injury last year, he was averaging 20 and six on a playoff team. Now with two knee injuries, the clock is ticking on him long-term. He has been spotted dunking and doing basketball-related work, placing his recovery ahead of schedule, which is a good sign. If he is healthy, he presents matchup problems for defenders. Milwaukee plays a small lineup with Parker at the four spot, giving him the freedom to stretch the floor and play facing the basket against less athletic fours. He cracks the list if he stays healthy; he is that talented.

The league is in good hands. Now, more than ten years into the one-and-done era, players are continuously coming into the league younger and younger. The choice to come out after one year is done for obvious reasons: maximize your earnings by extending your career length being the main objective.

Should the talent level remain consistent, the NBA could be very interesting when this new wave of talent enters their prime. You see this with players like Kyrie Irving and Giannis Antetokounmpo, who are under 25 and entering their primes respectively. The room for growth in these young talented players is staggering. Antetokounmpo at 27 should be a scary thought for teams around the league. In a lot of ways, the one-and-done rule will reshape what we consider veteran leadership in the NBA. In today’s league, that could mean late 20s, with more than a little left in the tank.

basketball
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Kyle Jordan Ferguson

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