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11-Year NBA Veteran Makes Controversial Ja Morant, Steph Curry Ranking

Former NBA guard Austin Rivers spoke on Golden State Warriors guard Steph Curry and Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant.
Joey Linn|
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (left) talks with Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant (12) during a timeout in game two of the second round for the 2022 NBA playoffs at FedExForum.
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (left) talks with Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant (12) during a timeout in game two of the second round for the 2022 NBA playoffs at FedExForum. | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

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The NBA point guard position has historically be loaded with talent. Many of the game’s all-time greats played point guard, and this current era of NBA basketball has several future Hall of Fame players at the position.

As the Steph Curry, Russell Westbrook, Chris Paul era of point guards ages, a new group of rising stars looks ready to carry the league forward. While players like Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Ja Morant have large shoes to fill at the point guard position, those three along with other current stars continue to ascend.

With the NBA becoming more position-less, there are always debates about whether or not a certain player is actually a primary point guard. That said, all of the aforementioned players spend a bulk of their minutes at that position.

Luka Doncic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) and Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) during the 2024 NBA playoffs at American Airlines Center. | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

In a recent video shared on X, 11-year NBA veteran Austin Rivers proposed his current top-five point guards in the NBA. Naming Doncic, Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Brunson, Curry, and Tyrese Haliburton, Rivers left out Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant.

“The question I ask,” Rivers said. “As Ja Morant comes back, does he enter back in that conversation? Because before the injuries and stuff that happened with him, he was a top-five point guard in the NBA.”

Where Rivers’ video becomes controversial is by placing Curry fourth and Morant out of the top-five entirely. While the former NBA guard explained his reasoning, and stated Morant was top-five before last season, some fans still believe he was wrong for leaving the Grizzlies star out:

Via @jchjch32: “Brunson better than Steph rn? That 'IT' factor is still very alive and well you can argue Luka and SGA ig”

Via @BlvckRon: “Ja is easily in that top 5”

Via @Its_MrMarcus: “Brunson better than Steph ? what we doing man”

Steph Curry and Jalen Brunson
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) and New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) at Madison Square Garden. | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The point guard position is loaded with talent, and while Rivers explained some of his reasoning for choosing that top-five, many fans disagree. This upcoming NBA season should be a big one for point guards.

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Joey Linn
JOEY LINN

Joey Linn is a credentialed writer covering the NBA and WNBA for On SI. Covering the LA Clippers independently in 2018, then for Fansided and 213Hoops from 2019-2021, Joey joined On SI to cover the Clippers after the 2020-21 season. Graduating from Biola University in 2022 with a Communication Studies degree, Joey served as Biola's play-by-play announcer for their basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams. Joey's work on Biola's broadcasts and in the classroom earned him the Outstanding Communication Studies Student of the year award in 2022. Joey covers the NBA full-time, primarily serving as a Clippers beat writer.

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