The Four Best Players Right Now

In the spirit of Mount Rushmore, I wanted to talk about the best four players in the NBA right now. This isn't based on their past achievements or whether they'll be Hall of Famers one day. This is just cut and dried, who's the best right now. Also, this isn't a ranking. It's just who are the best four.

But first, some honorable mentions:

Carmelo Anthony--If this were the top four offensive players, Melo would be in. But he isn't fully committed on defense (which could change) and isn't concerned with making teammates better. He wants to win, but hasn't grasped the details of how to do it.

Derrick Rose--If he's healthy, Rose is on this list. But he hasn't been healthy in two years, so maybe he'll make the next one. For the sake of the NBA, I hope he holds up all season.

Paul George--Before the gruesome leg injury in Las Vegas, I would've had George rounding out this foursome. But he's out for the next year, so he missed the cut.



Now on to the Four Best Players Right Now:

LeBron James--There's not a lot I have to say. James defends all five positions, can run the point, is devastating on the fast break as either ball handler or wing, and can score or distribute, depending on his team's needs. He's clutch, despite what people might say. He's shown he knows how to win in the playoffs. There's not a lot of holes in LeBron's game. When the worst thing you can say about a guy is that he should've won a dunk contest by now, that's pretty good.

Kevin Durant--I'm always amazed at the different ways Durant can score and how efficiently he does it. And while he's not the greatest defender, he has a long wingspan and wants to play defense. He usually picks up the opposing team's best player. Sometimes that attitude is one of the best attributes of a good defensive player. The only thing he has left to do is win a championship, but even if he comes up empty in that regard, he's still going to end up one of the best players of all time.

Anthony Davis--He proved he belongs here during the FIBA World Cup. Davis is a strong defender, can score inside or out, and rebounds as well as anyone in the league. The Brow averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds a game last year. Some of the players who didn't put up numbers like that in their second year? Kevin Love. Dwight Howard. LaMarcus Aldridge. DeMarcus Cousins. Davis is a star in the making. If only the NBA knew that, maybe they'd put him on national TV more than twice this season.

Chris Paul--I'm kind of doubting myself as I write this, because Paul has never made it past the second round of the playoffs. But maybe that's because he hasn't had a lot of talent around him. His best teammates in New Orleans were David West and a past his prime Peja Stojakovic. Blake Griffin is the best player he's had on his side, and Griffin hasn't even hit his prime yet. So you can forgive Paul for his lack of playoff success. He knows what needs to be done to get his team a win, whether it's scoring, distributing, or bugging the hell out of the other team. Pound for pound, he's one of the best players in the NBA.

Who do you think are the four best players right now?