One opinion that many across league circles, and among fans as well as media, is that the game has never seen as much talent as there is across the league in today’s NBA. Everywhere we look, there seem to be more and more talented shot-creators, tough shot-makers, playmakers, ball-handlers, shooters, defenders, and rebounders than ever before. I am not speaking about these players being better than the all-time greats of old, but the parity and volume of talent is at an all-time high.
There are many ways that we have already dissected the best players in the game today. We have broken it down with the best players by jersey number as well as the best players from every state in America and every country in the world. Today, we will explore the wide range of talent in today’s NBA by determining who the best player at every age is. From the young rookie to the grizzled and accomplished veterans, every age that is represented in the NBA today will have its best player assigned to it, determined by production, impact, and even potential for the younger age groups.
These are the best NBA players by age in the 2022-23 season.
19 Years Old – Shaedon Sharpe
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Honorable Mentions: Jalen Duren, Jabari Smith Jr., AJ Griffin
Selecting from a talented group of 19-year-olds coming off their first season in the NBA is not easy. This year’s rookie class impressed from top to bottom, with many players exceeding the expectations they had heading into 2022-23. The cream of the crop turned out to be the seventh overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, Shaedon Sharpe of the Portland Trail Blazers.
At first glance, Sharpe’s numbers aren’t incredibly impressive. He played 80 games and averaged 9.9 PPG, 3.0 RPG, and 1.2 APG. Once he finally got his chance to start toward the end of the season is when he really began to shine and prove he was a good choice to build on in the future. Over his last 10 games of the 2022-23 season, Sharpe averaged 23.7 PPG, 6.1 RPG, and 4.1 APG in 10 starts while shooting 46.0% from the field and 37.8% from three. If he can continue to build on that momentum heading into the offseason and 2023-24, the Trail Blazers could have found their next shooting guard/small forward of the future.
20 Years Old – Paolo Banchero
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Honorable Mentions: Alperen Sengun, Bennedict Mathurin
For the 20-year-olds category, it was a pretty easy selection to go with the 2023 Rookie of the Year and 2022 number one overall draft pick Paolo Banchero. He had some decent challengers as well. Alperen Sengun had a great sophomore season with the Houston Rockets averaging 14.8 PPG, 9.0 RPG, and 3.9 APG, and he looks like the Rockets’ big man of the future. Pacers rookie Bennedict Mathurin was one of the NBA’s highest-scoring bench players for a time this season and averaged 16.7 PPG on 43.4% shooting. Just like the Rookie of the Year race, Mathurin falls just short in this category as well.
This speaks to the incredible rookie season that Banchero had. He would play 72 games for the up-and-coming Orlando Magic in 2022-23, averaging 20.0 PPG, 6.9 RPG, and 3.7 APG. He showed that he could provide a bit of everything for Orlando moving forward and was more than worthy of a number-one pick. Banchero will look to help Orlando build on a 2022-23 season that saw them win 34 games, a 12-game increase from 2021-22.
21 Years Old – Anthony Edwards
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Honorable Mentions: Evan Mobley, LaMelo Ball, Jalen Green
The group of players who are 21 years old in the NBA in 2022-23 is as talented as any other age group. In 2022-23, Evan Mobley remained one of the best defending power forwards in the game, improving on his game from his rookie season on both ends of the court. He averaged 16.2 PPG, 9.0 RPG, and 1.5 BPG this season in 79 starts for a Cavaliers team that won 51 games. LaMelo Ball fell out of contention for this spot after missing 46 games with an injury. Even though he was tremendous when healthy. Jalen Green also had a solid sophomore season for the Houston Rockets with 22.1 PPG on 41.6% shooting.
Anthony Edwards is the clear selection for this spot after an All-Star season in 2022-23 that saw him average 24.6 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 4.4 APG, and 1.6 SPG in 79 contests. Edwards helped Minnesota win 42 games and guided them through the play-in tournament for a berth in the playoffs. In his second career playoff series, Edwards averaged 31.6 PPG in five games against the Nuggets and shot 48.2% from the field while doing so. The Timberwolves star has a bright future ahead of him, with the only question being if it will be in Minnesota or not.
22 Years Old – Zion Williamson
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Honorable Mentions: Tyrese Maxey, RJ Barrett
I know there will be some incredible pushback on the selection of Zion Williamson for the best player at 22 years old, but let’s take a look at his competition. Tyrese Maxey has the best case to be the pick over Zion, as he just had the best season of his young career in 2022-23. He averaged 20.3 PPG in 60 games played and shot 43.4% from the three-point line and has averaged 22.6 PPG in his first five games of the playoffs on 43.6% shooting from three. By all accounts, due to Zion’s injuries, even RJ Barrett should get some consideration considering his on the court and his team is competing in the NBA playoffs as well.
But let us take a look at what has been and what definitely still could be for Zion Williamson. I understand the concerns over his weight and his already lengthy injury history. He has to come into 2023-24 with the full intention of giving it everything he has and getting healthier for the greater good of the Pelicans franchise. When he does this, New Orleans will be getting the 27.0 PPG and 7.2 RPG player he was in 2020-21. This was a historic season for Zion, but since then, he has only been on the court for a total of 29 games. I am not ready to give his spot up yet, but one more season of regression from him and improvement from Maxey will change things dramatically.
23 Years Old – Ja Morant
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Honorable Mentions: Darius Garland, Jaren Jackson Jr., Jordan Poole
Another age group impressing around the NBA right now is the 23-year-olds. This group is jam-packed with stars making significant impacts on their teams in more ways than one. Darius Garland continues to only get better as a top passer at his position and a top scorer as well. In 2022-23, he averaged 21.6 PPG and 7.8 APG for Cleveland this year and led them to a fifth seed in the East. Another 23-year-old making a name for himself is the selection for this group’s teammate, Jaren Jackson Jr. Leading the NBA in blocks this season once again, Jackson Jr. was named the Defensive Player of the Year while also averaging 18.6 PPG and 6.8 RPG.
With all of that being said, Ja Morant is still the choice for 23-year-olds, even if he found himself in trouble off the court this season. I am not willing to diminish a player’s talent just because he is young and acted irrationally, especially without a deep history of harmful behavior. In 2022-23, Morant still led his team to a 51-31 record, averaging 26.2 PPG and 8.1 APG. Could it have been different if the team didn’t face distraction due to Morant’s actions? Sure. At 23 years old, there is still time for that to become a non-issue moving forward.
24 Years Old – Luka Doncic
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Honorable Mentions: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Deandre Ayton, Austin Reaves
The race for the best 24-year-old in the NBA is much closer than many would have thought heading into the 2022-23 season. That was before Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander broke out as an All-Star and one of the best players in the game. In 2022-23, SGA led the Thunder to an unexpected berth in the NBA play-in tournament averaging 31.4 PPG, 5.5 APG, and 1.6 SPG on 51.0% shooting from the field. As incredible as his season was, it falls just shy of our pick.
You can say all you want about Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks’ disappointing 2022-23 season. That still does not take away from the season that Doncic had despite the struggles of his team. Doncoic averaged a career-high 32.4 PPG on 49.6% shooting from the floor, another career-high. He added in 8.6 RPG and 8.0 APG as well, getting the Mavericks all the way up to a fourth seed in the West at one point. Despite his efforts, the Mavericks struggled to end the season even after acquiring Kyrie Irving at the trade deadline and missed the NBA playoffs entirely.
25 Years Old – Jayson Tatum
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Honorable Mentions: De’Aaron Fox, Bam Adebayo
The talent at 25 years old tends to be a bit top-heavy, considering the top three players are in a tier of their own in 2022-23. De’Aaron Fox had a special season in 2022-23, becoming an All-Star for the first time and leading the Sacramento Kings to the NBA playoffs for the first time in 17 years. In the playoffs, Fox put his ability on the national stage for the world to see as he and Sacramento pushed the reigning NBA champions to seven games. Bam Adebayo had another season worthy of the Defensive Player of the Year conversation as he also helped his team experience playoff success in the first round, taking down the Milwaukee Bucks in five games.
As great as those two were this season, only one player at 25 years old received MVP votes, and that was Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics. One year after leading the Celtics to the NBA Finals, Tatum had another spectacular performance in store for the NBA. He became the first Celtics player to average 30.0 PPG in a season as he continues to maneuver his way up the franchise GOAT pyramid. He led the Celtics to 57 wins and the second seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs as well as a first-round win over the Atlanta Hawks.
26 Years Old – Devin Booker
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Honorable Mentions: Donovan Mitchell, Domantas Sabonis
As the debate rages on between Donovan Mitchell and Devin Booker for the title of best shooting guard in the NBA, only one of them is still playing basketball in 2022-23. Donovan Mitchell had a great season in his first with the Cavaliers, which included a memorable 71-point performance and a fourth-place finish in the conference. However, in the first round of the NBA playoffs, Mitchell absolutely shrunk for Cleveland as they lost to the New York Knicks and were sent home much earlier than anticipated.
As for Booker, his 2022-23 went the opposite way. Booker struggled with injury for most of the season, missing 29 games and a chance at another All-Star and All-NBA Team selection. He has made up for it in the playoffs so far in 2022-23, averaging 35.4 PPG on 57.2% shooting while dishing out 6.6 APG to advance to the second round. Whether or not Booker can help Phoenix come back from a 2-0 deficit to Denver remains to be seen, but there is something to be said about how he has played since the games got more important.
27 Years Old – Karl-Anthony Towns
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Honorable Mentions: Kristaps Porzingis, Kyle Kuzma
As far as the group of NBA players who are exactly 27 years old, the talent is not as widespread as the other age groups we have mentioned so far. Our honorable mentions are teammates with the Washington Wizards at this current moment, depending on what transpires with Kuzma this offseason. Kyle Kuzma had a decent season with the Wizards, as he averaged 21.2 PPG, 7.2 RPG, and 3.7 APG. For Kristaps Poringis, this was a redemption season from an individual standpoint after many, including myself, wrote him off moving forward. He averaged 23.2 PPG, 8.4 RPG, and 1.5 BPG, but even more importantly, played 65 games for just the second time in his career and the first time since 2017.
Kuzma and Porzingis were good and definitely worthy of consideration for the top spot, but that still belongs to Karl-Anthony Towns of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Towns missed a ton of time during the regular season, playing just 29 games in total for 2022-23. However, he returned in time for the play-in tournament and first round of the playoffs and impressed me enough to say he still reigns supreme as the best 27-year-old in the game. In five games against Denver, Towns averaged 18.2 PPG and 10.2 RPG, going up against one of the best players in the world.
28 Years Old – Nikola Jokic
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Honorable Mentions: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Julius Randle, Zach LaVine
I just know that the conversation is going to be electric as we reveal that we are ranking Nikola Jokic ahead of Giannis Antetokounmpo at this time. As much as I understand the circumstances around a disappointing end to the season for Giannis and the Milwaukee Bucks, a first-round exit at the hands of an eight-seed is always going to deliver a hit to your legacy. It happened to Dirk Nowitzki before he was able to win his first NBA championship, and now Giannis is experiencing it before and hopefully responds in a similar fashion.
As for Jokic, he could have arguably been MVP for the third year in a row in 2022-23, and many people believed that he should have been. Jokic led the Denver Nuggets to the best record in the Western Conference and has dominated the second round of the playoffs against the Suns so far. As it stands, the Nuggets look like the team to beat in the Western Conference and may be headed toward their first NBA Finals in franchise history, led by their two-time MVP, Nikola Jokic.
29 Years Old – Joel Embiid
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Honorable Mentions: Pascal Siakam, Bradley Beal
There was no other choice for the 29-year-old spot than the man who was just named MVP less than 48 hours ago. Despite some great competition at the spot, Embiid’s 2022-23 season was just too special. Pascal Siakam had another season worthy of All-NBA Team consideration for the third time in his career despite a massive overhaul coming to the franchise, presumably this offseason. Bradley Beal had a decent season as well with the Wizards despite yet another year with no playoff basketball.
Neither of these honorable mentions came close to the season that Joel Embiid had as the 2022-23 MVP. He won his second straight scoring title with 33.1 PPG and added 10.2 RPG, 4.2 APG, 1.0 SPG, and 1.7 BPG. Embiid has the Sixers in prime position to make their first serious run at an NBA Finals since being drafted to the team in 2014. Now healthy again for the rest of the series against Boston in the second round, can Embiid prove he is even more deserving of the honor by taking down the defending Eastern Conference champs?
30 Years Old – Anthony Davis
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Honorable Mentions: Rudy Gobert, Buddy Hield
Anthony Davis is the best 30-year-old currently in the NBA, and it is not close. Davis has gotten a ton of flack from the media and fans over the last two seasons with his inability to stay healthy and provide any real impact for the Los Angeles Lakers. Well, throw all of that out the window as Davis has been on a tear for the last two months with the Lakers in the perfect situation to make a run at their 18th NBA championship in franchise history.
Davis and the Lakers went through an overhaul at the trade deadline that changed the team for the better from day one. Since that time, Davis has established himself as a top-five player in the league as he has been through the first two rounds of the NBA playoffs so far. In their series win over the Grizzlies and Game 1 victory over the Warriors, Davis is averaging 22.1 PPG, 15.0 RPG, and 4.3 BPG as the leader on both ends of the floor. The Lakers’ success starts and ends with Davis, and they will go as far as he takes them in 2022-23.
31 Years Old – Kawhi Leonard
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Honorable Mentions: Kyrie Irving, Khris Middleton
Flip a coin and select who lands where when it comes to the top two players who happen to be 31 years old. Kyrie Irving had another great season individually despite a rocky start and being suspended early by the Brooklyn Nets. He would finish the season with the Dallas Mavericks averaging 27.1 PPG, 5.1 RPG, and 5.5 APG but miss the playoffs entirely after a monumental collapse to end the season.
Kawhi Leonard has also been at the center of attention due to missed games over the past few seasons, and concerns have reached a maximum level about the knee injuries that keep piling up. When healthy, Leonard proved both in the regular season and playoffs that he can still be the best player on the court every single night. He averaged over 30.0 PPG in his first two games of the playoffs this season before going down with an injury and 23.8 PPG and 6.5 RPG during the regular season. With his knee seemingly in a degenerative state, is there any way that he can play more than 50 games or lead the Clippers to their first NBA championship?
32 Years Old – Damian Lillard
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Honorable Mentions: Jrue Holiday, Nikola Vucevic
The competition for the best 32-year-old in 2022-23 really comes down to two point guards. Jrue Holiday had a successful 2022-23 season by individual standards as he earned his first All-Star selection in 10 seasons and helped the Bucks capture the number one seed in the East with 58 wins. He would disappoint tremendously in the playoffs, however, as he was torched by Miami’s Jimmy Butler on defense and struggled to produce on offense.
The clear best player at 32 years old this season was Damian Lillard. On a team level, the Portland Trail Blazers were disappointing as they missed the playoffs entirely for the second straight season. Lillard was on another planet at times though, averaging 32.2 PPG and 7.3 APG on 37.1% shooting from three, further cementing his status as the second-greatest three-point shooting point guard ever. He had three games with over 50 points this season, which included a 71-point game and a 60-point game along the way.
33 Years Old – Jimmy Butler
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Honorable Mentions: James Harden, DeMar DeRozan, Klay Thompson
Some of the best individual talents in the NBA in 2022-23 are members of the 33-year-old age group, which is a fascinating stat. Klay Thompson had one of the best seasons of his career, averaging over 21.0 PPG on 41.2% shooting from three. James Harden averaged 21.0 PPG while leading the NBA in assists with 10.7 APG. Both of the shooting guards mentioned above are also a major reason why their respective teams are in the second round of the 2023 playoffs vying for a spot in the Conference Finals.
As great as those players are and continue to be in the playoffs, one has stood out above the rest for his performance thus far. Jimmy Butler set the NBA world ablaze with his first-round performance against the number-one-seeded Milwaukee Bucks. Butler averaged 37.6 PPG on 59.7% shooting in the series, which included one of the highest-scoring games in playoff history with 56 points in Game 4. Butler’s playoff production is in another stratosphere compared to his peers over the last few seasons, giving him the edge here for the 33-year-old group.
34 Years Old – Kevin Durant
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Honorable Mentions: Russell Westbrook, Kevin Love
This category was going to be Kevin Durant’s no matter what, as he had been dominating the players his age for over a decade now. Durant’s competition is two guys I have enjoyed watching rejuvenate their careers after being traded from detrimental situations in 2022-23. Russell Westbrook seemed to really find a home with the Los Angeles Clippers toward the end of the season and in the playoffs, just as Kevin Love has in Miami with the Heat. As fun as it has been to watch those two thrive, they simply are not on Kevin Durant’s level.
It didn’t matter if it was during his time with the Brooklyn Nets or with the Phoenix Suns. Kevin Durant had a historic season averaging 29.1 PPG while becoming the first player to ever record 55/40/90 splits in a season. He has shown that he is still one of the greatest scorers ever in both the regular season and postseason. Now, with his back against the wall against the Denver Nuggets is when we will see what he is truly made of. If history tells us anything, it is that Durant will not go down without a fight.
35 Years Old – Stephen Curry
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Honorable Mention: Brook Lopez
The 35-year-old age group in the NBA is not deep at all with talent and is certainly not close among the ones who are eligible. There are just seven NBA players who are currently 35 years old in the league, and only one who can be considered one of the top three players in the game. Brook Lopez is not that guy, but he did finish as a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year as he helped lead the Bucks to the first seed in the Eastern Conference.
Stephen Curry is far and away the winner of this age group and might just be the best overall player in the game right now. After a season of ups and downs due to injury and issues winning games on the road, Stephen Curry has the Warriors right back to peak playoff form. He had the highest-scoring Game 7 performance in NBA history to help them advance to the second round of the playoffs and averaged 33.7 PPG for the series against the Kings.
36 Years Old – Al Horford
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Honorable Mention: Jeff Green
When it comes to the 36-year-old age group, the number of players and the overall talent pool itself is very slim. Every player worthy of mentioning in this age group impacts the game, not on a superstar level, but positively nonetheless. Jeff Green has been a nice boost for the Denver Nuggets over the past few seasons off the bench averaging 7.8 PPG and 3.6 RPG in 2022-23 for the Nuggets in 56 games played.
As good as Green has been, he hasn’t had nearly the impact on Denver as Al Horford has had on the Boston Celtics. Horford’s most important contributions come on defense, with his length and shot-altering abilities being his best attributes. On offense, he is a good finisher around the basket but can spread the floor as a shooter as well, giving guys like Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown room to go to work. This has proved as a priceless addition to Boston’s offense over the last two seasons.
37 Years Old – Chris Paul
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Honorable Mentions: Kyle Lowry, P.J. Tucker
There are just four players in the NBA right now who make up the 37-year-old age group. The first of those players are P.J Tucker, Kyle Lowry, and Taj Gibson. At this current moment, Gibson appears to be headed toward retirement after a lengthy NBA career, while Lowry and Tucker are both still contributing factors on teams competing in the 2023 NBA playoffs. Lowry is still an important member of the Heat for his playmaking and shooting, while Tucker provides the heart and hustle every team needs from its veterans for the 76ers.
In a category all by himself at 37 years old is Chris Paul. Now, Paul’s offensive game has taken a bit of a dive in recent seasons as far as his scoring goes, but his playmaking and defense are still top-tier. As far as two-way players go, Paul is still among the best in the NBA in 2022-23, as he has led the Suns to the second round of the playoffs for the third season in a row. Paul will miss games 3-5 for the Suns in their second-round matchup with the Denver Nuggets, leaving a tall order for Phoenix to overcome in their quest for an NBA championship.
38 Years Old – LeBron James
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Honorable Mentions: N/A
As unbelievable as it is, LeBron James is the only player who is 38 years old and currently playing in the NBA. What makes it much more impressive is the high level he has been playing at, even as many proclaim him as too old to deliver a championship to L.A. once again. As he struggled with injuries and load management, people all over the basketball world claimed the Lakers were dead and it was time to “blow it up.” Then, after coming back from an improbable foot injury, LeBron James proved the doubters once again.
In the 2022-23 playoffs, LeBron James is averaging 22.1 PPG, 11.1 RPG, and 5.0 APG through seven games played so far. He helped the Lakers eliminate the two-seeded Grizzlies as well as gain a 1-0 series lead over the Warriors in the second round. The four-time champion and Finals MVP is well on his way to completing his mission and making it number five all-around.
39 Years Old – Andre Iguodala
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Honorable Mentions: N/A
At 39 years old, Andre Iguodala just turned in the final regular season of his 19-year NBA career. Iguodala’s 2022-23 season was not exactly the farewell tour we are used to for iconic players, mostly because Iguodala was barely on the court. Iguodala would play just eight games this season and see 14.1 minutes off the bench during those appearances. Instead of harping on the lack of time on the court for Iguodala in 2022-23, let’s take this chance to properly send off one of the more recognizable players of the last 20 years in the NBA.
Andre Iguodala came into the NBA as the ninth overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. With the 76ers, Iguodala would go on to earn one All-Star appearance and one All-Defensive Team selection in eight seasons with the team. In 2013-14, Iguodala would join the Golden State Warriors. That season, he would earn the second All-Defensive Team selection of his career. In 2015, Iguodala was awarded a Finals MVP award for his defensive efforts on LeBron James in the NBA Finals as the Warriors won their first title since 1975. In total, Iguodala has been with the Warriors for all four of their NBA championships since 2015. Can they make it number five in his final season on the bench for them? Either way, I just want to say, thank you for the memories, Iggy.
42 Years Old – Udonis Haslem
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Honorable Mentions: N/A
In our final spot on our list today is the resident grandpa of the NBA, Udonis Haslem. At 42 years old, Haslem was the oldest player to hit the court during the 2022-23 season for the Miami Heat. Haslem has put in 20 years of NBA service with the Heat, winning three NBA championships and averaging 7.5 PPG and 6.6 RPG for his career.
For the past few seasons, Haslem has served as the team’s veteran leader both in the locker room and on the bench during games. Now that his career is finished and he is headed toward retirement, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him as a member of the coaching staff next season. In his final NBA game on April 9, 2023, Haslem scored 24 points in 25 minutes played and shot the ball 9-17 from the field, knocking down 3 three-pointers.
