Top 10 Playmakers In the NBA Right Now

Scoring is mainstream. Anyone can hit a 3-pointer now and dunking is almost similar to a layup for these NBA athletes. But still, after all these years, a pinpoint bounce pass or flashy no-look pass can get everyone off their seats.

In a league of ball movement, we are blessed with many great passers and we'll list the top 10 passers in the league right now-

Just missed the cut-

Nikola Jokic

Nikola Jokic

One of the best passing big men in the league right now, Nikola Jokic is famous for his tip and over the head pass. To be honest, I never wanted to put him out of top 10, but his stats are mediocre in the 2017-18 season, and others overtook him because of that.

Averaging only 4.5 assists per game, with 7.8 potential assists and 7.5% assists per pass, the statline is mediocre for a guy like Jokic. He is battling with an injury currently, we'll hope that he gets back on track after returning from injury and do justice to his stats.

#10 Draymond Green

Draymond Green

Draymond Green is a great passer. Although he is more of a system passer than an individual playmaker, most of the assists come from 2 vs 1 situations because of the team's shooters. But still, he is an amazing passer and is the main playmaker on the Golden State Warriors.

Coming to his stats, he is averaging 7.3 assists per game with 12.4 potential assists and 11.8% assists per pass, which is quite decent. In the 4th quarter, he is averaging 1.5 assists per game and in clutch 0.9 assists per game which are extremely good stats.

#9 Stephen Curry

Stephen Curry

It's almost a crime putting Stephen Curry this low, but there are many amazing passers in the league today. In general, it was true that GSW most offensive plays start from Curry, and when he sat, there was a noticeable dip in their offense. Although this notion has been proven false by Kevin Durant in the recent games, still, no one can deny the impact of Curry on GSW's offense is huge

Averaging only 6.6 assists per game, least on the list, with 11.5 potential assists and 12% assists per pass are pretty decent stats. But what stands him out, is the secondary assists per game stat. Curry is averaging 1.7 secondary assists per game, a league-best and a good 0.5 better than the 2nd place.

Secondary assists can basically be attributed to the flow offense of GSW. It's funny that he averages 1.1 assists per game in the 4th quarter on the list, but that shoots up to 0.8 assists per game in the clutch which is a pretty high value.

#8 Ben Simmons

A rookie who doesn't look like a rookie, he doesn't play like a rookie and to be honest, technically he isn't a rookie as well. Already named as mini-LeBron in the first year should be an accomplishment in itself. A 6ft10' point guard, without a jump shot, without a legit 3 taken, has been dominating the league inside the paint and with his passing in his rookie year. And the scary thing is, he will only improve.

Statistically, he has the worst assist% per pass on this list with only 9.9%, but otherwise, he has been amazing. Averaging 7.7 assists per game, with 1.0 secondary assist per game and 16.7 potential assists, he has been rocking the league!

His 4th quarter assists are also pretty high with 1.9 assists, but he slows down in the clutch with only 0.5 assists in the clutch. But doesn't matter, it's only the first year.

#7 Lonzo Ball

Lonzo Ball

ANOTHER ROOKIE!

It's amazing how the league-worst shooter has one of the best basketball IQs in the league at the mere age of 20. I haven't seen much of the Los Angeles Lakers games this season, but whenever I saw him, he amazed me with his decision making. Recently, I saw him against the Cleveland Cavaliers, he was able to outwit LeBron at times, which is a feat in itself.

He has the potential to become to become the next Jason Kidd and let's hope that he instead doesn't finish as the next Ricky Rubio.

Averaging 7.2 assists per game, 13.6 potential assists, and 11.8% assists per pass are amazing stats for any basketball player, let alone a rookie who is only 20 years old. Averaging 1.5 assists in the 4th quarter and 0.9 assists in the clutch is extraordinary as well.

#6 Russell Westbrook

Russell Westbrook

I might get a bit of hate on this putting the league leader in assists so down in the rankings, but I personally think that Westbrook's assists are more of a product of his aggressiveness and stats hunting than playmaking. He is a great passer, don't get me wrong. His connection with Steven Adams is amazing, but at times it looks like he is searching for assists instead of it coming to him naturally and hence not included in the top 5.

Nevertheless, a great passer in general.

When it comes to stats, no one beats him. Averaging 10.2 assists per game, 20.1 potential assists, 16% assists per pass are some of his best stats. Averaging 1.9 assists in the 4th and 0.8 in the clutch.

#5 Rajon Rondo

The NBA journeyman has always been a top passer in the league despite his ups and downs.

Averaging 7.9 assists per game, 12.9 potential assists, 14.0% assists per pass, 3.53 assists per turnover, he has been among league elites. Also, averaging 1.8 assists in the 4th quarter with 0.7 assists in the clutch. Just had an 18 assists(3 turnovers) game against the 76ers a few days ago, which is the league best in one game this year. Keep assisting Rondo.

4- James Harden

It seems like James Harden is always having a career year every year and still somehow loses out on MVP. Maybe this will be the same case this year too with LeBron somehow peaking in his 15th season, or maybe not. We'll see that later.

It doesn't matter if Harden wins MVP or not, he will still remain one of the best passers in the league. His 1-2 punch with Clint Capela is among the best if not the best. Averaging 9.3 assists per game with 17.5% assist per pass is good enough to be one of the best passers in the league. Although, he should work on handling the ball more efficiently, averaging only 2.19 assists per turnover.

Also, his assists take a hit in the 4th quarter, averaging 1.5 assists only in the 4th quarter and only 0.6 assists in the clutch time. But that can be attributed to him taking the role of scoring in the 4th quarter, and also the presence of another world-class passer in the team.

#3 John Wall

John Wall

Flash with the best wrap-around pass will sum up John Wall pretty perfectly. One of the fastest guys in the league has been one of the best passers in the league for a while. His wrap-around passes are a thing of beauty.

Although averaging lower assists per game (8.7) than his career average(9.2), he should still be in the top 3 passers in the league. He is struggling with an injury and is not being his usual self, but despite being that his stats are in top 5 for the league. With 8.7 assists per game, 16.8% assists per pass and 16.6 potential assists, he is still having an awesome year. Averaging 1.9 assists in the 4th quarter and 0.9 assists in the clutch.

Will only expect his stats to go up from here.

#2 Chris Paul

Chris Paul

The undisputed best passer in the league for the last decade or so has finally lost his first position. Also in the pre-season GM survey, he secured second place with a total of 32% votes.

One of the highest basketball IQs in the game, one of the best court visions, and also one of the most efficient passers in the league. Boasting 4.79 assists per turnover while averaging 9.6 assists per game is a feat in itself. Along with that, he is also leading the league in assist% per pass with 18.7%. Also, averaging 2.4 assists in the 4th quarter (tied league best) and a league-best 1.3 assists per game in the clutch (although the sample size is too small for only 3 games).

Playing with so many shooters is giving him a breathing space and because of that, he is also averaging 40%+ 3-point shooting this year. With Chris Paul, the Rockets haven't lost a single game this season. Basically, Houston is with a hall-of-fame point guard all 48 minutes every game.

Now we will move on to who finally defeated Chris Paul in passing after a decade. Obviously......

#1 LeBron James

Cleveland Cavaliers v Indiana Pacers

What can't this man do? Instead of going for 40 every night, which he can, he always tries to get his team involved. One of the most unselfish players of all time, always tries to get his players involved and make everyone game better.

Statistics wise, he is almost on par with the elite point guards. With 9.1 assists, 15.5% assist per pass, 1 secondary assist per game, 18.4 potential assists per game, 10.9 adjusted assists per game, 2.2 assists per turnover, he is in the top 3 statistics wise. Also, he has been averaging 2.4 assists in the 4th quarter (tied best with Chris Paul) and 0.9 assists in the clutch (tied 3rd best in the league).

The versatility of Lebron is what sets him apart. He can throw that bullet cross court passes from one end to the other end with ease. Other than that, most of the Cavaliers' sets revolve around his high post passing. Driving into the paint, attracting all defenders, he can easily find the open man for three. His basketball IQ along with his court vision and his strength makes him the most unique and complete basketball player of all time.