The Milwaukee Bucks have the NBA‘s newest star duo by virtue of agreeing to acquire seven-time All-Star Damian Lillard on Wednesday for Jrue Holiday, Grayson Allen, and draft compensation.
Lillard will team up with two-time regular-season MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, and many are already considering the Bucks to be the favorites to win the world championship this season.
But not everyone thinks Lillard and Antetokounmpo will form the game’s best duo.
Former NBA player and current ESPN personality Kendrick Perkins feels they’re only the second-most lethal tandem behind Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic of the defending champion Denver Nuggets, via NBA on ESPN.
@kendrickperkins named his most lethal duos this season 😤 pic.twitter.com/LCHNYF0rlY
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) September 28, 2023
Jokic and Murray were certainly elite in last season’s playoffs, as Jokic nearly averaged a triple-double and Murray regularly torched teams with his outside shooting and uncanny ability to hit one uncontested shot after another.
Murray averaged a strong 20 points a game on 45.4 percent shooting in the regular season, but every postseason, he seems to turn into the Incredible Hulk and up his offensive production several notches.
Coming in third on Perkins’ list is the Boston Celtics’ duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, which has always been potent but has always come up short when it has mattered most in the playoffs.
In fourth place is LeBron James and Anthony Davis of the Los Angeles Lakers, who, other than Jokic and Murray, are the only duo on the list to have won a ring together.
Kevin Durant and Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns round out the list, and it is anyone’s guess how well the Suns will do this season, especially come playoff time, given their unbalanced roster.
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