National Basketball Association

Who are the top 10 NBA duos?

Updated Mar. 1, 2023 4:10 p.m. ET

The debut of a new star duo is set to take place on Wednesday.

Kevin Durant will make his Phoenix Suns debut when the team faces the Charlotte Hornets, pairing the two-time Finals MVP with Devin Booker, widely regarded as one of the game's top shooting guards.

With that in mind, here's who Colin Cowherd ranked as the 10 best duos in the NBA on Tuesday's "The Herd."

Giannis-Jrue Holiday, Steph Curry-Klay Thompson highlight Colin's 10 best duos

Colin Cowherd shared his 10 best duos in the NBA on Tuesday.

10. Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving - Dallas Mavericks (32-31)

Dončić's 2022-23 stats: 33.2 points, 8.8 rebounds and 8.1 assists per game on .506/.349/.731 shooting splits.

Irving's 2022-23 stats: 26.7 points, 5.5 assists and 5.1 rebounds per game on .487/.374/.894 shooting splits (40 games with the Nets, seven games with the Mavericks).

Colin's thoughts: They play no defense. None. But offense is about 70 percent of the league. Luka leads the league in scoring. Kyrie's shooting over 50 percent. So, they're just dynamic. They're magnetic offensively. I don't know if either is a great teammate and they don't play a lick of defense, so that's why they're at 10.

9. Kawhi Leonard and Paul George - Los Angeles Clippers (33-31)

Leonard's 2022-23 stats: 23 points, 6.1 rebounds and four assists per game on .506/.408/.873 shooting splits.

George's 2022-23 stats: 23.5 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game on .462/.383/.869 shooting splits.

Colin's thoughts: Kawhi's starting to play better. They're both excellent defensive players and good offensive players. I would take them in a series over Dallas because they can make stops and Dallas won't. I mean, Kawhi's been on seven [all-defense] teams. I don't know if he's quite ready to play. If Kawhi played on a nightly basis, I could have these guys in the top three. He's non-verbal. He's not a leader. He's just a basket-maker and a get-a-stop guy.

8. Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland - Cleveland Cavaliers (39-25)

Mitchell's 2022-23 stats: 27.2 points, 4.8 assists and four rebounds per game on .479/.389/.876 shooting splits.

Garland's 2022-23 stats: 21.9 points, 7.9 assists and 2.6 rebounds per game on .468/.421/.868 shooting splits.

Colin's thoughts: Donovan's having a great year. I get more consistent play from them because I think they're going to be ready to go. Donovan Mitchell's averaging 27 a game, but not much of a defensive player. Garland's a rising star, he's fantastic. I think Cleveland's a year away. Evan Mobley keeps growing. I love watching Cleveland. One of the better watches in the NBA.

7. Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray - Denver Nuggets (44-19)

Jokić's 2022-23 stats: 24.6 points, 11.7 rebounds and 10 assists per game on .633/.398/.822 shooting splits.

Murray's 2022-23 stats: 20.1 points, six assists and 4.1 rebounds per game on .456/.388/.830 shooting splits.

Colin's thoughts: Everybody's going to freak out, but I don't trust Jamal Murray in a big spot. He averages 20 a game. Jokić is obviously the great point center – some Bill Walton qualities, one of the great passing big men. I know I should trust this team. I don't. Some guys are great regular-season players but not great postseason players. They have a strong [No. 1] option but Jamal Murray's an average [No. 2] option.

6. LeBron James and Anthony Davis - Los Angeles Lakers (29-33)

James' 2022-23 stats: 29.5 points, 8.4 rebounds and 6.9 assists per game on .501/.308/.759 shooting splits.

Davis' 2022-23 stats: 25.8 points, 12.6 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game on .561/.236/.811 shooting splits.

Colin's thoughts: Davis has already missed 24 games this year. LeBron's hurt now. If healthy, you could argue they're No. 1 or No. 2. But they're never healthy. Davis [would] lead the league in rebounds [if he qualified]. He's a tremendous defensive player. But he's already missed 24 games, so it's just a matter of when, not if, he'll get banged up. And LeBron's out for two weeks.

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5. Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo - Miami Heat (33-29)

Butler's 2022-23 stats: 21.9 points, 5.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game on .518/.321/.844 shooting splits.

Adebayo's 2022-23 stats: 21.2 points, 9.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game on .536/.083/.800 shooting splits.

Colin's thoughts: Bam Adebayo's having his best year as a pro – 21 points per game and he's a very good defensive player. Butler's averaging 22 per game. Now, Butler misses some games because he plays hard so he gets dinged up. This team leads the NBA in one-possession wins with 13. I think this is a great team in close games. You've got to blow the Heat out. If it gets close – between their defense, coaching and situational basketball – Miami's great.

4. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday - Milwaukee Bucks (44-17)

Antetokounmpo's 2022-23 stats: 31.3 points, 12.1 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game on .539/.273/.643 shooting splits.

Holiday's 2022-23 stats: 19.7 points, 7.1 assists and 5.2 rebounds per game on .470/.382/.859 shooting splits.

Colin's thoughts: I think, eventually, they want Khris Middleton to be the No. 2 instead of Jrue Holiday. But Holiday's the better defensive player. He's a very smart veteran player. Giannis is the best player in the league and basically gets them to No. 4 on this list. I like Holiday, he's one of the get-a-bucket guys on this team along with Jae Crowder, Joe Ingles and Middleton. But this is a Giannis story. On any given night he's the best player, offensively and defensively, in the NBA.

3. Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown - Boston Celtics (44-18)

Tatum's 2022-23 stats: 30.1 points, 8.7 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game on .460/.351/.864 shooting splits.

Brown's 2022-23 stats: 26.5 points, seven rebounds and 3.2 assists per game on .486/.336/.777 shooting splits.

Colin's thoughts: My knock is with Jayson Tatum is he didn't show up [Monday night against the Knicks] at all. He was great Saturday night against Philly. He did nothing [against the Knicks]. I thought he was tragic in the first quarter and the game was over. Sometimes, I don't think Tatum quite has the "it." Jaylen Brown's the better athlete. Brown, I feel like, is more aggressive. But they're phenomenal. You could argue the heart and soul of the team is Marcus Smart. They've got a really good eight players.

2. Kevin Durant and Devin Booker - Phoenix Suns (33-29)

Durant's 2022-23 stats: 29.7 points, 6.7 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game on .559/.376/.934 shooting splits (all with the Nets).

Booker's 2022-23 stats: 26.5 points, 5.7 assists and 4.6 rebounds per game on .473/.347/.841 shooting splits.

Colin's thoughts: On any given night, you'll have the best shooting guard and the best shooter on the planet. They're fantastic. Booker is overlooked a lot in the West because of [Damian Lillard], Steph Curry, Chris Paul and all of that. Booker's a great player. He's not Kobe [Bryant], who he was compared to early. But Durant's the best get-a-bucket guy in the NBA right now. So, I think they're No. 2.

1. Steph Curry and Klay Thompson - Golden State Warriors (32-30)

Curry's 2022-23 stats: 29.4 points, 6.4 assists and 6.3 rebounds per game on .495/.427/.922 shooting splits.

Thompson's 2022-23 stats: 22.1 points, four rebounds and 2.5 assists per game on .427/.409/.896 shooting splits.

Colin's thoughts: The greatest backcourt shooters in the history of the game. Steph's been hurt, but Klay's been having his best year in five or six years. Klay's having a great year. He's not the defensive player he used to be, but the's still a tremendous player. They're super smart. They can finish each other's sentences. Steph's going to be fine. There's no backcourt in NBA history that can drop 15 points and can come back from down 15 or have a four-point lead turn to 19 faster. And they have championship moxie, experience, big-game clutch performances and IQ off the charts.

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