The title of best basketball player in the world is not one given out easily. There are so many talented competitors across the globe, and even when they face off against each other in the NBA or international hoops, it is often unclear who holds the distinction. However, most basketball fans would agree that Michael Jordan was the best player in the world for a stretch, as was LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, and Steph Curry. They all had their time at the top, and the majority of people recognized these names at the peak of the basketball pyramid as their careers unfolded.

Yet, in 2024, there seems to be no consensus top player anymore. A number of uber-talented mega-stars have descended upon the NBA in the past years, each one bringing a different unique skill set to the table. The battle for top player in the world has raged for the past couple of seasons, and just when it looks like one competitor is about to definitively state his claim as the best, someone else always swoops into the conversation, and the debate starts all over again. So, that got me thinking: Who is actually the best basketball player out there right now, and how do we determine what the phrase ‘best basketball player’ even means?

In its most basic interpretation, the phrase ‘best basketball player’ could equate to the best individual competitor on the best team. The player who is able to lead his squad to the greatest of heights, and on the way beat out all the other greats and their teams, could understandably be seen as the best in the world. Some years, this way of looking at it does line up with the consensus best player on the globe. Jordan, LeBron, Kobe, and Steph all had their title runs in the NBA during their primes, and won Finals MVPs as well. However, the top player on this year’s championship Boston Celtics squad, the one who took home both the Eastern Conference Finals and NBA Finals MVP trophies, was Jaylen Brown. Most fans would agree that Brown is no slouch, and was definitely deserving of these awards. However, no one would anoint him as the best basketball player in the world. His individual stats and accolades just don’t stack up to the other top guys around him. So while Jaylen Brown was the best player on the best team this year, it’s clear that that alone does not make him the best player on the globe.

Perhaps you look at the best basketball player as the one who helps his team put the ball in the hoop like no other. After all, the main objective of the game is to score. So, the best scorer/the best points generator should, in theory, be the best player. And when it comes to offensive skill, few people have ever been in the same conversation as Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic. Both of them create scoring opportunities for their teams almost every time down the court, and are counted on to put up big points night in and night out. They are offenses by themselves, and everything on the court revolves around them. Jokic is coming off a ridiculous season stat line of 26.4 ppg and 9.0 apg while shooting 58.3% from the field, and Luka just put up an equally ridiculous line of 33.9 ppg, 9.8 apg, and 48.7% from the field. The two of them both pose a very convincing argument for the best in the world.

But, neither Jokic nor Doncic play much of any defense, and have even been seen as liabilities on the court when the other team is on offense. So, what about a player who can excel on both sides of the ball, a true two-way star? For that, look no further than Giannis Antetokoumpo and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The pair not only generate a similar number of points as Jokic and Doncic, but also bring tenacity and toughness on the defensive end. Giannis has made five all-defensive teams in his career and won the Defensive Player of the Year award a few years ago. While Shai doesn’t have the same accolades, his height, physicality and length make him a formidable defender, reflected in his season averages of 2.0 steals and 0.9 blocks per-game in 2024. Of course, he and Giannis boast impressive offensive numbers, as both of them put up over 30 points and 6 assists per-game on average last year. Basketball is a two-sided game, so it would make sense that the best player should be someone who can dominate both offensively and defensively. 

Speaking of domination, what about the most dominant player out there? Surely, the one who imposes his will on the basketball court like no other should be in consideration for the best in the world. And the current most dominant competitor out there, Joel Embiid, certainly has a case for the distinction. The 2023 MVP was well on his way to defending his award before injuries derailed his season. Still, a healthy Embiid dominates the court in ways we haven’t seen since a prime Shaquille O’Neal. At an imposing 7’0 tall and 280 pounds, the star big man from the 76ers can basically get whatever shot he wants, whenever he wants it. He bullies some of the best centers in the NBA in the post, but can also step out on the perimeter and hit threes. On defensive, players avoid the paint like the plague when Embiid is lurking there. His pure dominance is reflected in his season averages of 34.7 ppg, 11 rpg, and 1.7 bpg. However, no statistic can truly encapsulate Embiid’s presence on the court. As the league’s most physically dominant player, he is definitely in the conversation for the best player in the world. 

However, there is more to basketball than just physical domination. Maybe the best player in the world is the one who dominates the mental side of things, and understands the game better than anyone else out there. Is the best basketball player on the globe, simply, the smartest basketball player on the globe? If it is, then the honor most definitely belongs to LeBron James, and has for a long time. Having been in the NBA for over two decades now, LeBron has forgotten more about basketball than most people will ever know. His brain is the equivalent of a hoops supercomputer, which is reflected in his lightning-fast decision making and breathtaking passes. Despite being the oldest player in the NBA, James still put up 25.7 ppg, 7.3 rpg, and 8.3 apg on 54.0% shooting last year. While other younger stars have more impressive counting stats, no one is able to control the flow of a game like LeBron, who wins as much because of his mind as his body. When it comes down to knowing the game, James is unrivaled, and you could say that this makes him the best player in the world.

Finally, consider basketball in its purest form; a 1v1. When you simplify the game as much as possible, it comes down to one player trying to score, and another one trying to stop them. If we were to measure the best basketball player in the world by this metric, and award the honor to the competitor who could probably beat anyone else in a straight-up, mano a mano battle, it would likely go to someone who isn’t even old enough yet to drink in the United States. Victor Wembanyama, at just 20 years old, is arguably the top one-on-one player out there. He stands at 7’4, has arms the length of trees, and is as quick as some point guards. Wemby can truly do it all, as in just his first season of NBA play, he averaged 21.4 ppg, 10.6 rpg, 1.2 spg, and a whopping 3.6 bpg to lead the league. He can do things on the court that the human race has never seen before. The ultimate physics defier, Wemby can already shoot, dribble, defend, and rebound at an elite level, and he’s only going to get better. But even right now, there is probably no one out there that could confidently beat him in a 1v1. Wembanyama has the complete package, and perhaps in a few years, he will be the one who fans all agree is the best player in the world. But even today, you could argue that he already is. 

So after all that, what's the ultimate conclusion? Using all the different metrics and ways of thinking mentioned above, is there a definitive answer to who the best basketball player in the world is? Well, the answer is that there is no answer. We are in the midst of an incredibly unique and competitive pool of NBA superstars, with no one individual sticking out above the rest. Depending on who you are and what you value in a basketball player, you will have a different answer to who the best out there is. Personally, I believe that Giannis is the best player right now, largely due to his two-way dominance and extreme level of efficiency. But, if you claimed that the best player right now is Jokic, or Embiid, or Luka, I wouldn’t argue with you. No one competitor holds the crown firmly within his grasp at the moment, which has made the race to claim it all the more compelling. All we can do as fans is sit back, and enjoy the stars of our league as they do battle to claim the top spot. And one day, someone will emerge victorious, and definitively earn the honor as the best basketball player in the world. But for now, we’ll have to be content to watch the story unfold before us.