“Defense.” That’s the one-word response when anyone says the center position has turned into an NBA anachronism. They are the tallest, sturdiest trees in the forest that is the NBA lane, and they can make or break a team’s chances depending on how much of a threat they pose to opposing slashers and ball handlers determined to foil a team’s defense with their alacrity to get to the iron.
And, really, the center is the last buffer between the basket and the offensive player. When a defense breaks down and teammates are clambering to jump out at shooters and recover if they then pump-fake, drive, and kick it to the next available offensive player — a series of dominoes that’s beautiful to watch when the defense has been bent into a scrambling, recovering mess — they’re the lodestone for the ball at the last moment, and the North Star for their fellow teammates looking for a way to get back into a play they’ve fallen behind on.
But like offense is for the other positions we’ve ranked, defense is just the easiest side of the ball to explain the consequence of a center in today’s NBA. Except, they’re also floor spacers, rebounders and offensive focal points in some cases. Which big can pick and pop? What player at the five can even drift out to the corner three and they’re enough of a threat from that distance as a catch-and-shoot option, the opposing big has to drift with them? Who can effectively spot and deliver the ball to back-cutters and players jumping open on weak-side flare screens as they hold the ball, lightly guarded near the elbow? Who uses their body as an effective battering ram for opposing guards and small forwards as their own teammate curls around them shoulder to shoulder, looking for a crevice to get a shot off?
This might sound old fashioned, but in a pinch, who can force a double team with the ball on the block and get that ball whipping around perimeter as the defense hustles to catch up? The center might not be the dominating position it was in the 1990s and early aughts, but it still might also be the most important position on the floor. Remember that as you’re lambasting your team’s own center if he misses a weak-side rotation. It’s the NBA’s most thankless spot on the floor at the moment, but you can’t win a title without an effective one, either.
20. Myles Turner
When Turner declared for the draft, the most positive image of him presented by scouts was of a true stretch five, a center with the height, length and bulk to be a defensive anchor and rim protector and the shooting form and release to honestly have three-point range. Well, as a rookie, it’s basically impossible to have the experience necessary to organize a defense, though he showed promise as a shot blocker. What’s more, Turner only attempted four three-pointers all season. But in year one, he’s already dangerous on both the pick and roll and the midrange pick and pop, and his form and quick release still point to potential three-point range down the line. Even without that, Turner has the makings of a very good to great two-way center.
19. Robin Lopez
RoLo doesn’t have much of a jump shot, or the athleticism to be even a very good pick-and-roll finisher or premier shot blocker. What he does have is the intelligence to be a positioning genius on the defensive end, as well as the proud owner of a surprisingly versatile set of hook shots, which he made at an impressive 54.7 percent clip last season, according to NBA.com. Though he already seems to have the game of an old dude, he’s only 28 years old and should allow the Bulls to move on from the similarly skilled Joakim Noah, who’s a superior passer but far less likely to stay on the court.
18. Nikola Vucevic
Offensively, Vucevic is silky smooth, with an efficient post game and an underrated jump shot. He’s efficient from basically everywhere inside 20 feet with the ball in his hands, contested or not, and his set shot is dangerous as well. He’s a perfectly fine rebounder who grabbed nearly nine boards a game last year. Yep, look at him the right way and Vucevic is everything you’d want from a — wait, what do you mean defense? I haven’t heard of such a thing. Nikola, have you heard about defense? No, he’s shaking his head. Well, if this “defense” thing ever becomes a big deal, you give us a call.
17. Mason Plumlee
The more successful Plumlee brother has a thoroughly uncomplicated offensive game — quite effective when screening, dunking or laying it in, without being terribly concerned about anything else. For his size and strength, Mason moves quite well, which allows him to be a rim runner in the Tyson Chandler mode, committing quickly and thoroughly punishing any switching. On defense, it allows him to cover plenty of ground both around the rim and in sticking briefly with smaller players on those switches. The thing is, there are quite a few players who have his skill set, but better. We’ll get to them all soon enough.
16. Tristan Thompson
Thompson is an entirely unique player in the NBA in that he has complete mastery over two skills, neither of which are considered basic units of the center position. Rather, his elite offensive rebounding and quickness on the perimeter in guarding switches are two things which otherwise-dominant centers can often be forgiven for not doing. Thompson’s not an efficient post scorer, he’s only a pretty good rim protector, he can’t do anything but dunk on the pick-and-roll (and many can do it better), but anything that can be accomplished with athleticism and energy, Thompson can pretty much do. He didn’t fit quite right at power forward, but he proved in making Timofey Mozgov irrelevant this past postseason that even if he’s still a misfit, he’s a darn good center.
15. Brook Lopez
What a shame that such a gifted scorer as Brook has had to toil in obscurity playing for the lowly Nets his whole career. The one year they made some noise in the playoffs, Lopez was on the shelf with a foot injury. That malady will always hang over his head, but he’s played in over 70 games two years in a row, so thoughts of a career that would end before age 30 can now probably safely expire. For as imposing a physical presence as he is on offense, Lopez has never seemed all that imposing on the boards or defense, and though he can stand up pretty well in the post, he’s not maneuverable enough to guard the pick and roll or really serve as an effective help defender at the rim. But he’s not as bad as, say, Greg Monroe, and his varied post game is accompanied by a surprisingly nice midrange shot. Sadly, if he stays in Brooklyn, Lopez will likely be well past his peak by the time the team around him is any good, but any look back at his career numbers will reveal a damn good scorer.
14. Jonas Valanciunas
The Raptors’ postseason rejuvenation with Jonas out of the lineup got Bismack Biyombo his big payday and shone a bright light on how thoroughly JV lacks bounce and length on the defensive end. But don’t get it twisted — Valanciunas is the much better player, both as a prolific inside scorer and an elite rebounder. He averaged over four offensive rebounds per 36 minutes, a rate that matches Robin Lopez’s second-best finish in the NBA in that category last season. Valanciunas is also quite stout when players drive right at him with his back to the rim; the problem is when he’s helping, or when he steps away from that basket. But at age 24, having never averaged more than 28 minutes per game, his statistics will soon match the skill he’s displayed on the court.
13. Pau Gasol
Like many of the players that preceded him on this list, Pau Gasol isn’t all that great on defense. But he’s much more than the unbalanced sort of player Valanciunas or Vucevic are. Sure, he can score in a variety of ways, but he’s also a slick passer, one whose decisions on how and when to score constantly keep the defense guessing. He’s also somehow improved as a rebounder in the latter stages of his career, and he always has a knack for making the shots he absolutely needs to make when the game is on the line. He’s one of the best-loved players in the NBA, and he’ll fit in as a natural part of the Spurs’ community. Paired with Manu Ginobili, we may see some of Pau’s most creative work yet in the coming year, even as his scoring touch fails to diminish.
12. Nikola Jokic
The second of three rising sophomores to appear on this list, Jokic already has a Gasol-like knack for unpredictability and versatility on the offensive end, as he appears like he’ll be a wonderful high-post fulcrum for years to come. Heck, he’s even halfway towards a respectable three-point shot, which would make his offensive game as similar to Draymond Green as their physical profiles are different. Of course, he still has miles to go defensively, as he’s easy to fool and easier to muscle out of the lane by more mature centers. But both of those issues need only the passage of time and the natural growth of the human body to correct, mostly; we’ll see what strides he can make with more experience.
Regardless, his bread and butter will always be his offense, which is a dazzling array of no-look passes and post moves which should only grow as he plays more. His inventiveness will keep him a fan favorite for years.
11. Dwight Howard
If we were ranking centers simply based on the sum of their skills like we were rating players in NBA 2K17, Dwight would sit much higher. He’s not the best defender in the NBA anymore, but he’s still one hell of a rim protector, and his pick-and-roll finishing skills remain elite. Yet he sits down here because no one in the league stubbornly plays to his own weaknesses more than Dwight. He’s a brutally inefficient post player, yet he led the league in post touches — and STILL acted like he wasn’t getting fed enough. He’s left three teams, all of which were sick of him by the time he was on the way out, and he openly admitted to both playing with inconsistent effort and allowing opponents to get in his head. Few players are resolutely less than the sum of their parts quite like Dwight — and of course, he still can’t make his free throws.
10. Andrew Bogut
There’s an argument to be made that Bogut is the smartest defender in the NBA. He’s the classic back-line quarterback, orchestrating his team’s all-court defensive scheme from the paint with constant communication. The seven-footer never takes a false step and frequently gets away with holds and grabs less canny players don’t. Bogut’s basketball genius is manifested on the other end, too, where he’s an expert screener and beautiful passer from the post and top of the key. His offensive limitations are as obvious as they are lasting, but no one expects the 12-year veteran to be anything close to a primary scorer. Bogut’s role is to direct defense and keep offense humming, one he’s primed to fill seamlessly in his first season with the Dallas Mavericks.
9. Steven Adams
At first glance, Adams looks like another Tyson Chandler type, all defense and rim rolls, but don’t confuse a lack of offensive opportunities with a lack of offensive skill. Sure, Adams is a pick-and-roll destroyer, but he’s also got a pretty good post move or two. A jump shooter he is not, but who knows what he can do with the expanded role he’ll be given on the Durant-less Thunder. More importantly, his defense has improved to the point where he’s making plays with his brain nearly as often as he makes them with his body. He’s only 22 and he already is a solidifying presence on that back line. Be prepared for the 23-year-old’s coming out party this season.
8. Rudy Gobert
Health is the only thing that stopped Gobert from garnering All-Defense honors last season. He still finished seventh in Defensive Player of the Year voting despite missing 21 games due to injury, recognition mostly owed to his dominance protecting the paint. The Stifle Tower forced opponents into a league-low 41.0 percent shooting at the rim last season. He’s mobile and has good hands for a big man, too, abilities he uses to finish lobs and drop-offs around the basket with ease and authority. Gobert won’t ever be a star offensively, but is already good enough on the other end to be a top-10 center in the league — and look at that, here he is.
7. Hassan Whiteside
Whiteside is the third center in a row on this list whose primary functions are as rim protector and pick-and-roll dunker. It’s certainly the most common mold of center in the NBA right now, but Whiteside might be the apex of the form. Not because he’s the best defensively or offensively, because he isn’t either, but because he’s the most terrifying at both. No one blocked more shots than Whiteside last season, and it wasn’t even close. That number might come down next season as fewer people try to attack him at the rim, but that deterrence has a more profound impact over time. And unlike the two players who preceded him on the list, Whiteside’s averaged a double-double the past two years. He makes his presence felt in every phase of the game, even without any real shooting range.
6. Andre Drummond
‘Dre might be the most lethal blunt instrument in the league. He swallows rebounds better than anybody since Dennis Rodman, and he dunks them back with a vicious ferocity. He’s such a massive physical presence that pick and rolls between him and Reggie Jackson are still effective even though Reggie is a below-average outside shooter. Defensively, he’s pretty good at leveraging his bulk, but not so good at identifying threats quickly or coming out to defend that pick-and-roll. He’s also quite possibly the worst free throw shooter of all time, but his rebounding and dunking are simply too valuable a set of tools to rank him any lower. He’s still only 23, so he can continue to become an honest-to-God elite defender rather than just a guy who looks like one.
5. Marc Gasol
A couple of years ago, Gasol’s combination of genius defense and offensive organization might have ranked him at the top of this list. No other center was as much of a threat from the elbow as Marc, who could easily and decisively either find a cutter, nail a set shot, or pass to a three-point shooter. All of that is still true, but even before the broken foot that ended this past season prematurely and made us seriously concerned for his future, he had lost a step on defense. Kevin Durant proved that a Jones fracture isn’t a death sentence for a player’s effectiveness, but Gasol’s added size complicates things further. We hope Big Spain comes back stronger than ever, but at 31 years old, he’s unlikely to match his Defensive-Player-of-the-Year peak.
4. Karl-Anthony Towns
Yes, KAT’s already this good. His shot-blocking numbers are a bit gaudy for his actual defensive performance, but the dude is 20 years old and clearly has the tools to be dominant on that end. With Kevin Garnett once again in his ear in Minnesota, Towns could be above average as early as his sophomore season, which would be well ahead of schedule.
As far as Towns’ offense, ahead of schedule doesn’t begin to cover it. He could very easily grow to be Tim Duncan with a three-point shot on that end, and if he can average 18 and 10 as easily as he seemed to do in his first year, his career stat line will resemble the dearly departed Duncan. Quite simply, he’s dangerous from every spot on the floor to either drive or shoot, and he does it with confidence. He could easily become the best offensive center in the game next season, and his inexperienced defense is what stopped him from ascending past our top three.
3. DeAndre Jordan
DeAndre represents something like the theoretical limit for how good a player can be if he can’t shoot at all. He’s almost certainly the best pick-and-roll finisher in the game, and his actual defense has finally caught up to his shot-blocking reputation as being elite. He’s just huge, and he’s really, really hard to avoid anywhere near the hoop because his foot speed is surprisingly good for a man his size covering drives. Offensively, if you see him attempting a jumper, that generally means the Clippers are winning by quite a lot. He’s part of the Dwight Howard-Andre Drummond class of free throw shooters so bad that they changed the rules — but hey, they changed the rules! Honestly, DAJ’s lack of shooting range tends to matter less since his dunking range seems to extend outside of the paint.
2. Al Horford
Horford is exactly two skills short of being damn near the perfect center — three-point shooting and shot blocking. He’s an absolute ace on defense everywhere but at the rim, but he doesn’t quite have the bounce to have, say, Jordan’s impact by altering shots as much. On offense, he’s one of the best midrange shooters in the game, someone you can’t leave alone on the pick-and-pop (and with the wheels to roll as well), but how much more offense could be unlocked if he could step five feet farther back? Those almosts are the reason why even though Boston has ascended to a new tier with Horford in the fold, general consensus seems to be that they still need one more big star to win. Horford doesn’t quite have that final ingredient to make him an obvious centerpiece, but he will once again be the best player on a team that plays smart, unified basketball and ascends into the tier of teams with more star power.
1. DeMarcus Cousins
It also feels odd to us that Cousins, the one they call Boogie, is the best center in the league despite never playing for a playoff team. But here he sits. There are no megastars at this position like there are at point guard and the forward slots, but everyone at some point has thought that Cousins could be one if he ever finds his way to an organization that isn’t constantly imploding. Maybe then, the thinking goes, he would consistently try on defense, rather than sulking or complaining at officials. He has shown the ability to play very good defense for possessions at a time, but no one’s convinced him that it’s worth the effort to do it all the time — and sometimes it’s hard to blame him. Of course, there is no guarantee that the switch exists to be flipped under better circumstances, so we can’t give him credit for it.
The reason Boogie is first on this list is not that he could eventually be a good defender, it’s because he’s the best offensive center in the game, an old-school bruiser who demands double teams with the ball in his hands in the high or low post. He’s an above average passer for a big man as well, and he just began to develop an above-the-break three as the trailer on fast breaks, which could be just plain unfair if he stays committed to it. The bottom line is, no one presents a matchup problem like Boogie right now, and at center that’s a pretty large advantage.
