Which Lineup Could Take on Barack Obama’s ‘Starting 5’ and Come Out Victorious?

Last week, Netflix’s highly-anticipated documentary series, Starting 5, starring LeBron James, Jayson Tatum, Jimmy Butler, Anthony Edwards, and Domantas Sabonis dropped its first episode. Following its release, former US President Barack Obama, whose company, Higher Ground, is one of three that produced it, revealed his all-time Starting 5 on Instagram, a near-perfect superteam.

The Chicago native unsurprisingly picked Michael Jordan as his shooting guard, LeBron James and Kevin Durant as the forwards, Stephen Curry at the point, and Hakeem Olajuwon as his center.

Obama confidently claimed his Starting 5 could beat any lineup in NBA history. Today, we’re trying to disprove that by creating a team that could go toe-to-toe with the former president’s incredible lineup.

Point Guard – Magic Johnson

While there’s no denying that Stephen Curry is a one-of-a-kind threat on offense, his diminutive stature compared to his peers leaves him susceptible on defense. A taller and physically stronger guard would exploit his limitations as an on-ball stopper and force the rest of the team into rotation. That makes Magic Johnson the perfect player to pit against the two-time MVP.

The four-time assists leader is six inches taller than the Warriors superstar. He could easily overpower Curry and get to the rim or shoot above him. If he draws a double team or a switch, he could easily get the ball to his open teammates or the one being guarded by Curry, creating an easily exploitable mismatch on almost every possession.

Johnson, the NBA’s record-holder for the highest assists average per game, is not only one of, if not the best floor general in NBA history, but he was also a capable defender. He led the league in steals twice during his career and averaged over 2.2 steals per game in five different seasons, a feat Curry has never accomplished.

His otherworldly playmaking ability and underrated defense make him the perfect point guard for most lineups and a nightmare matchup for Curry.

Shooting Guard – Kobe Bryant

There’s likely no better player to pit against Michael Jordan than Kobe Bryant. The Lakers idolized the Bulls icon, modeled his game after him, and won five championships off of it.

Both superstars were ball-dominant players in their prime. But in a starting lineup loaded with offensive talent, they’d have to be willing to scale down their isolation play. In that scenario, Bryant is a slightly better option as he’d space the floor better.

Jordan averaged only 1.7 three-point attempts in his career and banked 32.7% of his shots. However, his numbers benefitted slightly due to the league shortening the three-point line from 1994 to 1997.

Kobe shot 32.9% from deep but showed flashes of excellence as a spot-up shooter. He held the record for most threes in a single game with 12 for 13 years, until Curry broke it in 2016. He had four seasons where he attempted more than five three-pointers per game and shot higher than Jordan’s career three-point shooting percentage.

The battle between the two will be intense, as it was in the few times they faced each other during their careers. It’s hard to predict who’d come out on top, considering the usually self-assured Jordan also once claimed that Bryant was the only player who could beat him one-on-one.

Small Forward – Larry Bird

Kevin Durant is one of the most skilled scorers in NBA history. Among players with at least 10 seasons under their belt, he has the fourth-highest scoring average behind Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain, and Elgin Baylor. However, his unparalleled dominance hasn’t always converted to team success.

On the contrary, Larry Bird’s play style improved his team overnight. He led the Celtics to 61 wins in his rookie season, more than double the tally of 29 victories they managed the year before he arrived.

In his 13-year career, the Celtics had a losing record with him on the floor only once — the 1988-89 season when he played only six games. Boston never missed the playoffs with Bird on the roster, while Durant didn’t get a taste of playoff basketball until his third season.

Furthermore, the Celtics icon was an incredible shot-maker and could bank shots from all three levels. Despite playing in an era where three-pointers were essentially ignored, he averaged 37.6% when shooting from deep. Durant is slightly better from beyond the arc as he has banked 38.6% of his career three-point attempts. However, Larry Legend was never just a scorer.

He was also a stellar playmaker and rebounder. Bird averaged more rebounds, assists, and steals than Durant, highlighting his overall impact on the hardwood. His 6-foot-9 frame would help him keep up with Durant and if the Suns superstar gets hot, Bird could throw him off his game with his legendary trash-talk.

Power Forward – Karl Malone

LeBron James is a wrecking ball in his own right, but Karl Malone did it first. He’s only an inch taller and was a few pounds heavier than the Lakers superstar during his playing days, but the way he utilized his strength made him an unstoppable force in the paint.

Malone was ahead of his time as he had a deadly mid-range shot for a player of his size. He also had a penchant for baiting opponents into fouling him in an era when the referees weren’t as keen on penalizing defenders as today. He shot 13,188 free throws and converted 74.2% of them, cementing himself as the all-time leader in free throws drawn and made.

Malone’s strength also helped him become one of the best rebounders in NBA history. He ranks seventh on the all-time rebounding list. The Jazz icon was the league’s second-highest scorer until James passed him.

The Mailman, as he is fondly known, was practically unstoppable when he ran a pick-and-roll with his Hall of Fame teammate John Stockton. He could replicate that same impact with Johnson and wreak havoc on Obama’s team.

Center – Shaquille O’Neal

Shaquille O’Neal is arguably the most dominant and borderline unstoppable player in the league’s history. His ability as a rim protector, rebounder, and scorer made him a nightmare match-up, leaving teams with no choice but to either double-team him or let him overpower their center.

With his size, athleticism, and ability to rip the rim off the backboard, O’Neal would feast in the paint, even with Olajuwon guarding him. When they met in the 1995 NBA Finals, a 23-year-old O’Neal averaged 28 points, 12.5 rebounds, 6.3 assists, and 2.5 blocks. However, the Rockets icon put up 32.8 points, 11.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and two blocks per game and led his team to a 4-0 series win.

However, after that series, the three-time Finals MVP faced Olajuwon 20 times in the regular season and won 14 games. He also led his Lakers to a 3-1 series win over the Rockets in the 1999 playoffs.

With Magic Johnson feeding him the ball and Kobe Bryant, Larry Bird, and Karl Malone keeping their defenders engaged, it’d boil down to a one-on-one battle between O’Neal and Olajuwon in the paint. As history has showcased, only one player will come out on top in that situation.