Who’s the Best Duo in the NBA Right Now?

By: Adi Bhatia 10/15/25

Lakers Duo Lebron James and Luka Doncic

In the NBA today, teams rely on star power to stay competitive. A lot of the time, a talented duo is what a team needs to reach success. In the league right now, there are many duos that have reached success, and many new duos looking to prove themselves. For a duo to be considered as one of the best in the league, various factors matter, such as their personal statistics and accolades, as well as their team's success. Overall, five duos stand out compared to the rest.

Over the past season, with all the various trades and free agency signings that have happened, a few new duos have put the league on notice. An example of this is on the Golden State Warriors, with Jimmy Butler and Stephen Curry. The addition of Jimmy Butler lit a fire under the Warriors, as their record was 23-7 after trading for him: a stark comparison to the mediocre 25-27 record they had prior to acquiring him . With the combination of the greatest shooter of all time in Stephen Curry and an elite two-way forward in Jimmy Butler, the Warriors have a talented duo that can help them contend for a championship. In addition, after one of the most shocking trades of all time, the Los Angeles Lakers have a historic pair of teammates leading them. A lot can be said about both Luka Doncic and LeBron James, two superstars in the league today. In the short time they have played together, they have averaged an impressive 51.4 ppg combined. Although Lebron’s age and the lack of depth on the Lakers need to be considered, the sky’s the limit for an all-time duo like this one. Lastly, another high-level duo that formed this season is Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns of the New York Knicks. As two All-NBA caliber players, they led the Knicks to a successful season and were two games away from the NBA finals.

Contrasting these newly formed duos, some pairs of teammates have been competing at a high level together for a while now. To start, this list would not be complete without mentioning the reigning MVP and Finals MVP of the league. Shai Gilgeous Alexander had a historic season for the Oklahoma City Thunder, yet his team's success would not be possible without Jaylen Williams. As a backcourt duo, they have averaged 49.3 PPG, and led the Thunder to a championship last season. However, for the Knicks and Thunder, both teams have a deep supporting cast, which takes away from the role of the star duo. Moving on, the longest tenured duo on this list is Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray on the Denver Nuggets. These two have played together for eight seasons and won a championship in the 2023 season. Although these teammates have been successful together, most accolades and stats come from Jokic, showing how the Nuggets duo relies largely on him.

Last but not least, another duo that has been shining and dominating the league for years now is Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum. Both players have been all-stars for years now, and have reached the Eastern Conference finals five times and the NBA finals twice together. Despite all their successes, it is hard to label them as the best duo in the NBA due to Tatum’s devastating achilles injury, which will sideline him for months and could possibly affect the production he has for the rest of his career.

With all the talented duos in the league at the moment, it is hard to name one as the definite best. Each of the duos on this list has the skillset and potential to be the best, and is often held back by external factors.