The Best Big 3’s of the NBA: Going Back to the 1980s
Find out about the best big 3’s in NBA history
One thing that the last 40 years has definitely taught us about basketball is that three’s a company. As a matter of fact, a lot of teams who have won championships in the past have had a big three.
For those who may not be familiar, big three is a term that is sometimes used in basketball when there are three players who are exceptional on the same team- and most of the time they are on the court at the same time.
While I could practically write a book on this subject today, in this article we will go through some of the more commonly known big three’s- going all the way back to the 1980s.
1980s- Bird/McHale/Parish
These three players hailed three NBA championships in 1981, 1984 and 1986. As a matter of fact, some basketball historians actually argue that the 1986 team is the greatest NBA team of all time.
The main addition the Celtics got for the 1985-1986 season when they signed Bill Walton, adding a fourth dominant big man.
The unique thing about these three players is that they all played on the same team all the way through the 80s up through the early 90s, which is something that is unheard of in more modern-day basketball.
Most basketball fans credit Larry Bird and Magic Johnson with putting the NBA back on the map so to speak, as its popularity waned in the 1970s.
1980s- Johnson/Worthy/Abdul Jabbar
It almost feels like it should be illegal to not mention these three when you're also talking about McHale, Parish and Bird.
Magic Johnson is the other half of what many credit for putting the NBA back on the map in the 1980s and he also helped revive one of the strongest rivalries in basketball.
Johnson and Bird met in the NCAA championship the year before, when Johnson was victorious.
If you were going to make it a contest of which player won more, Johnson not only helped lead Michigan State over Indiana State during his final year at Michigan State- he also won more championships (four), two of which were against the Celtics.
Just like Bird had McHale and Parish over the years, Magic had Worthy and Jabbar for pretty much the entire duration of his career.
1990s- Jordan/Pippen/Rodman
If Bird and Magic are gonna be credited with getting the NBA back on the map, then it could be argued that Jordan is the player who helped take the NBA to the next level in terms of both skill and popularity.
Jordan’s main skill was his awe-inspiring dunks, one of which he famously took off from the free throw line and still manged to execute it.
Many consider him to be the greatest basketball player of all time- and with good reason.
He does have six NBA championships and averaged more than 30 points per game for his career.
Pippen was known as a second option to MJ for most of his career, as he played most of his years right next to Jordan during his time in Chicago before heading off to Houston and then Portland.
Rodman was more known as a defensive force!
Their most famous season was the one where they won 72 during the 1995-1996 season, another team which some argue is the greatest NBA team of all time.
The only difference with this big three is that they weren’t together quite as long, as Rodman did not arrive until the 1994-1995 season before spending 10 years with their rival, the Detroit Pistons.
2000s - Horry/Cassell/Olajuwon
While these three weren’t together nearly as long as the others that we’ve talked about, there is no question that they were great together.
As a matter of fact, the Rockets literally won NBA championships in 40 percent of the seasons that they played together (two championships in five seasons in 1994 and 1995 seasons).
Olajuwon was seen as a superior low post player, both offensively and defensively, while both Horry and Cassell were considered a presence beyond the three point line- plus Horry was also strong in rebounds alongside Olajuwon.
2010s - Green/Curry/Thompson
You could also make a case for Green/Curry/Thompson to be the best duo of the 2020s. Of all the duos that are still together in the 2020s, these three have been together the longest.
Stephen Curry has been in the league since 2010, Draymond Green has been in the league since 2013 and Klay Thompson has been with Golden State since 2012.
So far, this big three has four NBA championships and counting.
Curry and Thompson's biggest strengths are their handles and shooting while Green can also rebound.
2020s - Smart/Tatum/Brown
The unusual thing about this big three is that while these three have been with the team for a while, they are just now being dubbed as the biggest three.
Tatum was taken as the third overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft while Jaylen Brown was taken into 2016 and Marcus Smart was taken in 2014.
2022 is the first year Smart was a starter and Jaylen Brown was much more involved in the offense than in years past.
While this big three has yet to win an NBA championship as of the time this article is being written- they certainly do have a bright future.
From a performance perspective, Tatum and Brown are both considered to be strong scorers from outside and rebounding while Smart is a defensive force and often guards the opposing team’s best guard.
This could be a reason that he doesn’t always score at high rates and it is a reason why some don’t consider him to be a true point guard.
