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When it comes to great NBA duos in the past 30 years, there might not be one with better chemistry than the Golden State Warriors stars Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. Sure, there are cases for both Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson, but Curry and Green's chemistry on the court is unmatched because Green is the ultimate floor general/facilitator while Curry is the ultimate scorer.
In the 90s, the Utah Jazz's John Stockton and Karl Malone were the most in sync duo in the NBA and one of the best two-man combinations ever. The two were so successful that Stockton finished his career as the All-Time leader in assists, and Malone landed second on the All-Time scoring list. The pair had tons of individual success together, but their run ended in the early 2000's without an NBA championship.
Around that same time, an unexpected tandem arrived. Arguably the best duo, pound-for-pound in the history of the NBA, Shaquille O'Neal and the late, great Kobe Bryant took the world by storm. It was a surprise simply because Bryant was so young and wasn't expected to develop that quickly.
Bryant's second season as a starter at only 21 years of age resulted in a championship for the Los Angeles Lakers, the first for both him and O'Neal. They wound up winning three in a row, becoming the first team to three-peat since Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.
Both players instantly became superstars, and their numbers backed it up. Neither averaged under 22 points per game in their three-year championship run. O'Neal won one MVP and three Finals MVP trophies during that time, but Bryant was no slouch.
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As incredible and dominant as the Jazz and Lakers teammates were, neither had the same chemistry and success as the Golden State Warriors duo of Stephen Curry and Draymond Green.
Green and Curry are the first of their kind because it's almost as if the roles have been reversed. Instead of the big man being the dominant scorer and the guard backing him up, it's Curry who scores and Green who facilitates. That type of action has never been seen in the history of the league until the last few years, and much of the credit for the belongs to Curry and Green for starting it.
Unlike the Jazz duo, Green and Curry put up points in different ways. Often times, it seems as if they are workings things out on the fly, depending on the situation they're facing. The pick-and-roll/pick-and-pop game that Stockton and Malone mastered have evolved over the last couple decades. The two Warriors stars have been at the forefront of that. Beyond just the plays, Curry and Green have a non-verbal chemistry between them where each knows whether to pass, cut, relocate, pretty much anything.
When it comes to Bryant and O'Neal, they are superior individual talents when compared to the Warriors stars. The Warriors probably had a more impressive run in terms of accolades, but the largest separation of the two duos is personalities. Bryant and O'Neal's issues tore down the Lakers dynasty. Problems between the two transpired on the court and off the court, which led to the Lakers trading O'Neal.
Over the past 30 years, there have been duos like Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen or LeBron James and Dywane Wade who were more physically gifted and talented than the Green and Curry. When it comes to chemistry, however, Stephen Curry and Draymond Green fit each other like a hand and glove.
