3 smartest minds in the NBA

What makes the sport of basketball great is that there exists different paths to success. Being a 7-footer, however clumsy, can make up for a deficiency in skill and land you a lengthy NBA career (see: Kendrick Perkins).

Similarly, if you're smart enough, that bit of guile can be your craft. And while smarts without talent doesn't get very far, the best in the game - like the names below - are often those who combine extraordinary ability with a keen game sense.

LeBron James

Team: Cleveland Cavaliers
Age: 31 | Exp: 14 years

The NBA has never seen an omnipotent force quite like LeBron James since Michael Jordan retired. Which other player can play the point, fill the lanes like a wing, rebound and block shots like a center, while also being able to guard all five positions? James is an athletic wonder, no doubt, but his superlative basketball IQ is what allows him to make the impossible routinely possible.

The comparisons to Jordan extend beyond the court and into the business world. James is starring in blockbuster films, he signed a reported $1-billion lifetime deal with Nike, he's the vice-president of the NBA Players' Association, he's the most influential man in Ohio, his childhood friend Rich Paul is the hottest up-and-coming agent in the league, and it's something of an open secret that James is the unofficial general manager of the Cavaliers.

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Chris Paul

Team: Los Angeles Clippers
Age: 31 | Exp: 13 years

If it wasn't for his terrible luck in the postseason, Chris Paul would be in the conversation as the best point guard of all time. Only James (173.2) ranks ahead of Paul in total win shares since Paul (144.1) entered the league. That's more career win shares than Steve Nash (129.7) and Isiah Thomas (80.7). In another season or two, Paul will have topped Magic Johnson's career mark of 155.8.

The 6-foot-nothing Paul managed all this while spending his entire career playing below the rim (save for the time he posterized Dwight Howard). He's quick as a cat, he's a criminally underrated shooter, and he's never afraid to body up bigger players, but what truly sets Paul apart is his sense for the game. Playmaking, shooting, slashing, defense - Paul does everything you could possibly ask for from a point guard.

Kyle Lowry

Team: Toronto Raptors
Age: 30 | Exp: 11 years

Kyle Lowry is the rare superstar that does literally nothing spectacular, and that's not an insult. Lowry rarely ever makes highlight plays, he just makes winning plays. He hasn't dunked in four years, and his favorite crossover is the simple right to left before muscling past his man (or drawing the foul), and yet James is the only player in the East over the past three seasons who has more win shares than Lowry. Similarly, no team has won more games in the East since 2013 than Lowry's Raptors.

Similar to Paul, the 6-foot Lowry relies mostly on guile and effort. He's not a dominant scorer, but he'll attack relentlessly when given any opportunity. He's not an all-consuming defender in the slightest, but Lowry digs his heels in to defend anywhere along the perimeter. Lowry preys on mistakes and forces his opponents to be perfect. And even if they are, Lowry is never above playing up contact to the official to win a call.

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