The Best Players at Every Age in NBA History

The Best NBA Players at Each Age Since 1978

We sifted through over 14,000 individual NBA seasons to award a Championship Belt to the best player at each age from 18-42. Which players started out white-hot, only to fizzle out, and which players were late-bloomers? This is what we aim to answer, and in the end, we will give out some awards based on points awarded for each appearance on the list. But, before all that, let's lay out the criteria we used and why. First, why 1978? Well, simply because that's the first year that I have complete data for. It is after the NBA/ABA merger, so all of the best players were in one league again, and it is one of the first years where stats such as blocks, steals, offensive/defensive (separately) rebounds were kept. Our criteria were simple: using our Season Finder application, we filtered out all seasons with less than 1,000 minutes played, and then ranked the players at each age by Crafted Plus Minus. So without further ado, let's get on with the show.

Age 18

🥇 Tracy McGrady | 1998

Crafted+-: .4

🥈 Kobe Bryant | 1997

Crafted+-: -0.8

Age 19

🥇 Tracy McGrady | 1999

Crafted+-: 3.6

🥈 Luka Doncic | 2019

Crafted+-: 3.1

🥉 Kyrie Irving | 2012

Crafted+-: 2.8

Honorable Mention: Andre Drummond, Anthony Davis, Zion Williamson, Jayson Tatum, Kobe Bryant, Thaddeus Young, LeBron James

Age 20

🥇 LeBron James | 2005

Crafted+-: 7.7

🥈 Luka Doncic | 2020

Crafted+-: 7.4

🥉 Chris Paul | 2006

Crafted+-: 6.1

Honorable Mention: Nikola Jokic, Magic Johnson, Andrei Kirilenko, Anthony Davis, Andrew Bynum, Chris Webber, Shaquille O'Neal

Age 21

🥇 Magic Johnson | 1981

Crafted+-: 8.7

🥈 Anthony Davis | 2015

Crafted+-: 8.7

🥉 LeBron James | 2006

Crafted+-: 8.2

Honorable Mention: Michael Jordan, Nikola Jokic, Kevin Durant, Tracy McGrady, Shaquille O'Neal, Andrei Kirilenko, Kobe Bryant

Age 22

🥇 Chris Paul | 2008

Crafted+-: 10.2

🥈 LeBron James | 2007

Crafted+-: 7.7

🥉 Magic Johnson | 1982

Crafted+-: 7.6

Honorable Mention: Andrei Kirilenko, Tracy McGrady, Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Derrick Rose, Kawhi Leonard, Kobe Bryant

Age 23

🥇 Chris Paul | 2009

Crafted+-: 11.4

🥈 LeBron James | 2008

Crafted+-: 9.6

🥉 Michael Jordan | 1987

Crafted+-: 9.6

Honorable Mention: Tracy McGrady, Nikola Jokic, Andrei Kirilenko, Magic Johnson, Kawhi Leonard, Jayson Tatum, Isiah Thomas

Age 24

🥇 LeBron James | 2009

Crafted+-: 12.9

🥈 Michael Jordan | 1988

Crafted+-: 12.1

🥉 Kawhi Leonard | 2016

Crafted+-: 9.5

Honorable Mention: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Dwyane Wade, Kevin Durant, Anfernee Hardaway, Charles Barkley, Vince Carter, Karl-Anthony Towns

Age 25

🥇 LeBron James | 2010

Crafted+-: 11.7

🥈 Michael Jordan | 1989

Crafted+-: 11.4

🥉 Giannis Antetokounmpo | 2020

Crafted+-: 10.2

Honorable Mention: John Stockton, Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, David Robinson, James Harden, Chris Paul

Age 26

🥇 Michael Jordan | 1990

Crafted+-: 11.1

🥈 Stephen Curry | 2015

Crafted+-: 10.5

🥉 Nikola Jokic | 2022

Crafted+-: 10

Honorable Mention: David Robinson, John Stockton, Chris Paul, Kevin Durant, Kevin Garnett, Charles Barkley, LeBron James

Age 27

🥇 Michael Jordan | 1991

Crafted+-: 12.2

🥈 Stephen Curry | 2016

Crafted+-: 12.2

🥉 LeBron James | 2012

Crafted+-: 10.5

Honorable Mention: Dwyane Wade, John Stockton, Kevin Garnett, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Chris Paul, Nikola Jokic, Magic Johnson, Charles Barkley

Age 28

🥇 LeBron James | 2013

Crafted+-: 10.7

🥈 David Robinson | 1994

Crafted+-: 10.5

🥉 James Harden | 2018

Crafted+-: 10

Honorable Mention: Chris Paul, Michael Jordan, Kawhi Leonard, John Stockton, Dwyane Wade, Russell Westbrook, Kevin Garnett

Age 29

🥇 Michael Jordan | 1993

Crafted+-: 10.9

🥈 James Harden | 2019

Crafted+-: 10.8

🥉 Chris Paul | 2015

Crafted+-: 9.4

Honorable Mention: John Stockton, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, David Robinson, Clyde Drexler, Manu Ginobili, Shaquille O'Neal

Age 30

🥇 James Harden | 2020

Crafted+-: 10.1

🥈 Magic Johnson | 1990

Crafted+-: 9.7

🥉 David Robinson | 1996

Crafted+-: 8.7

Honorable Mention: Larry Bird, Chris Paul, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Manu Ginobili, Hakeem Olajuwon, Dwyane Wade, Julius Erving

Age 31

🥇 Chris Paul | 2017

Crafted+-: 9

🥈 Magic Johnson | 1991

Crafted+-: 8.7

🥉 LeBron James | 2016

Crafted+-: 8.6

Honorable Mention: Larry Bird, John Stockton, Kevin Garnett, Julius Erving, Chauncey Billups, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Charles Barkley

Age 32

🥇 Michael Jordan | 1996

Crafted+-: 10.4

🥈 John Stockton | 1995

Crafted+-: 9.2

🥉 Chris Paul | 2018

Crafted+-: 7.8

Honorable Mention: LeBron James, David Robinson, Manu Ginobili, Karl Malone, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Clyde Drexler, Stephen Curry, Steve Nash

Age 33

🥇 Michael Jordan | 1997

Crafted+-: 8.7

🥈 Karl Malone | 1997

Crafted+-: 7.3

🥉 David Robinson | 1999

Crafted+-: 7.3

Honorable Mention: LeBron James, John Stockton, Manu Ginobili, Stephen Curry, Tim Duncan, Kevin Durant, Charles Barkley

Age 34

🥇 John Stockton | 1997

Crafted+-: 7.4

🥈 LeBron James | 2019

Crafted+-: 6.8

🥉 Karl Malone | 1998

Crafted+-: 6.6

Honorable Mention: Michael Jordan, David Robinson, Manu Ginobili, Clyde Drexler, Stephen Curry, Sam Cassell, Kevin Garnett

Age 35

🥇 LeBron James | 2020

Crafted+-: 8.2

🥈 John Stockton | 1998

Crafted+-: 6.1

🥉 David Robinson | 2001

Crafted+-: 6

Honorable Mention: Karl Malone, Jason Kidd, Larry Bird, Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Garnett, Steve Nash, Charles Barkley

Age 36

🥇 John Stockton | 1999

Crafted+-: 6.3

🥈 Karl Malone | 2000

Crafted+-: 6.1

🥉 LeBron James | 2021

Crafted+-: 5.8

Honorable Mention: Chris Paul, Manu Ginobili, Tim Duncan, Jason Kidd, David Robinson, Steve Nash, Vince Carter

Age 37

🥇 John Stockton | 2000

Crafted+-: 7

🥈 LeBron James | 2022

Crafted+-: 6.2

🥉 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 1985

Crafted+-: 4.7

Honorable Mention: Karl Malone, Steve Nash, Jason Kidd, Chris Paul, Tim Duncan, David Robinson, Manu Ginobili

Age 38

🥇 John Stockton | 2001

Crafted+-: 8.3

🥈 LeBron James | 2023

Crafted+-: 4.8

🥉 Arvydas Sabonis | 2003

Crafted+-: 4.7

Honorable Mention: Manu Ginobili, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Tim Duncan, Reggie Miller, Jason Kidd, Hakeem Olajuwon, Darrell Armstrong

Age 39

🥇 John Stockton | 2002

Crafted+-: 6.2

🥈 Tim Duncan | 2016

Crafted+-: 3.9

🥉 Jason Kidd | 2013

Crafted+-: 3.1

Honorable Mention: Karl Malone, Manu Ginobili, Kevin Garnett, Reggie Miller, Michael Jordan, Dirk Nowitzki, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Age 40

🥇 John Stockton | 2003

Crafted+-: 5.4

🥈 Karl Malone | 2004

Crafted+-: 1.4

🥉 Dikembe Mutombo | 2007

Crafted+-: 1.3

Age 41

🥇 Dikembe Mutombo | 2008

Crafted+-: .9

🥈 Vince Carter | 2018

Crafted+-: -.4

🥉 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 1989

Crafted+-: -2.6

Age 42

🥇 Vince Carter | 2019

Crafted+-: -1.1

Most Years with the Belt

John Stockton - 6

A bit of a late-bloomer, Stockton didn't become a full-time starter until his age 25 season, but once he got the job, he held onto it for 16 straight seasons. If the only Stockton you are familiar with is the Stockton of the 1997 & 1998 Finals, do yourself a favor and check out some footage from between 1989-1991. This man was a menace!

LeBron James & Michael Jordan - 5

LeBron starts out white-hot, winning the belt three times before age 25, before MJ establishes his dominance in the prime seasons of ages 26, 27, 29. MJ also takes the late-prime years of ages 32 and 33, while LeBron comes back for his final belt (thus far) at age 35.

Chris Paul - 3

Sustained excellence for over a decade. You don't get the nickname "The Point God" for nothing! With Stockton finishing #1 and CP3 finishing 4th, let's take a quick detour and talk a little bit about why two smaller guards were able to sustain peak performance for such a long time. First, shooting. Both of these guys were excellent shooters for the entirety of their careers. Second, these guys never turn the ball over! Using our Season Finder application, we find that Stockton and Paul combine for 20 of the 50 lowest turnover seasons in NBA history for players with > 10 assists per 75 possessions. Third, they turn you over. Stockton and Paul combine for 12 of the best 100 seasons in steal rate. So, the moral of the story is that Plus Minus metrics absolutely love somebody that guarantees his team wins the possession battle. Having Stockton or Paul is like starting every game up 3 points. Turns out that's good.

Tracy McGrady - 2

Wins at ages 18 and 19, top 10 finishes at ages 21, 22, and 23, and then never heard from again. He had it all, the size, the vision, the scoring. For a while there, he might have actually been who Kobe stans think Kobe is...and then it all kind of faded away, and he was virtually done by age 29. Would absolutely love to run his career back with the injury sliders turned down to 0.

Age Kings

The methodology here is simple, you get 5 points for a 1st place finish, 3 points for silver, 2 for bronze, and 1 for an honorable mention. 

LeBron James - 52 points

The energizer bunny, this guy.

John Stockton - 43 points

There's something in that Utah water.

Michael Jordan - 37 points

Peak like Whoa.

Chris Paul - 28 points

Point God.

Magic Johnson - 17 points

Your uncle's favorite player.

Karl Malone - 17 points

There's something in that Utah water.

David Robinson - 16 points

Feel like Duncan zaps a bit of the credit that should be due to Robinson.

Tracy McGrady - 13 points

A Little known fact that almost nobody knows; his cousin is Vince Carter.

James Harden - 11 points

Hasn't featured in this list since 2020, so this might be it.

Vince Carter - 10 points

Cousins with Tracy McGrady, believe it or not.

Most Appearances in the Top 10

1. LeBron James - 18
2. John Stockton - 15
3. Chris Paul - 13
4. Michael Jordan - 12
5. David Robinson - 11
6. Manu Ginobili - 9
7. Magic Johnson - 8
8. Karl Malone - 8
9. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - 7
10. Kevin Garnett - 7

Random Notes

Nikola Jokic has placed on this list in 6 of his 8 seasons and will likely make it 7 out of 9 after this year. Take that for data!

Kareem and Julius Erving suffer a bit from the 1978 cutoff, as Kareem would certainly have a few other appearances, and Julius likely misses out on one or two as well.

Andrei Kirilenko shows up in the honorable mention at ages 20, 21, 22, and 23 and then is never heard from again. A complete athletic freak who relied on constant defensive energy, I wonder if even the slightest bit of athletic slippage had an outsized effect on his ability. He had a good overall level of offensive skill but did not have the shooting to fall back on.

Charles Barkley and Kevin Garnett show up a combined 13 times between the two of them but managed zero medal finishes between them. Not quite the top-end talents like a Jordan or a LeBron, but consistently excellent for many years.

Full Dataset

Player	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Honorable	Total
LeBron James	5	5	4	4	52
John Stockton	6	2		7	43
Michael Jordan	5	2	1	4	37
Chris Paul	3		3	7	28
Magic Johnson	1	2	1	4	17
Karl Malone		4	1	3	17
David Robinson		1	3	7	16
Tracy McGrady	2			3	13
James Harden	1	1	1	1	11
Vince Carter	1	1		2	10
Stephen Curry		2		3	9
Manu Ginobili				9	9
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar			2	5	9
Nikola Jokic			1	5	7
Kevin Garnett				7	7
Tim Duncan		1		4	7
Dikembe Mutombo	1		1		7
Kobe Bryant		1		3	6
Luka Doncic		2			6
Anthony Davis		1		3	6
Kawhi Leonard			1	4	6
Charles Barkley				6	6
Jason Kidd			1	4	6
Kevin Durant				5	5
Giannis Antetokounmpo			1	3	5
Andrei Kirilenko				4	4
Dwyane Wade				4	4
Larry Bird				4	4
Steve Nash				4	4
Shaquille O'Neal				3	3
Clyde Drexler				3	3
Kyrie Irving			1		2
Jayson Tatum				2	2
Dirk Nowitzki				2	2
Hakeem Olajuwon				2	2
Julius Erving				2	2
Arvydas Sabonis			1		2
Reggie Miller				2	2
Andre Drummond				1	1
Zion Williamson				1	1
Thaddeus Young				1	1
Andrew Bynum				1	1
Chris Webber				1	1
Derrick Rose				1	1
Isiah Thomas				1	1
Anfernee Hardaway				1	1
Karl-Anthony Towns				1	1
Russell Westbrook				1	1
Chauncey Billups				1	1
Sam Cassell				1	1
Darrell Armstrong				1	1