Image: Wiki Commons by Keith Allison
About This Quiz
Between the buzzer beaters, triple overtimes, no-look passes, slam dunks and Game 7s, the NBAs players entertain the world. The league is the world's greatest reality show, and its athletes are some of the most popular. Unlike football or hockey, NBA stars aren't covered in pads and helmets, and unlike baseball or soccer fields, basketball courts are highly accessible. Front-row tickets at a basketball game will put you close enough to have a conversation with your favorite player during the game.
Each NBA team has about 12 men on its roster and a few more on the practice squad. Across all 30 NBA teams, the 2018-19 season kicked off with 494 active players. Some players get traded, some players get fired, some players get injured and some players get benched, so there's no telling how many active players finished the season, but there's a lot of players to choose from nevertheless. If you're a die-hard fan, you can probably identify any team based on just one player.
So do you know where the Splash Brothers play? What about The Beard? What about The Brow? We won't give you the city or the mascot, just the name of three current players. Do you think you'll be able to identify the team? Put your NBA skills to the test here.
Los Angeles Clippers
The Los Angeles Clippers had no All-Stars on their roster in the 2018-19 season but they still made the playoffs. The Lakers, who play in the same building and have LeBron, didn't make the playoffs. With the addition of Leonard and George, the Clippers have high hopes for 2020.
Denver Nuggets
Sacramento Kings
Phoenix Suns
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Milwaukee Bucks
Chicago Bulls
Indiana Pacers
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers are in complete rebuilding phase. Without LeBron on the team, there is no clear superstar or leader on the team. They went from the top of the NBA to the bottom, but are hopeful they can return soon.
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Memphis Grizzlies
The Vancouver Grizzlies, created in 1995, were located in Canada until 2001 until they moved to Memphis. College superstar Ja Morant joins the team for the 2020 season, but Grizzly legend Mike Conley is gone.
Portland Trailblazers
Oklahoma City Thunder
Milwaukee Bucks
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Boston Celtics
Philadelphia 76ers
The international duo of Simmons (Australia) and Embid (Cameroon) is one of the premier forces in the NBA. The team lost Jimmy Butler but added a few key additions. They are expected to make a serious run for the NBA championship in the near future.
New York Knicks
Los Angeles Lakers
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San Antonio Spurs
Houston Rockets
James Harden (aka The Beard) could not get past the Golden State Warriors and bring the Houston Rockets to an NBA Championship. That was supposed to change when Chris Paul joined the team, but they still haven't made it. Now Paul is gone and Westbrook will take a try.
Denver Nuggets
Portland Trailblazers
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Detroit Pistons
Miami Heat
Milwaukee Bucks
Giannis Antetokounmpo hails from Athens, Greece and the 6'11'' athlete has the post-up moves and dribbling skills to play every position on the floor. He was drafted 15th overall after playing pro ball in Greece.
Philadelphia 76ers
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Boston Celtics
Los Angeles Lakers
New York Knicks
The New York Knicks have had three lottery picks in the past five years and haven't won the NBA Draft Lottery since its inception in 1985. They selected Knox ninth overall in 2018 and Ntilikina eight overall in 2017. They selected Kristaps Porzingis fifth in 2015 but traded him for Smith Jr.
Philadelphia 76ers
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Milwaukee Bucks
Indiana Pacers
Victor Oladipo's full name is Kehinde Babatunde Victor Oladipo, and he was the second overall pick in the 2013 draft, going to the Orlando Magic. He then played with Russell Westbrook in OKC before being traded for Paul George in 2017.
Chicago Bulls
Cleveland Cavaliers
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Portland Trailblazers
Lilliard and McCollum are two of the most underrated players in the league and make up the most underrated duo in years. The franchise has been mostly overshadowed by the greatness of other West Coast teams, but they return a strong roster in 2020.
Sacramento Kings
Utah Jazz
Phoenix Suns
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Orlando Magic
Miami Heat
Miami's best player, Dwyane Wade, retired in 2019 ,and the team added Jimmy Butler to fill the void. He'll have big shoes to fill and will be helped by Winslow and Waiters. The team has a strong shot at a playoff run.
Phoenix Suns
Sacramento Kings
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Phoenix Suns
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are in full rebuilding mode, and there's no telling what they will do next. The team underwent a host of changes in the 2019 off-season and will begin the 2019-20 season as a favorite for the championship.
Portland Trailblazers
Sacramento Kings
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Sacramento Kings
Phoenix Suns
Devin Booker scored 70 points in a game against the Boston Celtics in 2017 and became just the sixth player in NBA history to score at least 70 points in a single game. The Suns drafted Ayton with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 draft.
Atlanta Hawks
Orlando Magic
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Memphis Grizzlies
Detroit Pistons
The Los Angeles Clippers once featured a prime trio of Chris Paul, DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin, but after Paul and Jordan left, Griffin was soon to follow. He now plays for coach Dwane Casey in Detroit.
Indiana Pacers
Chicago Bulls
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Denver Nuggets
Sacramento Kings
Minnesota Timberwolves
Recently, the Minnesota Timberwolves had a stacked roster, but after many changes, things have began to dwindle. The franchise is now solely led by Towns, and they'll have a lot of work to do to compete with the rest of the Western Conference.
Charlotte Hornets
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Toronto Raptors
Without Kawhi Leonard, the Toronto Raptors are looking to repeat a championship with a roster built around Lowry, Ibaka and Gasol. The team is still one of the best in the East and is likely to make a deep run in the playoffs.
Philadelphia 76ers
Orlando Magic
Miami Heat
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Sacramento Kings
Utah Jazz
Denver Nuggets
Dallas Mavericks
Before Doncic, Porzingis and Marjanovic, the Mavs were led by one of the NBAs most popular European players, Dirk Nowitzki, who played 21 seasons with the team. The only other player to play 20 seasons with the same team is Kobe Bryant.
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Golden State Warriors
Green was drafted by the Warriors in 2012 and has remained loyal to the franchise. The team lost a few players, but also added some key additions and are expected to be a contender in the 2020 season.
Denver Nuggets
Los Angeles Lakers
Philadelphia 76ers
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Miami Heat
Philadelphia 76ers
Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks has had little success in the NBA for the past couple of decades. They acquired Trae Young in 2018 and drafted Cameron Reddish in 2019. Both were first-round draft picks and offer a promising future.
Boston Celtics
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Sacramento Kings
Phoenix Suns
Utah Jazz
Rudy Gobert was drafted 27th overall in the 2013 NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets but was traded to the Utah Jazz on draft night. At 7'1'' with a 7'9'' wingspan, he's one of the best defenders in the league and is a throwback to old-school centers.
Portland Trailblazers
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Los Angeles Lakers
Golden State Warriors
Sacramento Kings
De'Aaron Fox played his college ball at the University of Kentucky and Marvin Bagley III played for Coach K at Duke, so both players come from great college programs. The Kings also named former Lakers coach Luke Walton as head coach in 2019.
Los Angeles Clippers
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Boston Celtics
Washington Wizards
The Washington Wizards was known as the Washington Bullets between 1974 and 1997 but changed to the Wizards because of the city's high crime rate and negative connotation of the name. Wall, Beal and Thomas have all made All-Star games.
Atlanta Hawks
Orlando Magic
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Toronto Raptors
Los Angeles Lakers
Golden State Warriors
The Golden State Warriors have been the most dominate NBA team of the 2010s and appeared in five straight finals from 2015 to 2019. Fans gave Steph Curry and Klay Thompson the nickname "Splash Brothers" because of their three-point shooting.
Boston Celtics
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Denver Nuggets
Indiana Pacers
Utah Jazz
Oklahoma City Thunder
With Russell Westbrook out in OKC, Chris Paul is in. The team hasn't had much success in the past few years and has under-performed in the playoffs all decade. They aren't expected to be a top contender in 2020.
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Charlotte Hornets
Brooklyn Nets
Oklahoma City Thunder
New Orleans Pelicans
Anthony Davis was the No. 1 overall draft pick in the 2012 draft and played his entire career in New Orleans. They traded him to the Lakers for Ball and Ingram, and the Pelicans added a new No. 1 pick to the squad in Williamson.
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San Antonio Spurs
When the Vancouver Grizzlies moved to Memphis for the 2001 season, the Raptors became the only Canadian NBA team. DeRozen started his career in Toronto but was traded for Kawhi Leonard in a blockbuster off-season deal.
Houston Rockets
Dallas Mavericks
Los Angeles Clippers
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Atlanta Hawks
Sacramento Kings
Orlando Magic
Mohamed Bamba played one year for the Texas Longhorns before joining the NBA's Orlando Magic in 2018 — drafted sixth overall. He's friends with rapper Sheck Wes, who's 2017 hit track "Mo Bamba" is named for the NBA center.
Phoenix Suns
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Seattle SuperSonics
Milwaukee Bucks
Utah Jazz
Denver Nuggets
Michael Porter Jr. was one of the best high school basketball players in the country, but after a back injury forced him to sit out almost the entirety of his one year at the University of Missouri, he dropped to the 14th pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.
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Miami Heat
Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra began his career as a player-coach in Germany before climbing the ladder from video coordinator to assistant coach to head coach of the two-time NBA Championship Miami Heat. He also led the Heat to four consecutive Finals appearances.
Charlotte Hornets
New York Knicks
Atlanta Hawks
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Los Angeles Lakers
The two favorites for the 2020 NBA Championship both play out of the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The Lakers didn't make the playoffs last year, but with the addition of Cousins and Davis, that result won't cut it in 2020.
Phoenix Suns
Sacramento Kings
Los Angeles Clippers
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Charlotte Hornets
The Charlotte Hornets traded their best player, Kemba Walker, to the Boston Celtics, and the team got Terry Rozier in return. Rozier was a pure scorer for the Boston Celtics, and with the ball in his hand more, he will surely be a great force on the team.
Atlanta Hawks
Orlando Magic
Philadelphia 76ers
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Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls franchise has won six championships in NBA history, and they all came in the 1990s when Michael Jordan led the team to two separate three-peats. The team has struggled mightily since and hasn't made the NBA Finals since he left.
Charlotte Hornets
Cleveland Cavaliers
Washington Wizards
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Boston Celtics
Brooklyn Nets
The biggest move of the 2019 offseason was when Kevin Durant took his talents to Brooklyn. The team also acquired Kyrie Irving from the Boston Celtics, and once Durant is healthy and playing, they will be strong contenders for a championship.
Philadelphia 76ers
New York Knicks
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Orlando Magic
Indiana Pacers
Boston Celtics
Both Smart and Brown were first-round draft picks by the Boston Celtics. The team's backbone, Al Horford, departed for Philly in the 2019 off-season, but the team has a strong core and some new pieces to make a run in 2020.
Detroit Pistons
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Golden State Warriors
Philadelphia 76ers
The Philadelphia 76ers have one of the deepest rosters in the league with multiple current and former NBA All-Stars. The team underperformed in the 2019 season and added Al Horford and Trey Burke for the 2020 season.
Oklahoma City Thunder
Houston Rockets
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Houston Rockets
Philadelphia 76ers
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics fought seven hard games in the 2018 Eastern Conference Finals against the Lebron-led Cavaliers and were expected to make the NBA Finals in 2019. They didn't even make it to the conference finals, and the team has a revamped roster for the 2020 season.
Oklahoma City Thunder
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