NBA Jam is one of the greatest arcade games we've ever seen. In fact, it might be the best arcade game in history. The reason it was so fun is because full court, two-on-two basketball with real players emphasizing the fun and importance of dunking, shot blocking, and 3-point shooting was pretty hard to beat.
If you were to recreate NBA Jam today with current NBA players and rosters, you'd have some pretty dynamic and interesting combinations available to you. Who would be the top 15 teams in today's version of that iconic game? Let's rank them and see who would come out on top:
15. Dallas Mavericks: Dirk Nowitzki and Chandler Parsons
This would've been a much better duo with Monta Ellis last year or Jason Kidd half a decade ago, but Dirk Nowitzki would still be one of the best scoring options in this game. Chandler Parsons can do a little bit of everything, and if this duo starts to struggle, you feel confident in Parsons' ability to recruit a better play to take his place.
14. Memphis Grizzlies: Marc Gasol and Mike Conley
Some people forget just how good Mike Conley is. He's not going to dunk on you and he's not going to block your shot, but he'll swipe the ball from his opponent and speed ahead for some easy buckets. He can also shoot from outside. Marc Gasol is one of the best big men in the NBA and he has a great offensive attack. This isn't a sexy combination, but they'd win a lot. It's like the real Memphis Grizzlies. Grit and Grind.
13. New York Knicks: Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis
There are two ways this can go. 1) You're teaming Carmelo Anthony, one of the best scorers in the league, with an incredible young player, who will surprise everybody right away and become the perfect complement in both NBA and video game form. 2) Carmelo unlocks a cheat code to wear a bunch of weird hats and Kristaps Porzingis becomes this version's Brad Lohaus from back in the day.
12. Miami Heat: Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh
Remember, you don't have to worry about injuries in NBA Jam so Dwyane Wade immediately becomes one of the best attacking, swiping, and dunking guards available. Pairing him up with Chris Bosh to be the outside presence on offense and the inside presence on defense could lead to an incredibly balanced attack. This will remind people just how good these two are.
11. Los Angeles Lakers: Kobe Bryant and D'Angelo Russell
Kobe Bryant will always be ridiculously fun in a game where the object is to shoot a lot of crazy shots. It doesn't matter where he is in his career; he's going to produce in a format like this. The X-Factor becomes D'Angelo Russell. If he's as good as everybody thinks he can be, he becomes a mini-version of James Harden for this Lakers team and that combination could be hard to keep up with from outside.
10. San Antonio Spurs: Kawhi Leonard and Tim Duncan
Maybe this looks like a boring combination to you. To me, it looks like one of those teams you'll have a hard time getting past. Duncan rules the rim at both ends of the floor. You're simply not going to dunk on him, even though he's slow to get back. And good luck getting the ball up the floor against Kawhi Leonard. It's probably time to work on your half court shots against this team.
9. Minnesota Timberwolves: Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns
This team won't be very good at shooting from the outside, but their athleticism will make them incredibly dangerous. Andrew Wiggins prowling passing lanes, looking to block shots and dunk from the 3-point line will be hard to contend with, while Karl-Anthony Towns is ready to protect the rim and dunk all over your team. Just like in real life, have fun with them now and get ready to project just how good they'll be in a couple of seasons.
8. Chicago Bulls: Jimmy Butler and Derrick Rose
You're going to have a dicey outside attack with Jimmy Butler and Derrick Rose, but you're also going to have a team that is great at pushing the ball the other way for easy buckets. Rose is kind of a perfect all-around complement on the court to just about anybody, and Butler's emergence in real life means he's probably much harder to contend with in pixelated form. Let Butler steal from your opponents and Rose finish in the blink of an eye.
7. Washington Wizards: John Wall and Bradley Beal
The Washington Wizards have no choice but to play small ball with this combination. And really, that's how they're going to be most successful. John Wall will be a wrecking ball with razor blades attached to it. His speed, passing, dunking ability, and defense could make him one of the most dominant players in the game. All Bradley Beal has to do is be a 3-point threat and you should be able to score against any opponent.
6. New Orleans Pelicans: Anthony Davis and Tyreke Evans
Tyreke Evans is fine here, and in video game form he'll be a strong perimeter force as long as you don't shoot too many 3's with him. This is really all about Anthony Davis. He's going to block every shot. He's going to dunk everything. He's going to jump off the screen and come back down to a resounding exclamation of "BOOMSHAKALAKA!" He could be the greatest NBA Jam player of all time -- even better than Bill Clinton was when you unlocked him.
5. Houston Rockets: James Harden and Dwight Howard
This is one of the most balanced combinations possible. Dwight Howard gets to dunk everything and block everybody. You have to worry about him getting the ball stolen, but really he's just there to get the ball and give it to James Harden. The Bearded One is the big problem for everybody going against this team. He's going to make it rain from all over the court, and he's going to be able to set up Howard on lobs.
4. Los Angeles Clippers: Chris Paul and Blake Griffin
This is another incredibly balanced attack from an offensive standpoint. In NBA Jam, everybody becomes a Kendrick Perkins or Timofey Mozgov to Blake Griffin. Chris Paul will swipe the ball from your guards, speed ahead, and either drain a 3 or lob an oop to Griffin. In terms of blocking shots inside, good luck with this team. They'll struggle there. But the offense should be so good that it doesn't really matter.
3. Cleveland Cavaliers: LeBron James and Kevin Love
Maybe Kyrie Irving or J.R. Smith would be the ideal pairing here, but Kevin Love is a great complement to LeBron James in this game. LeBron is going to be your freight train and 90 percent of what you do on the court will be through him. Love will be the perfect kickout pass option for LeBron, and you can really drain 3's all over against your opponents with this team. LeBron is also good enough defensively to make up for Love hanging around half court.
2. Oklahoma City Thunder: Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook
It's hard to imagine a more devastating combination than these two. Kevin Durant is still arguably the best scoring option in the league. There isn't a single thing he won't do well offensively in this game. He's going to shoot, dunk, and even play some defense. Russell Westbrook is everything we glowed about earlier in regards to John Wall, only better at everything except passing. How could you possibly beat these guys?
1. Golden State Warriors: Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson
You beat that Thunder team and every other team in this game with the defending world champions. As fun as the dunking is in NBA Jam, it's always been ruled by the outside threats. It's why Tim Hardaway and Chris Mullin were almost always unbeatable in the original version. You could just bomb away with them. You can do the same with Steph and Klay. They're two of the best 3-point shooters in NBA history, and you'll often be trading three points to them for every two points you score. These guys will be permanently on fire.
