The Deep 3 Podcast - Ranking The Top 10 NBA Point Guards Of 2026 | TD3 Clips

Episode Date: February 25, 2026

The best NBA point guards this season! #nba Check out the TD3 merch: https://the-deep-3-shop.fourthwall.com/ Listen on Spotify!: https://open.spotify.com/show/3elbbqVumwqz8wlIdknsLW Listen on Apple Podcasts!: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-deep-3-podcast/id1657940794 Follow us on TikTok!: https://www.tiktok.com/@thedeepthree Follow us on Instagram!: https://www.instagram.com/thedeep3podcast/ Isaac's twitter: https://twitter.com/byisaacg Mo's twitter: https://twitter.com/Mojo99_ Donnavan's twitter: https://twitter.com/Dsmoot3D Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

I'm going to rank the top 10 point guards in the NBA just for this season. I want you guys to react. Tell me what you think about this list. I haven't thought about the top 10 point guards list at all. You know what? So I'm curious to the way. See where these like. It is in flux.

We have like four guys that would typically be here that have earned themselves at the list for, I don't even know how you describe the Trae Young situation for being Tray Young or being John Morant who are clearly not in his list anymore. There's a lot going on right now at the top two. Let's get into it. Is Tyrese in here or is he out? Halifrin's out of it because he's not playing this year. This is just for 2026.

Gotcha. So I'm being a little liberal. role with some of the players for performance this year that maybe we don't necessarily know it's going to stand long term. But for this season, Derek White and number 10. That sounds so crazy. My God. Top 10 point guard, Derek White.

Derek White, number 10. Trey Young has earned himself out of the conversation. The state of the league is in trouble right now. No, it's not. No, it's not. Derek White has been more impactful to winning for the last three years than Trey Young has. Yeah, you put him alongside Tatum and Jason and Julian Brown.

He's going to do the same shit. If you put Trey Young on those Celtics team, they're not winning times. Yeah. You just said something that's not true at all. He has been... You said impactful to winning. It's way more easy to be impactful to winning when you have more impactful players on your team.

And I just said, if you put Trey alongside Tatum and Brown, they're not winning chips. They're not getting better at Tray. I didn't talk about that. I just said he's going to be more impactful winner. That's it. All right.

Nevertheless, it's not a true young conversation. Derek White is on here because he's having the worst shooting year of his career by a wide margin. He can't buy a fucking three. And yet he's playing the best basketball he's ever played in this bigger role. His usage is higher

and he's been a way better playmaker. Still a demon defensively. Still one of the best shot blocking guards in the league. Awesome with the floater range. Awesome as a play finisher. Creating shots for others. Keeping that system going. The fact that he's this good with no jumper to speak of this year, he's just a great player.

Top 10 is interesting. Well, what do you see who I left off? Okay. It's tough. It's really rough this year. A lot of the guys fell off. Garland has been hurt, so I didn't include him. Yeah.

Trey Young has been banished. Jamarant. Stinks. Yeah. It's tough. Okay. Number nine. Deeran Fox.

This feels very consistent with his overall rank. I feel like on a year-to-year basis, Foxes is anywhere from like the eighth to 11th best point guard in the league. It feels fair. He's just, I think he's very naturally transitioned to playing a little more off ball this year. He's having a more efficient season

than he's had in the past few years because of that. That's what you want to see when a player shoots the ball less. I've been impressed with him defensively. I think he uses his size and speed really well in that system to close out to shooters, been really active there. The jump shot has been solid, especially for mid-range,

has been a demon. Overall, I think he's been exactly what you want from a second option guard. Yeah, he's had his highs and lows this season for sure, but overall been more consistent than not. So I can see a world where he's top nine. And the lows are mostly three points in his hands of less. So it really matters and he makes him misses his threes when we'll be getting more touches. Stefan Castle is getting a lot of touches.

So if he goes cold, it's going to look ugly for an all-star caliber guard stat line-wise. If he has 14 points in the game, you're like, what a stinker from Darren Fox. But he's in a smaller role, so it all makes sense. Gotcha. Fares, I like this so far as. Number eight, James Harding. Still up here, still kicking. Still on here.

Do you think he should be higher? Unk is still a problem. I can see the names, but as of right now, I mean, I think this is fair. Yeah, I struggle with this one. I know some people I want to put him higher. His PR has gone really, really good this year because the first month of the season he was carrying hard when Kauai wasn't on the court or wasn't playing at now. And he's kind of, you know, saving Jared Allen's broke-ass life. Okay, so I agree with that this probably is the right.

spot. I think that this year has been a roller coaster and I think that the good PR that he's getting right now honestly speaks more to just how bad the Darius Garland situation was and how hindered he was because of his injuries. And if Garland can get healthy and be in LA and be regular, regular Darius Garland, then you might live back on this trade and be like, oh, I can't believe the Cavs gave up on Darius Garland. But the level that he was at, James Hardin comes in, he's at least going to play. And you know that he's one of the better pastors that we've had in. in NBA history, it's going to look better. So I understand this.

The only reason I hire, man, he has not been playing defense at all this year. It's been vintage James Harden defense. He's not trying to all. He's not trying to all. That's all he got. That's all you got. Now, maybe there will change on the Cavaliers. I can't speak to how it's been the past four or five games since he got there.

Maybe it'll be better with that ecosystem. There's two bigs behind him. Maybe their coach has a better job of getting it out of him. We'll see how it comes from playoff time. Thus far, the season hasn't been a good defensive season. So I can't put him above some of the guys who are going crazy in the top seven. You know exactly what the defense is.

It legitimately is. It's a lot of swipe around. Somebody try to bring into him. He's like, listen, I'm here. But like, it's most defensive. Yeah, but it's not going to be anything crazy. Hey, man. Sometimes it's better than dares going to defense on too.

At least you don't have like a complete void on the defensive end. He's just bigger. Yeah, exactly. Which helps. I'd rather have a bigger, bad defender than a smaller one. Yeah. I mean, Garland isn't exactly Trey Young when it comes to defense. Yeah.

Number seven. Second Trey Young of the section. Number seven we got Jamal Murray. I also feel like he probably should be higher for this single year that he's having. You would think so. There's some demons in the top six. Yeah.

Is he still shooting 50, 40, 90? Yeah, by far. He's easily. Is he like 43 now? 50, 42, 90. He's going crazy. He's not insane. No, I'll reveal six.

Because six and seven, this is my hardest one. Jamal Murray at seven, Tyrese at six. This is the debate I struggled with with how crazy Jamal Murray is shooting this year. But Tyrese has so much responsibility on that team and has his shoulders so much of a burden.

that I feel like it's slightly more impressive and I think it's better defensively. Yeah, I'm going to give Maxie the nod. I think Philly is so inconsistent and they're so, in terms of like the overall situation of the Joellen Beat of it all, what version of Paul George are you getting?

Even your back court, you know, running mate now, he's a rookie. And he's had, he's had ups and downs, he's had the rookie wall and they've been able to still maintain

because Tyrese maxi has elevated to a crazy, crazy all-MBA pace, I think he should get the nod at six over Jamal Murray. That's very close. That's very close. How good Jamal Murray is playing? Yeah, it's hard. And I initially didn't like that you had Jamal Murray outside of it.

And now you have this guy, I completely understand. Without his level of playing his attention, he's still averaging 30, playing all the minutes in the goddamn world. This Philly team right here, by all account, should be like an eighth, ninth seed in the Eastern Conference right now. But they're not because he's constantly throttling them on offense and always give him a certain level of base. baseline competency. You know, there's like a little Cold War going on in the Philadelphia fan base in media between Joel and Beat and Tyrese Maxie? To what cold wars are on? Second Cold War reference.

Actually, this isn't even cold. She was doing all these wars, man. I know. It isn't even cold, though. They're shooting dynamized in the media. They are out there having some discourse about who is the face of the franchise, that there's favoritism going on with certain beat reporters and stuff. Like, there's a little schism in the media.

It's all media bullshit. It doesn't really matter, not on the court. But the fan base is a little divided on. It's funny how it's always a local media. doing this shit because Boston's going through the same thing right now. Yeah. I know it's always Boston and it's always Philadelphia in both sports. In every sport those two local media

markets are insane. They're like the only two that still have thriving radio ecosystems. Yeah, yeah. And we got the craziest motherfuckers in the world on the radio being like, I don't like the way he carries himself. It's just the nonsense. It's bad. It's bad. Nobody gives a damn by damn. The Philly is so bad. Filibedia is insane. It's the worst. There's just nothing like it in the world.

I do, listen, I do be tapping in it. It is. What is it? Is it? WIP. Yeah. Also, I can't wait to see who that. number five because I thought Maxie was going to be top five number five we have Jaylon Brunson what you want to be higher I thought he was going to be top four of course you did I'm I'm still curious this is not the name that thought but okay interesting for four I don't know what you're thinking then because uh K C Cunningham's solo chain I was I was accounting for that okay well yeah Jain brunson is five I think he's

slightly better than maxi well not slightly he's better than maxi I think to start with the next tier I think he's a top 10 player if K bumped him out he's the 11th best player in the world or something like that he's clearly a player that we know No can do it in the playoffs. No can do in the regular season. I think he's implemented off ball, scoring into his game wonderfully this year under Mike Brown. One of the few things that has changed for the better in that offense,

even though they've since reverted a lot to more at the end of runs and on ball stuff. But he's shown a great capability of doing that. He can't be top four because of defense. Wow. That's, you know what? That's fair. I just, the shot making is ridiculous.

It is. And even in that Rockets game, the whole, whole game trash. He checks in in in the fourth quarter, four for four. he's hitting mid-rangers over everybody like he is one of the clutches players in in the league and I think for him and knowing that all the other guys on the on the roster like cat is so inconsistent Josh Hart is shooting 40% from three still will just never get the respect that of a 40%

three-point shooter like he does a lot of caring for the alpses do you see jell and brussells do you see him during the daytime when you're thinking about the Celtics is it more at night or a day honestly I just think about that Achilles tear I don't even think about jaylon Brunson. Oh, so you convince yourself if the only lost because of Achilles tear and you kind of mind hold the fact that it would have lost anyways. Absolutely. All I remember is at Achilles tear and the fact that I was at a Kendra concert that

night. How traumatic. Y'all were going to go down 3-1 anyways. Yeah, no, no. Doesn't matter. Yeah. I remember watching that game. I was like, yeah.

Despite the Achilles' tear, they were on pace to win. So you were out of the house for a game four, were you at your house and seated for back-to-back games of Mikkel Bridges stealing the ball? Yes. Yes. Talking mad shit too. Perfect. I've never been so confident that we were going to win a series that was talking mad shit going into the series.

For that series to unfold the way that it did. I had to apologize. Yeah, I think we forget just how unlikely it is that the Nix beat them. Like, everybody was certain that this cute Knicks season would end because they can't be Boston. Yeah, like even at the start of the year, but I remember we were actually in Boston for a live show and we watched the Boston Celtics absolutely like destroy the Knicks on the first night. That was a good. Number four, we have Steph Curry. Okay.

This is tough. So you wanted Brunson and above Curry? Oh, man, this is tough. You want him above your sweet light skin, king. I think he's gotten him. He has not gotten him. I think the Warriors have throttled him and have put him in his position where apparently everybody's laughed him.

Steph Curry is having an efficient 27 points per game with bullshit around him. He just can't, he is Jimmy Butler handling some playmaking, so it's a sister a little bit lower. And we know everything around this team is a dysfunctional. I dinged him one spot. He's not three anymore. I know. But I can't put him below Jalen Brunson because the Warriors are so ridiculous. One, I hate the way you said it.

Why do you say? But this is, this is my. a lot of shit. Jalen Brunson. This is the conversation that I go back and forth with a lot. And I think, again,

I'm always just lean on on Brunson's shotmaking because I do think it is one of like the special skills in the league right now. But it's Steph Curry. I'm not going to get bad. Yeah.

You lean on Jaylen Brinson shot making. I'm going to lean on the greatest shooter of all time, still being the greatest shooter of all time, not really taking too much of a step back offensively, defensively even. He hasn't really taken that much of a step back aside from what he did like three

years ago where he slowed down, he still could be exactly what we think Steph Curry could be if his team made a little bit of sense. Wow, man. Okay, so you're clearly dinging him in his team a little bit to keep him out on top three. I'm digging him because he got hurt, I guess, and I'm not really dinging him at all. I'm just glazing. Kay Cunningham, I have a number three. Oh, yeah, this is where I disagree. I think it's kind of flipped for me. This is the first like hard stamp. I disagree with this list. I personally still would have. That polite ass hard stamp. Yeah. I disagree. I still have Curry at number three, right. I disagree.

I'm mad at you. Listen, if we're gonna glaze, let's just do it. Let's just let it off. Let's glaze on the way. Put him at two. He's better than Lucas right now. Two way value, right?

He's better than SGA. I see it. West J. He ain't been doing these last few weeks. He made a mug. He said, we're going to be reactionary. Let's fucking react. Yeah.

Yeah. Let's do it. How about that? Lucas's over here. being blown out at home. Yeah Listen, I'm taking Cade of Lucca right now It's a 12 point game

It wasn't a blowout It was just a loss Pain Pritchard is cross-pictor Nah If you watch that game Payne and Pritcher was Dogging y'all Yeah, push off

It was a fake ankle breaker But no, I mean Do I think Curry is still better than Kate If all things were equal Probably Things have not been equal this year Kate has done enough If you're the one seed

And you have MVP chance I'm gonna give you the not For just this season In which Curry is hurt Maybe if Curry is playing the entire time and had them a more respectable level. I would still go towards a better player,

but just for 2026, I'm going to give Kay the respect to say he's the top three-point guard. Okay. What would y'all need to see from Kaye to put him in the Luca conversations for a title? I don't know. I just, when it comes to singular in his ability, I need to see like the three-point shot creation and all that.

He needs to start making threes way more. And then I think when it comes to, really, that's it. That's like the main thing for me. Nothing. There's no world in which I think he's even better than Luca. Like I'm not really no world? Luke's just much better. Like, it really comes down to, like, the team difference.

And, like, if team success can get Cade the nod, like, narrative-wise, there's not going to be a day he's better than Luca Donch. I think because of what he provides on defense, like, that gap is, it's not, like, as huge in my mind because- I get it. It has to be a better score. Yeah, exactly. Like, he gives back a lot compared to Luca as a score that.

Cade, he's not Gary Payton. I'm not going to say it's not. He's not, he's not, he's not, he's not, he's not much. Yeah. It is a meaningful part. That's just more so, like, how bad Luke is on that edge. It could be a difference maker if it was like Shea versus Luca offensively and it was close enough. So I'll give it to the guy who's a better defender.

But Luca's a much better offensive player. He needs to see a big leap offensively, which I can understand B. souls. I agree with that. Also, if I see, I'll give Kay the nod. If I see Luca one more time, give up a bucket because he's complaining to the ref, which I'm sure I will see you for the rest of the year. I'm thinking.

So I'm over there's better. Okay. Okay. So there it goes. You'll see the next game. Number two, I have Luca Donchitz. Number one, I have Shay Gildos Alexander. No surprises here.

These are the best two. And to me, one and two has been abundantly clear since last year. Yeah. Yeah. There's hyperfishes from all ends of the fucking floor.

The much better defender. He is not, I'm not going to say the same level of explosive defender, but definitely like when it comes to having variants, he's way more consistent on all fronts.

He got it. It's clear. It's his decade. Yeah. I think. Damn. It's his decade. Tough.

It is his decade. That's tough. We talked a couple months ago. I think we're talking about them as one and two because that's kind of like where we know that we've like slotted them. He's just one. Shea's one and he's in a different tier right now. Yes. Yeah. Jay's a tier. Lucas's his own tier. And then Cade, Curry, I guess Brunson is another tier. But these guys are their own tiers individually at one and two. Yeah. Yeah. She's,

he's on, he, he is potentially going to have back to back to back MVP's back to back to back wins. If he were, yeah, if they win. Yeah. If they, if they win. And it's a, Obviously, it's a very real path. They're the one seed right now. That's stuff that only, only Braun does, only, only Hakeem does, only Michael Jordan does. Like, there's a very, very small list of people in NBA history who are, who have done things that Shea is on track to do this year.