The Hometowns Loaded With NBA Talent

For an NBA player, repping your hometown isn’t optional. Wherever you go, your hometown follows. An NBA player’s level of hometown pride could ultimately affect choices made in their career.

According to Basketball-Reference.com’s David Corby, eight percent of the NBA players to switch teams’ last summer returned to a team 100 miles within their birthplace whether through trade or free agency. Now that's not a ton, but it is notable since two most prominent free agent moves last summer were Dwyane Wade going home to Chicago and Dwight Howard signing with Atlanta.

Of course the most memorable transaction of all-time was LeBron James returning home to Cleveland in 2014. As cliche as it sounds, for most NBA players, home is where the heart is and if you’re lucky enough to have an NBA team close to where you reside from, it’s always an option down the road.

Fans take as much pride in their hometown NBA players as the players themselves even when the players aren’t actually from their hometown. That was a direct shot to the New York Knicks fans who claimed Carmelo Anthony was coming home after the Knicks acquired him. The Knicks organization had the nerve to use Skylar Grey’s “I’m Coming Home” as the anthem for Melo’s introduction to the Knicks. He may have been in Brooklyn, but he's really from Baltimore folks.

We put together starting lineups and a sixth man for each of the top NBA pipelines. And while not everyone associated with their hometown was born and raised right in the heart of the city, they identify with their city and rep it to the end. That's why we put Melo on Team DMV because he has a Baltimore tattoo to prove his allegiance.

Starting Five: Isaiah Thomas, Jamal Crawford, Avery Bradley, Zach LaVine, Marvin Williams

Sixth Man: Aaron Brooks

Excluding Crawford, the pride of Greater Seattle in the NBA used to be a 5'9" scoring point guard from the University of Washington. Oh wait, it still is. Sorry Nate Robinson, but Thomas has taken your throne. The two-time all-star is trending toward becoming the most accomplished player out of the area ever. That’s probably only the case because of Brandon Roy’s healthy but it’s an achievement nonetheless. Despite having a miniscule lineup, the Seattle team can score with the best of the best because of their backcourt of Crawford and Thomas.

Starting Five: Malcolm Brogdon, Lou Williams, Jae Crowder, Derrick Favors, Dwight Howard

Sixth Man: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope

Despite losing a superstar with Howard’s fall in production, the Georgia lineup has a solid squad all-around. Although there’s no go-to guy, there’s really no soft spot in the lineup either. The backcourt includes the 2017 NBA Rookie of the Year (Brogdon) and a Sixth Man of the Year finalist (Williams) to go along with Crowder on the wing, a guy who averaged just under 14 points per game last year and plays awesome defense. Don’t sleep on the guys from Georgia.

Starting Five: Kemba Walker, Danny Green, Tobias Harris, Taj Gibson, Andre Drummond

Sixth Man: Lance Stephenson

It was hard to keep Stephenson out of the starting lineup because he embodies New York City basketball like no one else with his flash, toughness, and trash talking antics, but Green has the edge over him in terms of production as of late. Although he was raised in Connecticut, Drummond still publicly claims himself as a New Yorker after spending his first seven years of life in Mount Vernon. Him along with Walker form a pretty solid lineup to lead Team New York.

Starting Five: Jonathan Simmons, Gerald Green, Jimmy Butler, Justise Winslow, DeAndre Jordan

Sixth Man: D.J. Augustin

There are two adjectives that sum up Houston’s lineup: athleticism and defense. H-Town is building a reputation for producing some vicious on-ball defenders in Winslow, Butler, and Simmons to go along an elite paint protector in Jordan. It’s ironic because the Houston’s NBA team doesn’t play a lick of defense. With no point guard, this lineup would rely heavily on Butler’s offensive ability but good luck trying to score on them.

Starting Five: Mike Conley, George Hill, Eric Gordon, Gordon Hayward, Mason Plumlee

Sixth Man: Jeff Teague

When it comes to basketball, there’s arguably no state as passionate about the sport as Indiana. The state is known for producing a plethora of homegrown talent from the high school to collegiate level, but they haven’t been successful to producing great NBA talent as of late. Hayward and Conley are the state’s best NBA talents right now and although they may be stars, they’re not first options on a championship team. The Indiana lineup is solid all around and having Teague as a sixth man speaks volumes about its quality of guards.

Starting Five: Kyrie Irving, JR Smith, Michael Kidd Gilchrist, Kenneth Faried, Karl-Anthony Towns

Sixth Man: Kyle Anderson

Yes, the best two guards out of New Jersey currently in the NBA make up the Cleveland Cavaliers’ backcourt (for now) but the best player out of New Jersey is believed by many to be the next face of NBA when LeBron ultimately hangs it up. That man is Karl-Anthony Towns. Towns is pretty much the prototype for your video game big man. A skilled, versatile big man, that can jump out of the gym and protect the rim. A one-two punch of KAT and Kyrie with JR’s carefree play style would be must-see TV.

Starting Five: Derrick Rose, Dwyane Wade, Evan Turner, Jabari Parker, Anthony Davis

Sixth Man: Patrick Beverley

With the decline of Rose and Wade, Chicago’s presence in the NBA has taken a bit of a hit. Davis has easily assumed the role as Chicago’s face in the NBA while Parker’s path to stardom will depend on his ability to stay healthy for a whole season. In fact, the whole lineup has had its history of serious injuries, but when healthy it’s an impressive group.

Starting Five: Markelle Fultz, Victor Oladipo, Rudy Gay, Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Durant

Sixth Man: Will Barton

Whether it’s Kevin Durant winning his first NBA title, Markelle Fultz going first in the NBA Draft, or Carmelo Anthony trade rumors, DMV natives have dominated the headlines this summer. In a way, the lineup features the present, past, and future of the NBA with of course Melo representing the past. I mean, let’s be honest his best days are behind him. With that being said, the DMV has produced some of the best one-on-one scorers in the league and if Fultz lives up to his projection, he’ll be another elite bucket getter.

Starting Five: Steph Curry, Chris Paul, John Wall, Kent Bazemore, Hassan Whiteside

Sixth Man: Seth Curry

North Carolina has quietly been one of the best NBA pipelines for several years and it’s just getting started. Even when the Paul era comes to an end, there are many promising talents ready to step in and hold the title as Carolina’s finests like Brandon Ingram and Dennis Smith Jr. Three of the NBA’s top five point guards are featured in the lineup including the two-time MVP and NBA champion Steph Curry. A Paul and Whiteside pick-and-roll with Curry in the corner would be unstoppable.

Starting Five: Russell Westbrook, James Harden, Klay Thompson, Paul George, Kawhi Leonard

Sixth Man: DeMar DeRozan

Well, it’s clear where the most NBA superstars hail from. This lineup is simply not fair. The Los Angeles Greater Area has produced five of the NBA’s top 20 players, arguably six if you’re ready to elevate DeRozan to that status. There’s way too much star power to compete with these group of guys especially with all of them in their prime.