Superstar duos in the NBA are as timeless as the game itself. When examining rosters across the league, the 2023-24 season will be no exception.

When identifying which teams possess the best duos, however, a number of factors will be considered.

Stars not only need to be individually great, but also prove they can mesh well with their co-stars, meaning we'll be taking into account lineup data here. A team's success with both players on the court last season with be heavily taken into consideration for these rankings, with help from CleaningtheGlass.com.

We'll also be using estimated plus-minus and estimated wins data from DunksandThrees.com, which help measure the value of individual players while taking into account both offense and defense.

Adding these numbers up while projecting player progression and regression, injury history and current trade requests has given us a clear picture of the top five (plus some honorable mentions) superstar duos for 2023-24.

Honorable Mention

Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics

Even with six years of experience and a trip to the NBA Finals together, Tatum and Brown fell short of cracking the top five here.

Brown's EPM score of plus-2.6 ranked just 46th overall in the NBA, and the two stars combined for a modest plus-5.2 net rating in 3,376 total possessions together, which was actually lower than Boston's overall net of plus-6.9.

Both are still improving and should be tied to each other for years to come with Brown's new monster deal and another coming for Tatum next summer, although some overlapping skills hold them back from the league's elite here.

Joel Embiid and James Harden, Philadelphia 76ers

Statistically speaking, Embiid and Harden were one of the NBA's best duos last season and could still be successful if kept together. Harden's desire to be traded, however, could affect future chemistry even if he's not moved before the start of the season.

Embiid and Harden had the highest combined EPA of any duo on this entire list last season (12.4) and ranked second in the group in EW (27.4).

This duo was really, really good together but will likely have broken up before the 2023-24 season kicks off. Still, their significant on-court success deserves a shoutout here.

Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, Los Angeles Clippers

"When healthy—and let's hope that'll be the case this coming season—Leonard and George are as dangerous as two-man units get," is what Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes wrote last summer when ranking superstar duos for 2022-23, and that could easily be used again here.

There's no debating the success the two have experienced together since joining the Clippers in 2019, an experiment that's been blown up by continuous injuries.

Los Angeles beat opponents by 8.3 points per 100 possessions with both on the floor last season (93rd percentile, via Cleaning the Glass), and Leonard reminded us he's still a superstar when healthy during the playoffs (34.5 points, 6.5 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 2.0 steals, 54.5 percent shooting vs. the Phoenix Suns).

Until both can prove they can play more than 50-ish games a season, however, an honorable mention is high enough.

Just Missing the Cut: Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland (Cleveland Cavaliers), De'Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis (Sacramento Kings), Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo (Miami Heat), Stephen Curry and Draymond Green (Golden State Warriors)

5. Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving, Dallas Mavericks

2022-23 Net Rating Together: plus-4.6 (80th percentile)

2022-23 Combined Estimated Plus-Minus: 11.9

2022-23 Combined Estimated Wins: 27.6

One of the newest star pairings on this list, giving Dončić and Irving a full training camp together should make a big difference in their on-court success this season. Irving should also be happy and motivated after signing a three-year, $126 million contract while Dončić looks slimmer than ever heading into Year 5.

These are two of the best offensive creators and ball-handlers in basketball, even if their styles are different. The Mavs' offensive rating jumped to 121.7 with both on the floor last season, while Dallas' effective field-goal percentage rose to 60.2 percent (99th percentile, per Cleaning the Glass).

The team's overall modest net rating with both on the floor was a product of playing together for the first time and not having enough defense to cover for their deficiencies with Dorian Finney-Smith sent away in the Irving trade.

Adding Grant Williams and Dereck Lively II will help, as will Josh Green entering Year 4 and a healthy season of Maxi Kleber. Signing Seth Curry helps give Dončić and Irving more spacing as well.

If Irving avoids any off-court distractions and Dončić makes the MVP-level jump we know he's capable of, this will be one of the most devastating duos of 2023-24.

4. LeBron James and Anthony Davis, Los Angeles Lakers

2022-23 Net Rating Together: plus-6.2 (86th percentile)

2022-23 Combined Estimated Plus-Minus: 11.7

2022-23 Combined Estimated Wins: 22.9

James and Davis enter Year 5 together, a pairing that has already brought a title to Los Angeles in 2020 and an appearance in the Western Conference Finals this past spring.

The success of James and Davis together was greatly influenced by the presence of Russell Westbrook. The Lakers' net rating went from plus-0.1 when James and Davis were on the court with Westbrook to plus-9.3 (94th percentile) in non-Westbrook minutes. Unlike last season's awful beginning, there's no awkward-fitting pieces to move around James and Davis now.

Davis had perhaps his best season as a Laker in 2022-23 as he lined up at center almost exclusively, putting up 25.9 points, 12.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.1 steals and 2.0 blocks. Cutting down on his three-point attempts reduced Davis' average shot distance to just 8.2 feet, the lowest since his rookie season in 2012-13. Having him as a defensive anchor, finishing lobs, posting up and eliminating bad shot attempts has helped unlock the best version of Davis, who's still just 30 years old going into his 12th season.

Of course, this ranking is dependent on James maintaining his high-level of play heading into Year 21.

We shouldn't expect to see the same raw stats we've been used to from James over the past two decades. If we do, something likely has gone horribly wrong for a Lakers team that can now rely on its depth as well as its star power on most nights.

James averaged 23.8 points, 7.6 rebounds, 6.0 assists in his 11 games after the trade deadline last year with a new-look roster beside him after putting up 30.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 7.0 assists in 44 games prior. We should expect to see similar post-deadline numbers this season from James in his age-39 season.

While this is the oldest duo on the list, there's no evidence to suggest any major drop-off. James and Davis will be awesome together again this season, especially with a supporting cast that suits their skills.

3. Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray, Denver Nuggets

2022-23 Net Rating Together: plus-12.7 (98th percentile)

2022-23 Combined Estimated Plus-Minus: 9.6

2022-23 Combined Estimated Wins: 23.8

The defending champs come in third here despite Murray being the only player on the entire list (honorable mentions included) to have never been named an All-Star. This speaks to just how amazing Jokić has been the past few years and should continue to be.

Jokić led the NBA in estimated plus-minus (plus-7.9) and estimated wins (17.0) while finishing second in MVP voting before ultimately taking home Finals MVP honors. He's the best player in basketball right now and should have plenty of prime years left at age 28.

Jokić is the best passing big man of all time who wields this ability like a magic wand, casting a spell that instantly elevates the play of all around him. Perhaps no player benefitted from this more than Murray, who received 39.4 percent of his passes from Jokić, with no other player coming in above 11.1 percent.

We'll undoubtedly see an All-Star campaign from Murray this season, however, as the 26-year-old isn't coming out of the gates recovering from a major injury like last year. Murray averaged 17.5 points on 43.7 percent shooting overall and 33.8 percent from three during his first 25 games last season, yet he ended the year with 21.5 points on 46.5/42.5 percent shooting splits over his final 40 contests. His 26.1 points per game in the playoffs helped carry Denver to the title as well.

Now with the confidence of coming off a title run together, Jokić and Murray are safely a top-three star pairing in the NBA.

2. Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jrue Holiday, Milwaukee Bucks

2022-23 Net Rating Together: plus-14.3 (99th percentile)

2022-23 Combined Estimated Plus-Minus: 11.3

2022-23 Combined Estimated Wins: 24.4

With Khris Middleton battling injuries last season, the pairing of Antetokounmpo and Holiday was more important than ever.

The two delivered in a major way, helping Milwaukee to an NBA-best 58 wins and the No. 1 seed in the East. Antetokounmpo and Holiday are only two years removed from winning an NBA title together as well.

While Nikola Jokić deserves his flowers as the league's top talent after winning the Denver Nuggets a championship, Antetokounmpo could easily plant his flag at the top of the mountain this season. The 28-year-old is already a two-time MVP winner and finished third in voting last season with a career-high 31.1 points, 11.8 rebounds and 5.7 assists on 55.3 percent shooting overall.

Both he and Holiday ranked in the 95th percentile or higher in estimated plus-minus last season and 97th percentile or higher in estimated wins and dominated opponents together with the second-highest net rating of this entire list (plus-14.3).

Holiday was named an All-Star last season and finished the season averaging 19.3 points, 7.4 assists, 5.1 rebounds, 1.2 steals and shooting 38.4 percent from three. He was named as an All-Defensive first-team member, and he and Antetokounmpo make up the best defensive duo on this list.

Heading into Year 4 together, Antetokounmpo and Holiday will look to win their second title.

1. Kevin Durant and Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns

2022-23 Net Rating Together: plus-18.4 (100th percentile)

2022-23 Combined Estimated Plus-Minus: 10.6

2022-23 Combined Estimated Wins: 19.2

While Durant and Booker played just 19 games together in the regular season and playoffs following a midseason trade, there's enough evidence to suggest this will be the best duo in basketball in 2023-24.

The net rating jumps off the page immediately, as the Suns went a perfect 8-0 during the regular season with Durant and Booker. Both the team's offense (124.7 rating, 98th percentile) and defense (106.4 rating, 98th percentile) were elite with the two superstars on the floor.

Booker led all players in playoff scoring (33.7 points per game), knocking down 58.5 percent of his shots from the field in part due to defenses being forced to pay so much attention to Durant. The two-time Finals MVP averaged 29.0 points in the playoffs himself, as he and Booker became the first teammates in history to put up at least 35 points, five rebounds and five assists each in consecutive playoffs games. They did so against the eventual champion Denver Nuggets, with the Suns being the only team to push Denver to six games in any of their four series while combining for 86(!!!) points in a Game 3 win.

Phoenix has done an excellent job of putting complementary talent around them this summer, from adding Bradley Beal as a third scoring threat to signing plenty of floor-spacers to keep things open (Eric Gordon, Yuta Watanabe, Keita Bates-Diop, Bol Bol, etc.).

Durant seems more than willing to take a back seat to Booker, the best shooting guard in basketball—and he's only 26. Give these two a full training camp together to really work on chemistry and this will be the best star duo in the NBA.