The 2025 NBA Playoffs are finally here and set to deliver some amazing matchups and potential legacy-defining moments for the league’s top players. For some, like LeBron James, Steph Curry, and Nikola Jokic, another championship would add to their already stacked resume as some of the best players the game has ever seen.
For others, like Jimmy Butler, James Harden, and Donovan Mitchell, securing their first championship will greatly impact how their careers are seen for a long time. While it certainly isn’t an easy task, success in this year’s playoffs would prove that these players are all-time greats capable of helping a team reach the peak of the NBA landscape.
THE BRACKET IS SET 🍿 pic.twitter.com/xZBRkF7LT7
— NBA (@NBA) April 13, 2025
If Butler can help lead Golden State to a title run, it will cement his legacy as one of the best players of the last 15 years. Curry and Green already have their legacies set, but success in these playoffs for Butler would prove that he is one of the biggest difference-makers in the league.
He led Miami to two Finals appearances in 2020 and 2023, but getting there again, or even winning it, would mean a lot for his career. Since Butler arrived in the Bay Area, the Warriors quickly switched from a middling team to one with a real chance to win multiple playoff rounds.
The Warriors were under .500 when they traded for Butler and have since gone 23-7, one of the best records over the last few months of the regular season. Curry, Green, and Brandon Podziemski have all seen their statistics rise since Butler joined the team in February.
While Butler looked miserable this season with Miami, he and the rest of the Warriors team look much happier and joyful on the court together, which has seemed to translate to winning basketball. Butler has a history of elevating his game in the postseason, and if he can do the same on Golden State, it gives them a great shot at making a deep run.
The Warriors are set to play Memphis in the NBA Play-In Tournament, but with a win, they’ll be matched up with the Houston Rockets. While they did have a great regular season, Houston’s team pales compared to Golden State’s playoff experience and will likely have a tough time beating them in a seven-game series.
Besides the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Warriors have favorable matchups against all the other teams in the West and could easily make a run in these playoffs.
“When his back is against the wall, that’s when you see the best version of Jimmy Butler.”@ThisIsUD says Jimmy Butler is “one of the smartest players” that he’s ever been around. 💪 pic.twitter.com/tH9nm6iuQx
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 14, 2025
James Harden
Harden has proven himself to be one of the best scorers in the NBA, but has yet to prove himself in the playoffs by making the Finals or having a career-defining playoff moment. He got close on a few occasions while leading the Rockets, but fell multiple times to the Warriors in the late 2010s.
While his career has seen many ups and downs, Harden finally looks ready to prove himself on a Clippers team that is playing as well as ever heading into the playoffs. Kawhi Leonard looks healthy, and with his proven championship-winning experience, they need Harden more than ever to show up over the next few weeks.
A championship for Harden would secure his spot as one of the best shooting guards the league has ever seen, putting him alongside all-time greats like Allen Iverson and Dwyane Wade while still making him one of the most prolific scorers in the NBA’s history.
Harden has quickly transformed his game into that of a devastating passer who can pick apart top defenses with his quick decision-making. His numbers in the playoffs have consistently been short of those in the regular season, but his playing form over the last few weeks gives hope that he will continue this form in the playoffs.
The Clippers will play the Denver Nuggets in the first round, who have experienced a lot of change over the last few weeks. While LA has been playing some of the best basketball in the tail end of the regular season, they also look like they can challenge the Thunder in a second-round matchup.
Leonard has proven playoff prowess, and if he stays healthy, the burden will fall on Harden to perform and run the offense. If the Clippers can somehow end victorious at the end of these playoffs, it will no doubt be partly due to Harden finally making the postseason jump.
While it is fair to say that Mitchell doesn’t have as much on the line compared to Butler and Harden, leading the Cavaliers to the Finals would turn him into a hero in Cleveland. Mitchell had multiple amazing regular seasons with Utah in the past, but could never get out of the second round.
Now, Mitchell is surrounded by one of the best-built rosters in the league, with top talent at every position. Cleveland finished first in the East with its best record in more than 15 years, and it finally looks poised to challenge the Boston Celtics as the best team in the conference.
Mitchell has it in terms of scoring and playoff ability. He scored the third-most points in a playoff game, dropping 57 on the Nuggets in the 2020 NBA Bubble. Last season, he scored 71 points against the Bulls for one of the best regular-season games in recent history, tied for ninth all time. Mitchell has consistently proven that he isn’t afraid to take the last shot, and that’s why this playoff run could define much of his career.
Cleveland has a real shot at winning their second-ever NBA championship, and it’ll need Mitchell leading them to do it. The Cavaliers will likely cruise through the early rounds of the playoffs, but they will be tested against the Celtics if that matchup comes to fruition.
He doesn’t get the same amount of attention or credit as other top guards in the NBA, but a successful playoff run will prove that Mitchell is one of the best players this decade.
Ant & Luka
Some of these players have stakes but a longer period to accomplish their goals. The guys above are definitely under more pressure.
While not converting his historic regular season into a championship would certainly be disappointing, it also wouldn’t define SGA’s career like others on the list. He has a lot more time to prove himself as someone who can lead a team through four straight NBA playoff rounds, but this might be his best chance with the strength of this Thunder roster.
A championship would prove that Gilgeous-Alexander is one of the best players in recent NBA history, but a loss would also not completely rule him out as someone who could never win it all.
Anthony Edwards
Though he is still early in his career, with a lot more time than others on this list, NBA playoff success this season would do wonders for Edwards. In his first three playoff appearances, his statistics have been above his regular-season averages, and he seems to have that Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant killer instinct that makes all the difference in the postseason.
Anthony Edwards DROPPED 7 THREES to become the NBA season three pointer leader on the final day 😱
This is the first time in NBA history where three players finished with 300+ 3PM. pic.twitter.com/gllJjNJonG
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 13, 2025
Luka Doncic
Doncic’s resume, which he has put together through the first six seasons of his career, is amazing. He made an incredible run to the Finals last year with Dallas before being traded to the Lakers at the trade deadline. Though he has LeBron James as his running mate, playoff success for Los Angeles will only be possible if Doncic performs at the same level he did last year.
Like Edwards, he still has a lot of time, but winning a championship this early in his career would highlight one of the best early-career runs of a player on pace to be an all-time great.
All players on this list have much to prove in the upcoming playoffs, and they have the chance to shape how they are seen for years to come. For Butler, Harden, and Mitchell, this could be their last or best chance to redefine their careers. For Gilgeous-Alexander, Edwards, and Doncic, a championship this early in their careers could set them up for becoming all-time greats.
The 2025 NBA Playoffs will bring some great basketball and incredible matchups, but by the time it is over, one or more of these players could greatly change how they are seen in basketball history.
