Who are the 10 best athletes currently playing in Los Angeles?

Los Angeles isn’t any stranger to stars within the leisure trade, with many A-list actors, musicians, executives and extra calling Tinseltown house.

There additionally won’t be a metropolis that has extra sports activities stars than Los Angeles. At the moment, six L.A. gamers have gained MVP honors, whereas a number of others have gained a playoff or championship MVP award.

These athletes have additionally helped their franchises develop into playoff mainstays. Since 2011, Los Angeles-based groups have gained 11 championships mixed within the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, MLS and WNBA:

• NFL: Rams (2022)
• NBA: Lakers (2020)
• NHL: Kings (2014)
• MLB: Dodgers (2020, 2024)
• MLS: Galaxy (2011-12, 2014, 2024), LAFC (2022)
• WNBA: Sparks (2016)

With all of those stars in L.A., which one is the most important? We ranked the ten greatest athletes at present within the Metropolis of Angels.

10 greatest athletes in Los Angeles

Harden’s MVP days could be behind him, however he is nonetheless taking part in at a excessive stage. Regardless of Kawhi Leonard lacking a lot of the season, Harden has helped the LA Clippers stay within the playoff hunt following the departure of Paul George. The 35-year-old guard was named an All-Star for the eleventh time in his profession earlier in February as he is averaging 21.7 factors and eight.6 assists per recreation. In lots of cities, an 11-time All-Star with an MVP and a number of other top-five MVP finishes main his staff to the postseason could be one of many largest names on the town. However in LA, Harden is considered one of many who’ve gained an MVP up to now.

When the Los Angeles Rams chosen Nacua within the fifth spherical of the 2023 NFL Draft, it is arduous to check that anybody aside from Sean McVay or Les Snead thought he would rapidly develop into one of many league’s prime receivers. Properly, simply two years in, Nacua has already said his case. In 2023, he set the file for many receiving yards ever by a rookie with 1,486, greater than the totals Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson had of their debut seasons. Nacua missed six video games in 2024 as a result of harm, however he completed the 12 months third within the NFL in receiving yards per recreation (90). At 23, Nacua appears sure to maneuver up this checklist within the close to future.

Freeman, who grew up in Fountain Valley, has continued to play at an All-Star stage after he left the Atlanta Braves for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2022. Nevertheless it wasn’t till his third season that the Southern California native grew to become a franchise icon. That is when Freeman hit a walk-off house run in Recreation 1 of the 2024 World Sequence. He added homers in every of the following three video games, turning into the first player to ever hit a home run within the first 4 video games of a World Sequence. Freeman wound up tying the file for many RBIs in a World Sequence with 12, profitable MVP when the Dodgers took down the New York Yankees for the title in Recreation 5.

Ever because the Los Angeles Chargers took him with the fifth choose within the 2020 NFL Draft, Herbert has had an argument to be thought of a top-10 quarterback within the league. Herbert set rookie information in 2020, throwing essentially the most touchdowns and completions ever for a first-year quarterback. Whereas the Chargers had been a bit uneven all through Herbert’s first 4 years of his profession, there was some stability when Jim Harbaugh arrived in 2024. The brand new teaching employees allowed Herbert to develop into a extra environment friendly quarterback, as he posted profession highs in passer score (101.7), yards per try (7.7) and interception share (an NFL-best 0.6). Herbert additionally guided the Chargers to their greatest file (11-6) in his tenure and a spot within the postseason.

Stafford won’t be on this checklist for for much longer. The Rams have allowed the quarterback to talk with different groups as he seeks a brand new contract, getting the ball rolling for a doable commerce this offseason. For now, he is nonetheless a member of the Rams, and it might be an enormous omission to not embody one of many NFL’s greatest quarterbacks on this checklist. Stafford rapidly grew to become a Los Angeles sports activities icon when he led the Rams to a Tremendous Bowl title in his first season with the staff in 2021. Following an injury-shortened 2022 season, Stafford bounced again and performed like a top-10 quarterback once more during the last two years, almost bringing the Rams to the NFC Championship Recreation in 2024. 

The 37-year-old can be some of the embellished quarterbacks in immediately’s recreation, rating second amongst energetic gamers in profession passing yards (59,809) and touchdowns (377), in addition to fourth all-time in profession comebacks (38).

The Dodgers had been basically gift-wrapped a top-five participant when the Boston Purple Sox traded Betts to L.A. in 2020. He hasn’t wavered from that standing as the most effective place gamers within the majors over his first 5 seasons with the staff. Betts has completed within the prime 5 of NL MVP voting within the years that he hasn’t missed important time as a result of harm, posting two runner-up finishes. Extra importantly, Betts has performed a serious position in two World Sequence titles. 

He had a number of memorable moments on the sphere and on the plate within the Fall Basic run in 2020, when the Dodgers broke their 32-year championship drought. He was productive on the plate of their postseason this previous 12 months as properly, hitting .290 with 4 homers. The 32-year-old is the one energetic MLB participant with three World Sequence titles. He additionally ranks fifth in bWAR, fifth in batting common and seventh in slugging share amongst energetic gamers.

In an analogous vein as Harden, Trout’s a bit faraway from his peak. However he is nonetheless put up sturdy numbers regardless of coping with a number of accidents lately. He hit 40 homers in his final 100-plus-game season in 2022, producing one other season when he almost reached the 1.000 OPS mark (0.999). Whereas he is solely performed in 111 video games during the last two years, he has tallied 28 homers with a .860 OPS throughout that point. 

Trout is ready to maneuver to proper area in 2025 to assist delay his taking part in profession, however he is arguably the very best all-time participant at present in MLB. His three MVP wins are tied for essentially the most ever, whereas his bWAR is the very best amongst energetic gamers. He is additionally second amongst energetic gamers in on-base share, slugging share and residential runs.

Nobody would’ve imagined Doncic being on this checklist a month in the past, however his sudden commerce to the Lakers immediately places him close to the highest. As Doncic takes one of many 10 spots that will’ve presumably been held by Anthony Davis, it might be argued that he must be greater than No. 3. Doncic, who has earned first-team All-NBA nods in every of the final 5 seasons, has had the most effective begins to a profession in NBA historical past. He will not be named an All-NBA participant this season as a result of harm, however Doncic would rank within the prime 10 in factors and assists per recreation for the sixth straight 12 months if he had been eligible. He additionally simply led the Dallas Mavericks to the NBA Finals in 2024 as a 25-year-old, together with his 30.9 factors per recreation within the postseason being the second-highest mark in NBA historical past.

Doncic’s new teammate barely edges him out within the rankings. James, considered one of, if not the best NBA participant ever, is the league’s all-time main scorer, with 4 titles and 4 MVPs to his identify. And, at 40 years outdated, he is solely added to his spectacular résumé in the course of the 2024-25 season. As of Feb. 24, James ranks within the prime 15 in scoring and assists per recreation this season, registering numbers that are not far off from his prime years. James appears poised to complete within the prime 10 in MVP voting for the 18th time in his profession and might be named first-team All-NBA for the 14th time in his profession because the Lakers have been one of many prime groups within the Western Convention this season.

You must be doing one thing extremely particular to be ranked forward of James. Properly, Ohtani did one thing fairly particular in 2024. He grew to become the primary participant in MLB historical past to ever file 50 house runs and 50 stolen bases in the identical season, main the NL with 54 homers and ending second in stolen bases with 59. To nobody’s shock, Ohtani was unanimously voted NL MVP, turning into the primary participant among the many main North American skilled sports activities leagues to win three MVPs unanimously. Ohtani additionally gained his first World Sequence title with the Dodgers in 2024. He did all of it with out pitching, taking a 12 months off from the mound to rehab his elbow after present process surgical procedure in 2023. 

Honorable mentions

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