The principal point set up by the narrator at the start of Kuroko's Basketball is the superiority of the "Generation of Miracles" (GoM), a group of basketball prodigies which were all born in the same period and coalesced at Teiko Middle school to form the most undefeatable basketball team ever seen.

As this key principle is established from the offset, the show revolved around how these former teammates face off against one another after joining separate high schools, each becoming aces in their own right. After carefully analyzing every game in the show up to its conclusion and the movie, it is time to establish who is the best player to have on your side of the court during a game.

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6) Kuroko Tetsuya May Come In Last, but He's No Weak Player

Kuroko's Ignite Pass Kai Kuroko's Basketball

It may seem shocking to see the show's titular character in the last position, but this in no way implies that he is a weak player. In fact, collectively with the other members of Seirin High, Kuroko was able to separately overcome all of the other members of the GoM, but there lies the issue. All of Kuroko's abilities are either; designed to assist his teammates on the court through complex pass patterns like "ignite pass kai", or require a strong ally on the court in order to function, such as the "Vanishing Drive" or "Phantom Shot". The secrets behind the last two techniques were also figured out by both Shūtoku's Takao and Kaijō's Kasamatsu after only experiencing them firsthand a couple of times.

This makes sense, as a key premise of the show is the on-court dynamic between Kuroko and Kagami working together as a shadow and light (similarly to the relationship between Hinata and Kageyama in Haikyu!!). Kuroko isn't meant to be the best player on the court, and in actuality, if he were it would diminish his ability to use his signature misdirection techniques.

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5) Midorima Shintaro Is Kuroko's Basketball's Best 3-Point Shooter

Midorima shooting a three in Last Game Kuroko's Basketball

Midorima is a basketball specialist and undoubtedly the best three-point shooter in the GoM. The ability to accurately shoot from anywhere on the court using his "high trajectory three" technique made him an effective point scorer for any team. However, a major weakness in this highly specialized form of play is that Midorima took longer to transition into his shooting motion and this delay only increased the greater the distance to the basket. This allowed agile players, as well as those with good perception, an opportunity to steal the ball from him before he makes the shot.

When paired with an expert passer like Takao, Kuroko, or Akashi; Midorima was able to overcome this weakness using his "sky direct" technique, whereby he entered the shooting motion first and the ball was then passed to him whilst he's already airborne. Unfortunately, Akashi already demonstrated that this technique can similarly be defeated by intercepting the pass at its source. Whilst he has demonstrated good defensive capabilities and stamina, blocking dunks from both Kagami and Hayama, Midorima has never entered the zone and isn't as effective in defense as the next entry.

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4) Murasakibara Atsushi Is Kuroko's Basketball's Most Gifted Player

Murisakibara looms over Seirin Kuroko's Basketball

Murasakibara was the most naturally gifted of the GoM, standing at 6' 1" tall and 218 lbs. He's a powerhouse that excels in both offense and defense, utilizing his massive stature to easily overpower his opponents. On defense, his incredibly fast reflexes and long reach enabled him to block consecutive shots and dunk attempts with minimal effort. Meanwhile, he was described by Kuroko as one of the most offensive players when they were at Teiko, scoring a record of 100 points in a single game.

He achieved this using a powerful dunking technique called "Thor's Hammer", where he spun while dunking to create enough force to knock down three opponents at once. He has also displayed the ability to enter the zone for a limited time. Murasakibara's biggest limitation was the time he spent without training because of feeling "bored" with basketball, which has reduced his overall stamina and prevented him from reaching the same level as the GoM members to come.

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3) Kise Ryota Has Growth Potential In Kuroko's Basketball

Kise Ryouta Kuroko's Basketball

Former small forward for the GoM, Kise Ryōta is by far the player with the most potential for growth. An absurdly fast learner, Kise had the ability to copy any play after seeing it just once, which was restricted only by the physical limitations of his body. As a result, Kise had a diverse range of techniques for scoring points which will only grow larger with every game that he plays.

Additionally, Kise's biggest strength was his "Perfect Copy" ability, which allowed him to accurately mimic the plays of all the other GoM members for a period of five minutes. During the game against team Jabberwock, Kise displayed that in this form he was evenly matched with Aomine in the zone and even briefly entered the zone himself whilst in this form. Kise is only held back from being the strongest player by the time limit for this form, which stemmed from the extreme strain it places on his body having only recently unlocked the ability. However, by strengthening his body with time and hard work, Kise should be able to extend the duration of Perfect Copy and in turn climb to the top of this list.

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2) Kuroko's Basketball's Aomine Daiki Is a Scoring Phenom

Aomine in Kuroko's Basketball, LAST GAME.

The former ace of the GoM, Aomine Daiki is an unstoppable scoring machine. At a base level, Aomine was extremely agile and able to score ludicrous circus shots with little difficulty. This included shots from behind the basket, behind his back, and whilst leaning back nearly 90 degrees. He developed these skills by playing street basketball and he similarly utilized streetball's unusual movements, along with a sudden change of pace, to leave defenders in his wake.

After he started to enjoy his match-up against Kagami, Aomine became the first player to reveal that he could force himself into the zone, leveling up his physical stats and basketball skills even further. Whilst in the zone, Aomine had no equals outside of Kagami in the zone and Kise using Perfect Copy, and even when he exits the zone he is a formidable opponent by himself. Aomine was so good at basketball that he often made other players facing him feel as if they should quit in comparison. This led him to be disillusioned with the sport and decide that he didn't even need his teammates in order to win games anymore. Whilst Aomine was certainly the most talented individual player on the court, the time he spent believing he needed no one else's help has left him sorely lacking in even basic team plays, which is even mocked during Last Game, where Aomine throws an incredibly bad pass. This lack of teamwork eventually caused his downfall against the tag-team of Kuroko and Kagami, leaving one GoM member who is better to have on your team.

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1) Akashi Seijuro Is Kuroko's Basketball's Most Versatile Player

Akashi using emperor eye in Last Game

Akashi Seijūrō is the former captain of the GoM and still holds a great deal of influence over them, as not one member refused his summons to a meeting of the group before the start of the Winter Cup. Akashi has two distinct personalities, both of which have their own personal strengths on the court, making him the most versatile member of the GoM when it comes to both offense and defense. The first personality shown in the series is known as the "other Akashi" and he utilized his "Emperor Eye" skill to dominate everyone on the court. Emperor Eye allowed Akashi to read every minute movement of his opponent (including their heartbeat, breathing, twitches, etc.). This allowed him to see through any feint attempts, as well as enabled him to steal the ball at many opportune moments. On offense, Emperor Eye also allowed Akashi to use his signature ankle-breaking technique, which worked by crossing the ball over exactly when his opponent shifted their weight onto their pivoting leg.

Compared to other GoM players like Aomine and Murisakibara, both of Akashi's personalities trust in their teammates' skill on the court and will frequently pass the ball to whoever is best positioned in order to ensure victory. However, whilst the other Akashi saw his teammates as simply tools to be used, Akashi's true teamplay comes to the forefront when he switches to his original personality. Here, he loses most of the use of his Emperor Eye and instead gains a wider view of the entire court, allowing him to make perfect passes to allies. Whereas 'other' Akashi is able to enter the zone and further cement his superiority as an individual, the real Akashi can utilize his perfect rhythm passing to bolster his teammates' plays and place them in a form very close to being in the zone. This makes him an invaluable member to have on any team.

In Last Game, Akashi's two personalities reunited into one whole, unlocking a perfected Emperor Eye that can "see the future" of the entire court at once. This upgrade may even place Akashi on the same level as Kagami using "Direct-Drive Zone".