If there's one thing I trust more than my own jump shot in NBA 2K26, it's Klay Thompson ranking actual human snipers. The man has a shooting stroke so clean it could probably cure lag, so when he sat down with Michael Cooper on Showtime with Coop and dropped his personal top five shooters in the league today, my gamer ears perked up like a headshot sound effect.

We're living in 2026, post-Dame Achilles recovery timeline, post-KD-to-Houston, and post-Luka-in-purple-and-gold, but Klay's list still feels like a cheat code for understanding what matters in modern basketball. Forget analytics spreadsheets—this is the gospel of a four-time champ who once scored 60 points on 11 dribbles. I'll break down his picks through the eyes of a gamer who sees these guys as real-life builds with maxed-out three-point badges.

👑 Tier God: Stephen Curry – The Off-Ball Menace

No surprises here. Klay didn't even pause—Curry is the true final boss of shooting. What makes him untouchable in 2026, even at 38, isn't just the 4.4 triples per game or the career resume. It's his gravity stat, which in real life operates like a permanent defensive AI bug.

Curry bends entire defenses simply by jogging around screens. With Jimmy Butler now in Golden State, that off-ball chaos is about to hit nightmare difficulty for opponents. Imagine a myPlayer with Hall of Fame Limitless Range, Slippery Off-Ball, and Clutch Shooter all activated at once. That's 2026 Steph. His percentages and volume remain so cartoonish that I fully believe if you gave him a green release window, he'd never miss. The only knock? Father Time is somewhere in the lobby, but Steph keeps declining the invite.

🔥 Tier Demigod: Kevin Durant – The 7-Foot Sniper

When LeBron himself calls you the "most equipped scorer ever," you know your player build is illegal. Klay put KD next, and honestly, I'd love to see the shooting animation on a 6'10" frame with a 7'5" wingspan. It's like someone set the release point to maximum height and forgot to add a balance penalty.

Now with the Houston Rockets in 2026, Durant at 37 is still creating his own shot against any contest. Last season he nailed 42.3% of \u201ctightly contested\u201d threes—where the defender is basically breathing on him—because his release point is somewhere in the rafters. Volume might be lower (only 6.0 attempts per game), but that's only because KD prefers a balanced shot diet, mixing mid-range daggers like a gourmet chef. In video game terms, he's got every shooting badge on gold, but he also enjoys a casual fadeaway green bean because why not?

🏹 Tier Elite: Devin Booker – The Jumpshot Aesthetic

This pick raised eyebrows, but I get it. Booker's career three-point percentage (35.4%) doesn't scream \u201celite shooter,\u201d and 2024-25 was even rougher at 33.2%. However, Klay sees the form, the release, the elevation, and honestly, so does anyone who's ever tried to copy a jumper in the game. Book's shot is a textbook animation\u2014high, square, and nearly unblockable when he rises.

Beyond the arc, he's a scoring chameleon: deadly from mid-range, crafty at the rim, and capable of catching fire in a hurry. Klay has openly admired Booker's game for years, even regretting that \u201cfour rings\u201d taunt back in the day. In my gamer brain, Booker is the player running a Custom Jumpshot 98 base with Quick Release, and once he gets hot, it's time to call a timeout. His three-level scoring makes him a hassle, and sometimes that \u201cshooter\u201d title is more about threat level than raw numbers.

🧊 Tier Cold-Blooded: Klay Thompson – Yes, He Picked Himself

You can't be one of the greatest shooters of all time and not give yourself a nod. Klay laughed and included himself, and frankly, he's earned it. Before the injuries, this man never shot below 40% from deep in his first eight seasons. He still holds the single-game record with 14 threes in just three quarters, as if he was replaying a MyCareer game on Rookie difficulty.

Thus, even now, at 36, with a slightly diminished burst, Klay remains a top-tier floor spacer. He led the league in total threes in 2022-23 (301 makes at 41.2%), and his career 41.1% mark is still better than most starters. Think of him as a veteran sharpshooter who occasionally unlocks a temporary 99 overall rating, especially when someone mentions \u201cGame 6.\u201d Self-nomination accepted.

🎯 Tier Unfair: Damian Lillard (with a Luka Debate)

Klay hesitated on the fifth spot before naming Luka Don\u010di\u0107, but Michael Cooper quickly said \u201cDame?\u201d and Klay instantly agreed. That tells me everything. Lillard is a walking Dame Time badge, a nine-time All-Star with 2,804 career threes (fourth all-time) and an entire highlight reel of soul-crushing playoff daggers.

At this point in 2026, Dame is working his way back from the torn Achilles that sidelined him for all of 2025-26. Bad injuries are like corrupted save files, but if anyone can reload, it's the man who waves bye-bye to opponents. Klay acknowledged Luka's absurd difficulty of shots\u2014step-backs, fading sideways, logo bombs\u2014but admitted the percentages don't dazzle yet. Still, Luka in L.A. is a show worth buying tickets for, especially when he's pulling up from places that would make a 2K player miss.

And because Klay is a generous soul, he gave a shoutout to Kyrie Irving, his current Mavs teammate. Kyrie isn't just a shooter; he's a 39.4% career three-point artist who can drop 50 points and make it look like a wizard's trick. Irving currently sits 25th all-time in triples, and at his pace, he'll climb that ladder like it's a quest. In my squad, Kyrie would be the ball-handler with Deep Threes on silver but Acrobat and Difficult Shots on HoF.

So there you have it\u2014Klay's starting five shooters for 2026: Curry, Durant, Booker, himself, and Lillard (with Don\u010di\u0107 and Irving demanding a patch update). As a gamer, I can only dream of a custom build that merges Curry's range, KD's release point, Booker's form, Dame's clutchness, and Klay's heat checks. Until then, I'll just watch these real-life avatars drop threes and pretend I'm the one greening the shot.