Welcome back, sports fanatics. It’s been quite a week in the NBA universe. Last Friday Mo’ne Davis, the 13-year-old Little League pitching phenom, gave Kevin Hart the “spin cycle” in the All Star Celebrity Game. On Saturday, Zach LaVine soared head-to-rim to win the Slam Dunk Contest, and Steph Curry proved that he is the preeminent splash brother in the Three-Point Contest. On Sunday, Russell Westbrook showed he’s more than an eyeglasses model and took home his first All Star MVP award.

Now that the confetti has fallen on the season’s halfway point, it’s time to leave the fanfare and return to critical, biased sports analysis. After all, we are merely two subjects painstakingly pretending that we do not make every decision based on our favorite haircuts. Now is the time to start thinking about who has risen from pedestrian expectations to join the tree of budding stardom, and so we embark on our vessel of clickbait journalism to sail the seas of the NBA’s surprising stars. Our avenue for comparative interpretation is the following listicle. And without further ado: Our 2014–15 NBA breakout players.

Landing the No. 3 spot is Draymond “The Dancing Bear” Green of the Golden State Warriors. Playing on the highest-scoring team in the league and alongside Curry and his partner in crime Klay Thompson, Green offers key defensive contributions that have catapulted the Warriors into first place in the Western Conference. When David Lee and Andrew Bogut were both sidelined with injuries, the 6-foot-7- inch Green stepped in and anchored the Warriors’ defense.

Green’s game is a sight for sore eyes. He has a comparatively short, stubby body that commands space down low like a large man on a New York City subway. His speed and strength allow him to be an elite paint defender at such a short height. Green leads the NBA in defensive win shares — a statistical category that attributes game wins to players’ defensive performance. He is 11th in the league in plus-minus at 4.8 and has career highs in minutes, field-goal percentage, points, blocks, steals and rebounds. Green is a valuable cleanup defender who works harder than anybody to help his teammates win (and win they do). The Warriors have the best record in the NBA, and Green is a big reason why.

Coming in at No. 2 is the 180-pound, 6-foot-2-inch Jeff Teague of the Atlanta Hawks. It may be surprising to see Teague so high on this list, as he has been an established and respected point guard in the NBA for several seasons. With some simple analysis, however, it becomes clear that Teague is worthy of our praise. The unexpectedly successful Hawks have been astounding this season. Some call them the “Spurs of the East” due to their unselfish style of play, and having Teague at the reins is a big reason why.

The Hawks score the sixth most points in the NBA and have recorded the second most assists of any team, with Teague leading the team in both of these categories. Averaging 17 points, 7.5 assists and 1.7 steals per game, he’s on pace to easily surpass his previous career highs.

The San Antonio Spurs rely on multiple ball handlers to create their highly efficient offense, as Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are both capable of beating their man off the dribble, getting into the paint and assisting a teammate. With shooting specialist Kyle Korver as Teague’s partner in the backcourt, the Hawks, on the other hand, rely on Teague as their sole playmaker and offensive initiator. Considering how important his role is on this unexpectedly dominant team, he is entirely deserving of “breakout” recognition.

In an all too obvious choice, our No. 1 breakout player is Jimmy Butler of the Chicago Bulls. There is a reason he was selected for the All Star Game over his more decorated teammates. He is balling off the wall and no one else compares. Butler entered the season as an afterthought behind the big three of Derrick Rose, Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah, but in a surprise to many, he is solidifying himself as the best player on the third-place Bulls of the East. His numbers tell the story, as Butler averages a team-high 20.4 points per game but only attempts 14.3 field goals per game. That’s fewer than Rose and Gasol. He’s averaging career highs in points (exactly double his career average), blocks, assists, rebounds and true shooting percentage.

But let’s not allow his flashy numbers to distract us from Butler’s real strong suit. He is an elite defensive wing player and has been for a number of seasons. Now that he has added an offensive arsenal to his game, Butler has become one of the top two-way wing players in the NBA. His plus-minus statistic, 4.7, is the highest on his team, and the 12th highest in the Association. Yikes! Watch out for Jimmy Buckets!

No one likes an honorable mention, but all of these players deserve credit for their remarkable first halves in the NBA season, and we wish we could include them on this list: Victor Oladipo (Orlando Magic), Jonas Valanciunas (Toronto Raptors), Brandon Knight (Phoenix Suns) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks).

Butler, Teague and Green have been nothing shy of excellent. All below the age of 27, the time when many players begin to hit their prime, the future seems bright for these strong competitors. Their fans called and they answered, leaving frightened opponents in their path as they climb the ladder to NBA stardom. Speaking directly now to Butler, Teague and Green — please keep it up, our editors are trusting us.