Five names, shared skills.
These are not jersey numbers.
“Playing the five” describes a role. It does not mean wearing number 5. Similarly, guard, wing and big are broad descriptions; they can be more useful than a rigid position label when explaining one play.
Name the task before the position.
Try following one possession and noting who brings the ball up, who creates space, who screens and who protects the basket when possession changes. Then compare those tasks with the listed lineup. This exercise shows why a position alone does not tell a whole basketball story.