I still find Alignment to be of use as shorthand for NPCs and monsters. That said, I don't use it as a straight jacket. A listed alignment of a creature in the MM is a starting point, speaking to a "typical" example of said creature. My campaign just culminated in the PCs fighting against a LE angel. I do like that 5e has greatly downplayed the inherency of alignments mechanically. I could see alignment disappearing in future editions of the game however, replaced by the short sentences we use for Trait/Ideal/bond/flaw, as we got for the Darklords in the new Ravenloft book.