Top 25 NBA Players
The NBA kicked off last night and it was wonderful to have it back in our lives. The NBA is a league driven by its stars in a way no other professional sports league is. So what better way to celebrate the beginning of the new season than by ranking the top twenty-five players in the NBA. My criteria for this list is focused on two main things, career performance, and who I would want on my team for the duration of the season. I don’t want to project too far out because a guy like Luka Doncic would end up at the top spot and he just isn’t there yet. I can only truly go off what I have seen, which is where the first half of my criteria comes from. I also need to put some hot takes out there to make this a more fun read and so I will be making some projections on where I think guys will wind up by the end of the year.
First I want to get in some honorable mentions. A few guys just missed making the top twenty-five and they deserve a little bit of shine. Pascal Siakim is a player I want to mention. He is sort of the number one option in Toronto, he is just far too inconsistent to crack the top twenty-five and I do not know if that will change this year. Kemba Walker was probably number twenty-six for me. He is a fantastic scorer and the right point guard to have down in Boston. Lastly I want to throw in Domantas Sabonis as he was phenomenal last season. At only twenty-three years old, Sabonis will only get better from here.
With that, the top twenty-five guys in the league await a brief critique.
Number 25: Chris Paul - Phoenix Suns
Chris Paul is not the man he used to be, but at thirty-five years old he had the best season by a point guard at that age by a wide margin. Paul is the exact piece the Suns needed to act as a veteran presence to help get this team into the playoffs.
Number 24: Trae Young - Atlanta Hawks
Trae Young puts up the kind of stats that a top ten player puts up. The biggest issue is that Young has yet to play on a remotely competitive team and his stats have always been some of the most empty in the league. The talent is top level and now that Trae has some pretty decent players around him, we will see if he can make those around him better and sneak the Hawks into the weak Western Conference playoffs.
Number 23: Karl Anthony-Towns - Minnesota Vikings
Towns has been a talking head darling since entering the league in 2015. Towns averaged 26.5 points and 10.8 rebounds per game and yet it led nowhere. He suffers from the same issue that Trae Young does. He puts up big numbers with no winning to back it up. Towns has seemingly reached the kind of ceiling he has, so while the rest of the NBA gets better around him, he will continue to fill the same spot he filled last year.
Number 22: Ja Morant - Memphis Grizzlies
This may be a bit premature, but I am projecting. Ja Morant came into the NBA and it was immediately one of the best young players in the NBA. He plays like a young Derrick Rose with the skill set of Allen Iverson. Morant is the real deal and with a full season under his belt will be establishing himself as one of the best point guards in the league.
Number 21: Ben Simmons - Philadelphia 76ers
Ben Simmons is the next in a natural progression of these hybrid point-forwards that LeBron James has given birth to. Ben Simmons can do just about anything. His defense is All-Pro level. He passes as well as nearly any point guard in the league. He rebounds and scores with ease. Ben Simmons only has one flaw in his game that prevents him from climbing higher than this on my list; he can’t shoot. It's hard to put a ball dominant forward higher on this list when he can’t shoot from outside of ten feet.
Number 20: De’Aaron Fox - Sacramento Kings
Fox plays faster then just about anyone else in the league. His coast to coast speed is top tier and he has the body control of the best guards in league history. His shot is clean and he is the type of guy you build a franchise around. I seem to think this is the type of year that a lot of young guys establish themselves as long term stars. De’Aaron Fox is at the top of that list.
Number 19: Jayson Tatum - Boston Celtics
This entry is a little dependent. We saw two versions of Tatum last year. Pre-All-Star break Tatum was nothing special. Tatum seemingly hadn’t grown between his second and third year. Right around that All-Star break, Tatum turned into a whole different player. Tatum became the player everyone in Boston had expected him to be and he maintained that form through the Bubble. I believe in Tatum’s ability to be the number one on a team with Jaylon Brown and Kemba Walker and he should take another step forward this year as one of the best three and D guys in the NBA.
Number 18: Russell Westbrook - Washington Wizards
Westbrook is the king of empty stats. Luckily for his career, he has been to the playoffs enough to avoid the type of reputation that Demarcus Cousins gained during his tenure in Sacramento. Westbrook does not make the people around him better and he still makes ridiculously unintelligent plays regularly. However, Westbrook is still one of the most athletic guys in the league and can score with the best point guards in the NBA. Westbrook is polarizing and I am on the lower end of the spectrum as far as opinions of him goes.
Number 17: Paul George - Los Angeles Clippers
Paul George is a good defender and a solid player on offense. He can score close to thirty a night and doesn’t turn the ball over too much. However, Paul George being outside the top fifteen is entirely due to the playoff inconsistency. I believe in Paul George to have a great regular season, but when it comes to the postseason I have the full expectation of George to collapse.
Number 16: Bradley Beal - Washington Wizards
Another hot take maybe, but to me Beal is the better guard in the tandem that Washington has put together. Beal nearly led the league in scoring last year with 30.5 points per game. Beal is one of the best two guards in the league and should pair very well with Westbrook as he doesn’t need to have the ball in his hands constantly to do his scoring. Beal is still young enough to be getting better and I think with Westbrook to take away some of the heat defensively, Beal will be able to reach the final level of his game and lead the Wizards to a playoff berth.
Number 15: Donovan Mitchell - Utah Jazz
Donovan Mitchell continues to impress as the only true scoring option the Jazz have. Joe Ingles, Bojan Bogdanovic, and Mike Conley all can score but none are supremely consistent and none are able to do it in a way that really takes the pressure off of Mitchell. However what pushes Mitchell over the top for me is the playoff performances he puts up every year. Mitchell is already one of the best young guards in the league when the postseason rolls around, and it only aids in his development every year.
Number 14: Kyrie Irving - Brooklyn Nets
Kyrie did not play during the Bubble so it has been a long time since we saw him. Last season Kyrie Irving led a young, inexperienced team to a playoff berth and he looked good doing it. Kyrie will probably have to take a slight step back on offense this year as Kevin Durant will demand a lot of ball time as the best pure scorer that the league has maybe ever seen, but Kyrie still has the best handles in the league and surprisingly can hold his own on defense. Lets just hope the spreading sage thing doesn't become a regular pre-game activity.
Number 13: Joel Embiid - Philadelphia 76ers
Joel Embiid has the kind of talent to be the best center the league has seen since Shaquille O’Neal. Unfortunately that talent disappears in the fourth quarter of most close games. Joel Embiid is the type of player that can put up close to forty points per game, yet he seems to lack the work ethic to be that kind of player. Embiid also suffers from wanting to shoot and not work in the post for the majority of the game. If Doc Rivers can get through to Embiid and really have him do what he is best at, Embiid could be a top five to ten player in the league if he really put his mind to it. I just don’t expect him to necessarily make that leap in year seven.
Number 12: Devin Booker - Phoenix Suns
Devin Booker has the very strong potential to lead the league in scoring this season. He has a pure stroke and can score from anywhere on the floor. The Suns will be in playoff contention this year and I think the addition of Chris Paul will help Booker fully realize just how great he can be. I see this season as being the season where Booker stops being the guy that scores a lot for a mediocre team, and starts being the guy that scores better than just about anyone else for a pretty competitive team.
Number 11: Jimmy Butler - Miami Heat
For Bulls and Heat fans, the Finals last season were to be expected from Butler. The Finals acted as the coming out party for Jimmy’s greatness to the rest of the league. Jimmy is the epitome of a guy that makes everyone around him better. He leads his team by example and a bit harshly, but he is now on a team that is ready to compete and respond to that sort of leadership. Jimmy is not going to average 27 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists per game for a whole season, but when you need him most he will drop a 40 point triple double. That's why Butler lands just outside the top ten on this list. He is the Bat-Man of the NBA.
Number 10: Nikola Jokic - Denver Nuggets
Just when you think Jokic can’t get better, he does. He is a center that averages 20 and 10 while also giving out 7 or more assists per game. Jokic is the best passing big man in the NBA right now by my estimation and while he does have an issue with tiring late in some games, You can see the effort and the drive to be great that Jokic has. He is seven feet tall and more skilled than most players half his size. Jokic is the best player on the Nuggets and he will continue to be the biggest reason they succeed going forward.
Number 9: Stephen Curry - Golden State Warriors
Steph is the greatest shooter in NBA history and until he shows otherwise, will be given the benefit of the doubt. Steph will have to be the alpha dog on this team if he they want to succeed. That could be a recipe for Curry averaging numbers similar to what he did in his MVP seasons, which is by no means a stretch for him. Curry will also have to stay healthy as that has been an ebbing and flowing issue for Curry since he was a rookie in the NBA.
Number 8: Damian Lillard - Portland Trailblazers
For me, this is the season that Lillard shows that he is the best point guard in the league. He averaged 30 points per game last season and it's hard to believe he won't exceed that number this season. Lillard is a smart player that has more clutch in his genes than any other player in the league other than maybe LeBron James. Dame Time is real and not going anywhere this year. I like the pieces that the Trailblazers have put around Lillard and think if the team can stay healthy, Lillard can be a legitimate MVP candidate this season.
Number 7: James Harden - Houston Rockets
This is a really weird entry. James Harden could very easily lead the NBA in scoring this season. He could also come close to leading the league in assists. Harden, despite perception, has also really improved his defense over the past couple of seasons. Harden also appears to be a bit of a locker room cancer and can’t seem to decide on which star he wants to play alongside. Harden is still easily one of the ten best players in the league, this season really just hinges on where his mindset is and where he ends up being traded to.
Number 6: Anthony Davis - Los Angeles Lakers
Anthony Davis has a case for best defensive player in the NBA. He is also a power forward/center that can shoot as well as almost any guard in the league and from anywhere on the floor. Davis can handle the ball and is a fantastic passer. He has all the tools to be a top five guy in the league. The issue is he is the number two on this team and he has no problem being that number two. It's the type of attitude that absolutely helps win games but can be a detriment to a personal ranking.
Number 5: Kevin Durant - Brooklyn Nets
Durant is the type of guy that can be the best player in the league. However after missing a full season, I need to see what Durant will look like midway through the season before fully giving him the top three spot he may or may not deserve. Durant is as good a scorer as there is in the league, and he does it more efficiently than most on top of that. He plays great defense and will have the chance to lead his very talented team deep into the playoffs. Right now I have Durant as roughly the fifth best player in the league, but that could change after just a couple of weeks.
Number 4: Luka Doncic - Dallas Mavericks
If Luka makes the kind of jump this year that he did between his first and second year, he will take over the title as the best player in the league. Doncic does everything you could want out of a basketball player except shoot lights out from three and play lockdown defense. He is still young and has time to improve his defense as time goes, and by all accounts has improved his three point shooting game. All other aspects of Luka’s game are nearly perfect and he is only 21 years old. Luka is the most special player we have seen in the NBA since LeBron James.
Number 3: Kawhi Leonard - Los Angeles Clippers
Leonard is the best defensive backcourt player in the league. Kawhi is clutch, and he scores, and he makes those around him better. There isn’t much else to say about Kawhi. He is one of the best and I believe he will continue to be going forward.
Number 2: LeBron James - Los Angeles Lakers
LeBron is LeBron. These top three entries are boring because they are chalk. LeBron is not going anywhere unless he says so.
Number 1: Giannis Antetokounmpo - Milwaukee Bucks
Giannis is the back to back league MVP. I like hot takes as much as the next guy but I can’t give number one to anyone else. Giannis has been dominating the East for two seasons now, and no one other than Durant has the power to stop him.