by stuart Views: 21174
October is quickly approaching and that means the 2021-22 NBA season is quickly arriving. With a few weeks before the new season kicks off, this is also when ESPN starts getting NBA fans bent out of shape with their sports network’s rankings of the top 100 NBA players.
This is the eleventh year that ESPN has slowly released their #NBArank list. And that is how many seasons we’ve followed up with ESPN’s full list in an easy and readable manner because who really cares about the five sentence explanation as to why Mikal Bridges is ranked #86? What they care about is getting emotional about why Bridges is #86 and why he’s above/below other players.
Looking for the 2022-23 list? Click here.
ESPN’s 100 Best Players
To get to their controversial list of 100 players (or 74 players as they did a couple lists agon) they surveyed a panel of NBA writers, talking heads and “experts” asking them “Who are the NBA’s top players for the upcoming 2020-21?” and then counting up the rankings.
Even though Sports Illustrated released their list first, there’s no list that generates as much discussion as ESPN’s player rankings because their the prominent sports network that also broadcasts NBA games during the season.
There’s not much arguming when it comes to which players will likely comprise the top ten. Superstars like Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Steph Curry are talked about ad nauseum that when they get down to the top ten, it’s not whether they’re at the top, it’s where they’re positioned. It’s not the Currys, James Hardens, Joel Embiids and Luka Doncics, it’s the players that come after that causes comment sections to explore all over the internet.
So are you ready for your head to explode and ready to mash your finger the caps lock? Because this is ESPN’s Top 100 NBA Players for the 2021-22 season.
| Rank | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | Norman Powell | Portland Trail Blazers |
| 99 | Danilo Gallinari | Atlanta Hawks |
| 98 | Steven Adams | Memphis Grizzlies |
| 97 | Will Barton | Denver Nuggets |
| 96 | Jalen Green | Houston Rockets |
| 95 | Kevin Huerter | Atlanta Hawks |
| 94 | Jonas Valanciunas | New Orleans Pelicans |
| 93 | Mitchell Robinson | New York Knicks |
| 92 | Duncan Robinson | Miami Heat |
| 91 | Derrick Rose | New York Knicks |
| 90 | Jordan Clarkson | Utah Jazz |
| 89 | Robert Covington | Portland Trail Blazers |
| 88 | Seth Curry | Philadelphia 76ers |
| 87 | Miles Bridges | Charlotte Hornets |
| 86 | Devonte' Graham | New Orleans Pelicans |
| 85 | John Wall | Houston Rockets |
| 84 | Darius Garland | Cleveland Cavs |
| 83 | Dejounte Murray | San Antonio Spurs |
| 82 | Lauri Markkanen | Cleveland Cavs |
| 81 | Terry Rozier | Charlotte Hornets |
| 80 | Caris LeVert | Indiana Pacers |
| 79 | Tim Hardaway Jr | Dallas Mavericks |
| 78 | Dillon Brooks | Memphis Grizzlies |
| 77 | Andrew Wiggins | Golden State Warriors |
| 76 | Cade Cunningham | Detroit Pistons |
| Rank | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 75 | Joe Harris | Brooklyn Nets |
| 74 | Jusuf Nurkic | Portland Trail Blazers |
| 73 | Tyrese Haliburton | Sacramento Kings |
| 72 | OG Anunoby | Toronto Raptors |
| 71 | Jaren Jackson Jr | Memphis Grizzlies |
| 70 | Kemba Walker | New York Knicks |
| 69 | Aaron Gordon | Denver Nuggets |
| 68 | Spencer Dinwiddie | Washington Wizards |
| 67 | Bojan Bogdanovic | Utah Jazz |
| 66 | Mikal Bridges | Phoenix Suns |
| 65 | Malcolm Brogdon | Indiana Pacers |
| 64 | Bogdan Bogdanovic | Atlanta Hawks |
| 63 | D'Angelo Russell | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 62 | Joe Ingles | Utah Jazz |
| 61 | Jarrett Allen | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 60 | Christian Wood | Houston Rockets |
| 59 | Collin Sexton | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 58 | Gordon Hayward | Charlotte Hornets |
| 57 | Lonzo Ball | Chicago Bulls |
| 56 | Fred VanVleet | Toronto Raptors |
| 55 | Clint Capela | Atlanta Hawks |
| 54 | John Collins | Atlanta Hawks |
| 53 | Jerami Grant | Detroit Pistons |
| 52 | Anthony Edwards | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 51 | Buddy Hield | Sacramento Kings |
| Rank | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 50 | Kristaps Porzingis | Dallas Mavericks |
| 49 | Marcus Smart | Boston Celtics |
| 48 | Mike Conley | Utah Jazz |
| 47 | LaMelo Ball | Charlotte Hornets |
| 46 | Tobias Harris | Philadelphia 76ers |
| 45 | DeMar DeRozan | Chicago Bulls |
| 44 | Myles Turner | Indiana Pacers |
| 43 | Kyle Lowry | Miami Heat |
| 42 | Julius Randle | New York Knicks |
| 41 | Michael Porter Jr. | Denver Nuggets |
| 40 | Domantas Sabonis | Indiana Pacers |
| 39 | Nikola Vucevic | Chicago Bulls |
| 38 | Pascal Siakam | Toronto Raptors |
| 37 | Draymond Green | Golden State Warriors |
| 36 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | Oklahoma City Thunder |
| 35 | Deandre Ayton | Phoenix Suns |
| 34 | De'Aaron Fox | Sacramento Kings |
| 33 | Zach LaVine | Chicago Bulls |
| 32 | Klay Thompson | Golden State Warriors |
| 31 | Ja Morant | Memphis Grizzlies |
| 30 | CJ McCollum | Portland Trail Blazers |
| 29 | Russell Westbrook | Los Angeles Lakers |
| 28 | Ben Simmons | Philadelphia 76ers |
| 27 | Jaylen Brown | Boston Celtics |
| 26 | Brandon Ingram | New Orleans Pelicans |
| 25 | Rudy Gobert | Utah Jazz |
| 24 | Karl-Anthony Towns | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 23 | Zion Williamson | New Orleans Pelicans |
| 22 | Jrue Holiday | Milwaukee Bucks |
| 21 | Bam Adebayo | Miami Heat |
| Rank | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | Kyrie Irving | Brooklyn Nets |
| 19 | Khris Middleton | Milwaukee Bucks |
| 18 | Donovan Mitchell | Utah Jazz |
| 17 | Trae Young | Atlanta Hawks |
| 16 | Jimmy Butler | Miami Heat |
| 15 | Devin Booker | Phoenix Suns |
| 14 | Jayson Tatum | Boston Celtis |
| 13 | Chris Paul | Phoenix Suns |
| 12 | Paul George | Los Angeles Clippers |
| 11 | Bradley Beal | Washington Wizards |
| 10 | James Harden | Brooklyn Nets |
| 9 | Anthony Davis | Los Angeles Lakers |
| 8 | Damian Lillard | Portland Trailblazers |
| 7 | Joel Embiid | Philadephia 76ers |
| 6 | Nikola Jokic | Denver Nuggets |
| 5 | Stephen Curry | Golden State Warriors |
| 4 | Luka Dončić | Dallas Mavericks |
| 3 | LeBron James | Los Angeles Lakers |
| 2 | Giannis Antetokounmpo | Milwaukee Bucks |
| 1 | Kevin Durant | Brooklyn Nets |
ESPN hasn’t revealed their entire list just yet. They’ve released them in chunks putting out the first 50 (#100-51) then the next 25 (#50-#26) then the next 20 (#25-#6) before finally listing out the top five players of the 2021-22 season.
We’ll continue to update the list until we get to #1. Whatever happens, no one is going to entirely happy. Not you. Not your best friend. Not your Aunt. Not our barber. Not Kendrick Perkins. Definitely not Charles Barkley. Okay, Ernie Johnson might be chill. Until the season starts, feel free to peruse this list, angrily scream in with CAPS LOCK on and call random commenters from across the country “casuals” when they don’t agree with you.
