It’s that time in October, so we welcome you back NBA best player ranking enthusiasts. ESPN’s very popular list of the 100 Best NBA Players has returned for its 13th season. Known also as #NBArank, the argument-inducing countdown of the league’s top players according to their panel of experts for the upcoming 2023-24 season will certainly have fans up in arms. Again.
Coming off last season’s list, there’s not much conversation to be had at the top of the rankings. There’s no doubt that 2023 MVP Joel Embiid will be joined (and surpassed by) NBA Champion Nikola Jokic as well as the usual suspects in the league’s best player discussions: Steph Curry, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic and blah blah blah.
One intriguing question is whether LeBron James, the living legend entering his 21st season, will even be one of ESPN’s top ten players.
ESPN’s 100 Best NBA Players for 2023-24
ESPN’s rankings were curated through extensive deliberation. Their expert panel included well-known analysts and on-air personalities such as Tim McMahon, Ohm Youngmisuk, Kevin Pelton, Dave McMenamin, Andrew Lopez and less-liked figures like Malika Andrews and Tim Bontemps.
The crew engaged in evaluating hundreds of NBA player matchups, resulting in over 15,000 possible comparisons. They focused on a fundamental question: “Which player will perform better in 2023-24?” and here’s how the full list netted out.
| Rank | Player | Position | Team | 2022 | + / – |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | Mitchell Robinson | C | New York Knicks | 98 | -2 |
| 99 | Jonas Valanciunas | C | New Orleans Pelicans | 84 | -15 |
| 98 | Collin Sexton | PG | Utah Jazz | NR | +2 |
| 97 | Grant Williams | PF | Dallas Mavericks | 99 | +3 |
| 96 | Harrison Barnes | PF | Sacramento Kings | 74 | -22 |
| 95 | Jalen Williams | F | Oklahoma City Thunder | NR | R |
| 94 | Russell Westbrook | PG | LA Clippers | 65 | -29 |
| 93 | Mike Conley | PG | Minnesota Timberwolves | 89 | -4 |
| 92 | Immanuel Quickley | SG | New York Knicks | NR | +9 |
| 91 | Josh Hart | SG | New York Knicks | NR | +10 |
| 90 | John Collins | PF | Utah Jazz | 73 | -17 |
| 89 | Robert Williams III | C | Portland Trail Blazers | 58 | -31 |
| 88 | Kevon Looney | C | Golden State Warriors | NR | +13 |
| 87 | Buddy Hield | SG | Indiana Pacers | 90 | +3 |
| 86 | Kyle Kuzma | PF | Washington Wizards | NR | +15 |
| 85 | Anfernee Simons | SG | Portland Trail Blazers | 91 | +6 |
| 84 | Clint Capela | C | Atlanta Hawks | 79 | -5 |
| 83 | Tobias Harris | SF | Philadelphia 76ers | 56 | -27 |
| 82 | Cameron Johnson | SF | Brooklyn Nets | NR | +19 |
| 81 | Bobby Portis | F | Milwaukee Bucks | NR | +20 |
| 80 | Jalen Green | SG | Houston Rockets | 62 | -18 |
| 79 | Tyler Herro | PG | Miami Heat | 61 | -18 |
| 78 | Scoot Henderson | PG | Portland Trail Blazers | R | R |
| 77 | Jordan Clarkson | PG | Utah Jazz | 85 | +8 |
| 76 | Chris Paul | PG | Golden State Warriors | 21 | -55 |
| Rank | Player | Position | Team | 2022 | + / – |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 75 | Nikola Vucevic | C | Chicago Bulls | 57 | -18 |
| 74 | Cade Cunningham | PG | Detroit Pistons | 35 | -39 |
| 73 | Chet Holmgren | PF | Oklahoma City Thunder | NR | +28 |
| 72 | Jordan Poole | SG | Washington Wizards | 55 | -17 |
| 71 | RJ Barrett | SG | New York Knicks | 63 | -8 |
| 70 | Walker Kessler | C | Utah Jazz | NR | +31 |
| 69 | Brook Lopez | C | Milwaukee Bucks | NR | +32 |
| 68 | Michael Porter Jr. | SF | Denver Nuggets | 72 | +4 |
| 67 | OG Anunoby | SF | Toronto Raptors | 75 | +8 |
| 66 | Austin Reaves | SG | Los Angeles Lakers | NR | +35 |
| 65 | Myles Turner | C | Indiana Pacers | 66 | +1 |
| 64 | Rudy Gobert | C | Minnesota Timberwolves | 18 | -46 |
| 63 | Scottie Barnes | SF | Toronto Raptors | 39 | -24 |
| 62 | Kristaps Porzingis | C | Boston Celtics | 86 | +24 |
| 61 | Desmond Bane | SG | Memphis Grizzlies | 68 | +7 |
| 60 | Dejounte Murray | SG | Atlanta Hawks | 42 | -18 |
| 59 | Marcus Smart | PG | Memphis Grizzlies | 34 | -25 |
| 58 | Jerami Grant | SF | Portland Trail Blazers | 64 | +6 |
| 57 | Zion Williamson | PF | New Orleans Pelicans | 40 | -17 |
| 56 | Fred VanVleet | PG | Houston Rockets | 38 | -18 |
| 55 | Draymond Green | PF | Golden State Warriors | 43 | -12 |
| 54 | Andrew Wiggins | SF | Golden State Warriors | 32 | -22 |
| 53 | Josh Giddey | SG | Oklahoma City Thunder | 81 | +28 |
| 52 | Franz Wagner | SF | Orlando Magic | NR | +49 |
| 51 | Aaron Gordon | PF | Denver Nuggets | 83 | +32 |
| 50 | Jarrett Allen | C | Cleveland Cavaliers | 52 | +2 |
| 49 | Deandre Ayton | C | Portland Trail Blazers | 51 | +2 |
| 48 | LaMelo Ball | PG | Charlotte Hornets | 41 | -7 |
| 47 | Victor Wembanyama | PF | San Antonio Spurs | R | R |
From the earlier release of the rankings, players like Victor Wenbanyama, Scoot Henderson and Chet Holgren have already made this exclusive list without having played one single game; that will certainly stir the hornet’s nest. Including these three players over established players can be considered snubbing them. While we don’t have an issue considering the guidelines in which ESPN made the list, fans certainly have raised a fuss about it.
| Rank | Player | Position | Team | 2022 | + / – |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 46 | Khris Middleton | SF | Milwaukee Bucks | 31 | -15 |
| 45 | Julius Randle | PF | New York Knicks | 71 | +26 |
| 44 | CJ McCollum | SG | New Orleans Pelicans | 45 | +1 |
| 43 | James Harden | PG | Philadelphia 76ers | 11 | -32 |
| 42 | Tyrese Maxey | PG | Philadelphia 76ers | 44 | +2 |
| 41 | Klay Thompson | SG | Golden State Warriors | 37 | -4 |
| 40 | Evan Mobley | PF | Cleveland Cavaliers | 36 | -4 |
| 39 | DeMar DeRozan | SF | Chicago Bulls | 28 | -11 |
| 38 | Zach LaVine | SG | Chicago Bulls | 27 | -11 |
| 37 | Bradley Beal | SG | Phoenix Suns | 19 | -18 |
| 36 | Darius Garland | PG | Cleveland Cavaliers | 46 | +10 |
| 35 | Ja Morant | PG | Memphis Grizzlies | 9 | -26 |
| 34 | Kyrie Irving | PG | Dallas Mavericks | 33 | -1 |
| 33 | Mikal Bridges | SF | Brooklyn Nets | 49 | +16 |
| 32 | Jalen Brunson | PG | New York Knicks | 67 | +35 |
| 31 | Jaren Jackson Jr. | PF | Memphis Grizzlies | 53 | +22 |
| 30 | Paolo Banchero | PF | Orlando Magic | 82 | +52 |
| 29 | Trae Young | PG | Atlanta Hawks | 16 | -13 |
| 28 | Lauri Markkanen | PF | Utah Jazz | NR | +73 |
| 27 | Brandon Ingram | SF | New Orleans Pelicans | 29 | +2 |
| 26 | Jrue Holiday | PG | Boston Celtics | 26 | 0 |
| 25 | Pascal Siakam | PF | Toronto Raptors | 30 | +5 |
| 24 | Kawhi Leonard | SF | LA Clippers | 15 | -9 |
| 23 | De'Aaron Fox | PG | Sacramento Kings | 54 | +31 |
| 22 | Domantas Sabonis | PF | Sacramento Kings | 47 | +25 |
| 21 | Tyrese Haliburton | PG | Indiana Pacers | 59 | +38 |
| Rank | Player | Position | Team | 2022 | + / – |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | Karl-Anthony Towns | C | Minnesota Timberwolves | 13 | -7 |
| 19 | Jaylen Brown | SG | Boston Celtics | 22 | +3 |
| 18 | Paul George | SF | LA Clippers | 15 | -3 |
| 17 | Jamal Murray | PG | Denver Nuggets | 50 | +33 |
| 16 | Bam Adebayo | C | Miami Heat | 23 | +7 |
| 15 | Donovan Mitchell | SG | Cleveland Cavaliers | 24 | +9 |
| 14 | Damian Lillard | PG | Milwaukee Bucks | 14 | 0 |
| 13 | Anthony Edwards | SG | Minnesota Timberwolves | 25 | +12 |
| 12 | Jimmy Butler | SF | Miami Heat | 17 | +5 |
| 11 | Devin Booker | SG | Phoenix Suns | 10 | -1 |
| 10 | Anthony Davis | PF | Los Angeles Lakers | 20 | +10 |
| 9 | LeBron James | SF | Los Angeles Lakers | 6 | -3 |
| 8 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | SG | Oklahoma City | 48 | +40 |
| 7 | Kevin Durant | SF | Phoenix Suns | 8 | +1 |
| 6 | Jayson Tatum | SF | Boston Celtics | 7 | +1 |
| 5 | Stephen Curry | PG | Golden State Warriors | 5 | 0 |
| 4 | Luka Doncic | PG | Dallas Mavericks | 3 | -1 |
| 3 | Joel Embiid | C | Philadelphia 76ers | 4 | 1 |
| 2 | Nikola Jokic | C | Denver Nuggets | 2 | 0 |
| 1 | Giannis Antetokounmpo | PF | Milwaukee Bucks | 1 | 0 |
As ESPN releases portions of their list (starting with 100-51, 50-11 then counting down the top 10) it aligns nicely with the building anticipation for the upcoming season. With that, NBA heads await the full reveal of whether their players made the cut, who from their favorite team didn’t make it, and why player X was chosen over player Y.
The Internet will certainly have their say and will have words for even the smallest of differences: you know, like how I think it’s silly to rank Domantas Sabonis (#22) above De’Aaron Fox (#23) as it was clear in the NBA Playoffs which player really made the Sacramento Kings dangerous. To say it explicitly, Fox looked unstoppable in the Kings series against the Golden State Warriors.
Rise and Falls from This Year’s Rankings
As far as players that have lost and gained traction over their 2022 ranking, if you were to chance a few guesses on which NBA players fell the hardest, you probably would get a few of them right.
While Chris Paul still has a lot left in the tank, his age and move to the Golden State Warriors didn’t help his individual stock. CP3 will share the backcourt with Steph Curry and Klay Thompson with talks of coming off the bench for the first time in his career, the divisive Point God fell 55 spots to the 76th best player in the NBA according to ESPN.
The biggest drop was from one the tallest players on this list: Rudy Gobert. The French big man was ranked #18 in 2022, and fell 46 spots down to #64 for this upcoming season.
James Harden’s ups and downs over the last two seasons are reflected in ESPN’s rankings this season. The Beard had the second largest drop when comparing the two lists; falling 32 positions from #11 (2022) to #43 (2023). No surprise after he ignited a feud with (and was fined by) Sixers leadership over the summer.
Russell Westbrook always seems to an easy target, this year’s ranking is no different as the dropped 29 spots from #65 a year ago to barely making the list at #94. Speaking of easy targets, Ja Morant’s rough 2022-23 season and upcoming 25-game suspension to start the 2023-24 season was reflected in his ESPN power ranking. Last season the spectacular Memphis Grizzlies star was on the cusp of superstardom ranking #9 overall. Going into this season, his stock has fallen 26 spots to #35.
Other significant decreases include Cade Cunningham (-39), Robert Williams III (-31), Tobias Harris (-27), Bradley Beal (-18), Zion Williamson (-17).
Players that improved dramatically — those that weren’t going into their 2nd or 3rd year — included the likes of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander who jumped to #8; improving 40 spots into the top ten. Jamal Murray came back last season without missing a beat. The big shot maker team up with Jokic was a pick-your-poison that the Nuggets won way more often than lost. Murray moved up 33 spots into the top 20. Nuggets teammate Aaron Gordon’s value rose significantly with his visceral contributions had him jump up 32 spots; barely missing the top 50 (to Richard Jefferson’s chagrin).
Other players that rose up on the list include Lauri Markkanen (+72), Paolo Banchero (+52), Franz Wagner (+49), Tyrese Haliburton (+38), Jalen Brunson (+35), Austin Reaves (+35), Walker Kessler (+31), and De’Aaron Fox (+31)
*The full 2023-24 list not been fully released.
