Also, while Morants shooting numbers have improved, he is not enough of a consistent threat from outside of the paint yet to make the defenses respect him enough to not go under every screen set. Honorable mentions (players who received at least one vote but didnt make the list), listed in order of how close they were to cracking the top 50): Tyrese Haliburton, Indiana Pacers; Julius Randle, New York Knicks; DeAaron Fox, Sacramento Kings; Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks; Ben Simmons, Brooklyn Nets; Jaren Jackson Jr., Memphis Grizzlies; Russell Westbrook, Los Angeles Lakers; Robert Williams III, Boston Celtics; Clint Capela, Atlanta Hawks; Nikola Vucevic, Chicago Bulls; Desmond Bane, Memphis Grizzlies; Terry Rozier, Charlotte Hornets; Franz Wagner, Orlando Magic; RJ Barrett, New York Knicks. Oh, and since then, Doncic's Mavericks are three games under .500 at 10-13, whereas Brunson's Knicks are five games above .500 at 14-9. His pick . Last season, the Miami Heat were robbed from any representation in the All-Star and All-NBA teams because of injuries to their star players. Expect the All-Star Game MVP, fresh off his record-setting 55-point night, to keep his foot on the pedal as he's done all season. The next step is winning it all. Morant is consistently putting out highlight-worthy plays that make him alone worth a subscription to NBA League Pass. His defensive shortcomings also make him difficult to build around. Updated Aug. 10, 2022 11:18 a.m. EDT . His 21 points, six boards, five assists and two steals per game weren't enough for an All-Star selection, but you'll find him in the top 10 of pretty much all the catch-all advanced metrics. Voters for the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (player), Marv Albert (media), Al Attles (team), Red Auerbach (team), Elgin Baylor (team), Dave Bing (player), Larry Bird (team), Marty Blake (team), Fran Blinebury (media), Bill Bradley (player), Hubie Brown (team), Wilt Chamberlain (player), Mitch Chortkoff (media), Bob Cousy (player), Billy Cunningham (team), Chuck Daly (team), David DuPree (media), Wayne Embry (team), Julius Erving (player), Joe Gilmartin (media), Sam Goldaper (media), Alex Hannum (team), Lester Harrison (team), John Havlicek (player), Chick Hearn (media), Red Holzman (team), Phil Jasner (media), Earvin Johnson (player), John Kerr (player), Leonard Koppet (media), Bob Lanier (player), Frank Layden (team), Leonard Lewin (media), Jack McCallum (media), Dick McGuire (team), George Mikan (player), Bob Pettit (player), Harvey Pollack (team), Jack Ramsay (team), Willis Reed (team), Oscar Robertson (player), Bill Russell (player), Bob Ryan (media), Dolph Schayes (player), Bill Sharman (player), Gene Shue (team), Isiah Thomas (team), Wes Unseld (team), Peter Vecsey (media), Jerry West (team). He also wont be the main focus for defenders with Trae Young playing next to him. Press the labels to change the label text. Still, Jokic is unbelievable, and we cant rule out the possibility. As a rookie, Cade Cunningham quickly proved why he was the top pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. In the next series, the Mavs made it a point to punish him on the defensive end, and he showed signs of attrition as the series went on. In a league that struggles to contain dribble penetration, Holiday is truly a lockdown defender on the perimeter. In 2021, he carried the Nets and was a toe on the line from defeating the eventual champion Milwaukee Bucks. He's averaging only 1.8 fewer points and one fewer assist per game since Jan. 1. 1 on top 50 NBA players list, NBA Star Index: LeBron is finally breaking down, Power Rankings: Bucks No. From highlight-level dunks to memorable Netflix performances, Anthony Edwards is quickly rising as one of the more popular players in the NBA. Barnes finished the season averaging 15.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists with an impact that felt bigger than the box score. Dylan H. A peloton membership could be the only thing keeping Luka from winning his first career MVP trophy. Playing him next to a traditional big means you need three really good shooters on the floor. But Spida had other ideas. Drag and drop items from the bottom and put them on your desired tier. 4. 2. So it's incredible now, at 34, that he is playing more minutes than he has in seven years and having the best defensive season of his career. Make sure to Like, Comment, and Subscribe! This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Drag the images into the order you would like. Edit the label text in each row. The Bucks are still helping him out by employing multiple elite screen navigators, but they've dialed back their protect-the-rim-at-all-costs philosophy, staying home on shooters and trusting Lopez to keep the paint locked down. So, everyone knows the Kings are a bit dysfunctional, to say the least. Well, in 2023, Brunson has essentially been Doncic's statistical peer. Here is the 2022 NBA player tier list. Randle's also been a more aggressive rebounder, averaging a career-high 10.8 a night. He's still one of the top perimeter threats in the league, and a guy who is capable of dropping 30-plus on any given night. But Antetokounmpos combination of strength, athleticism, length and motor make him deserving of the No. The disruptive defense on and off the ball. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. You can find minor nits to pick here. NBA PLAYERS TIER LIST 2022 (RANKING THE TOP 50 PLAYERS IN THE NBA) NBA. Williamson is an athletic freak and a walking highlight, but I had to force myself to rank him this high. What's really down is his 36-percent mark from long midrange, where he's almost always north of 45 percent and has been known to crest to 50 percent. When Embiid is healthy, there might not be a more dominant player in the NBA, highlighted by his second-place finish in MVP voting in back-to-back seasons. 4. Brunson is shooting 2.2 percentage points better from the field and nearly 15 percentage points better from deep. Still, the 33-year-old former MVP appeared to have lost a step last season, which explains his drop in our rankings from last season. If he shows up this season in great shape and can shoot better than the 40.2% from the field and 32.6% from 3-point range that he managed as a Sixer last year, it will be no surprise if Harden ends up being better than the 19th-best player in the NBA. -- Brad Botkin, Wagner has emerged as the best young player on a supremely fun and talented Orlando roster. No. Saddiq Bey, Joe Ingles, Klay Thompson, Aleksej Pokusevski, Kyle Kuzma, Royce O'Neale, Joe Harris, Matisse Thybulle, Kawhi Leonard, Dillon Brooks There are some high-upside guys in this tier, but. For the sixth season in a row, Def Pen Sports presents its collaborative ranking of the top 50 NBA players. For each player, youll see the overall ranking, where we had them ranked on our 2020-21 Top 50 NBA players list, the highest and lowest ranks any of our voters ranked them on their individual lists, and a brief writeup about that player. Despite playing huge minutes, carrying a heavier defensive load than most stars and all the weirdness surrounding the Raptors, he is making his case for a third All-NBA selection. He has played significantly fewer minutes than them, though, and his team has had to be patient with him. Mitchell was his usual self last season, posting 25.9 points, 4.2 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.5 steals per game en route to his third consecutive All-Star appearance. We just hope SGA is there by the time OKC builds the next great version of its team. He has no spacing around him. Young is probably one of the most electric players in the game, but he cant be the best player on a true title contender. AndIrving's role in how a Nets team that had gone 18-2 for a six-week stretch through the holidays wound up selecting the nuclear option just a month after that run won't be forgotten in Brooklyn anytime soon. Though going from a volume scorer to an efficient one from his first to the second season was important, Edwards also has to improve defensively and cut down on turnovers the more he becomes the Timberwolves primary ball handler. -- Brad Botkin, It's been a disappointing season for the Bulls, but LaVine's production is still on par with his All-Star season from a year ago. Bad Traes shot selection and flat-out indifference on the defensive end can make the Hawks extremely exploitable. If Morant can shore these up, particularly the perimeter shooting, the sky is the limit for this must-see-TV 23-year-old. Watching Steph play basketball will never cease to be amazing. -- James Herbert, If we'd voted on this list in December, you could have been reading about Davis last. He will stuff the stat sheet and make an infinite number of highlight plays, but his weaknesses place a glass ceiling on Atlantas title hopes. Xavier S. Copyright 2022 DefPen.com. Brown had a worse individual season last season than the season before but still took a jump in our rankings, probably due to the fact that we now know a team with him as the No. To be clear, this is not a ranking of who we, as a staff, believe to be the best 50 players in the NBA overall. Garland still has a path to improvement, and with Mitchell on the team, he has a chance to have more opportunities at clean looks. Without Zion Williamson, the Pelicans and Ingram struggled at the start of the season until the addition of CJ McCollum gave them the boost they needed to make the playoffs. For the last six weeks, he's been playing at an All-NBA level. 2004-2023 CBS Interactive. He can score at all three levels and whip cross-court passes in the blink of an eye. 9. So that should tell you something about just how productive Harden has been. But make no mistake, the Cavaliers are led by a Big 4, not a Big 3. Until then, he and the Warriors will fight hard to win at least number five. He's devoting 17.5 percent of his possessions to pick-and-roll compared to 13.5 a season ago. He has looked great in preseason, but unless the weight loss can help him avoid injury, we could be looking at another disappointing end to the Pelicans season. However, there are still a few holes in Morants game, and addressing those will help propel him to that next level. When he has played, the Duke product is still shooting north of 60 percent on the season while averaging over 25 points a game, a feat accomplished by only two other players in league history: Charles Barkley and Kevin McHale. Home (current) Templates; Tierlists; Categories; Login; Register; CREATE TEMPLATE; Sports / Top 50 NBA Players Top 50 NBA Players. 2. Not only has Mitchell averaged more points than he ever did in Utah, this is easily the most efficient season of his career. With a revamped supporting cast and the return of his running mate things should be different this season. If Garland can become more efficient and take care of the basketball more with another scoring guard running with him, Garland and the Cavaliers have a path for a successful season. More NBA content coming!In today's video, I do an NBA Tier List ranking the top 50 best NBA players from the 2022-. The difference between Luka and Trae Young, for example, on the defensive end is massive. 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