This will be the fourth installment of a 10-part series ranking the top 100 players in the NBA for the 2025-26 season.
A few things to note before I start.
- This is a projective list of what I think will happen this season. While I rely heavily on the past two to three seasons to evaluate them, if a younger player has shown a lot of progression, I will assume they will play even better this season. The opposite is also true. If an older player has shown signs of consistent regression, I will assume they will play worse.
- My criteria, in short, is answering the following question: “If I am building a team to win a championship, who would I rather have on my team?” In other words, I am prioritizing ceiling raisers over floor raisers on my team. For example, if Player A is better at leading bad teams to relevance, but Player B is much better at playing his role on an elite team, I will likely rank Player B higher.
- Since this is a projective list, I unfortunately have to apply an “injury tax” for players who have a history of serious injuries or already have concerns for this year.
- This is only about predicting what will happen this season. Therefore, while Jayson Tatum, Tyrese Haliburton, and Damian Lillard would all be on this list when healthy, they are dealing with long-term injuries and therefore do not qualify. Hopefully, they will all be back on this list next year.
Without further ado, here are the top 70-61 players for the 2025-26 NBA season.
#70 Aaron Gordon
We start off this part of the list with one of the best role players in the league. Gordon is everything you want in a third or fourth option on a team. He does not hold onto the ball for too long, is a very good perimeter player, and shot his career high from three last year. The expectations for the Nuggets are a little higher this year than last year, and we’ll see how Gordon adapts to that
2024-25 Ranking: 67
#69 Naz Reid
One of the league’s best sixth men just cracks the top 70. Reid’s role changed last year when the Wolves traded Karl-Anthony Towns to the Knicks. This expressed concern for a lot of people. However, Reid played great in the regular season, and even better in the playoffs. The Wolves now have expectations since they made it to the Western Conference Finals two years in a row. Reid will be a big reason why or why not the Wolves surpass expectations.
2024-25 Ranking: 71
How often do you think of Naz Reid’s 31 point double double to beat the Lakers?pic.twitter.com/Ahd753OYRa
— Canis Hoopus (@canishoopus) October 14, 2025
#68 Stephon Castle
The reigning Rookie of the Year comes in at No. 68. Castle is in one of the most interesting positions in the league. Not only is he an extremely talented young guard, but he also has to compete with De’Aaron Fox and Dylan Harper for minutes. Unfortunately, I think Castle will be the odd man out in certain situations. With this all being said, I think that Castle will prove that he not only has a spot in this league, but would start on almost every team.
2024-25 Ranking: Not Ranked
#67 Cam Johnson
Up next is the second Nugget on this list. The Nuggets made the decision to trade a franchise player in Michael Porter Jr. for Cam Johnson. In my opinion, this was the most underrated move of the offseason. On a lot of nights, MPJ was a net negative because of his defensive deficiencies and lack of playmaking. These are two things that Cam Johnson is very good at. Porter might be the more talented player, but Johnson is the far better championship player.
2024-25 Ranking: Not Ranked
#66 Austin Reaves
Reaves is one of the more interesting players in the league to rank. On one hand, he is debatably the best offensive third option in the league. Very few third options can score and play-make at the same level that he does. With this being said, his ball dominance and abysmal defense are what limit him and his team in the playoffs. I question the Lakers’ championship ceiling when two of their three best players are very ball-dominant and are liabilities on defense.
2024-25 Ranking: 89
Austin Reaves hitting Luka like shots. Imagine not having both on your team pic.twitter.com/mAEdUiQhK8
— Lakers Empire (@LakersEmpire) October 15, 2025
#65 Norman Powell
Up next, we have one of the more interesting stories from last year. Powell played in the biggest role of his career, and many people debate that he should have made the All-Star Game. The Clippers were a weak offensive team, but he and James Harden made them passable for the majority of the season. Powell was traded to Miami over the summer. So while Powell might have a great individual season, we probably will not hear a lot about him, given how bad the supporting cast is.
2024-25 Ranking: Not Ranked
#64 Andrew Nembhard
One of the league’s best playoff risers comes in at No. 64. He was a huge reason for the Pacers making the NBA Finals last year, as well as making the Eastern Conference Finals the year before. However, he is relatively tough to rank, given that he was not too great in the past two regular seasons. It will be very interesting to see what his new role will be with Tyrese Haliburton being injured and Myles Turner leaving.
2024-25 Ranking: Not Ranked
#63 Zaccharie Risacher
The 2025 Rookie of the Year runner-up is next. Risacher had a very slow start to the season, but he stepped it up big time towards the end. The Hawks have as high expectations as they have had since they made the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021. If they want to make it back there, Risacher will have to take that sophomore jump that I am expecting him to.
2024-25 Ranking: Not Ranked
Zaccharie Risacher has taken a step forward this summer and has showcased it through his EuroBasket play
He’s not just hitting his trademark movement 3s, but he’s also stronger and more aggressive on both ends
Love seeing him make plays with his length pic.twitter.com/Dt8koKhbB7
— Point Made Basketball (@pointmadebball) August 31, 2025
#62 Mikal Bridges
Up next, we have one of the better three-and-D players in the league. Bridges had a relatively disappointing regular season last year, but he was a big reason why they beat the Celtics in the playoffs. The Knicks are in a great spot to make it to the NBA Finals next year. If they finally get over the hump, Bridges will be a main reason for that.
2024-25 Ranking: 49
#61 Myles Turner
To wrap up the list, we have another extremely underrated offseason move. Very few people expected Turner to leave the Pacers, and even fewer people thought they would sign with their rivals, the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks are in a slightly better position now than they were expected to be after Damian Lillard tore his Achilles. With this being said, I cannot imagine a scenario where a team with the Bucks’ depth goes past the first round. As great as Giannis Antetokounmpo and Turner can be as a duo, the rest of the roster is not good enough
2024-25 Ranking: 73
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