This will be Part 7 of a 10-part series ranking the top 100 players in the NBA for the 2024-25 season.
A few things to note before I start:
- This is a projective list of what I think will happen this upcoming NBA season.
- Does track record matter? Absolutely. Does last year matter? It matters the most. This list is based on what the players have shown they can do during the previous two or three years and how much it will carry over to this upcoming year.
- My criteria are simple: if I am building my team to win a championship, who do I want on my team? This is factoring in talent, availability, and how much I can trust you in the playoffs. It is a projective list in a vacuum, but I also tend to give a little bit of a boost to guys who have proven they can come up big in the playoffs.
- This is a ceiling-raising, not a floor-raising list. In other words, I am prioritizing players who can make a good team great, rather than a bad team good.
Click here for the rest of Driscoll’s Top 100.
Without further ado, here are the Top 40-31 players for the 2024-25 season.
40. DeMar DeRozan
2023-24 Stats: 24.0 PPG, 5.3 APG, 1.1 SPG, 58.4 TS%
Iron Man himself cracks the top 40. One underrated stat from DeRozan is that he is seventh in total points in the 2010s and in the top 10 for the 2020s. He likely will not be in the Top 10 at the end of the decade, but it is pretty cool to think how consistently good he’s been at scoring a lot of points in a lot of games. DeRozan also played the most total minutes in the NBA last year, which is extremely impressive at 34 years old. He has his playoff struggles, but he will be in the smallest role he’s been in since the beginning of his career. The Kings will be one of the more fun teams in the league to watch.
39. James Harden
2023-24 Stats: 16.6 PPG, 8.5 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.8 BPG, 38.1 3P%
Harden was very underrated last year. He and Luka Doncic were the only players to put up this amount of points and assist numbers while shooting that great from three. Yes, I know that Doncic scored a lot more points, but it is still super impressive. I think that Harden got snubbed from making the All-Star Game last year. Harden will likely be the No. 1 option for a good amount of games this year. He has completely changed his game, but we might see a glimpse of Rockets Harden this year.
38. Jalen Williams
2023-24 Stats: 19.1 PPG, 4.5 APG, 1.1 SPG, 42.7 3P%, 62.1 TS%
One of the best young players in the league comes in at No. 38. Williams somewhat appeared out of nowhere last year. He was one of six players to shoot 42.7 percent from three on 3.4 attempts per game. Only five other guys shot more and better from three. Only one of those guys averaged more points per game. In addition to all of this, he is also a super solid defender. So, honestly, No. 38 might be a little low by the end of the year.
Jalen Williams getting shots up after practice pic.twitter.com/SnAZ1WDS7Q
— Rylan Stiles (@Rylan_Stiles) October 22, 2024
37. Chet Holmgren
2023-24 Stats: 16.5 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 2.3 BPG, 63.2 TS%
Williams’ teammate comes in one spot above him. Most Thunder fans will tell you that Williams is better, but I think Holmgren has a higher ceiling. Holmgren was one of three guys to average the amount of points, rebounds, and blocks that he did. Who are those two? Anthony Davis and Victor Wembanyama. I think the addition of Isaiah Hartenstein will be huge for Holmgren. Hartenstein will be the guy defending the other team’s center, while Holmgren plays the roamer role. The Thunder defense was elite enough last year; it might be the best in the NBA this year.
36. Jamal Murray
2023-24 Stats: 21.2 PPG, 6.5 APG, 42.5 3P%
One of the league’s best second options comes in at No. 36. Historically, Murray has been one of the better playoff risers in the NBA. That, however, did not happen this year. Even though Murray had a couple of clutch shots, he was very inefficient. His three-point percentage dropped by 11 percent, and his True Shooting by 11.2 percent. Murray will be under a ton of pressure this year with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope headed to Orlando. Murray needs to be a better defender if the Nuggets want to go back to the Finals. It will surely be fun to watch this Nuggets team back and hungrier than ever.
35. Pascal Siakam
2023-24 Stats: 21.7 PPG, 7.1 RPG, 4.3 APG, 60.1 TS%
When the Raptors were underachieving, a lot of people ran to call Siakam a “Kyle Lowry/Kawhi Leonard merchant.” However, after being traded to a solid team, people realize how awesome of a player he is. He was one of six players to average his amount of points, assists, and rebounders. Who were the other five? You may have heard of them: Luka Doncic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum, Nikola Jokic, and LeBron James. I’m not saying he is on those guys’ tiers (or even the tier below), but his production is super underrated. Call me crazy, but a guy with that type of production on elite efficiency with roughly B-level defense can absolutely be the second-best player on a championship team.
Thankful for Pascal Siakam & thankful for all the creative content he posts!
These behind the scenes shots are so elite 🔥😎 pic.twitter.com/N0nDbgQdXv
— WOJ ARTEST🇦🇺 (@NbaWoody) October 22, 2024
34. Lauri Markkanen
2023-24 Stats: 23.2, 8.2 RPG, 0.9 SPG, 39.9 3P%, 63.1 TS%
I’ll be honest, I was someone who thought that Markkanen’s 2023 season was going to be a fluke. I could not have been more wrong. People forgot about how great he was before the shoulder injury, but he was on an All-Star pace. Similar to Alperen Sengun, the only reason he missed the All-Star Game is that the West frontcourt is so stacked. As brutal as I think the Jazz will be this year, it sure will not be because of Markkanen.
33. Zion Williamson
2023-24 Stats: 22.9 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 5 APG, 1.1 SPG, 57 FG%, 61 TS%
I’m going to use another one of my blind numbers comparisons. Only five guys in the NBA put up as many points, rebounds, and assists as Zion. Who are those guys? Doncic, Antetokounmpo, James, Jokic, and Kevin Durant. The craziest thing is he did that all while shooting 0.3 three-pointers per game. If Williamson were able to stay healthy for a full season and a playoff run, he would easily be in the top 20 in my opinion. I’m not sure what to expect of the Pelicans this year, but there will be nights that Williamson has to carry the team.
32. Trae Young
2023-24 Stats: 25.7 PPG, 10.8 APG, 1.3 SPG, 37.3 3P%, 58.5 TS%
My opinion on Trae Young’s game is very love/hate. On one hand, I think he is one of the best offensive engines in the NBA. If you want a guy to lead a bunch of scrubs to an above-average offense, then Young is your guy. He is one of the best passers in the league and is great off the pick-and-roll. However, I know he cannot be the No. 1 option on a championship team, and there are a bunch of other guys I would rather have as my No. 2. This is because most of his strengths come from the ball in his hands. If I am building a championship, I want him to do a little more. So trust me, I understand how great Young is, but with my criteria, I don’t have a spot for him in my top 30.
The work always Pay$ off !
💰 @Jalen_J23 pic.twitter.com/9UwUmxs4nC— Trae Young (@TheTraeYoung) October 21, 2024
31. Scottie Barnes
2023-24 Stats: 19.9 PPG, 8.2 RPG, 6.1 APG
One more stats comparison. Do you want to know how many guys averaged these numbers above? Four. Who are the others? Doncic, Antetokounmpo, and Jokic — the consensus top three players in the NBA. Barnes officially took the keys to the Raptors’ franchise when they traded Siakam. Even though they are probably going to stink this year, I think building around Barnes is a very, very good decision.
Conclusion
I think most if not all of these guys could be the second-best player on a championship team with either a top-three player in the world or an all-time great deep team. By the time we get to the next part of the list, it will be guys who could be No. 2 options with not as much help. There will definitely be some surprises for a lot of people in these next three parts.
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