Sports Illustrated’s NBA 100 ranking is back ahead of the 2025–26 season. This season, SI writers Chris Mannix and Liam McKeone voted on the top players. The list represents the top 100 NBA players based on their current projection for this season. Players with long-term injuries were still considered for these projections, but rookies are not included. Only players with at least one NBA season are evaluated against each other. Players are ranked based on their overall skill set and are not weighted based on their team’s performance. See Nos. 100–51, Nos. 50–11 and the top 10 below.
10. Donovan Mitchell
Cavaliers PG/SG | 24.0 PPG • 4.5 RPG • 5.0 APG
Mitchell averaged 24 points and five assists per game as he helped lead the Cavaliers to a 64-win campaign. He remains one of the game’s most exciting offensive talents, capable of exploding for 40 points on any given night while using his springboard legs to dunk over any defender brave enough to jump with him. As an elite three-level scorer, Mitchell is liable to get a shot off any time and will slash through an inattentive defense as soon as he has even the slightest glimmer of daylight. The “box office” descriptor is thrown around a lot to describe the superstars of the league, but Mitchell fits the label perfectly. Few can match the Cavaliers star’s mixtape every season and the upcoming campaign should come with Mitchell’s usual dose of posters and circus shots.
9. Cade Cunningham
Pistons PG/SG | 26.1 PPG • 6.1 RPG • 9.1 APG
The 2024–25 season was the one where Cunningham put it all together with career highs in scoring (26.1), assists (9.1), field goal percentage (46.9%), three-point percentage (35.6%) and free throw attempts (5.3). Most importantly, Cunningham crossed the 70 games played threshold for the first time in his career. The ex-No. 1 pick earned All-NBA honors for the first time, cementing his status as a franchise player.
8. LeBron James
Lakers G/F | 24.4 PPG • 7.8 RPG • 8.2 APG
James remains a marvel as he enters his age-40 season. “The King” put up superstar levels of production in 2024–25, averaging 24.4 points, 8.2 assists and 7.8 rebounds per game for the Lakers. Remarkable statistics for a 40-year-old, and through that lens his 34.9 minutes per night in 70 appearances is even more impressive; all that combined to earn James his 21st consecutive All-NBA nomination. Entering his 23rd season, James remains an elite offensive force capable of guiding the purple and gold to the postseason. He may not be the defensive stalwart he once was, and his counting numbers may go down this upcoming season with new running mate Luka Dončić by his side. But the star forward remains a singular entity on the court who can accomplish what no one else can even imagine.
7. Jayson Tatum
Celtics SF/PF | 26.8 PPG • 8.7 RPG • 6.0 APG
Before tearing his right Achilles in the playoffs—an injury that will likely cost Tatum all of the 2025–26 season—Tatum was banging on the door of an MVP award. He notched six straight All-Star appearances, four straight first-team All-NBA nods and top-four MVP finishes in two of the last three seasons. Tatum is the full package offensively, an efficient, three-level scorer who improved his playmaking skills last season. In recent years, Tatum has developed into a versatile defender and reliable rebounder (8.7 per game) from the wing. The Celtics will take a step back next season. Whenever Tatum returns, Boston hopes he won’t also take a step back.
6. Anthony Edwards
Timberwolves SG | 27.6 PPG • 5.7 RPG • 39.5 3FG%
Edwards took another leap for the Timberwolves last season, this time from the three-point line. The 24-year-old superstar turned into one of the NBA’s deadliest three-point marksmen in 2024–25. He was one of three players to average over 10 attempts from beyond the arc per game (10.3) and drained 39.5% of those tries. Combining that sharpshooting with his effortless ability to slash through defenses and growth as a defender means Edwards is the complete package, a two-way star who can win the day any which way; his casual charisma and postgame quips merely serve as a bonus for fans of his game. He averaged 27.6 points, 5.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists for the Wolves in his fifth NBA campaign—and it feels like Edwards only just began to scrape the ceiling of his potential. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him contend for a first-team All-NBA spot this season after two straight second-team nominations.
5. Victor Wembanyama
Spurs PF/C | 24.3 PPG • 11.0 RPG • 3.8 BPG
As remarkable as it seems, the 21-year-old Wembanyama is already among the league’s very best players. He is a true unicorn defensively, combining an alien wingspan of eight feet with excellent instincts, unbelievable quickness and a tremendous sense of court awareness to completely lock down the paint. He erases any shots within his general vicinity and led the league by averaging a whopping 3.8 blocks per game. Offensively, the French big man is still coming into his own and learning what his size and length allow him to do, but nevertheless still averaged 24.3 points to go with 11.0 rebounds per game. The NBA has never seen a player quite like Wembanyama, but it’s undeniable that he completely changes the geometry of the floor. The flow of play warps around his otherworldly proportions. Assuming he comes back at full force, Wembanyama is a one-of-a-kind star.
4. Luka Dončić
Lakers PG/SG | 28.2 PPG • 8.2 RPG • 7.7 APG
Lost, perhaps, in the monthslong debates last season over Dončić’s weight, his defense and if Mavericks general manager Nico Harrison was justified in trading away an in-his-prime MVP candidate was another productive year. In 50 games, Dončić averaged 28.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 7.7 assists. He shot 45% from the floor (not great) and 36.8% from three (much better). Only Nikola Jokić can match Dončić’s singular ability to dissect a defense, which Doncic did at a high level for both Los Angeles and Dallas last season. Criticism of Dončić’s defense is fair. He far too regularly displays minimal effort on that end of the floor, and if the Lakers are going to compete for a championship, he has to work harder. But with a full training camp, an improved roster and a co-star like LeBron James—not to mention a Texas-sized chip on his shoulder—L.A. is likely to get the best of Dončić. Which could be bad news for everybody else.
3. Giannis Antetokounmpo
Bucks PF | 30.4 PPG • 11.9 RPG • 6.5 APG
If Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is “arguably” the league’s top two-way talent, meet Antetokounmpo, the argument. At 30, Antetokounmpo remains a prolific-scoring (30.4 points per game), high-efficiency (60.1%) terror. That 60.1% shooting was the second-most efficient season for a 30 ppg scorer; second to Antetokounmpo’s 61.1% from a year earlier. On the other end, he is a versatile, shot-swatting rim protector. Any team led by Antetokounmpo has a chance to win a championship.
2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Thunder PG/SG | 32.7 PPG • 6.4 APG • 51.9 FG%
The reigning MVP is arguably the league’s best two-way player, as noted above, averaging nearly 33 points, 51.9% shooting, 37.5% from three, 6.4 assists, five rebounds. He led the NBA in win shares—best since Stephen Curry’s 2015–16 MVP year—and has the lowest turnover percentage of any player with his usage rate or higher in the last 20 seasons. Free throw merchant? Pfft. Yeah he gets to the free throw line a ton, but if you remove everyone’s free throws, Gilgeous-Alexander would still lead the league in scoring. Defensively, Gilgeous-Alexander is a stud. He’s 6' 6" with quick feet and a 6' 11" wingspan and can deploy all of these tools across multiple positions. He led the NBA in defensive win shares, ranked top five in steals and finished in the top 25 in blocks. Of regulars, defined as players who play at least 24 minutes per game, Gilgeous-Alexander is fifth in defensive rating. Oh, and he’s 27. He’s getting better.
1. Nikola Jokić
Nuggets C | 29.6 PPG • 12.7 RPG • 10.2 APG
Regardless of who holds the MVP hardware, Jokić remains the NBA’s top talent. Last season was arguably Jokić’s best, with career highs in scoring (29.6 points), assists (10.2) and three-point percentage (41.2%) while becoming just the third player—and first center—to average a triple-double. Despite a depleted roster and a dysfunctional relationship between the coach and front office, Jokić still dragged the Nuggets to 50 wins and one win from knocking off Oklahoma City in the conference semifinals. Denver has not aged well since its 2023 title. Jokić, though, has.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as 2025 SI NBA 100 Rankings, Nos. 10–1: Victor Wembanyama Has Arrived.
