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ESPN's NBA Rank 2026-27 countdown continues with players 40-50, headlined by LeBron James falling outside the top 10 for the first time in the ranking's 15-year history under a new seven-person voting panel.

What is a key fact in this story? (1)

**ESPN** overhauled its NBA Rank voting system for 2026, replacing the previous "wisdom of the crowd" panel of more than 100 insiders with a seven-person panel of Golliver, Goodwill, Kram, Marks, McMenamin, Snellings and Williams.

What is a key fact in this story? (2)

**LeBron James** fell outside the NBA Rank top 10 for the first time in the list's 15-year history, with the rankings set to conclude Thursday.

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LeBron Out of NBA Rank Top 10 for First Time Ever — SkimNews

By ESPN · Summarized & edited by Kapil Samant · 2026-09-23

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ESPN overhauled its NBA Rank voting system for 2026, replacing the previous "wisdom of the crowd" panel of more than 100 insiders with a seven-person panel of Golliver, Goodwill, Kram, Marks, McMenamin, Snellings and Williams.
LeBron James fell outside the NBA Rank top 10 for the first time in the list's 15-year history, with the rankings set to conclude Thursday.
Kon Knueppel ranked 48th after a historic rookie season in which he led the NBA in made 3-pointers (272), a rookie record, and finished second for Rookie of the Year.
Derrick White dropped 21 spots from 26th to 47th after posting the largest year-over-year decline in effective field goal percentage among qualified players and shooting 30.9% from the field in the first round of the playoffs.
Joel Embiid landed at No. 41 despite availability concerns, having played just 96 of 246 possible games (39%) since winning MVP in 2023.
Trae Young checked in at 44th after a 15-game injury-marred season that ended with a trade to Washington, though he secured a four-year, $212.8 million contract extension.
Anthony Davis entered at No. 40 fully healthy after appearing in just 29 games since late January 2025 across two separate trades, with extension talks shelved on his $58.5 million expiring contract.

Why it matters: ESPN's NBA Rank is the league's most visible player ranking, and the top-10 cutoff is where annual MVP-caliber storylines are set. By seating LeBron outside that threshold for the first time in 15 years, the panel formally marks a generational decline, while the switch to a seven-person voting panel reshapes how that judgment is made and credited.