NBA Rank top 10 is here: SGA, Jokic or Wemby at No. 1? — SkimNews
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- ESPN overhauled its NBA Rank methodology, replacing more than 100 insider voters with a panel of seven experts — Ben Golliver, Vincent Goodwill, Zach Kram, Bobby Marks, Dave McMenamin, André Snellings and Matt Williams — whose individual top-100 ballots were combined into the final list.
- Nikola Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Victor Wembanyama were separated by just three voting points for the No. 1 spot, with each superstar placing atop at least one of the seven panelists' individual rankings.
- Jalen Brunson climbed from No. 10 in 2025 to No. 6 after earning Finals MVP and powering the Knicks to their first NBA title in over 50 years, while extending his All-NBA run to three straight seasons.
- Cade Cunningham earned first-team All-NBA honors and led Detroit to its first 60-win season in 20 years, but set an NBA postseason record with 5.6 turnovers per game across the 2026 playoffs — the most ever by any player in a run of at least 10 games.
- Jayson Tatum returned from a May 2025 Achilles tendon tear to play 16 regular-season and six playoff games, ranking No. 9 after being ineligible for last fall's list, with the Celtics having since traded co-star Jaylen Brown to Philadelphia.
- Donovan Mitchell rose to No. 10 after leading Cleveland to its first Eastern Conference finals of his nine-year career, pairing with new teammate James Harden to give the Cavaliers four All-Star starters.
- Anthony Edwards averaged a career-high 28.8 points per game at age 25 and reached 10,854 career points — third-most in NBA history before turning 25, trailing only LeBron James and Kevin Durant.
Why it matters: ESPN swapped more than 100 insider voters for just seven panelists, restructuring how its flagship top-100 list is built. With only three voting points separating Jokic, SGA and Wembanyama at No. 1, each panelist's individual ballot now carries outsized weight in deciding the league's headline-ranked player.
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