The Three Most Controversial Rankings of Players on ESPN's NBA Rank (11-50)

ESPN’s NBA Rank is being released. They are counting down the top 100 players in the NBA before the 2025-26 season. There’s obviously bound to be lots of debate because of these rankings. We are going to look at the players ranked 11 through 50 and see who we believe is being ranked too high or too low. 

Scottie Barnes is ranked too high on ESPN’s NBA Rank. They have him ranked 30th, saying, “An All-Star for the first time at age 22 in the 2023-24 campaign, Barnes took a step back last season. He couldn't maintain his career-high 34% 3-point shooting, slipping to 28% beyond the arc (and bringing his career mark to 30%). Those 3s were necessary to propel Barnes' efficiency to league-average levels. On the plus side, Barnes' usage rate (27%) was the highest of his career.”

Barnes stepped back last season, but he gained five spots on ESPN’s NBA Rank. It doesn’t make sense. Barnes is not (yet) a better player than Domantas Sabonis, Ivica Zubac, or even Julius Randle, all players ranked lower than him. 

Jaylen Brown, on the other hand, might be ranked too low. Brown is only one season removed from being the reigning Finals MVP. Despite seeing a slight dip in numbers last season, he is still one of the best two-way players in the league. Paolo Banchero, Devin Booker, and Donovan Mitchell are all ranked ahead of him, yet none of them can defend on his level, and they aren’t THAT much better offensively.

There is no way that James Harden should be ranked lower than Kawhi Leonard. Harden had an incredible season for the Clippers last year, playing 79 of 82 games, averaging 22.8 points, 8.7 assists, and 5.8 rebounds. He also landed a spot on the All-NBA Third Team. He was the Clippers' most valuable player without a doubt. 

So why is he ranked below Leonard? Leonard played only 37 games, averaged 21.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 3.1 assists. Leonard’s lack of availability needs to limit him on this list just like it has for Joel Embiid.