NBA Rank 2026: LeBron, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant’s Rankings Revealed

NBA Rank is back! With less than one month until opening night, let's continue counting down the league's best players for 2026-27.

After unveiling players Nos. 100-51 on Tuesday, our rankings now enter the top 50. It's a group headlined by former MVPs, future first-ballot Hall of Famers and young stars expected to take major leaps this season.

It's also where LeBron James checks in, his first time outside the top 10 in NBA Rank's 15-year history. (You can jump to LeBron's NBA Rank here .)

• The countdown begins: Nos. 100-51 revealed

• Wednesday: Nos. 50-11 | Thursday: Nos. 10-1

• 10 players to watch in NBA Rank ... 2027

• NBA team rankings: Three-year outlooks for all 30

The rankings rollout concludes Thursday with our expert panel's top 10 players. And that panel has been overhauled for the 2026 edition.

In previous seasons , more than 100 ESPN NBA insiders, reporters, editors and producers voted on thousands of possible player vs. player matchups to arrive at the final top-100 list. That "wisdom of the crowd" approach has given way to the wisdom of seven: ESPN's Ben Golliver, Vincent Goodwill, Zach Kram, Bobby Marks, Dave McMenamin, André Snellings and Matt "Stats" Williams. (The panelists' individual top-100 lists were combined to create our final rankings.)

Voting guidelines, however, remained unchanged. The panel was asked to rank players based on predicted contributions -- quality and quantity -- for the 2026-27 regular season only.

Let's get to the list, which features plenty of superstars who just missed our top 10.

Note: Signature stats provided by ESPN Research.

G | San Antonio Spurs

Age: 20

2025 NBA Rank: NR

The youngest member of the Spurs was the one who seemed to rise highest in the altitude of the Finals and stands to make a big jump in Year 2, whether he stays coming off the bench or makes the leap to the first five. He will earn more respect from the officials (1.7 free throw attempts in 69 games as a rookie), take a bigger role in the offense and improve on his already-respectable playmaking. Harper is an All-Star in the making. -- Vincent Goodwill

Signature stat: Harper had six games with at least 15 points and 65% shooting from the field in the 2026 playoffs, the most by a guard in NBA postseason history.

Fantasy projection : 15.2 PTS, 5.0 AST, 4.4 REB

F | Utah Jazz

Age: 29

2025 NBA Rank: 43

Markkanen, a scoring forward who can stretch the court, has languished as a forgotten man in Utah. The Finnish star's competence often came into conflict with the Jazz's desire to improve their draft positioning during a multiyear rebuilding effort, and he has appeared in only one game in April over the past four seasons. Though his contract is overly generous for a player lacking All-NBA credentials, Markkanen should benefit from Utah's recent talent upgrades as he eyes his first career postseason appearance. -- Ben Golliver

Signature stat: Markkanen has nine seasons with at least 100 3-pointers, tied with Karl-Anthony Towns and Dirk Nowitzki for the most by a 7-footer in NBA history.

Fantasy projection : 23.8 PTS, 7.2 REB, 1.9 AST

G | Charlotte Hornets

Age: 21

2025 NBA Rank: NR

Knueppel had a historic debut season. He finished second for Rookie of the Year behind a rookie-record, Hornets-record and NBA season-high 273 made 3-pointers. There will be change for Knueppel this upcoming season, as LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges are both gone. Ball assisted on 73 of Knueppel's 3s last season, the fourth most by any passer-scorer combination. Bridges assisted on 49, the second most on the team. -- Matt Williams

Signature stat: Knueppel was the first rookie to lead the NBA in made 3-pointers (272). Prior to last season, no first-year player had ever finished in the top three.

Fantasy projection : 20.0 PTS, 5.8 REB, 3.7 AST

G | Boston Celtics

Age: 32

2025 NBA Rank: 26

An inconsistent season on offense has White sliding back twenty-one spots. White continues to be one of the league's best defenders but an inconsistent season on offense has him sliding back 21 spots. For the first time in his career, White shot less than 40% from the field. In the playoffs, White's points per game decreased from 16.5 in the regular season to 8.7 in the first round. He shot 30.9% from the field and 26.5% on 3s. With Jaylen Brown traded to Philadelphia, the Celtics need consistency from White to contend in the revamped Eastern Conference. White has three years and $98 million remaining on his contract. -- Bobby Marks

Signature stat: Among qualified players, White saw the largest drop in effective field goal percentage from 2024-25 to 2025-26.

Fantasy projection : 16.6 PTS, 5.3 AST, 1.2 BLK

F | Charlotte Hornets

Age: 23

2025 NBA Rank: 76

Charlotte's deals with Minnesota (LaMelo Ball) and Phoenix (Miles Bridges) weren't just signals of a change in the franchise's direction, but they were a tacit endorsement of Miller. Selected No. 2 in 2023, the 6-7 forward is a proven scorer (19.0 points per game for his career) and made strides in his efficiency last season by setting personal bests in accuracy from 3 (38.3%) and the foul line (89.2%). -- Dave McMenamin

Signature stat: Led Hornets with 20.2 PPG last season

Fantasy projection : 22.3 PTS, 5.4 REB, 3.7 AST

F | Orlando Magic

Age: 25

2025 NBA Rank: 32

Wagner is a talented shooter-scorer on the wing whose 6-10 size makes him a nightly mismatch. The main thing standing between Wagner and his first All-Star selection has been health, with him playing only 94 of a possible 162 games the past two seasons. But Wagner has averaged 22.9 points per game in that span and matches with Paolo Banchero and Desmond Bane to give the Magic one of the most formidable 2-3-4 combos in the NBA. -- Andr é Snellings

Signature stat: Orlando went 20-14 in Wagner's career-low 34 games played last season (25-23 without).

Fantasy projection : 22.5 PTS, 5.7 REB. 4.2 AST

G | Washington Wizards

Age: 27

2025 NBA Rank: 29

Other than finagling his way to a new four-year, $212.8 million contract -- a huge win, to be fair -- the past year was one to forget for Young. He played only 15 games due to injuries and was traded to the team with the worst record in the league. Meanwhile, the Hawks took off in the standings after dealing him.

In his first full season as a Wizard, Young will surely do his part to boost an offense that ranked 29th in efficiency last year, but he won't help a defense that ranked 30th. One major question for Washington is how much Young dominates on the ball, versus occasionally spacing the floor and deferring to the Wizards' young playmakers on the perimeter. -- Kram

Signature stat: Young, Oscar Robertson, LeBron James and Nikola Jokic are the only players in NBA history with at least 25 points and 10 assists per game in consecutive seasons.

Fantasy projection : 23.8 PTS, 10.8 AST, 1.2 STL

G | San Antonio Spurs

Age: 28

2025 NBA Rank: 35

Fox smoothly downshifted into his new life as Wembanyama's sidekick in their first full season together, but the 6-foot-3 guard's poor play in the Finals led critics to call for him to be benched or traded. San Antonio stood by Fox this summer, opting to keep the two-time All-Star and the bulk of its 62-win team intact. However, the scrutiny on Fox will only intensify with 2025 lottery pick Dylan Harper eyeing an expanded role. Fox's unsightly 41/29/76 shooting splits in the 2026 playoffs simply must improve for the Spurs to fulfill their championship dreams. -- Golliver

Signature stat: Fox ranks fourth in clutch time points since entering the league in 2017-18, behind DeMar DeRozan, LeBron James and Nikola Jokic.

Fantasy projection : 20.6 PTS, 5.6 AST, 1.4 STL

C | Minnesota Timberwolves

Age: 34

2025 NBA Rank: 49

The Timberwolves ranked eighth in defensive efficiency last season, but their success varied depending on the presence of Gobert. When he was on the floor, they had a 108.0 defensive rating. That rose to 115.9 when Gobert was on the bench. But the intriguing part of Gobert's game this season will be his partnership with LaMelo Ball in the pick-and-roll. Ball ranked second in on-ball screens as the ball handler last season, while Gobert was third in picks set as the screener, according to GeniusIQ player tracking. -- Williams

Signature stat: Gobert's four Defensive Player of the Year awards are tied for the most in NBA history with Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace.

Fantasy projection : 11.9 PTS, 11.7 REB, 1.7 BLK

C | Philadelphia 76ers

Age: 32

2025 NBA Rank: 47

When Embiid plays, he's productive and must be accounted for on every scouting report -- a shoo-in for 27 points and eight boards and a matchup nightmare with his ability to score at all three levels. But "when he plays" is still an issue, the biggest question mark for whether this talent-laden 76ers experiment can lead to a run through May. Since winning MVP in 2023, he has played in a possible 96 of 246 games (39%). -- Goodwill

Signature stat: Embiid has averaged 27.64 points per game throughout his career, fourth most in NBA history and second most by a frontcourt player (Wilt Chamberlain: 30.07).

Fantasy projection : 27.4 PTS, 8.2 REB, 1.2 BLK

F | Washington Wizards

Age: 33

2025 NBA Rank: 14

It has been a disastrous couple of seasons for Davis since his shocking trade from the Lakers to the Mavericks. He has appeared in just 29 games since late-January 2025 and was traded a second time to the Wizards in February. Davis has yet to play for Washington due to a hand injury but enters 2026-27 fully healthy, and his on-court performance this season will be key to his long-term future after Davis' representatives and the Wizards shelved extension talks this summer. He's owed $58.5 million this season and has a $62.8 million player option for 2027-28. -- McMenamin

Signature stat: Davis is one of 11 players to average 20 points and 10 rebounds per game in at least 10 seasons. The only other player among the 11 to have played in 21st century is Shaquille O'Neal, with a league-record 13 20-10 seasons.

Fantasy projection : 22.6 PTS, 11.4 REB, 2.1 BLK

G | Dallas Mavericks

Age: 34

2025 NBA Rank: NR (injury)

Irving was 25th two years ago but dropped out of the top 100 while recovering from a torn right ACL. The 34-year-old has averaged at least 20 points per game in nine straight seasons and rejoins a revamped Maverick roster featuring Cooper Flagg and new coach Dusty May. A healthy Irving will improve an offense that ranked 22nd in assists and 29th in 3-pointers made. Irving has two years left on his contract, including a player option in 2027-28, and could be a trade candidate if Dallas is out of playoff contention by February. -- Marks

Signature stat: Irving, who has routinely flirted with shooting splits of 50% from the field, 40% from 3 and 90% from the free throw line, pulled off the feat in 2020-21. He is one of three players in NBA history with a 50/40/90 season on at least 20 shots per game (Stephen Curry in 2015-16, Larry Bird in 1986-87 and 1987-88).

Fantasy projection : 24.6 PTS, 4.8 AST, 1.3 STL

G | San Antonio Spurs

Age: 21

2025 NBA Rank: 99

Castle raised his game in every way as a sophomore. He was a dominant defender coming out of college, with the size and strength of a big wing but with the quickness and tenacity to lock up opposing point guards. Castle's offensive game is developing as he improves as both a shooter and a distributor, both skills building from his natural ability to get to the rim off the dribble. Castle joins Wembanyama and Harper as the young, supremely talented nucleus of a Spurs team that seems destined for many more Finals trips. -- Snellings

Signature stat: Last season, Castle became the youngest player in NBA history to record at least 40 points, 12 rebounds, and 12 assists in game.

Fantasy projection : 18.1 PTS, 7.6 AST, 5.6 REB

G | Los Angeles Lakers

Age: 28

2025 NBA Rank: 60

Reaves' dream season was cut short in April by an oblique inju

_Originally reported by [ESPN](https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/50006617/nba-rank-2026-players-50-11-featuring-lebron-curry-durant-kawhi-flagg-more)._