ESPN Lists the 50 Players Expected to Shape the 2026 NBA Playoffs
SLUG: espn-2026-playoff-impact-ranking
CONTENT:
Bristol, Conn., Apr. 15, 2026 — ESPN analyst Zach Kram released a 50-player ranking designed to forecast which athletes will matter most during the two-month NBA postseason that starts this week.
How the ranking works
The list weighs both projected performance and projected minutes. Players who could miss time — such as Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic, out with a Grade 2 hamstring strain — are penalized, as are stars whose teams open in the play-in tournament. Injured center Joel Embiid and others with uncertain availability did not appear at all.
Tiers and notable names
Tier 10, Play-in Stars (Nos. 50-43)
• Stephen Curry, No. 50, Golden State Warriors — 26.6 PPG and a league-leading 4.4 made threes in 43 regular-season games.
• Rookie Kon Knueppel, No. 49, Charlotte Hornets — 63 percent true shooting and a league-best 43 percent from deep.
• Paolo Banchero, No. 48, Orlando Magic — 28.0 PPG in 12 career playoff games.
• LaMelo Ball, No. 47, Charlotte — Charlotte scored 123.2 points per 100 possessions with him on the floor.
• Devin Booker, No. 46, Phoenix Suns — 26.1 PPG while splitting point-guard duties.
• Tyrese Maxey, No. 45, Philadelphia 76ers — logged an NBA-high 38.0 minutes a night.
• Kawhi Leonard, No. 44, LA Clippers — career-best 27.9 PPG on 50-39-89 shooting.
• Deni Avdija, No. 43, Portland Trail Blazers — 24.2 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 6.7 APG and a 41-point play-in outing.
Tier 9, The Injury Question (No. 42)
• Luka Doncic, Los Angeles Lakers — second straight scoring title at 33.5 PPG before the hamstring setback.
Tier 8, Positional Specialists (Nos. 41-33)
• Mitchell Robinson (No. 41, Cleveland) to Neemias Queta (No. 33, Boston) headline a group valued for rim protection, spacing or late-season offensive surges.
Tier 7, Role Players (Nos. 32-26)
• Brandon Ingram, No. 32, Toronto — team-high 21.5 PPG.
• Jarrett Allen, No. 31, Cleveland — 25.2 points per 75 possessions when paired with new teammate James Harden.
• Nickeil Alexander-Walker, No. 30, Atlanta Hawks — jumped to 20.8 PPG and 40 percent from three.
• The section closes with OG Anunoby, No. 26, New York Knicks — 2.3 threes on 39 percent shooting plus 1.6 steals.
Tier 6, Hoping to Pull an Upset (Nos. 25-20)
• Toronto’s Scottie Barnes (No. 25) became the decade’s first 100-block, 100-steal player.
• Lakers forward LeBron James, No. 23, still generated 20.9 PPG at age 41.
• Kevin Durant, No. 20, Houston Rockets — 26.0 PPG on 52-41-87 splits.
Tier 5, Too Good to Be Role Players (Nos. 19-17)
• Reigning Rookie of the Year Stephon Castle sits at No. 19 after boosting his three-point rate to 42.2 percent over the last three months.
• Aaron Gordon, No. 18, Denver Nuggets — team net rating jumps to +19.8 when he plays with Nikola Jokic.
• Derrick White, No. 17, Boston — 98 blocks, by far the most among guards.
Tier 4, Elite Young Bigs (Nos. 16-14)
• Evan Mobley (No. 16, Cleveland), Jalen Duren (No. 15, Detroit) and Chet Holmgren (No. 14, Oklahoma City) anchor their defenses while producing double-digit scoring.
Tier 3, Star Sidekicks (Nos. 13-9)
• San Antonio point guard De’Aaron Fox, No. 13, averaged 27.4 PPG in his lone prior postseason.
• Karl-Anthony Towns, No. 12, New York, delivered two 35-plus-point regular-season outbursts.
• James Harden, No. 10, boosted Cleveland’s offense to fourth in the league after his mid-season arrival.
• Denver’s Jamal Murray, No. 9, posted career highs of 25.4 PPG and 7.1 APG.
Tier 2, Top-Tier Guards (Nos. 8-6)
• Jalen Brunson, No. 8, maintained 26-and-7 averages for a second straight year.
• Donovan Mitchell, No. 7, owns a 28.3 career playoff scoring average but has never reached a conference final.
• Detroit’s Cade Cunningham, No. 6, returned from a collapsed lung and guided the Pistons to the East’s No. 1 seed.
Tier 1, Finals MVP Favorites (Nos. 5-1)
5. Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics — back nine months after an Achilles tear, now logging 30-plus minutes nightly.
4. Jaylen Brown, Boston — second in usage at 36 percent and set personal highs across the board.
3. Nikola Jokic, Denver — first player ever to lead the league in both assists and rebounds per game and recorded 34 triple-doubles.
2. Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio — powered the Spurs to a +17.0 net rating while on the court and is the runaway Defensive Player of the Year favorite.
1. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder — on pace for back-to-back regular-season MVPs after hitting 39 percent from deep and 60 percent on two-pointers, good for 66.5 percent true shooting.
The full ranking spans veterans with championship résumés, first-time playoff entrants and several rising stars expected to log heavy postseason minutes. ESPN broke the 50 names into 10 tiers to reflect both individual excellence and each player’s likelihood of surviving multiple rounds.
Source: ESPN.com
