Top NBA Stars Headline EuroBasket 2025 Power Ranking
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The absence of a Summer Olympics has not eliminated international basketball drama for NBA fans. EuroBasket 2025, scheduled for Aug. 27–Sept. 14 across Europe, is expected to showcase one of the deepest fields of NBA talent in the tournament’s history. ESPN’s data analyst Neil Paine used Estimated RAPTOR projections for the 2025-26 NBA season, combined with Basketball-Reference’s Simple Projection System, to identify the 10 most impactful NBA players currently on track to compete.
1. Nikola Jokić, Serbia
Age 30 | Denver Nuggets
Projected 2024-25 impact: +7.1 offensive RAPTOR, +1.1 defensive, +8.2 overall
Jokić owns the league’s top RAPTOR mark for five straight seasons and now leads a Serbian squad favored to capture its first EuroBasket crown since 2001.
2. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Greece*
Age 31 | Milwaukee Bucks
Projected impact: +5.0 offense, +0.7 defense, +5.7 overall
The two-time NBA MVP is awaiting final clearance to play. Should he suit up, he will try to end Greece’s 20-year medal drought.
3. Luka Dončić, Slovenia
Age 26 | Los Angeles Lakers
Projected impact: +4.5 offense, +0.7 defense, +5.2 overall
Fresh off a highly publicized offseason fitness overhaul, Dončić returns to the stage where he helped Slovenia win gold in 2017.
4. Franz Wagner, Germany
Age 24 | Orlando Magic
Projected impact: +3.1 offense, +0.9 defense, +4.0 overall
Germany, the 2023 World Cup champion, owns the tournament’s second-best odds behind Serbia, driven largely by Wagner’s two-way growth.
5. Alperen Şengün, Turkey
Age 23 | Houston Rockets
Projected impact: +1.8 offense, +0.6 defense, +2.4 overall
Şengün hopes to pair a EuroBasket title with an NBA championship run in Houston, but Turkey has not placed better than eighth since 2001.
6. Kristaps Porziņģis, Latvia
Age 30 | Atlanta Hawks
Projected impact: +1.7 offense, +0.4 defense, +2.2 overall
After helping Boston win the 2024 NBA title, Porziņģis returns to EuroBasket for the first time since 2017. Latvia co-hosts this year’s event.
7. Deni Avdija, Israel
Age 25 | Portland Trail Blazers
Projected impact: +0.7 offense, +0.4 defense, +1.1 overall
Avdija posted career highs across the board last NBA season after a move to Portland and now leads an Israeli team tied for the tournament’s longest odds.
8. Santi Aldama, Spain
Age 25 | Memphis Grizzlies
Projected impact: +0.4 offense, +0.5 defense, +0.9 overall
With Spain’s veteran core aging out and coach Sergio Scariolo departing after the event, Aldama assumes a central role for the defending champions.
9. Neemias Queta, Portugal
Age 26 | Boston Celtics
Projected impact: –0.4 offense, +0.7 defense, +0.2 overall
Queta seeks to translate flashes from Boston’s center rotation into a larger international platform for a Portuguese squad making a rare appearance.
10. Nikola Jović, Serbia
Age 22 | Miami Heat
Projected impact: –0.3 offense, +0.4 defense, +0.1 overall
Back healthy after a broken hand, Jović is poised for an expanded role alongside namesake star Jokić on a Serbian roster expected to contend.
*Player participation still pending final confirmation.
Other NBA names to monitor include Nikola Vučević (Montenegro), Dennis Schröder (Germany), Moussa Diabaté (France), Guerschon Yabusele (France), Bogdan Bogdanović (Serbia), Pelle Larsson (Sweden) and Luka Garza (Bosnia and Herzegovina).
Source: ESPN
