The Golden State Warriors winning their fourth championship in eight years is probably one of the few things we have seen this season that we are accustomed to seeing. From a big man winning back-to-back MVPs after 21 years of not having a big man MVP, to LeBron James and the Lakers missing the playoffs, to the rise of new stars, the league’s player rankings heading into the upcoming season look different than years prior.

10) Jimmy butler, Miami Heat

What puts Butler on this list over big-time names such as Chris Paul, Devin Booker, and Ja Morant is his postseason play. Butler is coming off a historic postseason run, including two 40-point games in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Boston Celtics. When Miami was down 3-2, Butler’s heroics showed in Game Six at TD Garden with a playoff career-high 47 points to force a Game Seven. Butler would again shine in Game Seven with 35 points before ultimately falling short of a comeback as Miami lost 100-96. Still, Butler was one missed shot away from potentially making his second NBA Finals in three years. The playoff performances from Butler that we continue to see make it fair to put him on this list. Also, has anyone ever seen another Miami Heat superstar have a series-saving 40-plus point performance in a TD Garden Game Six before?

9) Jayson TatuM, Boston Celtics

After a first-round elimination to the Brooklyn Nets in the 2021 NBA Playoffs, things seemed like they would not get better for the Boston Celtics in 2022. However, Boston would overcome mid-season adversity and turn their season around behind new head coach Ime Udoka, Tatum, and Jaylen Brown. Tatum, the first Larry Bird Eastern Conference Finals MVP, had his own historic playoff run, taking down several future Hall-of-Famers in the process.

In round one, Tatum led Boston to a dominant sweep over the team that defeated them in five games the year before, the Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving-led Brooklyn Nets. At the end of Game One of that series, Tatum played stellar defense to force Durant to miss a crucial shot and would go on to score the game-winning layup at the buzzer. In the next round, Boston would defeat Giannis Antetekounmpo and the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks, which included a 46-point performance on the road in Game Six by Jayson Tatum to force a Game Seven before defeating the Miami Heat in seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals. Tatum was also named to the 2022 KIA All-NBA First Team, so another big season is expected from the three-time All-Star.

8) Kawhi leonard, Los Angeles Clippers

Had Leonard not suffered an ACL injury in the 2021 NBA Playoffs, the Los Angeles Clippers would undoubtedly have been in a better position to defeat the Phoenix Suns in the 2021 Western Conference Finals. In Leonard’s absence, the Clippers still managed to take the Suns to six games behind Paul George and others. Not only that, but many believe the Clippers could’ve beaten the 2020-21 NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks. Before going down, the two-time champion and Finals MVP was on another tear in the playoffs, similar to his 2019 run with the Toronto Raptors, which resulted in the franchise’s first championship.

When last seen in action, Leonard’s playoff dominance included a 45-point series-saving Game Six performance against Luka Dončić and the Dallas Mavericks, followed by a 28-point, 10-rebound, nine-assist game in the Clippers’ Game Seven victory. The two-time Defensive Player of the Year is regularly talked about as one of the game’s top players when healthy, and his return after missing all of last year will be a reminder of that.

7) Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers

Many can easily argue that Embiid should have been this year’s regular-season MVP instead of back-to-back winner Nikola Jokić. The same Jokić-Embiid MVP argument can be applied for the 2020-21 NBA season to a lesser extent, as Embiid was a runaway favorite for the award before missing time due to injury. This past season, arguably his best, Embiid was putting on performances that made him look like one of the best players in all of basketball. All season long, a true number-two superstar was never consistently present for the Philadelphia 76ers. Tyrese Maxey had several spectacular performances this past season, but he is not a superstar. James Harden has not been consistent enough with big performances in his short time with the Sixers like we have been used to seeing from him for many years.

Still, Embiid and the Sixers took the Miami Heat, the number one seed in the Eastern Conference, to six games before being eliminated from the postseason. Harden doesn’t need to be the player he once was with the Houston Rockets, but him stepping up is key for the Sixers to make a run. If Embiid can continue to dominate with that, the Sixers can potentially make more noise in the playoffs than they have in a long time, mainly due to the skills and presence of their superstar big man.

6) Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets

Jokić is above Joel Embiid on this list primarily because he is the reigning back-to-back NBA MVP. For all of this past and much of the previous season, Jokić has not had his running mate, Jamal Murray, explaining why the Denver Nuggets have not seen much playoff success in recent years. With Murray in the 2020 Playoffs in the bubble, the Nuggets historically overcame back-to-back 3-1 deficits against the Utah Jazz and the 2020 title-favorite Los Angeles Clippers before being eliminated by the 2020 NBA Champion Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals.

Since then, although Denver got swept in round two by the Phoenix Suns in 2021 and lost in five games in round one to the 2022 NBA Champion Golden State Warriors, the Joker has crept into the conversation of top-tier players in the NBA. The two-time MVP is poised for another big season, holding skills that very few big men have had in recent memory, along with the eventual return of Jamal Murray.

5) Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets

Before his MCL injury that would keep him out of action for over a month, Durant was a top mid-season favorite to win his second NBA MVP. Regularly regarded as the league’s best scorer, KD never gives a reason to believe that he is not one of the NBA’s absolute best players. Many even believe that he is currently the best player in the world.

During the 2021-22 season, Durant averaged nearly 30 points, seven rebounds, and six assists in a season that ended up being very disappointing for the preseason title-favorite Brooklyn Nets, who got swept in round one of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. It is difficult to put much blame on Durant, given Brooklyn’s situation throughout the season. Kyrie Irving electing not to take the COVID-19 vaccine sidelined him for the majority of the season (before being eligible to play), which disrupted the team’s chemistry. A huge mid-season loss of Harden would also occur via a trade to the Philadelphia 76ers.

Also, newly acquired three-time All-Star Ben Simmons wouldn’t end up playing for Brooklyn in 2022 due to a back injury. However, despite a 39-point performance in the final game of their playoff match-up against Boston, Durant struggled for much of the series, and since winning back-to-back championships with the Golden State Warriors in 2017 and 2018, he has yet to make it back to even the conference finals, regardless. Durant remains a member of the Brooklyn Nets amid his trade request, and while he misses the top two of these rankings for the reasons just mentioned, he is still a top player in the world regardless of where he plays.

4) LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers

Even if the player’s name is LeBron James, it may be unpopular to put him above the league’s back-to-back reigning MVP after last year. After all, the Los Angeles Lakers missed the playoffs this past season, failing even to reach the play-in tournament. However, for those who have not looked closely, James seemed like the only thing going right for the Lakers in a season that showed a lot of work needs to be done everywhere to contend again. Despite being 37 years old last year, James averaged an impressive 30 points, eight rebounds, and six assists per game. Although the Lakers were constantly struggling, James still played like one of the league’s top players. Many even said that if the team’s record were better, James would’ve been a candidate for league MVP. 

While The King’s days of carrying teams to deep playoff runs and NBA Finals are over, a good roster with consistent players is still enough for the soon-to-be 38-year-old to go farther than last year. No sight of regression is really present for The King, but Anthony Davis’s availability is needed for LA to achieve any level of success this year. If the Lakers see significantly more success, James’ continued elite play can be noticed more than last year.

3) Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks

Despite yet another season with no true number two option, Dončić was amongst this past season’s best players, leading the Dallas Mavericks to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since the 2011 Dirk Nowitzki-led championship team. Dončić has been historically great in his playoff runs, with 2022 being his first time past the first round.

Dončić recorded three 40-point games in these playoffs alone, and during the Mavs’ playoff run was a shocking Game Seven blowout over the Phoenix Suns, who had the best regular season record in the NBA in 2022 and led Dallas 2-0. Dončić has repeatedly put the Mavs on his back and still managed to make a deep run with no elite talent around him.

The Mavs added Christain Wood via a trade from the Houston Rockets but still need to give Dončić more help. But while this is the case, Dončić only continues to dominate games, earning him a high ranking.

2) Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors

Another historic season for Curry included yet another NBA championship and his first Finals MVP after averaging 31 points, six rebounds, and five assists per game in the 2022 NBA Finals. Curry also passed Ray Allen as the NBA’s all-time three-point shot leader in 2022. The Warriors had a dominant run on the way to their sixth NBA Finals in eight years, primarily due to the play of Curry. The reigning Finals MVP was down 1-0, then 2-1 to the Boston Celtics, yet managed to lead his team to overcome both deficits, even with Draymond Green struggling early in the series and Klay Thompson still not at 100 percent yet. The best of Curry’s dominance was when he scored 43 points in Game Four before winning the series’ final three games. The same defense that fellow future Hall of Famers Durant and Irving often struggled against and got swept by was the same one Curry overcame in six games, putting him at the near top of this list.

1) Giannis Antetekounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

Despite only being 27 years old, Antetekounmpo’s resume is already one of the most impressive in recent memory. Giannis has an NBA championship, two NBA MVPs, a Finals MVP, and a Defensive Player of the Year to his name - all that in a three-season span. Antetekounmpo’s dominance in the league has been felt for a few years now, and his younger age provides thought as to if he can somehow get even better than he already is. After earning his first title and Finals MVP in 2021 off of a 50-point performance in a closeout Game Six over the Phoenix Suns, Antetekounmpo hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down in 2022, only continuing to play like the best player in basketball. 

Against a Celtics team whose defense proved too much for many teams, Anteteokounmpo managed to take the series to seven games despite the absence of three-time All-Star Khris Middleton for the entire series. If Middleton was available for the Milwaukee Bucks, a large belief is that the series’s outcome could have been different, being that the Bucks were one game away from winning without him in the lineup. Entering his 10th season, Antetekounmpo still remains the best player in the world.