N.B.: Jayson Tatum, Tyrese Haliburton, Kyrie Irving, Damian Lillard, DeJounte Murray and Fred VanVleet do not feature in this edition of the Top 100, due to serious injuries that cast a shadow over their seasons.
50 - Cameron Johnson (Denver Nuggets) - ENTRY
Sold as the ultimate role player, he lost some of his superb form when he moved from the Suns to the Nets.
But he woke up last season, enough to get the stats expected of him and to make the Nuggets want to sacrifice Michael Porter Jr. Now he's back with a contender, with a good head of Most Improved Player, but he'll have to find his place.
If he does, watch out for the explosion.
2024/2025 stats: 18.8 points per game, 39% three-point percentage
Projection for 2025/2026: 22 points per game, 40% three-point percentage
49 - Isaiah Hartenstein (Oklahoma City Thunder) - Up 21 places
Speaking of role players, we wondered whether Hartenstein would keep that same consistency from his time on the New York Knicks and if it would transition well with OKC.
The answer: yes. Fundamental when Chet Holmgren was injured, Hartenstein has retained said important efficiency within the Thunder system, even if that was a little less the case in the play-offs.
A player who has found his place and his role without producing exceptional stats, but can he go even higher?
2024/2025 stats: 11.2 points per game, 10.7 rebounds per game
Projection for 2025/2026: 15.0 points per game, 12.0 rebounds per game
48 - Jalen Green (Phoenix Suns) - Up 1 spot
We're talking about a No. 2 draft pick who was used as a bargaining chip in the Kevin Durant trade, and who will see Houston go for the title without him, despite being the cornerstone of the rebuild.
His basic level remains very good, but he has yet to make the leap from good player to All-Star. Now he's Devin Booker's lieutenant. Is this the perfect scenario for Green to explode this season?
2024/2025 stats: 21.0 points per game, 35.4% three-point percentage
Projection goal for 2025/2026: 25.0 points per game
47 - Jalen Johnson (Atlanta Hawks) - ENTRY
He was on the verge of breaking records during a fiery start to last season. But that was before an injury derailed him. It delayed his take-off, but there's no reason why it shouldn't happen this season.
All the more so in a team that has been considerably strengthened, is aiming high, and will need his impact.
But he will also need to improve his defence and his shot selection. If he can do that, the improvement could be phenomenal.
2024/2025 stats: 18.9 points per game, 10.0 rebounds per game (36 games)
Projection for 2025/2026: 22.0 points per game, 12.0 rebounds per game, Most Improved Player Award candidate
46 - Scottie Barnes (Toronto Raptors) - Down 7 places
The former Rookie of the Year is hard to see clearly. His all-around game still has enormous potential, but he seems to be stagnating. The problem is that his team is too.
He's going to have to flex his muscles and manage to incorporate Brandon Ingram into the Raptors' system, because that's what great players do, they say.
But is he really one? Now is the time to prove it.
2024/2025 stats: 19.3 points per game, 7.7 rebounds per game, 5.8 assists per game
Reasoned target for 2025/2026: 22.0 points per game, 8.0 rebounds per game, 8.0 assists per game
45 - Kristaps Porziņgis (Atlanta Hawks) - Up 35 places
The Latvian has been dragging his big frame around the NBA for ten years, averaging 50 games a season. Two years as a utility player in Boston, with a ring as a gift.
But now he's back as his team's second-best player - at least, on paper. Because Jalen Johnson and/or Dyson Daniels are just waiting to get ahead of him, and the time has come to prove that he can do something other than bomb from long range.
2024/2025 stats: 19.5 points per game, 6.8 rebounds per game, 1.5 assists per game, 41.2% three-point percentage
Projection for 2025/2026: 20.0 points per game, 10.0 rebounds per game
44 - Derrick White (Boston Celtics) - Up 4 places
We return to the 'ultimate role players' category with the former Spurs guard, whose importance to a team no longer needs to be proven.
But he couldn't keep the green boat afloat in the playoffs on his own. Jayson Tatum is injured, so he will be his team's No. 2 this season. Even though we thought in 2024 that he had maximised his potential, it could well be that he will reach a new milestone this season.
2024/2025 stats: 16.4 points per game, 4.8 assists per game, 38.4% three-point percentage
Projection for 2025/2026: 20.0 points per game, 8.0 assists per game, 40% three-point percentage
43 - DeMar DeRozan (Sacramento Kings) - Down 10 places
Here we go for DMDR's 17th season. A reliable scorer, a regulator, but still without the slightest collective impact.
He hasn't won a playoff series since he was ejected from Toronto in 2018, and it's mainly as a veteran capable of turning his team around that he'll be expected this season, because the production will be there.
2024/2025 stats: 22.2 points per game
Projection for 2025/2026: 25.0 points per game
42 - Jamal Murray (Denver Nuggets) - Down 14 places
Since the 2023 title, the Canadian has remained stable in his production. However, he is no longer the kind of point guard capable of single-handedly setting a match alight, or even winning it.
Something that his team, defeated twice in a row in Game 7 of the conference semi-finals, really needed. He has swapped his saviour's mantle for consistency: why shouldn't he be able to do both?
2024/2025 stats: 21.4 points per game, 6.0 assists per game
Projection for 2025/2026: 25.0 points, 8.0 assists
41 - Ja Morant (Memphis Grizzlies) - Under 10 spots
This is a complicated case. Morant has played in just 120 games in total over the last three seasons. And yet, as soon as he's on the floor and touches the ball, something always happens.
Except that between his physical limitations and his off-court behaviour, he is no longer held back on the court.
It's time for him to put the church back in the middle of the village; otherwise, his first three splendid seasons will soon be forgotten.
2024/2025 stats: 23.2 points per game, 7.3 assists per game (50 games)
Projection for 2025/2026: 25.0 points per game, 10.0 assists per game, All-NBA Team candidate