NBA Rank 2025: Which players made the biggest leap into our Nos. 50-11?

NBA Rank continues arsenic we number down the apical 100 players successful the league entering the 2025-26 season. Today, we interruption down Nos. 50-11, seeing which players made the biggest leaps from past season's fertile and who was near retired of the apical 10.

A fewer young stars are entering the conversation, dilatory creeping up the ranks arsenic they participate Year 3. Meanwhile, immoderate veterans, owed to injuries past play oregon lowered expectations, person fallen rather a fewer spots.

To get the last NBA Rank, we asked our adept sheet to ballot connected subordinate vs. subordinate matchups from much than 20,000 imaginable pairings. Voters were asked, "Which subordinate volition beryllium amended successful 2025-26?" and had to foretell however each subordinate would execute this season.

Our countdown kicked disconnected with our ranking of players Nos. 100-51 connected Tuesday and continues contiguous with Nos. 50-11. We'll apical disconnected our fertile connected Thursday with ESPN's apical 10 players of 2025-26.

Check retired the results below.

Note: ESPN's NBA Rank panel, made up of much than 150 reporters, editors, producers and analysts, was asked to fertile players based connected their predicted contributions -- prime and quantity -- for the 2025-26 play only. Due to their semipermanent injuries, Jayson Tatum, Tyrese Haliburton, Damian Lillard, Kyrie Irving, Dejounte Murray and Fred VanVleet are not portion of this season's rankings.

NBA Rank: Nos. 100-51 | Pelton: Who's adjacent successful 2026?

50. Kristaps Porzingis, C, Atlanta Hawks

2024 NBA Rank: 46

Health continues to beryllium the biggest question people for Porzingis, particularly astatine this signifier successful his career. His show successful the 2025 playoffs was constricted by an precocious respiratory unwellness that bothered him some successful the regular play and into the 2nd circular arsenic helium failed to capitalize connected a beardown tally to the Finals with the Celtics successful 2024. Now, Porzingis has a accidental to marque an interaction with a caller commencement successful Atlanta arsenic 1 of the prized acquisitions of Atlanta's offseason. He remains 1 of the champion agelong bigs successful the league -- an elite rim protector and legit menace from 3-point scope -- who, if helium tin stay healthy, could assistance crook the Hawks into contenders successful a weakened conference. -- Jamal Collier

Signature stat: Porzingis ranked 5th successful effectual tract extremity percent allowed among defenders contesting 700-plus shots successful 2024-25.

Fantasy projection: 20.1 PTS, 7.0 REB, 1.6 BLK

49. Rudy Gobert, C, Minnesota Timberwolves

2024 NBA Rank: 34

Minnesota finished with the 10th-best antiaircraft standing successful the league past season, anchored by Gobert, the four-time Defensive Player of the Year grant winner. The things Gobert does well, he...