RGM Top 25 NBA Player Poll 2025-26 -- Round 6!

[bisme37]

Oh hey again good pals! This is the thing where we rank the top 25 NBA players for 2025-26 hooray.

Basically vote for 1 of the guys in the poll, and you can also post a comment that nominates a player to be added for the next round of voting. Then a day or two later I'll pop in and make the next poll.

So like: "Vote Jokic, nominate Kuzma." Or whatever.

If you change your mind, the poll is set up so you can change your vote as often as you'd like until the poll closes and the next thread goes up. (The poll is limited to 10 options.)

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Results so far:

#1: Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets with 63% of the votes;
Added to next poll: Cade Cunningham, Detroit Pistons
https://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=2472330

#2: Shai Gilgeous Alexander, OKC Thunder with 54% of the votes;
Added to next poll: Anthony Davis, Dallas Mavericks
https://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=2472418

#3: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks with 50% of the vote
Added to next poll: Jalen Williams, OKC Thunder
https://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=2472506

#4: Luka Doncic, LA Lakers with 62% of votes;
Added to next poll: Evan Mobley, Cleveland Cavaliers
https://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=2472644

#5: Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs with 60% of the vote;
Added to next poll: Kevin Durant, Houston Rockets
https://forums.realgm.com/boards/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=2472702


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Not yet added:
Kawhi Leonard, LA Clippers
Paolo Banchero, Orlando Magic
Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers
Jaylen Brown, Boston Celtics
Karl-Anthony Towns, New York Knicks
Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks
Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns
Pascal Siakam, Indiana Pacers
Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies
James Harden, LA Clippers
Amen Thompson, Houston Rockets
Derrick White, Boston Celtics
Jimmy Butler, Golden State Warriors
Tyrese Maxey, Philadelphia 76ers
Scottie Barnes, Toronto Raptors
Zion Williamson, New Orleans Pelicans
Franz Wagner, Orlando Magic
De'Aaron Fox, San Antonio Spurs
Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat
Lamelo Ball, Charlotte Hornets
Jaren Jackson Jr, Memphis Grizzlies
Tyler Herro, Miami Heat
Lauri Markannen, Utah Jazz
Chet Holmgren, OKC Thunder
Ivica Zubac, LA Clippers
Paul George, Philadelphia 76ers
Domantas Sabonis, Sacramento Kings
Jamal Murray, Denver Nuggets
Alperen Sengun, Houston Rockets
Kyrie Irving, Dallas Mavericks
Etc etc.

This is meant to be a projection of player rankings for this coming season. Guys like Tatum ( ), Hali and Dame are likely not playing, so I begrudgingly left them out.

Enjoy!

[cupcakesnake]

Vote: Edwards
Nominate: Chet

Maybe it's a homer pick, but I think I'm a well-established Ant skeptic. I just think he's the guy around the top 10 who has the best chance to take another step forward this year. He's improved every year since he's been in the league, and the baby boy only just turned 24.

I like some of the older guys better than Ant, but it's reasonable to assume that any/all of them will decline, either a little or a lot. Steph is still more impactful than Ant, but how surprised would anyone be if he struggled to stay healthy at age 37. Same with KD and Kawhi. I'm out on Lebron as a top 10 type.

So for me it was more about Ant vs. Spidey and Brunson. Both those guys were better than him last year, imo, so this is a bet on Ant to leapfrog them. I thought about AD as a pick here, but I don't love his situation, playing with a million forwards and centers and almost no NBA-level guards.

[SA37]

Voted Curry

He's not the best 2-way player on this list, but he is the best shooter and probably the most feared guy on this list when the game gets down to crunch time.

Nominate Kawhi

He and Embiid are the only two elite 2-way players left on the potential nominee list. Both have questionable knees, but I think if Kawhi stays healthy, he'll put up MVP level numbers on outrageous shooting (he shot 50 fg% 41 3pt% last year) and on a team that is likely to finish in the top-4 in the ultra competitive West. If the Clippers are top-2, he'll be a top contender for MVP.

Philly is shambolic and likely minutes and game restrictions for both Embiid and George will likely mean Philly finished out of the top-4 in the East. Even if Philly gets to full health, Embiid's output may suffer because of having to share with Maxey, George, and McCain.

[jowglenn]

Voted: Anthony Davis. I think he's in a good position where he will be the clear number 1 guy on the team, but has a solid supporting cast around him (lots of bigs to help shoulder the load and keep him from wearing down) and I think he'll put together a real surprise season as a clear top 10 guy once again.

Nominate: Paolo Banchero. He's up and coming, he could really hit it big this year. He belongs on the list!

[ForeverTFC]

Voted: Ant
Nominate: Booker - think he will have a big season this year

[Caneman786]

Vote Anthony Edwards, nominate Kawhi Leonard

Next people to nominate:
Joel Embiid
Zion Williamson
Jimmy Butler III
Franz Wagner
Ivica Zubac
Amen Thompson
Kyrie Irving
Paolo Banchero
James Harden
Ja Morant
Bam Adebayo
Tyler Herro
Rudy Gobert
Alperen Sengun
Domantas Sabonis
Chet Holmgren

Ranking the rest:

Tier 0: J. Embiid (if healthy)
Tier 1: A. Davis, K. Leonard
Tier 2: J. Brunson, C. Cunningham, J. Williams, Z. Williamson (if healthy)
Tier 3: J. Butler III, D. Mitchell, E. Mobley, F. Wagner, I. Zubac
Tier 4: P. Banchero, S. Curry, K. Durant, J. Harden, J. Morant K. Irving, A. Thompson
Tier 5: B. Adebayo, R. Gobert, T. Herro, D. Sabonis, A. Sengun
...
Tier 7: L. James (not sure what he's doing on this list with positive players)

[Pistol_Pete10]

Vote: Curry
Add: Banchero

[brackdan70]

Vote Davis
Nominate Jaylen Brown- going to have a big year.

Curry? People be livin’ in the past.

[bisme37]

Oh yeah I forgot... nominate Jaylen Brown

[bisme37]

Vote: Edwards
Nominate: Chet

Maybe it's a homer pick, but I think I'm a well-established Ant skeptic. I just think he's the guy around the top 10 who has the best chance to take another step forward this year. He's improved every year since he's been in the league, and the baby boy only just turned 24.

I like some of the older guys better than Ant, but it's reasonable to assume that any/all of them will decline, either a little or a lot. Steph is still more impactful than Ant, but how surprised would anyone be if he struggled to stay healthy at age 37. Same with KD and Kawhi. I'm out on Lebron as a top 10 type.

So for me it was more about Ant vs. Spidey and Brunson. Both those guys were better than him last year, imo, so this is a bet on Ant to leapfrog them. I thought about AD as a pick here, but I don't love his situation, playing with a million forwards and centers and almost no NBA-level guards.

I swear my C's had a championship rooster not too long ago and now the Thunder might have 3 players better than anyone on the C's. Well, healthy at least. Are Williams and Holmgren both better than Brown and White? Shrug.

Life comes at you fast haha.

[cupcakesnake]

Vote: Edwards
Nominate: Chet

Maybe it's a homer pick, but I think I'm a well-established Ant skeptic. I just think he's the guy around the top 10 who has the best chance to take another step forward this year. He's improved every year since he's been in the league, and the baby boy only just turned 24.

I like some of the older guys better than Ant, but it's reasonable to assume that any/all of them will decline, either a little or a lot. Steph is still more impactful than Ant, but how surprised would anyone be if he struggled to stay healthy at age 37. Same with KD and Kawhi. I'm out on Lebron as a top 10 type.

So for me it was more about Ant vs. Spidey and Brunson. Both those guys were better than him last year, imo, so this is a bet on Ant to leapfrog them. I thought about AD as a pick here, but I don't love his situation, playing with a million forwards and centers and almost no NBA-level guards.

I swear my C's had a championship rooster not too long ago and now the Thunder might have 3 players better than anyone on the C's. Well, healthy at least. Are Williams and Holmgren both better than Brown and White? Shrug.

Life comes at you fast haha.

I've long been bullish on J.Dub and Chet. I definitely felt Jalen was better than Jaylen last year. I just think his defensive impact is way more vast, and he brings more playmaking (I think Jaylen is a better driver though, and dont think there's a huge gap between them). With Chet, it's not complicated to me: man is 7'1", shoot 3s, is one of the best rim protectors in the NBA, can guard on the perimeter, and he handles the ball well enough to drive and pass off the dribble. That potential is insane, and not something Jaylen Brown or White can compete with, even if they're more accomplished players now. Again, this is a projection ranking for next year. Your rules, bisme, not MINE.

You know I'm a huge D.White guy. I think there are obvious limits to his game on offense. Top 30-40 guy to me. Boston had a championship roster because they had 5-6 top 50 types, not because they had 2-3 top 20 types.

[iggymcfrack]

Vote: ANT

Nominate: Chet

Both are young guys who should still be improving. Ant was already close enough to this spot that he would have been arguable for it even last season.

[Rdude22]

Vote: Edwards
Nominate: Chet

Maybe it's a homer pick, but I think I'm a well-established Ant skeptic. I just think he's the guy around the top 10 who has the best chance to take another step forward this year. He's improved every year since he's been in the league, and the baby boy only just turned 24.

I like some of the older guys better than Ant, but it's reasonable to assume that any/all of them will decline, either a little or a lot. Steph is still more impactful than Ant, but how surprised would anyone be if he struggled to stay healthy at age 37. Same with KD and Kawhi. I'm out on Lebron as a top 10 type.

So for me it was more about Ant vs. Spidey and Brunson. Both those guys were better than him last year, imo, so this is a bet on Ant to leapfrog them. I thought about AD as a pick here, but I don't love his situation, playing with a million forwards and centers and almost no NBA-level guards.

I swear my C's had a championship rooster not too long ago and now the Thunder might have 3 players better than anyone on the C's. Well, healthy at least. Are Williams and Holmgren both better than Brown and White? Shrug.

Life comes at you fast haha.

I've long been bullish on J.Dub and Chet. I definitely felt Jalen was better than Jaylen last year. I just think his defensive impact is way more vast, and he brings more playmaking (I think Jaylen is a better driver though, and dont think there's a huge gap between them). With Chet, it's not complicated to me: man is 7'1", shoot 3s, is one of the best rim protectors in the NBA, can guard on the perimeter, and he handles the ball well enough to drive and pass off the dribble. That potential is insane, and not something Jaylen Brown or White can compete with, even if they're more accomplished players now. Again, this is a projection ranking for next year. Your rules, bisme, not MINE.

You know I'm a huge D.White guy. I think there are obvious limits to his game on offense. Top 30-40 guy to me. Boston had a championship roster because they had 5-6 top 50 types, not because they had 2-3 top 20 types.

I wanted to see a Celtics/Thunder Finals because i felt it was basically a mirror match. From a talent functionality perspective,
Shai/Dubb/Dort/Chet/Hart + Caruso, etc
vs
Jru/Brown/JT/KP/Horford + White, etc

is either a wash or advantage OKC with the decider that while both teams can (and WILL) go ice cold from 3, Shai is just a better/more consistent player and scorer than anyone on Boston.

Now the big thing for Chet in regards to where he is as a top 10-25 player, will imo be his health. Porzingis is basically the same player he was a decade ago bc just getting back on the court was his yearly milestone. No time to really work on your game when you gotta rehab and no incentive to you once reach the point/age where you're just content being what you are when you are healthy. Chet can avoid/be better than that, just depends on how his offensive evolves. Esp if he can be a reliable face-up big on the block; a LaMarcus Aldridge type offensively.

[TheNG]

I feel like OKC players are starting to become overrated.
But I guess that's natural...

[cupcakesnake]

Now the big thing for Chet in regards to where he is as a top 10-25 player, will imo be his health. Porzingis is basically the same player he was a decade ago bc just getting back on the court was his yearly milestone. No time to really work on your game when you gotta rehab and no incentive to you once reach the point/age where you're just content being what you are when you are healthy. Chet can avoid/be better than that, just depends on how his offensive evolves. Esp if he can be a reliable face-up big on the block; a LaMarcus Aldridge type offensively.

I think there's a big functional difference between Chet and Porzingod, if only because Chet can dribble. I'm not saying there's a huge difference between these players now (I think Porzingis is really good when healthy), but projecting forward, Chet can do things that Porzingis never good. There's a mobility difference too. Even before the injuries, Porzingis had a bit of stiffness with some basketball motions, even if he had this incredible ability to slither in and dunk on people. Chet is such a fluid mover on both ends. Porzingis is bigger though, and Chet will be lucky if he can get anywhere near Porzingis' bulk. Porzingis is skinny but Chet is a scarecrow.

[bisme37]

I think we currently have 2 nominations each for Chet, Brown, Paolo and Kawhi. This is so exciting you guys.

[-Luke-]

Voted Edwards
Nominate Brown

I first wanted to nominate Kawhi because he still belongs in this group when healthy. However, he averaged 42 games in the last five seasons. The IF is just too big at this point. Chet and Paolo are both good nominations, but I went with Brown who is more of a safe pick, because I think he will carry a big load with Tatum out.

[bstein14]

If Cade takes a 10% step forward this season, I think he's the 2nd best player in the East and for sure top 10 player in the NBA. He took a big step forward last season (finished 2nd in MIP) not sure if he can take another noticeable step this year or not.

26.1 PPG
9.1 APG
6.1 RPG

Only Cade and Jokic put up those raw stats last season.

He needs to cut out 1/2 TO per game, and get 1-2% better on 2pt and 3pt FG% and he's there. He has the raw stats he needs slightly better efficiency.

Pistons are getting 50 wins this season in a weaker EC.

[ReggiesKnicks]

Nominate Paolo

[eminence]

Nominate KAT