NBA Report Cards: Final Regular-Season Grades for the Top 50 Players
One thing people will always argue about in sports is over the simple question: Who is number one?
Whether it be the NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL, college sports, cricket, poker or the pickup games at your local YMCA, people always have their player that they like to argue for.
This year, the biggest argument has been between Derrick Rose and LeBron James.
Rose has done everything this year to blossom into a full-fledged MVP candidate, taking the Bulls to the best record in the NBA and holding his team together through some injuries that would decimate other teams.
James has had the season that James always has, putting up his normal (it's crazy to call it normal) 27-7-7.
There is an argument between the two players, but there is also an easy, clear-cut answer as to who the better player was this year, even if it was just by a fingertip that one was better than the other.
So, if you want to find out who edged out whom, and who the other 48 top players in the league were this season, just click the little arrow down in the bottom right hand corner and enjoy.
50. John Wall: B+
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When first thinking about it, I thought that John Wall did not meet his expectations this season.
He didn't make nearly as much noise as the hype that came along with him would suggest, he struggled from the three point line and had some injury problems.
However, on a second look the man did average 16 points and eight assists on 40 percent shooting, and really, what more could you ask from a rookie point guard who has to play with Andray Blatche?
It doesn't help his case that he is the best rookie in a class that isn't going to have a Rookie of the Year winner, but he still did enough for me to crack the NBA's top 50 this season.
49. Danny Granger: B-
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Darren Collison was in and Danny Granger was on the way out as the top player on the Indiana Pacers. That was the thought going into the season.
Well, Collison had a fine season, but he didn't quite overtake Granger, who didn't have one of his most productive seasons, but he did have a more efficient one than last year.
Granger stepped up his defensive game, scored 20 a game for a Pacers team that made the playoffs for the first time since a year after the Ron Artest Incident (which, by the way, is even more insane if you watch it on youtube today, if that is possible).
48. Roy Hibbert: B
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I don't really understand people's opinion of Roy Hibbert. He is talked about like he is an expendable part of the Pacers lineup, and could be traded for anything less than a perfect offer for the Pacers.
In reality, he is possibly the most important player on that team, and steadily improving toward becoming one of the better centers in the league.
The man has become an absolute defensive stalwart for this team and is on the verge of becoming a double-double machine in the league.
His 12 points and seven rebounds may not look like much on paper, but his two blocks and the defensive effort he puts up every night is worth more than any numbers could tell.
47. Tyson Chandler: B
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Here is another guy that doesn't get enough respect from both the media and his own team.
Chandler has had one of the most efficient scoring seasons in the history of the game.
His 10 points and rebounds a game is nice, but he scores that 10 points on just over five shots a game, giving him a shooting percentage just over 65 percent and a true shooting percentage of 69.67, just behind the two best in NBA history, both held by Artis Gilmore.
Aside from that, Chandler has been a good defender all season long, and has been the Mavericks second best player, considering Caron Butler's injury shortened season.
46. Rodney Stuckey: B-
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Somebody please save this man from a terrible situation.
Rodney Stuckey could easily be a much more visible player in the league, but being stuck on the Pistons is like being in basketball purgatory.
They aren't on the way up because they are handcuffed by ugly contracts, and they aren't on the way down because they have some decent players. Because of that they are bound to finish between seventh and 11th for the foreseeable future.
Stuckey, meanwhile, is a wildly entertaining player who can do many things offensively, and has had his best season yet, shooting 44 percent, scoring 15 and grabbing five boards a game.
45. Stephen Curry: B+
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Stephen Curry is one of the most exciting young players in the NBA on one of the exciting young teams in the NBA.
Unfortunately, that young exciting team plays absolutely no defense, so it's hard to really tell what the players on that team are worth.
Curry can score as well as any guard in the NBA, averaging 19 points a game this season on an astounding 48 percent shooting, 44 percent from three-point land and a league-leading 93.4 percent from the free-throw line.
On a team that actually plays defense, Curry could be anything between a good starting two-guard but a defensive liability or he could be the sixth man and the best first option off the bench in the league.
Either way he is a top-50 guy.
44. Rudy Gay: B-
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A lot makes me want to put Rudy Gay higher in this list, but he arguably may not even be one of the best two players on his team.
He shoots a good percentage, 47 percent field goal percentage, 39 from three and 80 from the free throw line, but for a team that makes its name with its defense down low, it's hard to put a finger on Gay.
Gay is a great offensive player, averaging nearly 20 points a game and seven rebounds, but defensively he is questionable more often than not, as he gambles way too much, coming up with steals, but not holding down solid defense enough to put him higher in the list.
43. Marc Gasol: B+
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Getting Marc Gasol in return is actually making the Pau Gasol trade not look like the most one-sided trade in the past decade.
Gasol is the person that makes the Grizzlies defense as good as it is, as he is nothing like his brother, who is a terrific offensive player, but soft as a box of tissue paper.
He is a tough presence down low, and makes the team intimidating, something that can't be measured in numbers, but rather, in wins, and their win against the Spurs on Sunday happened in part because of their stout defense.
42. Gerald Wallace: A
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For most of his career, Gerald Wallace has been one of the hardest working players in the league on a team that never did anything serious in the playoffs.
Getting traded to the Blazers is the best thing that has ever happened to him, as he fits perfectly in as the scrappy defensive guy whose ability to score the ball is a bonus at this point.
The Blazers with Wallace is arguably the best defensive team in the NBA, and a team with seven scoring options at the very least.
41. Lamar Odom: A
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Lamar Odom would be starting on nearly any other team in the NBA right now, which would probably give his numbers an even bigger boost, but right now he is in line to win the Sixth Man Award.
Odom, who was once one of the most wildly inconsistent big men in the NBA, is now a very consistent scorer and rebounder, and a good defender to boot.
40. Andrew Bogut: A
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When Andrew Bogut first came into the league, I was unimpressed at how his Aussie-ball style led to a much less physical game than would be expected from a guy his size.
This year it's like he is a completely different player than five years ago.
Bogut is finally rebounding like a man his size should and led the league in blocked shots, making him appear to be a top-10 defender in the league.
His offensive game could still use some work, but his defensive improvement over the years has impressed me.
39. Luis Scola: B+
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Luis Scola is an insanely polarizing player, and it seems that if you don't like him, Rockets fans will let you hear about it.
When you really look at him, though, Scola is an excellent player. He can score from the low post or with a mid-range jumper, and he can defend nearly any other forward in the league.
He is quick footed in the post, yet physical enough to take on both the strong and finesse forwards in the league.
38. Luol Deng: B+
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Luol Deng is probably one of the most underrated players in the NBA.
Deng is almost an afterthought on a team that has Derrick Rose, Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah, which is really astonishing for a player that puts up 17 points and grabs six boards a night.
On top of that, Deng shoots 46 percent and is an amazingly underrated defender.
37. Chris Bosh: Sometimes a D+, Sometimes an A
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Chris Bosh has been a player this year that in part has been exposed, and in part become better than the public once thought.
It was believed a year ago that Bosh was a franchise player, and in a way he was, as he was the Raptors franchise player and one of the best power forwards in the league.
But now, on a team with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, Miami needs a player that is a more physical presence in the post, rather than a big swingman that Bosh has been at times this year.
On the other hand, it seems that Bosh has been the key player for the Heat for a good portion of the year, as when he is in with one of the two other stars, they play better than with all three of them on the floor, or with just James and Wade on the floor, so it's hard to put a finger on Bosh.
Also, I would have moved him up a spot if he would just stop screaming so often. It looks so forced and unnatural, but what do I know? I'm just a hater right?
36. David West: C+
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David West is another player that never gets much fanfare in the league, and is even continually berated by some, but continually puts up good numbers.
West is a guy that everyone says is next in line to get overpaid in the NBA, which may happen, but it's not every day you get a guy that puts up 19 points and grabs eight boards a game.
His C+ isn't necessarily a knock on West, but rather a testament to how consistent he has been in the past few years.
35. Kevin Martin: C+
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We all know that Kevin Martin can be a defensive liability at times, but what he does on offense more than makes up for his defensive shortcomings.
This year, Kevin Martin has done what he has done for the past five: putting up bucket loads of points for a team that missed the playoffs.
Martin had a decent field goal percentage at 43 percent, and shot well for three at 38 percent while racking up 23 points a game.
34. Ray Allen: A-
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In a year that he broke Reggie Miller's three-point record, Ray Allen continues to impress me.
At 44 percent, Allen is having the best three-point shooting season of his career, and he just missed out on a 50-40-90 year by one point in his field goal percentage and two points in his free throw percentage.
Also, Allen may have lost a step on defense over the years, but he is still a good defender, as he relies more on his basketball knowledge at this point in his career.
It may seem crazy, but it still looks like Allen could play at this level for another two or three years, and then stay in the season for four more as a spot-up shooter.
33. Joakim Noah: B
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Call him a pest, call him annoying, call him a dirty looking man, but there is one thing that is undeniable, Joakim Noah is a great basketball player.
Noah, in the span of about two years, has gone from an energy player that was hard to put a statistical value on, like Anderson Varejao, to a defensive monster, double-double machine and an indispensable player.
32. Andrew Bynum: B+
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Injury problems aside, if there were one center in the NBA that I would pick to have on my team besides Dwight Howard, it would be Andrew Bynum.
Sure, it would be nice to have more of an offensive output from a big man like what the Nuggets get out of Nene, but the mere presence of Bynum down low alters the way your opponent plays.
He is an extremely physical guy, a shot-blocking machine and a rebounder extraordinaire.
Unfortunately for him, and the Lakers, he only played in 54 games this season, and looks like a guy who is headed for an abbreviated NBA career with some lower body problems.
31. Joe Johnson: D+
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Say what you want about Joe Johnson, and people do plenty of that these days, but it's undeniable that he is still a good player.
He may be coming off the worst year since he became the franchise guy on Atlanta, and he may be the poster child of why the NBA needs to have a lockout, but he is still a good player.
Not worth a maximum contract, and easily not the best player on his team this year, but a good player nonetheless.
30. Kevin Love: A
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Kevin Love doesn't play defense, that's the obvious problem with the big guy, but there are other things about him that make up for that, at least so long as he is on a terrible team.
His double-double streak and the rebounding clip that he went on the likes of which haven't happened since Dennis Rodman got him the recognition, and if he can continue it, it should get him the big paycheck.
Love can score the ball from all over the court and grab any loose ball within a country mile of him, and if he can learn to play some D, he could be a top-15 player.
29. Josh Smith: B-
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I'll admit that I don't watch enough of the Hawks to really know enough about them to pass judgment on the team, and there is one thing I am curious about.
Last season, Josh Smith shot seven three-pointers making none of them, this year he shot 154 making 51 of them.
I have never seen anything like it before, because Smith had always been a decent three-point shooter, and did get into a bit of a slump for a few years prior to last season, but to completely abandon the shot altogether and then come back and shoot the most you ever have in your career is mind-boggling.
Aside from that, Smith has done what he always does, playing good defense and scoring with great consistency.
28. Monta Ellis: B
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The biggest problem I ever had with Monta Ellis (despite his lack of defense like the rest of the Warriors) is the fact that he shoots the ball like it progressively heats up as the game goes along.
He can't keep that ball in his hands, and has to put it up, lest his hands get scalded.
This year he took two fewer shots a game, scoring only one point less.
Even better, Ellis is taking smarter shots, passing up the contested ones that he would have jacked up in the past, leading to an increase in both his field goal and three-point percentages.
27. Andre Iguodala: A-
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Andre Iguodala is probably one of the players that I most respect in the NBA.
Iguodala scored the fewest point in his career since his rookie year, attempting nearly 400 fewer shots this year compared to last year.
He realized that the Sixers had the guys needed to score the ball and became more of a facilitator for this young team, averaging the most assists in his career this season.
On top of that, Iggy improved his defense to a level that he is arguably the best two-guard defender in the NBA.
For him, this drop in offensive output is a sign of improvement as a leader more than it is a sign of regression as a scorer.
26. Tony Parker: B+
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The Frenchman born in Bruges had one of his most efficient seasons in years.
Parker was once lauded for his ability to score 20 points on only 13 or 14 shot attempts a game, and then he got away from it, started shooting more, while barely improving his scoring numbers.
Now, however, Parker is back to shooting only 13 times a game, but scoring 18 points, giving his shot percentages a boost to 52 from the field and 35 from downtown.
25. Tim Duncan: C+
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It would just break my heart to leave The Big Fundamental out of my top 25, so whether his numbers reflect it or not, I had to put him up here.
Duncan is still the defensive presence that he has always been, his only dropoff has been offensively, which isn't nearly as big as it has been made out to be.
His minutes are down, and he shot more than 200 fewer shots this season, so fewer points would be expected.
However, his per 36 minute averages have held steady from last year, averaging three points less and only three tenths of a rebound less for every 36 minutes of basketball he plays.
24. Carlos Boozer: B-
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I boo this man every time I see him back in Cleveland (yes I boo my television, don't judge me), but I still respect the player that he is (I'm starting to do the same with LeBron, give it time).
The guy that took advantage of a blind man saw a slight decrease in most of his statistical categories, but they weren't big enough drops to drop him out of the top 25.
I have also found his defensive abilities to be a bit underrated, and being on this Bulls team that is a monster defensively has given him a better reputation around the league.
23. Nene: A
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This big Brazilian man with the name of a soccer star is making a case for himself to be considered the best center in the Western Conference right now.
Nene can do everything you need a center to do.
The man is averaging 15 and seven a game (17 and nine per 36 minutes) with a league leading 61.5 field goal percentage all while being a defensive stud and becoming the de facto leader of this team.
22. Zach Randolph: A-
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I remember the days of the Jail Blazers when Zach Randolph had the ability to be something special, but always seemed too crazy to ever live up to his potential.
Well, even in the wake of being accused of being a drug kingpin in Indiana, Randolph has seemingly matured, becoming a double-double monster and becoming half of a Grizzlies down low defensive unit that is downright fierce.
21. Blake Griffin
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Allow me to say something that is currently universally agreed upon. Blake Griffin is this year's Rookie of the Year.
Griffin has been excellent this season, and has done everything anyone in Los Angeles could have hoped during his rookie campaign, averaging 22 and 12.
Griffin still has room to grow, still has low post moves that need developing and still needs to adjust to the NBA when it comes to defense; otherwise, he would have been a top-20 guy.
21. Al Horford: A
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Ladies and gentlemen, Al Horford is the perfect example of what a modern-day center is in the NBA.
Sure, every team would want a Dwight Howard, but there is only one Dwight Howard in the league, and nobody else rivals his presence down low.
Al Horford, however, is a nice alternative to Howard.
He is a big, strong man that can average 15 and 10 with a variety of low post moves along with a deadly mid-range jumper.
19. Russell Westbrook: A-
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Russell Westbrook may have made the biggest leap from last year to this year, which is interesting, because I think he made the biggest leap from the 08-09 season to the 09-10 season as well.
Westbrook is shooting so much better this season, stemming from him taking much smarter shots along the way.
He is shooting 11 percent better for three and four percent better overall, making him and Durant one of the most dangerous scoring tandems in the NBA.
18. Rajon Rondo: B+
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There were a lot of things that made me want to put Russell Westbrook ahead of Rajon Rondo (mainly Rondo's complete lack of a jumper), but I still can't convince myself to do it.
Rondo does so much for the Celtics, that he just may be the most subtly important player in the NBA.
Always a triple-double threat, Rondo is averaging 10-11-4, and the things he can do with the ball just make me overlook his shortcomings offensively and go, "whooaaa!"
17. Manu Ginobili: B+
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For three years running, Manu Ginobili has had nearly identical statistical stats for the past three years, but this year he has showed improvement that stats can't show.
He has become the best player on the best team in the West, and the leader of a team that was led by Tim Duncan for the past decade.
16. Paul Pierce: B+
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Here's the truth about The Truth. I have never liked Paul Pierce; in fact, I have borderline hated the guy at times.
Pierce has absolutely killed the Cavaliers in the past, he acted like a thug for the first half of the 2000s, got it together, held onto his edge and turned into a dangerous player.
He just missed his first 50 percent shooting season by three tenths of a percent this year played some of the best defense he has played in years.
Pierce is tough, angry, mean and I hate seeing him on an opposing team, but if he were on the Cavs, he would be my favorite player in the league.
I just respect the way the guy plays as hard as he can every day so his team can win the game.
15. Steve Nash: A
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Steve Nash has been one of the best players in the NBA at getting the most out of his teammates since he joined the Suns.
This year he may have done the best job he has ever done, as the Suns were just a few games out of the final playoff spot this season, despite some very mediocre teammates.
In games where Nash played fewer than 10 minutes the Suns are 1-7, and without Nash for the season you'd better bet they would be competing for the top lottery spot.
14. LaMarcus Aldridge: A+
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If you made a list of every problem LaMarcus Aldridge had in his game a year ago, he would have crossed nearly everything off that list by the beginning of these playoffs.
From last season to this season, Aldridge has developed a formidable low post game, aggressive defense down low, and blossomed into a leader of this very versatile and intriguing team.
13. Kevin Garnett: B+
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If there is one man who has adjusted his game the most in his career to get the most out of his game, it is Kevin Garnett.
Back in Minnesota, Garnett was the one of the best players in the league, and offensive machine and great defensive player relying mostly on skill.
Now, Garnett has lost a step in his advanced age, and some of his offensive moves have diminished as a result. To make up for that, Garnett plays a much more chippy and aggressive game than he ever did in Minnesota, almost to the point that 2004 Garnett would have called 2011 Garnett a dirty player.
It's funny how things change so quickly.
12. Amare Stoudemire: A+
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Amare Stoudemire had a lot of questions surrounding him as he came to New York last summer.
People questioned whether he could be the leader of a team, whether his body could still hold up in a high paced offense, and whether a team could be effective enough to make the playoffs with no defense.
Well, Amare showed for the better part of the season that he was the leader of the team, and he did so at a high output level and even showed improvement on defense.
11. Pau Gasol: B
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I would argue that Pau Gasol has been the most consistent player in the NBA for the past three seasons.
For three straight seasons, Gasol has averaged 37 minutes a game and had seasons of 18.9, 18.3 and 18.8 points per game, averaging just around 13 shots a game for all three seasons.
Gasol gave the Lakers exactly what they expected this year, and sometimes that is the most important thing a player can do.
10. Chris Paul: A-
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After an injury plagued season last year, I was ready to end the Chris Paul vs. Deron Williams debate and give the victory to Williams; now I think Paul has opened it back up.
This year Paul was the unquestioned leader of a good Hornets team, holding them together through injuries and rumors about relocation and contraction to take them into the playoffs, and yesterday, upset the Lakers in the first game of the first round.
Paul has come back to average 16 points and 10 assists this season on top of 2.5 steals a game and threatening a 40-50-90 shooting season.
9. Deron Williams: B+
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Chris Paul may have reopened the debate, but I'm not ready to give him back the spot over Williams.
After Deron Williams got traded from the Jazz to the Nets, the Jazz absolutely crashed and burned, going 8-17 for the duration.
That alone tells you how valuable and effective Williams is, besides his obvious 21 points and 10 assists a game that he puts forth.
8. Carmelo Anthony: B
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Carmelo Anthony had the season that everyone expected him to have, but there were a few things that happened that people didn't expect.
For one, he drug out the trade saga for about two months longer than it needed to be, which is in part because of him and in part because of the teams trying to get him, but it still sullied his name a bit nonetheless.
Also, he left the Denver Nuggets and they got no worse than when he was there, and if anything they got better.
It makes people think that maybe a compilation of good players can do as well as one great player did for a team.
7. Dirk Nowitzki: A+
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Replace Dirk Nowitzki with an average NBA power forward and the Mavericks don't make the playoffs. It's not even close.
Nowitzki dragged this mediocre team along all year, especially after the Caron Butler injury, and got them to the number three seed in the West. That is just baffling.
Their second best options are Tyson Chandler who only shoots the ball five times a game and Jason Terry, who is good offensively but is a defensive liability.
If Dirk can continue to drag this team along in the postseason I will have to give him even more props than I am giving him now.
6. Kobe Bryant: B-
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People haven't talked about it much this year, but Kobe "Bean" Bryant is kind of having a bad year, by his standards at least.
His shooting percentages took a dip and he scored less (although he did play a few minutes less and shoot once less per game).
The biggest dip in production has been only really evident when watching him.
Kobe has always been able to get to the rim at will throughout his career; this year, however, he seems to have lost a step, allowing players to guard him more closely, knowing that it is more difficult for him to beat them off the dribble.
Either way, it is still only a small decrease in production, and nothing to worry about at this point.
5. Dwyane Wade: B-
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Here's what I expected out of the Heat this year. Dwyane Wade was supposed to step into the leadership role on this team, control the pace and be the one to calm everything and everyone down when things got out of hand.
LeBron was supposed to be the guy that did everything on the floor that you could ask of a basketball player and Bosh was supposed to grab some boards, shoot some jumpers and yell a lot.
Bosh filled his role, but Wade kind of stayed away from being the leader of this team for most of the year. He didn't want to step on LeBron's toes, and that made the whole team look awkward all year long.
Wade didn't have to have his usual production to have a positive season (although he still did, rebounding more and assisting less), but he did need to keep things under control for the team, and he didn't do that as much as the team needed it.
4. Kevin Durant: B-
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Duran won himself another scoring title this year, but I expected him to be a little bit more this season.
With LeBron in Miami the MVP Award was ripe for the taking, and everyone expected Durant to snag it this season, along with another scoring title. Well, he grabbed the scoring title, but dropped off in the MVP race.
Part of this is because of his teammates being better this season, but part of it is his reduction in output, as all of his shooting percentages went down this season.
3. Dwight Howard: B
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Dwight Howard is the best player at the most important position in the NBA, but he could be so much more.
Howard could easily have the most dominant season by a center since Shaq's 30-13 season in the 1999-00 season, but he still isn't quite there.
Maybe I'm being too harsh on the guy. After all, it took Shaq until his eighth year in the league to get up to that point, while Dwight just finished his seventh season, but it would take a huge increase in output next year for him to get to Shaq levels.
2. LeBron James: A
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LeBron James has done what LeBron James does this season. He has filled up a stat sheet and played as he usually does all season long.
It may sound like I'm cutting down what he has done this season, but really there isn't much more that you can say about him at this point. There is no more left to say.
He is one of the best players in the NBA, the most exciting player to watch live, and will retire as one of the 25 best players in NBA history, barring something terrible happening.
If there is one thing I can say bad about him this year is that he has been far less physically this season, blocking only 50 shots and attempting nearly 100 fewer free throws. Otherwise, he has been his usual unbelievable self.
1. Derrick Rose: A+
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There are plenty of numbers out there to tell you that LeBron James is a better player than Derrick Rose, and if you want to go by numbers alone, then LeBron is your MVP by a slim margin.
However, if you actually watched and followed basketball this season beyond the stats, you will know that Rose defied logic all season long.
He held this team together through injuries to both Carlos Boozer and Joakim Noah, leading the Bulls to the best record in the NBA.
By all means this team should have finished in third at best, but because of Rose's magnificent play and leadership, they grabbed the best record in the league, and because of that, Derrick Rose is the best NBA player this season.
