ESPN has come under fire from fans and players following the release of their annual Top 100 NBA players list.
Each year, the sports broadcasting giant brings together its brightest minds to carve out an extensive list of the NBA's top players.
As is the case with any list, every opinion and statement is subjective but this time around, many have been left puzzled with a number of the rankings.
Lakers superstar LeBron James was crowned No.1, which based on his NBA Finals performance is difficult to argue against, but the No.2 spot handed to his All-Star teammate Anthony Davis was a huge point of contention, especially as it came at the expense of the MVP of the last two seasons, Greek Freak Giannis Antetokounmpo who came in at No.3.
Davis is undoubtedly a superstar with No.2 potential but it's worth noting that Antetokounmpo, James Harden, Luka Doncic and Kawhi Leonard all finished ahead of him in last season's MVP voting.
https://twitter.com/espn/status/1337035570590212096
In other spots that left fans scratching their heads, former MVPs Kevin Durant (6) and Stephen Curry (8), who are both coming off injuries, were listed outside the top five.
It's easy to accept that their injuries may have played a part in a slightly lower ranking, but with Curry having won three championships and Durant with two in the past five years, it's hard to see how neither could crack the top five at least.
It was especially tough for Golden State Warriors fans to see Portland point-guard Damian Lillard ahead of Curry, with the two-time MVP getting the wood on him in recent times. Curry and the Warriors, with Durant injured for the series when he was a member of Golden State, famously swept Lillard's Trail Blazers in the 2019 Western Conference Finals. The Warriors also swept Portland in the 2017 NBA playoffs.
San Antonio star and four-time All-Star DeMar DeRozan was left so unhappy with his ranking of 82, he took to Twitter to let ESPN know about it.
"This was atrocious," ESPN host Chiney Ogwumike said on The Jump.
"This was blasphemy. DeMar DeRozan deserves some respect put on his name."
Although Lakers star Markieff Morris was happy his two teammates took out spots No.1 and No2., he was among a host of fans left unhappy with the overall list produced by ESPN, labelling it as "trash."
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ESPN NBA Player Rankings:
100. Joe Harris
99. Marcus Morris Sr
98. Otto Porter Jr
97. Derrick White
96. Marc Gasol
95. LaMarcus Aldridge
94. Jarrett Allen
93. Ricky Rubio
92. Mitchell Robinson
91. Seth Curry
90. Patrick Beverley
89. Joe Ingles
88. Jerami Grant
87. Buddy Hield
86. Brook Lopez
85. Danilo Gallinari
84. John Collins
83. Dejounte Murray
82. DeMar DeRozan
81. John Wall
80. Josh Richardson
79. Dennis Schroder
78. Aaron Gordon
77. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
76. Montrezl Harrell
75. Duncan Robinson
74. Myles Turner
73. Bojan Bogdanovic
72. PJ Tucker
71. Mike Conley
70. Steven Adams
69. D'Angelo Russell
68. OG Anunoby
67. Eric Bledsoe
66. Serge Ibaka
65. Blake Griffin
64. Kevin Love
63. TJ Warren
62. Bogdan Bogdanovic
61. Davis Bertans
60. Robert Covington
59. Tyler Herro
58. Goran Dragic
57. Tobias Harris
56. Zach LaVine
55. Christian Wood
54. Lonzo Ball
53. Jusuf Nurkic
52. Deandre Ayton
51. Michael Porter Jr
50. Domantas Sabonis
49. Spender Dinwiddie
48. Kemba Walker
47. Vitor Oladipo
46. Caris LeVert
45. Gordon Hayward
44. Draymond Green
43. Jaren Jackson Jr
42. Nikola Vucevic
41. Kristaps Porzingis
40. Fred VanVleet
39. Malcolm Brogdon
38. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
37. Marcus Smart
36. Russell Westbrook
35. Khris Middleton
34. De-Aaron Fox
33. Jrue Holiday
32. Jaylen Brown
31. Ja Morant
30. Kyle Lowry
29. Trae Young
28. Brandon Ingram
27. CJ McCollum
26. Rudy Gobert
25. Kyrie Irving
24. Pascal Siakam
23. Karl Anthony-Towns
22. Bradley Beal
21. Jamal Murray
20. Paul George
19. Zion Williamson
18. Donovan Mitchell
17. Devin Booker
16. Ben Simmons
15. Chris Paul
14. Joel Embiid
13. Bam Adebayo
12. Jimmy Butler
11. Jayson Tatum
10. Nikola Jokic
9. James Harden
8. Stephen Curry
7. Damian Lillard
6. Kevin Durant
5. Kawhi Leonard
4. Luka Doncic
3. Giannis Antetokounmpo
2. Anthony Davis
1. LeBron James
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