The latest NBA Top 100 rankings released by ESPN have received a lot of flak from fans and analysts. Even the athletes themselves seem quite disappointed with the rankings. In particular, Russell Westbrook‘s 94th spot stunned a lot of NBA fans as most people believe that the Clippers point guard deserves a better positioning. Amidst all the chaos, during a recent episode of ‘The Old Man and the Three’ podcast, JJ Redick raised the curtain on an interesting process that goes on behind the scenes to compile this top 100 list.
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During the podcast, JJ shed light on the procedure that ESPN uses to compile this list, The former Philadelphia 76ers star also showed love to the Boston Celtics guard Derrick White, who was snubbed from the top 100 list. Redick looked shocked that White, who averaged 13.4 points per game in the last postseason, was not included on the list.
JJ Redick clears confusion about the ESPN Top 100 rankings
During the podcast, while discussing the star-studded Western Conference, JJ Redick switched to the Top 100 list and had a lot of questions about the ESPN rankings. However, to clear out the confusion in fans’ minds, Redick explained that the way ESPN comes up with the list is not by going through every name and sorting them as per skills.
Rather, an algorithm is supposedly run through “150 basketball experts” to pick a player between two random picks and the selected one moves to the next level. The rankings are decided in this bizarre and confusing manner. Redick said:
“There is an “expert panel” of 150 basketball people that are asked to rank these numbers. And years ago, they would simply rank the players, ‘here is my list, here is my 100 players list’. They use this format now, where its ‘who would you rather have for this upcoming season, player A or player B.’ And then there is an algorithm that spits out a new choice. And so, its not an actual ranking. Its not an actual list.”
Talking about Westbrook’s rank, Redick added that because it’s not a real list, it doesn’t matter whether somebody is 94th or 50th. Furthermore, Redick also expressed his disappointment with the absence of Derrick White. According to him, White’s last season’s performance in the playoffs surely makes him deserving enough to be featured on this list,
“But also, of this 150 people, who claim to be basketball experts, how is Derrick White not in the top 100? How is this possible? He is a top 50 player. What playoff games were you watching last season?”
There is no doubt that White’s 50% FG percentage in the playoffs last season warrants him a place in the Top 100 NBA players last year. And it’s not just Redick who is unhappy about Russ’ rank on the list. Even NBA legend Kenyon Martin Sr. blasted the rankings.
Kenyon Martin Sr. also blasted the Top 100 list for Russell Westbrook’s 94th spot
On Gilbert Arenas’ podcast, while discussing the Top 100 ESPN NBA list, the former Nuggets power forward Kenyon Martin Sr. sounded off on the topic. Like other fans and analysts, he voiced his disagreement with Russell Westbrook’s 94th spot on the list. He said,
“Show me f**kin’ 93 other people better than Russell Westbrook in the NBA. You got two people on the list that ain’t played one f**kin’ NBA minute.”
“Show me f**kin’ 93 other people better than Russell Westbrook in the NBA. You got two people on the list that ain’t played one f**kin’ NBA minute.”
Kenyon Martin poddin’? pic.twitter.com/8grGuPQ791
— Gilbert Arenas (@GilsArenaShow) October 15, 2023
Moreover, LeBron James at 9th, Russell Westbrook at 94th, Chris Paul at 76, the compilation of the list certainly seems messed up. However, Redick’s analogy does put a lot of possibilities on the table and surely gives a bunch of things to rethink about such rankings of players.
