Figuring out if Houston Rockets forward Kevin Durant was ranked correctly in the NBA Top 100 players ranking done by ESPN.
The Houston Rockets head into the 2026 season with an opportunity to take a step forward from a first-round exit last season as they have had young players progress as well as key players get healthy.
On that note, forward Kevin Durant will be a key part of this team this season, just like he was last year. When thinking about Durant, he is no question one of the more skilled scorers in the NBA, and it is worth wondering where he ranks as an overall player heading into 2026.
Recently, there was actually a ranking done by ESPN that ranked the top 100 NBA players heading into 2026. It is important to note that this ranking only considered regular-season performance, so Durant missing most of the Rockets' postseason series did not play a factor. In the ranking, Durant was placed at No. 13 overall, which raises one question. Was Kevin Durant ranked correctly by ESPN?
To answer the question, let's take a look at where Durant ranked heading into 2025 as well as the type of season he had in 2025.
Starting with Durant's ranking ahead of last season, he was ranked No. 9 overall, which means he did fall a few spots, but that is not something to worry about as there are so many talented players in the NBA, and it is difficult to consistently be a top 10 player every year.
In terms of Durant's statistical performance, he was great as he averaged 26 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 0.9 blocks, and 0.8 steals per game. When it comes to the efficiency for Durant he was excellent as he shot 52 percent from the field, 41.3 percent from three, and 87.4 percent from the free-throw line. Additionally, Durant played in 78 games which was one of the highest marks in his career.
So, when looking at how Durant played in 2025, it is evident that he played very well and it is no surprise that ESPN still ranked him as a top 15 player in the NBA.
Adding onto that, ESPN noted that Durant enters the 2026-2027 season on a four season streak where he is averaging at least 25 points per game and shooting 50 percent from the field and 40 percent from three while no other player has more than three of those seasons for their entire careers.
With that said, it is clear that Durant is still one of the best scorers in the entire NBA and has the ability to completely take over games if the Rockets' opponents are not careful.
So, the answer to if ESPN ranked Durant correctly is yes, because he showed he ability to still be an elite scorer in his 2025 campaign, but he is 38 years sold so there are some younger player ahead of him who have the ability to still get better and may have strong upside on both ends of the floor.
As Durant heads into the 2026 season, it will be intriguing to watch how he performs and if he continues to be the efficient and productive scorer that he is, because if he does he may be able to crack the top 10 heading into 2027.
