NBA Player Rankings: The top 25 players for 2014-15
By Seth Partnow
Controversial and Divisive
Some players just bring out the debate-club in people. Should this guy play better defense? Should that guy pass more? Is he getting the most out of his talents? He’s a terrible teammate! Few players engender quite the degree of “Hot Take Theater” of the next four players on the list:
17. John Wall – If I had to pick one guy on this list most likely to make a big jump, it’s Wall. The #1 overall pick of the 2010 Draft has finally started to deliver on his vast promise. In his fourth season, Wall added a passable three-point shot, making 35% from deep while taking over 100 more threes than he had in his first three seasons combined. He has lost none of his electric speed, which was a big part of why he was the most proficient player in the league at getting his teammates open corner three looks, an immensely valuable skill in today’s game. The next big jump will be if he can just stop shooting those damned two-point jumpers early in the shot clock.
16. James Harden – Look, he’s every bit the terrible defender that people say he is. Even on Team USA duty, the bizarre lapses in effort an concentration plagued him during the World Cup. However, the degree of scrutiny he’s received for his defense has obscured to a great degree his offensive brilliance. His style isn’t always pretty, what with the reliance of looking to draw contact and free throw attempts more than making baskets, but Harden is one of the more dynamic
15. Russell Westbrook – Let Russ be Russ. The Thunder need him to do everything, and he does it, even if it’s not always in the most armchair coach-approved manner. By the far the player most likely to start an ugly argument when his name comes up, there’s nothing I can say that will change your mind about him one way or the other.
14. DeMarcus Cousins – Throughout his NBA career, Cousins has cut something of a tragic figure. Beset by poor ownership and management over his first several years in Sacramento, things were finally looking up last year as the Cousins/Isaiah Thomas/Rudy Gay triumvirate played .500 ball when all three were healthy. So of course the Kings decided to replace Thomas with the vastly inferior Darren Collison. More bad times ahead. At the same time, Cousins’ image got a nice polish with his involvement in Team USA”s gold medal-winning World Cup, as questions of his “attitude” started to fade. That “attitude” has always been the product of a intense competitor stuck in losing situations. Unfortunately, again through no fault of his own, Sacto is right back to square one. Expect to see a LOT of Angry Boogie this season, but he’ll be putting up mammoth numbers as he rages.