Ranking the Top 10 NBA Players Aged 25 and Under

The 2024 NBA Playoffs has been the time where we have officially seen a changing of the guard. The previous generation of stars, LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Steph Curry, were either unable to get their teams past the first round or missed the playoffs entirely. On the contrary, young stars like Tyrese Haliburton, Luka Doncic and Anthony Edwards have been thriving and are finally seeing playoff success, each getting their teams to the conference finals and putting up monster statlines while doing so. With the faces of the NBA making a transition, it is the perfect time to rank the league’s best players ages 25 and under.

10. Alperen Sengun

Age: 21

After three years of the Rockets being one of the league’s worst teams, their rebuild is finally showing promise after they finished with a record of 41-41 this season, and a large reason for the turnaround is Alperen Sengun. Hailed as “Baby Jokic,” Sengun established himself this season as one of the league’s best young centers, becoming just the second player 21 years or younger to ever average a 21/9/5 stat line. Sengun had his best year as a pro this year, with notable improvements to his scoring (14.8 to 21.1 points per game) and distributing (3.9 to 5.0 assist per game). These large statistical jumps saw him finish third in a competitive most improved player award race. His passing and creativity in the post are what gives him resemblance to Jokic’s game, and he is able to transform games through his electric playmaking ability. In just his third season, the sky is the limit for Sengun and his career trajectory.

9. Zion Williamson

Age: 23

While Zion has struggled much of his career to stay healthy, when he is on the court he is still the exciting player as advertised when drafted with the number one pick in 2019. This past season was Zion’s most successful in terms of availability as he only missed six games, which is the fewest he has missed in a season. However, his stats declined a bit this year with a dip in points (26.0 to 22.9) and rebounds (7.0 to 5.8) per game. With Brandon Ingram expected to leave the Pelicans this offseason, Zion has the opportunity to take the reins of the team and bring them great heights, but it all depends on Zion’s availability. If he is able to shut the haters up and keep his injuries and conditioning under control, he should certainly be on the path to superstardom that the Pelicans expected from him.

8. Tyrese Maxey

Age: 23

After trading James Harden to the Clippers, the 76ers could have been easily been a lottery team this season. Instead, Tyrese Maxey was able to step up and fill the void left from Harden in a big way. Maxey proved this year that sharing the rock with Harden was holding him back from reaching his full potential. His stats improved in every major category, as they went from 20.3 to 25.9 points per game, 2.9 to 3.7 rebounds per game, and 3.7 to 6.2 assists per game. Maxey was also forced to take the number one role on the team when Embiid went down with a torn meniscus, for two months and he did an impressive job of keeping the season from being lost by keeping them afloat while Embiid was out. This jump to stardom resulted in him receiving his first all-star nod, as well as the Most Improved Player award. Maxey’s emergence has given the City of Brotherly Love another exciting, homegrown star.

7. Ja Morant

Age: 24

While this past season has been a nightmare for Ja Morant after dealing with a 25-game suspension and season ending shoulder injury, he is still only 24 and is one of the leagues most explosive players. He uses his speed and acceleration to make himself a nightmare to defend, which has led to Ja having per game averages of 26.7 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 7.5 assists over the past three seasons. His play style has completely revitalized the Grizzlies franchise, leading them to their best season ever in 2022, finishing with a 56-26 record and the 2nd overall seed. As long as Ja is able to keep his decision making off the court under control, this year should be viewed as a hiccup for his career. Ja has proven when he is on the court he is able to take over games, and with time and gaining playoff experience he could certainly rise even further up this list.

6. Paolo Banchero

Age: 21

Paolo Banchero has been the star that the Orlando Magic have been missing for years. After being drafted somewhat surprisingly with the number one pick in 2022, Paolo quickly proved any doubts that scouts had wrong by winning the Rookie of the Year award. In Paolo’s second season as a pro, he has continued developing into a superstar. He earned his first all star nod with a 22/6/5 stat line, and helped lead the Magic to a 47-35 record and their first playoff berth in four years. Despite doing all this, he sadly seems to fly under the radar to casual fans due to the small market he plays in, but make no mistake, Paolo is a generational player whose scoring and playmaking abilities will give any team trouble defending him.

5. Tyrese Haliburton

Age: 24

After being shockingly traded by the Kings in 2022, Haliburton has turned the identity of the Indiana Pacers into an exciting, fast paced offensive team through his leadership and distributing play style. Haliburton plays with a traditional, pure point guard style that gets everyone on the team involved, as he leads the league in assists with 10.9 per game. This season he was placed in “best point guard in the Eastern conference” discussions, and he certainly made a convincing argument of that in this playoff series as he got the Pacers to the Eastern conference finals before going down prematurely with a hamstring injury. Halliburton is one of the best passers in the league, and as long as he is able to avoid injuries and slumps like the infamous one he had post all star break (shooting 21.3% from outside the arc), he is poised to continue being one of the leagues best point guards and passers for a long time.

4. Victor Wembanyama

Age: 20

In just his rookie year, Victor Wembamyama has more than lived up to all the pre draft hype as a generational prospect. Wemby had one of the best rookie seasons of all time with per game stats of 21.4 points; 10.6 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.2 steals, and a league leading 3.6 blocks per game. Wemby simply did all he was advertised to do, as he played elite defense, shot well from beyond the arc, and had ball handling ability never seen before from a seven footer. Another notable highlight from Wemby’s rookie year was his triple double against the Raptors in February, where he posted a stat line of 27 points, 14 rebounds and 10 blocks. A triple double statline of 25/10/5/10b is something that has not happened since Hakeem Olajuwon last did it in 1996, showing just how transcendent Wembanyama’s talent is. Wembanyama was so good this season that he won the Rookie of the Year award unanimously, as well as finishing second in voting for Defensive Player of the Year, in which the latter is an award that no rookie has ever won, making a second place finish astonishing. Wemby can simply do it all, and as long as his health stays in check he will likely be the top player on this list in no time.

3. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Age: 25

The development Shai has made over the past few seasons has been truly phenomenal. His lockdown defense and ability to drop 30 every night has made him the best player and leader on a young and exciting Oklahoma City team. Shai has been one of the biggest reasons that Oklahoma City has gone from the lottery in 2022 to finishing as the number one team in the Western conference in just three seasons. His per game averages of 30.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 2.0 steals (tied for league leading) this season placed him as the runner up for MVP voting behind Nikola Jokic. Shai has been the definition of consistency as he had the most 30 point games in the league, and the only thing holding him back is that he is lacking the offensive gear that other superstars have, as he still has not had a 50 point game in his career yet. If he is able to unlock that gear, he would be my personal number one on the list.

2. Luka Doncic

Age: 25

Luka Doncic has been on his way to being one of the faces of the league for a while now, but this season in particular feels like the one where he really solidified his footing as one of the greatest players alive right now. Luka put up one of the greatest stat lines ever seen in NBA history, becoming the first player to ever average 33/9/9. Luka’s basketball IQ, footwork and shooting ability are truly something special and allow him to be a threat to score 50 points on any given night. He finished third in MVP voting and made his fifth straight All-Star and All-NBA team to top off an incredible year. After a disappointing Mavs season last year where they failed to even make the playoffs, a lot of pressure was on Luka and the Mavs to right the ship. They have bounced back marvelously, as they are currently one win away from the NBA finals, which would be Luka’s first appearance. If Luka is able to win his first ring this season, he may be entering himself in all time discussions.

1. Anthony Edwards

Age: 22

Coming in at number one, I think Anthony Edwards is the most well rounded player in the league at 25 and under. Drawing comparisons to young Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant due to his style of play, Edwards has quickly established himself as a superstar and one of the best two way players in the league. Edwards can truly do it all, as he is one of the leagues best scorers, has some of the most explosive athleticism in the NBA, and he frequently creates stops on defense. The Timberwolves have had their most successful season as a franchise in two decades, and Edwards has helped play a large part in their triumphs. Edwards posted per game stat lines of 25.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 5.1 assists, and as a result he made his first all NBA team and has assisted the Timberwolves in the playoffs to making it to the conference finals. There is truly no ceiling for Edwards potential, he can truly be the face of the NBA if he keeps up his current trajectory. His athleticism, dunks and swagger already have him on trending topic lists every night.

Who do you think was the biggest snub from the list? Let me know in the comments.