2016-17 NBA player rankings: 20-11
Who were the top 30 players of the 2016-17 season, and how does the end-of-season list compare to preseason expectations? theScore's seven NBA editors cumulatively ranked the league's stars based solely on their 2016-17 performances, and came up with the following:
Related - 2016-17 NBA player rankings: 30-21
20. Paul George (Preseason rank: 9)
George was among the game's best two-way wings again even as he seemed to ease up on the gas pedal for the first two-thirds of the season. Since the All-Star break, though, he was completely out of his mind, averaging better than 26 points while posting a 62-percent true shooting mark, with elite rebounding and defense. - Joe Wolfond
19. Marc Gasol (Preseason: 25)
The younger Gasol brother certainly proved he can adapt to the ever-changing climate of NBA basketball. In his first eight seasons with the Grizzlies, the 7-footer connected on a combined 12 3-pointers. In 2016-17, he drilled over eight times that number (104). - Chris Walder
18. Kyle Lowry (Preseason: 11)
Even in a golden age of point guards, Lowry earned his third All-Star appearance in four years, and was well on his way to a second straight All-NBA selection before a wrist injury cost him a quarter of the season. The 31-year-old enjoyed another career-year, joining Stephen Curry, LeBron James, and Larry Bird as players who've averaged at least 22 points, seven assists, and four rebounds while shooting 40-plus percent from deep. - Joseph Casciaro
17. Draymond Green (Preseason: 13)
Most people justifiably expected the Warriors' defense to fall off when Kevin Durant went down. Instead, it markedly improved, and the team put together perhaps its most impressive run of the season as Green took over as the do-it-all defensive anchor and sometime small-ball center. He makes every lineup iteration work with his combination of speed, strength, vision, and smarts, and even in a down shooting year, he's been the straw that stirs the Warriors drink. - Joe Wolfond
16. Karl-Anthony Towns (Preseason: 15)
Towns is the first player since Tim Duncan 15 years ago - and just the 15th player ever - to score over 2,000 points and grab over 1,000 rebounds in a season, and he's the first to do so while also making 100 3-pointers to boot. - Chris Walder
15. Chris Paul (Preseason: 6)
Like Lowry, Paul would soar up this list had he not lost a quarter of the season to injury. Nevertheless, when he was on the court, the Point God lived up to his billing as the best two-way point guard on the planet, and a perennial MVP threat for stat-heads, as Paul led the league by a healthy margin in ESPN's Real Plus-Minus. - Joseph Casciaro
14. DeMarcus Cousins (Preseason: 10)
A bit of the shine came off Cousins when his move to New Orleans failed to pay immediate dividends, but don't let that take away from his extraordinary season. Few bigs have ever showcased the combination of shooting, passing, ballhandling, and post dominance he displayed this year with the Kings and Pelicans. - Joe Wolfond
13. Rudy Gobert (Preseason: Honorable mention)
Who led the NBA in defensive real plus-minus, defensive rating, defensive win shares, and block percentage this season? It was The Stifle Tower - the man at the helm of the No. 3 defense in the league, and the reason why opponents scored 6.9 fewer points per 100 possessions when he was on the court. - Chris Walder
12. DeMar DeRozan (Preseason: 28)
DeRozan may not be Toronto's best guard, but durability should be valued, and it was DeMar's incredible, nightly scoring exploits that guided the Raptors through what could've been a season-squandering injury to Lowry.
After signing the third-largest contract in NBA history and winning gold in Rio, the 27-year-old responded with yet another career-year - and one of the finest in franchise history - averaging roughly 27 points, five rebounds, and four assists for a 51-win team that lost more value to injury than any other squad. - Joseph Casciaro
11. John Wall (Preseason: 18)
Healthy for the entire season after undergoing surgical procedures on both knees last spring, Wall at last delivered on the promise he's been teasing the past few years. This season, he was his fully realized self: an open-court world-eater and improved off-the-bounce shooter with incredible passing instincts and court vision. When he's locked in, there's still no better man-to-man point guard defender. He is equal parts brawn and brain, and his season was a master class in controlled aggression. - Joe Wolfond
(Photos courtesy: Action Images)