BOSTON, MA - MARCH 6: Jaylen Brown #7 and Jayson Tatum #0 of the Boston Celtics talk during the game against the Dallas Mavericks on March 6, 2026 at TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Jesse D.

Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images Welcome to one of the larger and more preposterous playoff preview power poll projects I’ve ever attempted. We are ranking the Top 50 players in the NBA Playoffs, an utterly ridiculous effort that is, frankly, not possible to do responsibly. There is no methodology so sound that one person can rank 50 people; there is no theory so ironclad that it can avoid the rampant, harmful subjectivity of the recesses of my troubled mind.

So, without meaningfully explaining my definition of “Top 50” or a philosophy of value or any kind of scientific method, I’m going to do it anyway. Also check out our rankings of every team in the field by their championship chances.In an effort to not make this a million words, I have only given the Top 25 (spoiler alert: it’s actually 26, you’ll see why) players their own blurbs, and then grouped the back 25 (spoiler alert: it’s 24) together in some loose categories that I think capture the spirit of the exercise. In any case, lots about this will be demonstrably wrong, and I apologize that there is absolutely no way to avoid that.

Onwards! 1. Shai Gilgeous-AlexanderMade up award: The 2019 Carsen Edwards vs. Virginia “That shot is just going in” Award The best player in the world until someone else feels sufficiently inevitable with the ball in their hands.

Shai has achieved peak scoring excellence in that you just think his shot is always going in, and he scores at a volume, efficiency and location (over 77 percent of his shots are twos and he shoots 55.3 percent from the field … he’s a guard!) that simply shouldn’t be possible. He has the belt. 2. Nikola JokicMade up award: The Novak Djokovic Lifetime Achievement Award for Serbian Sports Excellence I debated whether Jokic or Victor Wembanyama would get the second spot, but their majestic head-to-head battle clinched it for the Joker.

The San Antonio Spurs are contenders for a number of reasons, the biggest (and tallest) one being Wemby. The Denver Nuggets are contenders for one reason and one reason only: Jokic, who could enter some seriously hallowed all-time ground if he grabs a second ring in a stacked West. 3. Victor WembanyamaMade up award: Voted “Most likely to record a quadruple double in the playoffs”Wemby and his precarious health have been treated carefully this year to maximize his impact and longevity, but the kid gloves are going to have to come off eventually.

When they do, he’s such an outlier that I would believe any statistical achievement if he plays 43 minutes. There have only been four quadruple doubles in NBA history, and yet I’d somehow be surprised if he wasn’t the fifth.4. Luka DoncicMade up award: The Bitcoin Award for Player Who Can Swing the Market the MostLuka’s availability after an unbelievably poorly timed hamstring injury is the great question mark of these playoffs.

If he can return, and actually be Luka Doncic, before the Lakers are eliminated? It’s a whole new ballgame for everyone. 5. Anthony EdwardsMade up award:The John Henry Award for Potentially Having to Dig a Tunnel through a MountainEdwards is everyone’s favorite young player who might be the next Michael Jordan — he’s electrifying and displays two-way brilliance that is rare for the modern scoring guard.

But he has his work positively cut out for him in these playoffs, needing to shake off some late-season injuries and then probably beat Denver, San Antonio and OKC all in a row just to make the NBA Finals. Best of luck.6. Donovan MitchellMade up award: The Ralph Fiennes “We need to get this guy an Oscar” AwardThis is a guy who has made the playoffs every year of his career but never made the Conference Finals, so fans are crying out for him to please get some hardware this time around.

I’ve always been bullish on Mitchell as an elite playoff guy, whose highs are high enough to beat literally anyone single-handedly. But he will need to do that consistently for once to get over the hump.7. Cade CunninghamMade up award: The Cade Cunningham “so likeable that his injury might kill the 65 game rule” Award Everyone was so in agreement that Cunningham deserved to be on the All-NBA First Team that we all collectively freaked out about the 65-game rule to try to salvage his candidacy before he was granted an exemption (which is probably the best reason to kill the rule).

Cunningham was the twin-turbo V8 engine that drove the Pistons to the number one seed, but may be leaned on too heavily to create shots with Detroit lacking a second scorer. 8. Jaylen Brow