Philadelphia 76ers starters in ESPN top 100 rankings

All five of the Philadelphia 76ers starters managed to crack another top 100 list of a major sports news outlet, this time at ESPN.

Earlier this offseason, Sports Illustrated (SI) came out with their top 100 NBA player rankings. All five of the Philadelphia 76ers starters made those rankings, but that wasn’t the last time all five be in a top-100 rankings. ESPN recently released their top 100 NBA player rankings and like with the SI rankings, all five starters made the cut for the ESPN rankings. Christopher Kline of The Sixer Sense wrote about SI’s rankings in the past as well.

Josh Richardson ranked 86th

After having a career season with the Miami Heat last year, it’s surprising to see that Richardson has a lower ranking than his previous one the season before. He is ranked right above Marcus Smart and and right below Paul Millsap. Richardson’s rankings is much lower than his 71st on the SI rankings, but he’s still worthy to be in the top-100 regardless of the major news outlet. Richardson will have a new role on the Sixers now, so his stats may take a slight decline.

Al Horford ranked 37th

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Despite being 33-years-old, Horford still cracked the top-40 players in the league. The Sixers new power forward only dropped three spots from his previous ranking. Draymond Green is ranked right behind Horford and Khris Middleton is right ahead of Horford in the rankings. Horford’s ESPN rankings is much lower than his SI ranking where he placed as the 18th best player in the NBA. Horford’s fit in the starting five could determine how well the 76ers season goes.

Tobias Harris ranked 29th

For the money that the Sixers paid Harris’ skills this summer, it makes sense that he’s in the top-30 of the ESPN rankings. The offensively versatile forward is ranked right above Devin Booker and right below Trae Young. Harris is 20 spots higher on the ESPN rankings than the SI rankings. Harris jumped 31 spots from last year’s on ESPN’s rankings and will be essential to Philly’s success this season. If he does improve, he could be in line a for an All-Star appearance.

Ben Simmons ranked 15th

Considering that Simmons is one the few players in the league that can flirt with a triple-double on any given night, it’s not surprising that he’s a top-15 player. The 6-fot-10 point guard ranks right above Luka Doncic and right below Rudy Gobert. SI has Simmons ranked 23rd and Simmons has risen four spots from last ESPN last rankings. If Simmons can add a jump shot, expect him to rise even higher next year.

Joel Embiid ranked 8th

If Embiid didn’t struggle with health, he might have been ranked higher. He’s an MVP level player if healthy. He’s ranked right ahead of Damian Lillard and right behind Nikola Jokic. Embiid’s seventh on SI’s rankings and he moved up two spots from ESPN’s previous rankings. If his conditioning and health prove to be consistent this season, then he could be in the top five next year.

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Agree with the rankings that ESPN had the Philadelphia 76ers? Comment below on where you think the five starters should land.