ESPN NBA Rank 2022: Mavs' Luka Doncic Top 3 Player in League
Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic has quickly emerged as one of the NBA's top players since entering the league in 2018. He has earned three consecutive All-NBA First-Team nods and holds the second-highest career playoff scoring average (32.5) behind only Michael Jordan.
How a player ranks compared to their peers will always be subjected. The perspective of a voter can bring bias or contrast in how they weigh certain qualities or accolades.
ESPN releases an annual ranking of the top 100 players in the NBA ahead of the upcoming season. For the 2022-23 season, Doncic ranked No. 3 overall on the list, an improvement by one from his placement on last year's edition. He ranked behind only Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Doncic earned his ranking largely due to being "arguably the best offensive weapon in the NBA" between his dynamic scoring ability and passing talent. The impact he makes in these areas is largely unparalleled.
"He's arguably the best offensive weapon in the NBA -- a threat to win scoring and assists titles who picks apart defenses with a blend of power, skill and savvy," Tim MacMahon wrote. "He's also a ruthless competitor, as evidenced by his unforgettable Game 7 demolition of the top-seeded Suns, when he single-handedly matched Phoenix's scoring total in the first half."
The Mavericks got off to a slow start in 2021-22 before finding a rhythm as one of the NBA's hottest teams. Doncic finished on an absolute tear and rallied to earn yet another All-NBA First-Team nod, but wasn't able to come away as the MVP. He's been relatively close for a few years, but a leap could come with better conditioning from the start of the season.
"Doncic has finished fourth, sixth and fifth in MVP voting the past three seasons, respectively," MacMahon wrote. "This could be the season that Doncic climbs to the top of the ballots, especially if he gets off to a strong start and Dallas claims a top-four spot in the competitive West."
"The Mavs went 32-12 -- a 60-win pace -- with Doncic in uniform after he returned from a three-week absence to heal his sprained ankle and work on his conditioning."
A big part of NBA player rankings and the MVP race is the narratives behind a player's current situation. The narrative entering this season is that Doncic is in great shape unlike last season and will have to carry a major load again for the Mavericks after Brunson's departure. He is also coming off a Western Conference Finals run instead of a second consecutive first-round exit.
You can follow Grant Afseth on Twitter at @GrantAfseth.
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