TNT's Kenny Smith Disrespects Luka Doncic in Player Rankings

The "Inside the NBA" crew released their ratings of the top players in the NBA, and Kenny Smith placed Doncic shockingly low

May 26, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) reacts in the first quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves during game three of the western conference finals for the 2024 NBA playoffs at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The NBA season has tipped off, with the regular season starting Thursday night for the Dallas Mavericks. Many publications have released their annual player rankings lists in preparation for the season. Luka Doncic has been in the top two or three of the majority of lists, but not all of them.

Bleacher Report has unveiled the top 50 players in the NBA as voted on by TNT's "Inside the NBA" crew of Shaquille O'Neal, Charles Barkley, and Kenny Smith. While Doncic's average ranking put him in third behind Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo, his breakdown was outlandish.

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Charles Barkley ranked Doncic the highest of the three personalities, placing the MVP favorite second. Shaq was in the same range, placing Doncic third. Kenny Smith ranked Doncic sixth behind Giannis, LeBron James, Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Joel Embiid.

LeBron is entering his 22nd season, and it'd be hard for him to be the second-best player in the NBA at that age. At the same time, Embiid has already admitted he's likely not playing both games in a back-to-back situation, so he may not be represented in the awards at the end of the year.

While they didn't provide any rationale behind the rankings, Bleacher Report's Andy Bailey even said, "We might be getting sort of numb to the outrageous production of Luka Doncic... In just about any other era of NBA basketball, he'd be a no-brainer pick for No. 1. He just happens to be nearing his prime when two players who are top 15-20 all-time are already in theirs."

Doncic is entering the season as the favorite to win MVP on most betting sites, using momentum from an absurd 2023-24 regular season and a run to the 2024 NBA Finals to set him up for this season.

The only other Maverick to appear in the rankings was Kyrie Irving, who checked in 18th. Once again, Kenny Smith ranked him much lower than the rest, putting him 30th, while Barkley had him 18th and Shaq had him 17th.

READ MORE: Mavericks’ Luka Doncic Favorite to Win 2024-25 NBA MVP

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