Points Gained Metrics for Wings and Ball Handlers from JWoo’s Top 100
Posted: May 30th, 2025, 3:13 pm
Since I didn’t do my mid-season positional ranks the last couple seasons, I thought it would be fun to point out all the ways JWoo’s implied positional rankings this season were wrong. I should also say, this has nothing to do with my draft pick situation. As follows, are the Points Gained (™) stats for the implied positional rankings, where I have maintained the current sort order. I have also included some bonus Blazers just so you all can see how much they sucked last year.
Notes:
Kyrie and Luka are indeed 1 and 2, albeit in reverse order, all as a virtue of how efficient Kyrie was scoring the ball last season. He posted the highest points per possession number of all the players in this tranche, and on the second highest volume (to Myles Turner). The next tightly bunched group is ordered correctly (Fultz, Murray, and Ball), although I have Cade higher than all of them. Other bones to pick - Tyus Jones, James Harden, Gary Payton II, Fred VanVleet, and Ricky Rubio are all much too low. Fox and SGA had kind of mediocre seasons. I also included Jerian Grant here for my own edification and he came in dead last, so you know I’m being honest and accurate.
Notes:
First I think it’s worth pointing out that the top end talent here is not as impactful as that at PG or SF, which is a pattern that's borne out the last few years. My top SG last season was Jalen Green, followed closely by Jaden McDaniels and Mikal Bridges, to my mild surprise. Young guys taking over the position! There’s definitely some over-rating of Devin Booker here going on, who I have as the ninth best guy at the position. Shabazz played mostly SG last year so I included him in this data set as well, where he finished twelfth. Unrelatedly, I turned down his re-signing offer starting at $16,500,000.
Notes:
Gordon, Turner, and Ojeleye come out as the third, fourth, and fifth most impactful players of this broader group, behind only the top two PGs. Raptors check in - Scottie Barnes: underrated. Amen Thompson: properly rated. Jabari Parker and Derrick Jones Jr both outplayed their rankings at least in terms of box score stats. That Lauri guy had a trash season. I kept Shabazz in this data set as well, to illustrate the additional production expected from SFs on the defensive end. Finally, the SF group had the lowest average points per possession figure of the three positions here, just by a hair, but per the Shabazz point, has the most outsized potential defensive impact.
PGs
| Original Rank | Name | Possessions Used | Total Points | Raw PPP | Points Gained Offense | Points Gained Defense | D Points Gained Per Min | Total Points Gained | Points Gained per Minute | Total Points Gained per Game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luka Doncic | 2271.880 | 2462.400 | 1.084 | 304.114 | 123.259 | 0.046 | 427.373 | 0.158 | 5.936 |
| 2 | Kyrie Irving | 2543.280 | 2927.400 | 1.151 | 511.284 | 23.343 | 0.007 | 534.627 | 0.167 | 6.520 |
| 3 | Markelle Fultz | 1903.080 | 2096.000 | 1.101 | 288.074 | 13.350 | 0.004 | 301.424 | 0.100 | 3.768 |
| 4 | Jamal Murray | 1801.600 | 1931.200 | 1.072 | 219.680 | 23.380 | 0.009 | 243.060 | 0.092 | 3.423 |
| 5 | LaMelo Ball | 1906.000 | 2000.000 | 1.049 | 189.300 | 68.037 | 0.022 | 257.337 | 0.084 | 3.217 |
| 6 | Jalen Brunson | 2451.320 | 2591.200 | 1.057 | 262.446 | -134.720 | -0.045 | 127.726 | 0.043 | 1.558 |
| 7 | De'Aaron Fox | 1924.440 | 1869.600 | 0.972 | 41.382 | -7.342 | -0.002 | 34.040 | 0.011 | 0.415 |
| 8 | Cade Cunningham | 2128.400 | 2369.800 | 1.113 | 347.820 | 15.947 | 0.005 | 363.767 | 0.125 | 4.436 |
| 9 | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | 2189.780 | 2125.100 | 0.970 | 44.809 | 5.212 | 0.002 | 50.021 | 0.016 | 0.633 |
| 10 | Jrue Holiday | 1851.760 | 1992.600 | 1.076 | 233.428 | -96.482 | -0.030 | 136.946 | 0.043 | 1.670 |
| 11 | Tyus Jones | 1737.200 | 1785.400 | 1.028 | 135.060 | 34.380 | 0.011 | 169.440 | 0.057 | 2.145 |
| 12 | Tyrese Maxey | 2094.760 | 2255.000 | 1.076 | 264.978 | -102.053 | -0.035 | 162.925 | 0.056 | 1.987 |
| 13 | James Harden | 1867.000 | 1976.200 | 1.058 | 202.550 | 56.321 | 0.020 | 258.871 | 0.093 | 3.157 |
| 14 | Gary Payton II | 1450.680 | 1493.800 | 1.030 | 115.654 | 52.457 | 0.018 | 168.111 | 0.057 | 2.183 |
| 15 | D'Angelo Russell | 2086.040 | 2123.800 | 1.018 | 142.062 | -52.195 | -0.016 | 89.867 | 0.028 | 1.096 |
| 16 | Isaac Bonga | 1146.680 | 992.200 | 0.865 | -97.146 | 238.650 | 0.085 | 141.504 | 0.051 | 1.726 |
| 17 | Reed Sheppard | 1655.160 | 1593.900 | 0.963 | 21.498 | 16.587 | 0.007 | 38.085 | 0.016 | 0.495 |
| 18 | Tyrese Haliburton | 1683.400 | 1738.400 | 1.033 | 139.170 | -29.179 | -0.010 | 109.991 | 0.038 | 1.341 |
| 19 | Jalen Suggs | 1837.280 | 1836.800 | 1.000 | 91.384 | 27.158 | 0.009 | 118.542 | 0.041 | 1.446 |
| 20 | Fred VanVleet | 414.220 | 437.900 | 1.057 | 44.391 | 19.860 | 0.019 | 64.251 | 0.060 | 2.216 |
| 21 | Ricky Rubio | 1637.280 | 1736.000 | 1.060 | 180.584 | -7.942 | -0.003 | 172.642 | 0.065 | 2.466 |
| 22 | Cory Joseph | 1344.720 | 1264.000 | 0.940 | -13.484 | -33.488 | -0.013 | -46.972 | -0.018 | -0.595 |
| 23 | Dyson Daniels | 1689.280 | 1621.200 | 0.960 | 16.384 | 2.143 | 0.001 | 18.527 | 0.007 | 0.221 |
| 24 | Lonzo Ball | 1294.540 | 1162.700 | 0.898 | -67.113 | 130.233 | 0.044 | 63.120 | 0.021 | 0.820 |
| 25 | Lou Williams | 1605.600 | 1640.100 | 1.021 | 114.780 | -42.559 | -0.022 | 72.221 | 0.037 | 1.017 |
| 26 | Jerian Grant | 1264.280 | 1216.800 | 0.962 | 15.734 | -91.107 | -0.033 | -75.373 | -0.027 | -1.047 |
Notes:
Kyrie and Luka are indeed 1 and 2, albeit in reverse order, all as a virtue of how efficient Kyrie was scoring the ball last season. He posted the highest points per possession number of all the players in this tranche, and on the second highest volume (to Myles Turner). The next tightly bunched group is ordered correctly (Fultz, Murray, and Ball), although I have Cade higher than all of them. Other bones to pick - Tyus Jones, James Harden, Gary Payton II, Fred VanVleet, and Ricky Rubio are all much too low. Fox and SGA had kind of mediocre seasons. I also included Jerian Grant here for my own edification and he came in dead last, so you know I’m being honest and accurate.
SGs
| Name | Possessions Used | Total Points | Raw PPP | Points Gained Offense | Points Gained Defense | D Points Gained Per Min | Total Points Gained | Points Gained per Minute | Total Points Gained per Game | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zach LaVine | 1859.040 | 1902.400 | 1.023 | 136.312 | 71.664 | 0.023 | 207.976 | 0.067 | 2.536 |
| 2 | Jalen Green | 1996.800 | 2156.600 | 1.080 | 259.640 | 9.204 | 0.003 | 268.844 | 0.093 | 3.279 |
| 3 | Devin Booker | 2101.940 | 2178.900 | 1.037 | 182.057 | -33.894 | -0.011 | 148.163 | 0.047 | 1.829 |
| 4 | Donovan Mitchell | 1976.780 | 2080.500 | 1.052 | 202.559 | -1.042 | -0.000 | 201.517 | 0.072 | 2.761 |
| 5 | Josh Okogie | 1167.400 | 1226.500 | 1.051 | 117.470 | 31.502 | 0.017 | 148.972 | 0.079 | 2.709 |
| 6 | Anthony Edwards | 1855.840 | 1910.600 | 1.030 | 147.552 | 41.952 | 0.015 | 189.504 | 0.068 | 2.311 |
| 7 | Jaden McDaniels | 1906.360 | 2025.400 | 1.062 | 214.358 | 48.509 | 0.017 | 262.867 | 0.093 | 3.206 |
| 8 | Mikal Bridges | 1691.440 | 1820.400 | 1.076 | 213.532 | 32.328 | 0.011 | 245.860 | 0.085 | 2.998 |
| 9 | Jalen Williams | 1907.260 | 1940.400 | 1.017 | 128.503 | 6.470 | 0.002 | 134.973 | 0.050 | 1.753 |
| 10 | Victor Oladipo | 1195.120 | 1172.600 | 0.981 | 37.236 | 11.421 | 0.006 | 48.657 | 0.023 | 0.593 |
| 11 | Lonnie Walker | 1577.800 | 1562.400 | 0.990 | 63.490 | -61.990 | -0.027 | 1.500 | 0.001 | 0.021 |
| 12 | Gradey Dick | 1809.600 | 1886.000 | 1.042 | 166.880 | -19.310 | -0.007 | 147.570 | 0.050 | 1.800 |
| 13 | Austin Reaves | 1354.120 | 1372.800 | 1.014 | 86.386 | -44.116 | -0.022 | 42.270 | 0.021 | 0.542 |
| 14 | Tyler Herro | 1768.860 | 1895.400 | 1.072 | 214.983 | -39.272 | -0.014 | 175.711 | 0.065 | 2.169 |
| 15 | Shabazz Muhammad | 2212.140 | 2257.500 | 1.021 | 155.967 | -28.567 | -0.010 | 127.400 | 0.044 | 1.699 |
Notes:
First I think it’s worth pointing out that the top end talent here is not as impactful as that at PG or SF, which is a pattern that's borne out the last few years. My top SG last season was Jalen Green, followed closely by Jaden McDaniels and Mikal Bridges, to my mild surprise. Young guys taking over the position! There’s definitely some over-rating of Devin Booker here going on, who I have as the ninth best guy at the position. Shabazz played mostly SG last year so I included him in this data set as well, where he finished twelfth. Unrelatedly, I turned down his re-signing offer starting at $16,500,000.
SFs
| Name | Possessions Used | Total Points | Raw PPP | Points Gained Offense | Points Gained Defense | D Points Gained Per Min | Total Points Gained | Points Gained per Minute | Total Points Gained per Game | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aaron Gordon | 2354.600 | 2616.000 | 1.111 | 379.130 | 54.211 | 0.018 | 433.341 | 0.144 | 5.417 |
| 2 | Myles Turner | 2572.960 | 2870.000 | 1.115 | 425.688 | 34.309 | 0.011 | 459.997 | 0.144 | 5.610 |
| 3 | Semi Ojeleye | 1836.260 | 2093.500 | 1.140 | 349.053 | 95.718 | 0.032 | 444.771 | 0.148 | 5.630 |
| 4 | Kawhi Leonard | 1878.300 | 1903.900 | 1.014 | 119.515 | 52.321 | 0.018 | 171.836 | 0.061 | 2.175 |
| 5 | Otto Porter Jr. | 1756.040 | 1978.900 | 1.127 | 310.662 | -18.170 | -0.006 | 292.492 | 0.100 | 3.799 |
| 6 | Kevin Durant | 1810.120 | 1902.400 | 1.051 | 182.786 | 58.268 | 0.022 | 241.054 | 0.090 | 2.940 |
| 7 | Shabazz Muhammad | 2212.140 | 2257.500 | 1.021 | 155.967 | -109.206 | -0.038 | 46.761 | 0.016 | 0.623 |
| 8 | Kelly Oubre Jr. | 2066.440 | 2050.000 | 0.992 | 86.882 | 98.392 | 0.034 | 185.274 | 0.064 | 2.259 |
| 9 | LeBron James | 1406.220 | 1462.500 | 1.040 | 126.591 | 89.009 | 0.033 | 215.600 | 0.080 | 2.875 |
| 10 | Marvin Bagley III | 1632.520 | 1753.800 | 1.074 | 202.906 | -16.658 | -0.006 | 186.248 | 0.071 | 2.517 |
| 11 | Michael Porter Jr. | 1879.040 | 1879.800 | 1.000 | 94.712 | 24.658 | 0.009 | 119.370 | 0.044 | 1.530 |
| 12 | Scottie Barnes | 1015.160 | 1152.000 | 1.135 | 187.598 | -17.403 | -0.011 | 170.195 | 0.103 | 3.546 |
| 13 | Jaylen Brown | 1802.120 | 1869.600 | 1.037 | 157.586 | -107.385 | -0.038 | 50.201 | 0.018 | 0.661 |
| 14 | Ben Simmons | 1279.480 | 1082.400 | 0.846 | -133.106 | 198.073 | 0.077 | 64.967 | 0.025 | 0.792 |
| 15 | Jabari Parker | 2308.280 | 2427.200 | 1.052 | 234.334 | 41.678 | 0.014 | 276.012 | 0.092 | 3.366 |
| 16 | Jayson Tatum | 1569.040 | 1624.000 | 1.035 | 133.412 | -24.950 | -0.012 | 108.462 | 0.054 | 1.870 |
| 17 | Amen Thompson | 1753.280 | 1752.000 | 0.999 | 86.384 | 34.825 | 0.011 | 121.209 | 0.039 | 1.515 |
| 18 | Derrick Jones Jr. | 1281.720 | 1320.300 | 1.030 | 102.666 | 85.470 | 0.029 | 188.136 | 0.065 | 2.323 |
| 19 | Dillon Brooks | 1541.360 | 1558.000 | 1.011 | 93.708 | -18.628 | -0.007 | 75.080 | 0.026 | 0.916 |
| 20 | Paul George | 1335.700 | 1409.400 | 1.055 | 140.485 | -30.877 | -0.011 | 109.608 | 0.038 | 1.353 |
| 21 | Lauri Markkanen | 1716.260 | 1661.400 | 0.968 | 30.953 | -51.863 | -0.019 | -20.910 | -0.008 | -0.295 |
| 22 | Josh Hart | 1017.200 | 972.000 | 0.956 | 5.660 | 67.602 | 0.026 | 73.262 | 0.028 | 0.904 |
| 23 | Chris Boucher | 787.960 | 695.200 | 0.882 | -53.362 | 150.562 | 0.063 | 97.200 | 0.041 | 1.230 |
| 24 | Matisse Thybulle | 222.320 | 204.600 | 0.920 | -6.604 | 54.753 | 0.033 | 48.149 | 0.029 | 0.730 |
| 25 | Denzel Valentine | 1215.040 | 1224.500 | 1.008 | 70.212 | -91.035 | -0.035 | -20.823 | -0.008 | -0.264 |
| 26 | Trey Murphy III | 797.320 | 841.800 | 1.056 | 84.346 | -92.040 | -0.057 | -7.694 | -0.005 | -0.126 |
| 27 | Caleb Martin | 1420.360 | 1401.400 | 0.987 | 52.058 | -16.812 | -0.006 | 35.246 | 0.013 | 0.387 |
Notes:
Gordon, Turner, and Ojeleye come out as the third, fourth, and fifth most impactful players of this broader group, behind only the top two PGs. Raptors check in - Scottie Barnes: underrated. Amen Thompson: properly rated. Jabari Parker and Derrick Jones Jr both outplayed their rankings at least in terms of box score stats. That Lauri guy had a trash season. I kept Shabazz in this data set as well, to illustrate the additional production expected from SFs on the defensive end. Finally, the SF group had the lowest average points per possession figure of the three positions here, just by a hair, but per the Shabazz point, has the most outsized potential defensive impact.