29. Marc Gasol
Gasol is King of the High Post, as he averaged over two more elbow touches per game than any other player, averaged more assists from the elbow than any other player and ranked third in points per game from the elbow behind only Anthony Davis and Carmelo Anthony.

27. Paul Millsap
There's a good chance we're underestimating Millsap, as he's ranked inside the top 15 in ESPN's real plus-minus each of the past three seasons.

26. Kevin Love
If/when the Minnesota version of Love returns this season, just remember that we told you so. The Cavaliers played 136 minutes last season in which Love was on the floor without both LeBron James and Kyrie Irving. In that time, Cleveland outscored opponents by 10.1 points per 100 possessions with Love averaging over 33 points and 15 rebounds per 36 minutes with a usage rate over 40.

25. Kyrie Irving
Close your eyes and imagine Irving dancing with the rock and then scoring on a step back or dazzling finish at the rim. He does it all the time and the stats would agree with the eye test that there might not be a better scorer off the bounce. During the regular season, Irving had the highest effective field goal percentage on shots following seven or more dribbles among the players to take five such attempts per game. During the NBA finals last season, Irving attempted 10 such shots per game, nearly twice as many as any other player, and converted at a more than respectable clip of 49 percent on 2-pointers and 39 percent on 3s.

24. Blake Griffin
Maybe it's because he has missed so many games or doesn't dunk the way he used to, but Griffin has reached the point where he might be grossly underrated. Griffin, LeBron James and Kevin Durant are the only forwards who have posted a player efficiency rating of at least 22 in each of the past six seasons.

23. Mike Conley
Since entering the NBA in 2007-08, he has the most career win shares among players who have not made an All-Star team and has ranked in the top 6 among point guards in real plus-minus in three of the past four seasons.

21. Kyle Lowry
If you're wondering why Lowry comes in 18 spots ahead of DeMar DeRozan, here's a clue: When DeRozan was on the floor without Lowry last season, the Raptors were outscored by 0.4 points per 100 possessions. When Lowry played without DeRozan, the Raptors outscored teams by 10.8 points per 100 possessions.

20. Gordon Hayward
Hayward ranked 26th in the NBA in scoring last season, which is nice, but it's probably not something that makes you think "he could absolutely be the No. 1 option on a title contender" -- until you realize he did it on fewer than 16 attempts per game for a team that played at the NBA's slowest pace. If he scored at the same rate but took the same number of shots that Kyrie Irving needed to average 25.2 points, Hayward would have come in at 27.3 PPG, which would have ranked in the top five in the NBA in 2016-17.

18. Damian Lillard
Lillard just keeps getting better and has now increased his scoring and PER in each of his five seasons. He's coming off the best shooting season of his career while also posting his lowest turnover percentage. Although Portland had the misfortune of running into Golden State's buzzsaw each of the past two postseasons, Lillard averaged 30 points in those series. The only player to average more points against the Warriors over the past two postseasons is LeBron James.

17. DeMarcus Cousins
The idea of having either Cousins or Anthony Davis on the floor at all times for the Pelicans might be enticing on paper, even if it didn't work last season. When Cousins was on the floor without Davis, the Pelicans were outscored by 12.6 points per 100 possessions. Swap Davis for Cousins and the Pelicans outscored teams by 8.8 points per 100 possessions, a net swing of over 21 points. Though his talent is undeniable, Cousins still has not shown the ability to translate that talent into team success.

16. Nikola Jokic
Jokic posted a PER of 28.4 after Christmas last season, which ranked third behind 2016-17 MVP Russell Westbrook and All-NBA and all-defense selection Kawhi Leonard.

15. John Wall
Wall's struggles against Boston in the conference semifinals exposed somewhat of a limitation when it comes to executing in the half court. In fact, Wall ranked lower than every other player in our top 50 in points per play in the half court last season.

14. Rudy Gobert
Nobody protects the paint quite like Gobert, who contested a league-high 10.2 shots at the rim per game last season. Though Draymond Green won NBA Defensive Player of the Year, it was Gobert who led the league in defensive real plus-minus, finishing with the best mark by any player over the past three seasons.

11. Jimmy Butler
Butler is a late-game assassin as he posted a clutch-time PER of 44.5 last season, which ranked second in the NBA behind only Russell Westbrook. One of the game's best at drawing fouls, Butler sank 59 of 62 free throws in clutch situations last season. Butler should help cure some of Minnesota's late-game woes as the Wolves lost 12 games last season in which they led entering the fourth quarter. That was the most such losses by any team in the Western Conference.