Ranking: The top players of the first ever In-Season Tournament
The inaugural In-Season Tournament was a resounding success, with the NBA’s television ratings for this time of the year up as fans were excited to watch basketball in December that was meaningful.
The Los Angeles Lakers ultimately came out victorious in the first edition of the IST, with LeBron James and Anthony Davis leading the way for the team. Both will rank very high on this list.
Part of what made the IST so interesting, though, was the fact that it was a smaller team that made it to the final to face Los Angeles, the Indiana Pacers. That’s what makes this type of tournament – one with a one-game knockout round through the championship – so exciting: Truly anyone can win it.
Still, the Lakers’ firepower proved too much for Indiana in the final, as Los Angeles defeated the Pacers 123-09.
Below, our ranking of the top players from the 2023-24 In-Season Tournament.
Domantas Sabonis (Sacramento)
Sacramento Kings big man Domantas Sabonis had a great showing in the In-Season Tournament, averaging 18.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 9.0 assists over five games. Unfortunately for him and Kings fans, it wasn’t enough to help Sacramento get out of the quarterfinals, as the team fell to the New Orleans Pelicans 127-117 in the first round of the knockout stage. It’s hard to fault Sabonis for that, though, as the lefty All-Star went off for 26 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists in that outing and had a plus-five plus/minus.
What’s interesting is that Sabonis performed well in the same competition that Tyrese Haliburton, the player that the Kings traded away to acquire Sabonis, absolutely demolished. Sabonis and the Kings are performing well, but it’s starting to become more apparent that the Pacers were the big winners of that deal. We’ll see how it plays out as both players remain young, but based on the current trajectory, that might be a trade Kings fans look back on not so fondly.
Joel Embiid (Philadelphia)
Despite the Philadelphia 76ers not getting out of the group stage of the In-Season Tournament this year, reigning league MVP Joel Embiid had a great showing in the competition, putting up 34.0 points, 12.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks over four games. Philadelphia went just 2-2 in In-Season Tournament play, however, losing to the Pacers and Cleveland Cavaliers to get eliminated before the knockout round. Embiid did go off against Indiana, scoring 39 points to go with 12 rebounds, six assists and three steals in the 132-126 defeat.
Luka Doncic (Dallas)
The Dallas Mavericks likewise did not make it out of the group stage of the In-Season Tournament, even despite Luka Doncic’s brilliance in the competition. Doncic averaged 33.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 6.3 assists in the IST over four games, a stretch in which Dallas went 2-2 to finish third in its group. Hopefully for Mavericks fans, the team has better luck come playoff time. Doncic’s best performance in the competition came against the Los Angeles Clippers when he exploded for 44 points on 17 for 21 shooting to go with six rebounds and six assists.
Kevin Durant (Phoenix)
Despite finishing second in their group, the Phoenix Suns made it to the knockout stage of the In-Season Tournament thanks to their plus-34 point differential. They ultimately did bow out of the competition, though, after a 106-103 defeat to Los Angeles in the quarterfinals. Even so, one-time league MVP Kevin Durant was spectacular in the competition, averaging 34.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 6.8 assists, including a 31-point, seven-rebound game in the quarterfinal defeat to the Lakers.
Devin Booker (Phoenix)
Durant’s teammate Devin Booker was likewise great in the In-Season Tournament, averaging 28.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 7.8 assists over four games in the competition, but his rough showing against the Lakers in the quarterfinals was too much for Phoenix to overcome, especially with Bradley Beal yet to debut for the Suns. Even in Booker’s worst game of the In-Season Tournament, though, he still had 21 points, 11 rebounds and six assists against L.A, albeit on six-for-16 shooting. He was still a plus-two on the evening and nearly came up with what would have been a game-changing steal on Austin Reaves late, with Phoenix down 105-103 and seconds remaining, but the Lakers got the benefit of a bizarre whistle that granted them a timeout instead.
De'Aaron Fox (Sacramento)
Kings star guard De’Aaron Fox had an enormous showing in the In-Season Tournament, averaging 34.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 7.5 assists over four games in the competition. It must be noted, however, that he did struggle in the loss to the Pelicans which left Sacramento eliminated in the quarterfinals, scoring 30 points but shooting 10 for 25 on the evening, turning the ball over six times and finishing with a minus-nine plus/minus.
Nikola Jokic (Denver)
The Denver Nuggets had a disappointing In-Season Tournament, finishing 2-2 with a minus-10 point differential, leaving them third in their group and out before the knockout stage. Even so, two-time league MVP Nikola Jokic put up huge numbers in the competition, averaging 32.3 points, 16.3 rebounds and 11.0 assists. Against the Houston Rockets in Denver’s final game of the competition, Jokic was especially great, scoring 38 points, securing 19 rebounds and dishing out eight assists to go with three steals. Making that performance even more eye-opening is the fact that it came in a 105-86 defeat for the Nuggets.
Damian Lillard (Milwaukee)
The Milwaukee Bucks just missed out on reaching the In-Season Tournament championship game, falling 128-119 to Indiana in the semi-final round. Still, it was a great competition for Damian Lillard, who averaged 28.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 7.0 assists in six games, shooting 50.0 percent from the floor and 51.1 percent from three. Milwaukee had been great in crunch time so far this season but some new-look-team kinks reared their ugly head late in the loss against the Pacers. Luckily for Bucks fans, the team has plenty of time to work those out before the playoffs begin.
Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee)
Like Lillard, Giannis Antetokounmpo was spectacular for the Bucks in the In-Season Tournament, averaging 29.0 points, 8.8 rebounds and 5.8 assists over six games in the competition. The Greek Freak shot 64.6 percent from the floor in the IST, too, exerting his dominance around the paint on a nightly basis. Even more impressively, Antetokounmpo’s play improved in the knockout games, where he put up 36.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists per game over two contests.
Anthony Davis (LA Lakers)
Anthony Davis soared up this list based on his performance in the final, in which he went off for 41 points, 20 rebounds, five assists and four blocks on 16-of-24 shooting. That’s where Indiana’s style of play could come back to hurt it come playoff time, as the Pacers simply had no answer for Davis’ brilliance down low. Of course, Davis makes a lot of opposing defenses look that bad. If he’s healthy, the Lakers are going to be one tough out this postseason.
Tyrese Haliburton (Indiana)
Despite the Pacers’ blowout loss in the final, Tyrese Haliburton deserves much credit for his performance in the competition, where he had fans truly wondering whether he’s already the best point guard in the league (at least if you don’t count Doncic as a pure point guard). His raw numbers were fantastic but he also came up with timely buckets and helped lead the Pacers’ charge to the final in a competition that not many expected Indiana to make it that far. Haliburton averaged 26.7 points and 13.3 assists over seven IST games.
LeBron James (LA Lakers)
How will this affect LeBron James’ already-pristine legacy? Tough to predict, but being able to say James was the MVP and champion of the inaugural In-Season Tournament is pretty cool, to say the least. Don’t be surprised if the MVP award for this competition is eventually named after James because his performance in its inaugural edition will give the IST validity for a very long time – as long as the NBA keeps having it. After all, the player who might go down as the league’s GOAT taking a first-time competition seriously enough to win it in its inaugural campaign will be fondly remembered.
James averaged 26.4 points, 8.0 rebounds and 7.6 assists in the IST, with his best performance coming in the quarterfinal against Phoenix, when the four-time league MVP had 31 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists to go with five steals as his Lakers knocked out Durant and the Suns.
