2 Wildcats among ESPN's Top 100-51 NBA players for 2023-24 season

NBA preseason action is already underway. The world received its first taste of generational talent and No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama in an NBA setting on Monday night, as the 7-foot-4 (!!!) rookie made his debut with the San Antonio Spurs. All he did was drop 20 points (8-13 FG; 2-5 3PT), five rebounds, two steals, and one block in just 19 minutes of action. He’s gonna be good.

But that’s not what we’re here to discuss. On Tuesday morning, ESPN unveiled its 13th annual NBArank, which predicts the Top 100 players for each upcoming season. The worldwide leader in sports rolled out the Top 100-51 first, with the rest of the player rankings set to be released in the near future. ESPN’s NBArank panel consists of “nearly 150 reporters, editors, producers and analysts,” who “were asked to rank players based on their predicted contributions — quality and quantity — for the 2023-24 season only.”

With 30 former Kentucky Wildcats named to training camp rosters, 2023-24 is going to be another season filled with storylines related to the blue and white. ESPN struck first with two former ‘Cats cracking their NBArank Top 100-51: Immanuel Quickley and Tyler Herro.

No. 92 | Immanuel Quickley (New York Knicks) Previously: NR
No. 79 | Tyler Herro (Miami Heat) Previously: No. 61

NBArank is BACK! 🔥

The full list of rankings 51-100 ➡️ https://t.co/j1vzUzCLO7 pic.twitter.com/cVNzWrAYFk

— ESPN (@espn) October 10, 2023

It’s no surprise to see Quickley slide into the Top 100. Heading into year four as a pro (all with the Knicks), the 24-year-old is coming off his best stretch in 2022-23. He appeared in 81 games for the Knicks (21 starts) and finished second in voting for Sixth Man of the Year. Quickley averaged career-highs in minutes (28.9), points (14.9), rebounds (4.2), and steals (1.0) per game. He also shot 44.8 percent from the field (up from 39.2 percent the year prior) and 37.0 percent from distance.

Going into 2023-24, IQ is looking at a potentially lucrative contract extension. He could net a $100 million-plus, multi-year contract — whether that be with the Knicks or somewhere else. His No. 92 ranking feels more than fair. Expectations are high for Quickley in the Big Apple.

As for Herro, he dropped 18 spots despite having arguably just as good of a season in 2021-22 (when he won Sixth Man of the Year) as he did in 2022-23, but with more starts. Still just 23 years old, Herro is about to enter year five in the NBA, all with the Heat. Last season, he averaged 20.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.2 assists in 34.9 minutes per outing. He started all 67 games he appeared in. Herro also posted shooting splits of 43.9/37.8/93.4 — his free-throw percentage led the entire league.

What likely cost Herro some spots in the NBArank was something he could not have prevented. During the first game of Miami’s first-round matchup in the Eastern Conference Playoffs against the Milwaukee Bucks, Herro broke his shooting and missed the entirety of the Heat’s run to the NBA Finals. Herro was also rumored as the main trade chip in a possible Damian Lillard trade all offseason long, which ultimately ended with Lillard being sent to Milwaukee and Herro staying put in South Beach.

Considering all of the star power that Kentucky has pumped into the NBA, expect to see several one-time ‘Cats named to ESPN’s Top 50.