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As the 2011-12 season takes shape, it’s time to rank the best basketball players in the world. During the lockout, ESPN came up with a pseudo list to categorize the top players in the game. The problem? It was inaccurate. Why? It had little to do with basketball and more to do about nostalgia (Duncan and Nash), personal vendettas (Kobe and Melo), and hyping personal favorites (D-Wade and LeBron). Naturally, any list is likely to stir debate; however, the ESPN list was designed to reshape how the public views certain players—instead of actually ranking  players based on ability. To take a different approach, we constructed a list based on a player’s current ability along with a variety of intangible qualities that are difficult to quantify (such as a player’s ability to take over a game, convert field goals with a high degree of difficulty on a regular basis, etc.). So, let’s take a look at the league’s top 20 players in 2012:

20. Rudy Gay: A rising star on a rising team. With an $85 million contract, the Grizzlies are banking on him to climb higher in the rankings—and move his team deeper into the playoffs.

19. LaMarcus Aldridge: At 22.7 points a game Aldridge is blazing a trail of progress that keeps his stock rising in the Beaver State.

18. Andrew Bynum: Early in his career, Bynum was given a chance to start and went 8-8 from the floor against the New York Knicks. At that point, it was clear that Bynum had the tools to develop into a high level player. The problem? Phil Jackson decided to start Kwame Brown ahead of the young center until he was shipped out for Gasol. Today, Bynum is the second best center in the league—and he’s only getting better.

17: Monta Ellis: As the game’s third best shooting guard, it’s only fitting that Ellis breaks the top 20. After all, he averaged 24.1 points per game last year and is league’s seventh best scorer early into the 2012 season.

16. Rajon Rondo: Rondo controls tempo of the game and drops the rock in the right spot to an aging group of stars to keep the Celtics on the periphery of contention. If he ever gets a jumper, he might hurdle over a couple of the players ahead of him.

15. Chris Bosh: Although he’s not the best player on the Miami Heat roster, this 2008 US Olympic champion averaged 24.0 points per game in the year before he took his talents to South Beach. Now, he’s the second leading scorer on the team with 20.o points per game on 51% shooting.

14. Russel Westbrook: Westbrook is taking big strides in becoming a top tier player. If he continues to improve, look for him to join three other point guards to represent the United States at the 2012 Olympic games in London.

13. Amare Stoudomire: Amare is a beast—and among the most underrated players in the game. With the evolution of Kevin Love’s game and the meteoric rise of Blake Griffin, however, one must wonder if Amare can crack the top 10 again.

12. Kevin Love: A rebounding machine becomes a lethal scorer and three-point threat? Question Kevin Love all you want, but 25.6 points a game and 14.3 points per game indicate he’s evolving into a legit superstar. As Ricky Rubio becomes more acclimated to the NBA game, get ready to watch these two become a dynamic tandem that propels the T-Wolves into the playoffs—someday.

11. Blake Griffin: There’s no limit to how high this guy can fly. Teamed with CP3, watch for the Clippers to take flight as Griffin continues to leap out of the building—and right into the postseason.

10. Derron Williams: D-Will is a franchise player looking to join another franchise player to get a ring. Will he get help from D-Howard or will head West to join the Black Mamba?

9. Dirk Nowitzki: The best shooting seven-footer in NBA history certainly cracks the top 10. After taking two months off and coming in slightly out of shape, however, he showed everyone how he lacks one of those intangibles qualities that keeps him from becoming a truly elite players. In other words, Kobe and LeBron hit the weight room over the summer while Dirk decided it was too taxing to prepare for the 2012 season. Did anyone spot Dirk and Pau kickin’ it on the beach in the Basque Coast during the lockout?

8. Carmelo Anthony: Who needs defense when you can score like Melo? Silky smooth on the offensive end and one of the game’s top three closers, Melo is clearly one of the game’s elite players.

7. Dwayne Wade: A top five player until D-Rose blossomed into a superstar and CP3 reminded everyone that he’s game’s best point guard. Nonetheless, D-Wade remains among the game’s top tier players—and is in a good position to lead the Miami Heat to the finals in 2012.

6. Chris Paul: With incredible court vision and blistering speed, there’s no one better at managing a game and getting easy baskets for his teammates. Now, he’s surrounded with real talent. As a result, watch CP3 move into the MVP conversation as the season moves forward.

5. Dwight Howard: There is no greater degree of separation among players at a particular position. The three-time defensive player of the year and perrennial MVP candidate makes the Magic a force in East—until his inevitable move to the Westside creates a seismic shift in the NBA landscape.

4. Derrick Rose: The reigning MVP is simply one of the best in the game. Like Kobe, D-Rose is one of the few players in the league whom is able to put a team on his back down the stretch and score from nearly anywhere on the floor—and he’s only 23 years old.

3. Kevin Durant: Durant’s game is quickly closing the gap on the two players ahead of him. Although the ESPN ranking failed to place him in the top five, the reality is that the reigning scoring champ might become the league’s most valuable by the end of the season.

2. LeBron James: LeBron is clearly the most athletic player in the NBA; however, there’s a difference from being the best athlete in the NBA and best basketball player in the world. Like Durant, LeBron is in a rare position to make it to the top of the list within a year after putting in off-season work to improve his game—and after watching his quick start to the season—the gap is smaller than ever. Now, he just needs to learn how to close games and win on the big stage.

1. Kobe Bryant: Last year, Kobe led the league in scoring per 48 minutes—despite coming off knee surgery and playing through a litney of nagging injuries. In 2012, Kobe still maintains superior footwork, better range, and a deeper of understanding of how to evolve his game than his contemporaries. In short, the NBA’s greatest assassin is the greatest all-around player in 2012. At 33-years old and a torn ligament in his shooting hand, Kobe Bryant is leading the league in scoring at 30.8 points per game, pacing the Lakers for first place in the Pacific Division

The Loss of the Rings

As much as it stings to watch another team hoist the trophy it became clear the Lakers didn’t have what it takes this year with the blitzkrieg the Nowitzki lead Mavericks put on display in round 2. Dallas continued their hot shooting and superior game plan onto the Conference Finals against OKC and again in the Finals against Miami’s super team. The Mavericks were the best team this year and deserved to win the championship. Perhaps the best part of the Dallas victory is that we don’t have to hear how LeBron is better than Kobe and Jordan all summer long…thank you Dirk.

Did that really just happen? Did the Lakers get punked in their building by the Dallas Mavs? Again? Did that really just happen? Did the Lakers really go 2-20 shooting threes? Did J.J. Barea just cut up the Lakers D like CP3? Is Dirk really that unstoppable? Did the Lakers really go 11-20 from the line? Did Pau really play so horrible that he got booed by his own crowd? Did Steve Blake really turn the ball over twice and shoot a timid 0-5? Did Phil really leave him in that long even though he was obviously struggling? Did the “Killer B’s” lose their sting? Did Lamar Odom really go 3-12? Did Ron Artest really clothesline Barea?Did the Lakers defense just disappear? Is Phil Jackson being out coached? Could it be possible that the Mavericks are just a better team? Are the Lakers really down 0-2? Did that really just happen?

Refcalls.com reviews the questionable calls at the end of game 1 in the Dallas v Lakers series.

While I’ll agree that Shannon Brown’s touch on Dirk’s elbow could have been called a foul, and Gasol’s moronic attempt to steal the inbound pass from Dirk was probably the correct call, the play where Kobe tripped and Pau turned the ball over was flat out horrible officiating and refcalls justification for the non-call is equally head scratching.

Jason Kidd committed three fouls on the play and the refs ate their whistles on all three:

1. At the 1:33 mark Jason Kidd is holding Kobe around the waist
2. At the 1:35 mark Kidd is following so closely that Kidd’s right shin hits Kobe’s right calf causing Kobe’s legs to get crossed up which resulted in Kobe “tripping himself.”
3. At the 1:43 mark as Kobe trips he bumps the ball in Pau’s hands which appears to knock the ball loose. But in reality Pau still had control of the ball at that point. What actually knocked it loose was J-Kidd’s secondary bump into Pau’s right shoulder and bicep. (This is much easier to see in HD on a big screen)

So three missed calls on one play at an absolutely critical juncture of game is inexcusable. Kobe is not known for flopping, and refs always call fouls when players get tripped. Why not this time? This game should have never been this close as the Lakers choked away a 16 point lead in the 3rd quarter, but that is still no excuse for poor officiating on either side of the ball.

Comment below and let us know your thoughts.

As we approach the end of the regular season talks of the MVP race will be heating up. The privileged elite media have mysteriously become empowered to crown the MVP year after year, and more often than not, they fabricate some arbitrary formula to give it to someone other than the best player in the league.

Case in point, here is a tweet today from Skip Bayless of ESPN:

“Respect DRose, DHoward – but don’t want MVP coming from team that doesn’t have real chance of winning it all. Theirs don’t.”

Now I’m not suggesting Dwight Howard or Derrick Rose should necessarily be MVP, but this line of thinking is misguided. There is already an award for best player on the best team. It’s called the Finals MVP. The regular season MVP should go to the best player in the league…period. Somewhere towards the end of the Jordan era the sports media stopped giving the award to the best player in the league and as a result superstars like Jordan, Shaq, and Kobe were swiped of deserving hardware by the likes of Karl Malone, Tim Duncan, Steve Nash, and Dirk Nowitzki. It’s a tragedy that Kobe Bryant will likely end his career with only one regular season MVP. Shame on you media machine.

These rankings categorize the best power forwards in the game today. Based on a player’s ability to make contributions this season, the rankings focus on current ability and not reputation (sorry Timmy) or hyperbole (sorry Pau).

1. Amare Stoudamire: Amare is showing everyone that his success in Phoenix was not predicated on the play of Steve Nash. Instead, Amare’s game has flourished in New York, making him a legitimate MVP candidate.

2. Dirk Nowitzki: Dirk is playing the best ball of his career, averaging 24.1 points per game on 54.5% shooting. Dallas is likely to be the biggest threat to the Lakers in the West (despite San Antonio’s great start).

3. Blake Griffin: Griffin is now averaging 21.7 points and 12.7 rebounds per game on 52% shooting. With his continued improvement and authoritve dunks, Griffin is making it clear that he’ll likely become a perennial All-Star (even if he gets inexcusably snubbed this year).

4. Chris Bosh: Despite his slow start in Miami, Bosh is still among the best power forwards in the game (even if he’s only the third best player on his team).

5. Kevin Love: At only 22-years old, the 6-10 power forward is averaging 21 points per game and a league leading 15.6 rebounds per game, giving him the edge over Pau Gasol for the fifth spot.

Honorable Mentions: Pau Gasol; Kevin Garnet