ESPN.com is doing its annual ranking of the top 500 players and incoming rookies in the NBA. You can see the experts who voted on the rankings here and follow the#NBARank hashtag on Twitter to discuss/debate the selections.

By Patrick Hayes

Wilson Chandler of Benton Harbor is the first Michigander to crack the top 100 in ESPN’s NBA rankings, coming in at No. 93 on the list. He fell 18 spots from his 2011 ranking, when he came in at No. 75, but considering he only played in eight NBA games last season, that fall is somewhat understandable. It will be interesting to see how he bounces back from injury and meshes with the new-look Nuggets for a full season.

Country Day great Shane Battier joked after helping the Miami Heat win this season’s NBA championship, ‘Even if I’m terrible, I’m still an NBA champion.’ Despite having a regular season performance that wasn’t up to his usual standards, Battier picked it up in the playoffs, shooting the lights out from 3-point range, playing his usual sound defense and providing the floor-stretching element the Heat hoped he would.

That all helped him come in at No. 107 in ESPN’s rankings of the top 500 players and incoming rookies in the league. He fell seven spots from his No. 98 ranking last season.

Battier was followed by Central Michigan great Chris Kaman, who came in at No. 113. Kaman fell 15 spots from No. 88 last season after battling injuries most of the season as a member of the New Orleans Hornets.

Saginaw native Jason Richardson came in at No. 121 on the list. Richardson was ranked No. 79 last year. He struggled at times shooting last season, but his 3-point shooting remains strong as he joins a new team, the Philadelphia 76ers, that should excel at getting him opportunities to get his shot off.

At any rate, considering that there are 30 NBA teams with five starters each, the top 150 in the rankings are roughly all starters in the league, so landing anywhere in that 1-150 range is a good accomplishment.

Previously in #NBARank:

• Juwan Howard, Darius Morris, Walker Russell, Alan Anderson just make the cut
• Earl Boykins, Willie Green and Draymond Green check in
• Jordan Crawford, Shannon Brown make the list

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