2024-25 NBA PAL Rating and Value Rating: performance and contract value

Two scores from 0 to 100. PAL Rating measures the season's performance against regulars in the same group (guards, forwards, centers): 50 is the median regular. Salary never enters it. Value Rating answers a different question: for what the player costs, does the return come in more or less than expected?

WAR, in wins →Payrolls →

Top guard

100PALShai Gilgeous-AlexanderOKC · Elite Top forward

100PALGiannis AntetokounmpoMIL · Elite Top center

99PALNikola JokićDEN · Elite

Value Rating is only computed for the most recent season.

The scale — PAL Rating

90–100 Elite
80–89 Excellent
70–79 Very good
60–69 Above average
40–59 Around average
20–39 Below average
0–19 Very poor

The scale — Value Rating

90–100 Exceptional value
75–89 Very good contract
55–74 Good value
45–54 Fair value
25–44 Poor return
0–24 Very poor return

Regulars only

#	Player
1	Shai Gilgeous-AlexanderOKC · PG · 26	100	—	—	24.0	100	100	94	69	67	97
2	Giannis AntetokounmpoMIL · PF · 30	100	—	—	17.8	100	100	100	0	100	94
3	Luka DončićLAL · PG · 25	99	—	—	10.5	99	97	95	62	98	86
4	Evan MobleyCLE · PF · 23	99	—	—	9.7	98	94	67	26	98	95
5	Nikola JokićDEN · C · 29	99	—	—	26.5	99	99	99	92	64	97
6	Stephen CurryGSW · PG · 36	98	—	—	13.0	97	99	89	100	60	62
7	Jayson TatumBOS · PF · 26	98	—	—	13.0	97	98	97	87	78	68
8	Tyrese HaliburtonIND · PG · 24	97	—	—	13.2	98	78	99	77	22	79
9	LeBron JamesLAL · SF · 40	97	—	—	12.7	93	97	99	62	76	65
10	Victor WembanyamaSAS · C · 21	97	—	—	8.9	92	92	84	95	49	99
11	James HardenLAC · PG · 35	96	—	—	11.9	96	85	93	72	86	88
12	Jimmy ButlerGSW · SF · 35	96	—	—	8.1	99	86	98	28	45	80
13	Anthony EdwardsMIN · SG · 23	95	—	—	12.4	87	98	51	96	81	64
14	Cade CunninghamDET · PG · 23	95	—	—	10.0	89	92	98	47	88	69
15	Tari EasonHOU · PF · 23	95	—	—	5.4	91	52	37	32	90	100
16	Anthony DavisDAL · C · 31	95	—	—	8.6	79	95	90	55	66	90
17	Ty JeromeCLE · SG · 27	94	—	—	5.9	95	90	73	90	55	75
18	Amen ThompsonHOU · SF · 22	94	—	—	9.2	96	57	69	3	93	96
19	Donovan MitchellCLE · SG · 28	93	—	—	8.6	95	93	80	74	66	51
20	Franz WagnerORL · SF · 23	93	—	—	7.0	95	95	96	54	46	66
21	LaMelo BallCHA · PG · 23	92	—	—	5.4	83	89	97	84	80	30
22	Kawhi LeonardLAC · SF · 33	92	—	—	4.1	94	92	80	76	56	79
23	Domantas SabonisSAC · C · 28	92	—	—	11.9	95	82	95	75	99	21
24	Damian LillardMIL · PG · 34	91	—	—	8.6	85	95	87	97	42	25
25	Kevin DurantPHX · PF · 36	91	—	—	8.1	89	99	84	91	29	45
26	Jalen WilliamsOKC · SG · 23	90	—	—	9.2	79	81	75	29	85	93
27	Alex CarusoOKC · SG · 30	90	—	—	4.3	93	30	50	37	79	100
28	Ausar ThompsonDET · SF · 22	90	—	—	3.2	83	48	63	2	84	99
29	Karl-Anthony TownsNYK · C · 29	90	—	—	9.5	84	97	62	99	84	18
30	Darius GarlandCLE · PG · 25	89	—	—	8.1	88	88	91	95	11	26
31	Paolo BancheroORL · PF · 22	89	—	—	5.9	82	96	93	29	79	48
32	Kyrie IrvingDAL · SG · 32	88	—	—	6.8	91	86	59	93	63	50
33	Scottie BarnesTOR · PF · 23	88	—	—	6.2	80	68	95	14	82	88
34	Goga BitadzeORL · C · 25	88	—	—	4.3	75	32	55	5	62	95
35	Derrick WhiteBOS · SG · 30	87	—	—	9.7	92	70	56	89	57	89
36	Deni AvdijaPOR · SF · 24	87	—	—	5.9	85	82	77	53	88	67
37	Tyler HerroMIA · SG · 25	86	—	—	9.5	86	94	79	90	65	20
38	John CollinsUTA · PF · 27	86	—	—	2.4	84	91	16	69	94	60
39	Jalen DurenDET · C · 21	86	—	—	7.3	73	75	38	18	97	71
40	Austin ReavesLAL · SG · 26	85	—	—	7.0	90	82	70	75	56	34
41	Payton PritchardBOS · PG · 27	85	—	—	8.6	90	76	57	98	75	47
42	Cameron JohnsonBKN · PF · 28	85	—	—	6.2	90	93	85	96	23	41
43	Josh GiddeyCHI · PG · 22	84	—	—	7.3	80	55	83	26	99	85
44	Jalen JohnsonATL · SF · 23	84	—	—	3.2	78	67	82	24	96	89
45	Ivica ZubacLAC · C · 27	84	—	—	9.2	97	73	66	8	95	25
46	Jalen BrunsonNYK · PG · 28	83	—	—	8.4	82	96	95	55	4	9
47	Pascal SiakamIND · PF · 30	83	—	—	6.5	92	89	86	44	75	31
48	Desmond BaneMEM · SG · 26	82	—	—	7.8	72	77	65	78	92	70
49	Jonathan IsaacORL · PF · 27	82	—	—	1.9	70	10	17	9	97	98
50	Jarrett AllenCLE · C · 26	82	—	—	9.7	90	84	34	42	60	62

How it's calculated

Like the NHL: within each group, the line linking latent PAL (the standard score, before the percentile) to the log of salary gives the level expected for that salary; the gap to the expected level becomes the Value Rating, 0 to 100. Our salaries start with the market season (2026-27): in the offseason, Value Rating compares the last season played with today's contract.

Data: Basketball-Reference and ESPN; salaries updated daily.