The American media has released the new season's shooting guard rankings: Edwards tops the list, Booker is fifth, Amen is seventh, and Reeves is ninth.

On August 12, Beijing time, the renowned American media HoopsHype released a ranking of shooting guards for the 2025-26 season (top 26). This ranking was created through team voting and is worth noting that it incorporates predictions for the coming season, not just based on the performances of the 2024-25 season. Here are the specific rankings and analyses of some star players—

Positions 1-13: 1. Edwards, 2. Mitchell, 3. Jalen Williams, 4. Jalen Brown, 5. Booker, 6. Hero, 7. Amen Thompson, 8. Hart, 9. Reeves, 10. LaVine, 11. Bain, 12. Kobe White, 13. Dyson Daniels;

Positions 14-26: 14. Jalen Green, 15. McCollum, 16. Anfernee Simons, 17. Shaedon Sharpe, 18. Braun, 19. Aaron Wiggins, 20. Jerome, 21. Caruso, 22. Beal, 23. Hield, 24. Monk, 25. Grimes, 26. Poole

1. Edwards, Timberwolves

2024-25 season stats: 27.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.2 steals per game, shooting percentage 44.7%

2025-26 season salary: $45,550,512 (23rd in the league)

Although former No. 1 pick Anthony Edwards lost to Mitchell in the selection for the All-NBA First Team last season, we still expect him to become the NBA's best shooting guard for the 2025-26 season.

Edwards' performance last season was not only dominant but he was also one of the only five players to average at least 27 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists—his season was quite remarkable: he averaged 10.3 three-point attempts per game, ranking fourth in the NBA. Prior to this, his average three-point attempts per season had never exceeded 8.4. Meanwhile, his shooting percentage within 3 feet of the basket dropped to a career-low of 17.6%, nearly 10 percentage points lower than his career average in that area.

This change in shooting selection has paid off handsomely for Edwards, as he delivered a career-high average score in the 2024-25 season, with career highs in Value Over Replacement Player (VORP), Box Plus-Minus (BPM), and Win Shares per 48 minutes (WS/48).

Edwards also led the Timberwolves to the Western Conference Finals for the second consecutive year, which is no small feat considering the team traded Towns for Randall in the previous offseason and is in a highly competitive Western Conference.

If any shooting guard can become the core player of a championship team, it must be Edwards, as he possesses superior physical attributes compared to most shooting guards and a stronger finishing ability. Perhaps in the 2025-26 season, Edwards and his team can overcome the hurdle of the Western Conference Finals.

5. Booker, Suns

2024-25 season stats: 25.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, 7.1 assists, 0.9 steals per game, shooting percentage 46.1%

2025-26 season salary: $53,142,264 (9th in the league)

Booker was once regarded as one of the best shooting guards in the NBA, but in the ranking for the 2025-26 season, we place him fifth in this position. This does not imply that we expect his performance to decline next season—in fact, with Durant joining the Rockets and Beal moving to the Clippers, his stats might even improve—but we feel that some other shooting guards in the league have surpassed him.

Data analysis does not look favorably on Booker's recent performance, which is somewhat surprising, as this four-time All-Star was one of the only five players to average 26 points, 5 rebounds, and 7 assists in the 2024-25 season, yet this phenomenon is still noteworthy. In fact, based on data analysis, our ranking of him might still be too lenient: according to Box Plus-Minus (BPM), Booker barely made it into the top 100 in the league last season; and based on Value Over Replacement Player (VORP), he was only around the top 75. More specifically, Box Plus-Minus (BPM) ranked Booker 19th among shooting guards in the NBA last season.

7. Amen Thompson, Rockets

2024-25 season stats: 14.1 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.4 steals, 1.3 blocks per game, shooting percentage 55.7%

2025-26 season salary: $9,690,600 (169th in the league)

When it comes to unique shooting guards, Amen Thompson fits that description. This 22-year-old player is one of the most fluid and explosive backcourt athletes we've seen in a long time, with tremendous potential.

Thompson is an agile guard with excellent height, strength, and athleticism, capable of easily breaking to the basket and finishing spectacularly. If he can develop a more consistent jump shot, we can almost guarantee he will make his first All-Star appearance in the near future. Unfortunately, his jump shot, especially off the dribble, still needs improvement, as his three-point shooting percentage was only 27.5% last season. His mid-range pull-up jump shot ability is also lacking.

However, he has already shown something unique: his rebounding ability rivals that of big players, and his finishing efficiency around the basket is also as high as that of big players, as evidenced by his nearly 56% shooting percentage in the 2024-25 season.

Currently, he is already one of the top defensive players in the league and made his first All-Defensive Team last season. We expect Thompson to receive even more accolades in the future.

9. Reeves, Lakers

2024-25 season stats: 20.2 points, 4.5 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.1 steals per game, shooting percentage 46.0%

2025-26 season salary: $13,937,574 (124th in the league)

Reeves is one of the most successful undrafted players in NBA history, having developed into one of the top shooting guards in today's NBA thanks to his clever scoring ability, stable shooting level, and frequent trips to the free-throw line (his free-throw percentage is elite). If Reeves played in the Eastern Conference, he might already have an All-Star resume.

The main reason we hesitated to rank Reeves on the list is that he will once again be playing alongside James and Doncic, two of the highest usage players in the league next season, which will limit his statistical potential. Additionally, Reeves' defensive performance has been subpar, which also somewhat restricts his ceiling.

Nevertheless, considering his salary level and offensive capabilities, when taking into account his contributions relative to his salary (at least compared to today's near All-Star players), Reeves is likely to become one of the most cost-effective players in the league next season.

14. Jalen Green, Suns

2024-25 season stats: 21.0 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 0.9 steals per game, shooting percentage 42.3%

2025-26 season salary: $33,333,333 (49th in the league)

Predicting the performance of former top pick Jalen Green in the 2025-26 season is no easy task. He not only joins a new team but also one that has a top superstar in the league… and this superstar plays the same position as Green.

Green has had star-level performance phases, such as in the 24 games from early January to late February last season, where he averaged 24.4 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 4.0 assists, with a three-point shooting percentage of 40.6%. However, his issues have always been consistency and efficiency in his game performance.

Next season, due to sharing a significant amount of offensive touches with a true star shooting guard, his performance may struggle to improve significantly.

Nonetheless, Green possesses the ability to drive, explosive finishing around the basket, and scoring ability in clutch moments, making it possible for him to become a star in the future. Perhaps playing alongside this new star teammate and observing his playing style daily will help him elevate his career.

22. Beal, Clippers

2024-25 season stats: 17.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.1 steals per game, shooting percentage 49.7%

2025-26 season salary: $5,354,000 (246th in the league)

Although Beal's two seasons with the Suns have been quite poor, it is difficult to place all the blame on this three-time All-Star. He has found himself in a tough situation, having to share the same position with Booker. Moreover, throughout his first season with the Suns, he and the team had almost no real point guard, which has made things challenging for both the aging star and the team.

However, Beal's raw numbers are still quite decent. Over his two seasons with the Suns, he achieved a three-point shooting percentage of 40.7% and a field goal percentage over 50%—considering he often has to create his own shot, these numbers are impressive.

After agreeing to a buyout and joining the Clippers this offseason, Beal will play a similar role, being the third option on the team behind two superstars. However, given the Clippers' historically poor luck with injuries, it wouldn't be surprising if Beal had to take on a more significant role than expected and posted better numbers than he did with the Suns.