The 75 greatest players in NBA history, ranked by Player Efficiency Rating (PER)

1.    Nikola Jokić-28.00

The newly crowned leader in PER Nikola Jokic is putting up numbers that no one has ever seen before. With 25 games remaining in the 2023–24 season, Jokic is averaging an amazing 25.9 points, 12.3 rebounds, and 9.2 assists. 

That all-around production is par for the course for Jokic, who frequently scores on high percentage looks in the paint, dominates the glass, and ranks among the top passers in the NBA. That makes him a triple-double threat every single game; actually, he came in with 0.2 assists per game of averaging a triple-double during the 2022–23 season. Unlike fellow walking triple-double Russell Westbrook, Jokic is incredibly efficient, shooting an insane 60.6% true shooting. 

That is among the highest on this list, taking what would have been an already great PER into a new stratosphere. A PER over 25 is MVP level but he has frequently been over 27 and even over 30 twice; those seasons and this MVP-caliber season were enough to surpass Jordan in career PER.

Since Jokic is still active, he could technically fall below Jordan again. But at just 28, his game is likely to age extremely well and could easily have another five to seven seasons just like this, and he could put some distance between him and the field.