This is the Lead’s second NBA MVP ladder, and a lot has happened since the first edition came out two weeks ago.
Jaylen Brown is playing the best basketball of his career and has the Celtics in fourth in the Eastern Conference. Jalen Johnson has four straight triple-doubles. Victor Wembanyama came back from injury to give the Thunder their second loss of the season. Jalen Brunson won the NBA Cup MVP and has the Knicks looking like the favorites to come out of the East. And Giannis Antetokounmpo‘s injury has completely left him off the list.
Again, this list will be numbered and tiered.
Tier One: The NBA MVP
No. 1 – Nikola Jokic, 29.8 PPG/12.4 RPG/10.8 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 1
Nikola Jokic remains at the number one spot. Over the past two weeks, he’s continued to be Jokic. The Nuggets have gone 4-0 since the last MVP ladder, and Jokic has improved upon his already astronomical numbers: he had a 40-point game, a 28-point double-double, 36 points on 87.5 fg%, and a 39-point triple-double.
Jokic lost last year due to voter fatigue and team success, but he is playing even better this year. Now the Nuggets are second in the West with the third-best record in the NBA.
No. 2 – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, 32.4 PPG/4.6 RPG/6.4 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 2
One of the most efficient scorers of all time on potentially an all-time great team is rarely second on an MVP prediction, but that tells you what kind of season Jokic is having. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is one of the greatest scorers in NBA history. He consistently scores 30+ points in only three quarters, and he shoots 56% percent while doing so. SGA is almost at 100-straight games scoring at least 20 points, only trailing Wilt Chamberlain‘s streak of 126.
Also, the Thunder are a pretty damn good team. Actually, better than pretty damn good, they are historically good. They tied the 73-9 Warriors for best start to a season through 25-games with a 24-1 record before losing to the Spurs. If the Thunder can reach 70 wins, and SGA breaks Wilt’s record, it might be impossible not to give him the award.
Tier Two: Luka Doncic
No. 3 – Luka Doncic, 34.7 PPG/8.7 RPG/8.8 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 3
Very creative tier name, I know, but this has basically been the story of Luka Doncic’s chase for an MVP trophy. There are the players who are having an all-time great season, then Doncic, then everyone else.
It’s not his fault. Doncic is averaging the most points per game and the third most assists per game in the NBA. He’s taken his conditioning very seriously and is playing the second-most minutes per game, and he hasn’t slowed down since the return of LeBron James.
He is putting up insane numbers, but they’re not as crazy as Jokic’s and not as efficient as Gilgeous-Alexander’s. Still, Doncic’s season should not be forgotten.
Tier Three: Eastern Conference Superstars
No. 4 – Cade Cunningham, 27.1 PPG/6.0 RPG/9.2 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 4
Cade Cunningham continues to dominate, and the Pistons continue to win. Detroit became the second team this season to reach 20 wins, largely because of Cunningham. He regularly posts 20-point double-doubles and ranks second in the NBA in assists per game behind Nikola Jokic. Recently, he went toe-to-toe with Jaylen Brown, finishing with 32 points, 10 assists and a win.
Like the Nuggets, the Pistons haven’t lost since the last MVP ladder. Cade might not get the recognition he deserves because of Jokic, SGA, and Doncic, but he will put the world on notice in the playoffs.
No. 5 – Jaylen Brown, 29.3 PPG/6.2 RPG/4.9 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 10
On the first ladder, Jaylen Brown was in the “recent riser” tier, but his eight-game stretch has turned into a 10-game stretch. Brown was celebrated for keeping the Celtics afloat two weeks ago, now they are the No. 4 seed in the East. He is doing his best Jayson Tatum impression, and his numbers in his last 10-games are only comparable to Jokic and Doncic. Over that stretch, the Celtics are 7-3, even after losing their last two.
No. 6 – Jalen Brunson, 28.8 PPG/3.1 RPG/6.4 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 14
Jalen Brunson is the first player this year to win an MVP trophy, winning the NBA Cup MVP Award. Brunson, like Brown, was in the “recent riser” tier and has exploded over the past two weeks, increasing his season points per game average by a whole point. He had a four-game streak scoring 30+points, and in the game he scored under 30, the Knicks won the NBA Cup.
The Knicks are currently on a whole new level, going 9-1 in their last 10 games, and are the betting favorites to be the Eastern Conference Champions.
Tier Four: Rest of Top-11
No. 7 – Jalen Johnson, 22.8 PPG/10.5 RPG/8.2 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 11
Another “recent riser” named Jalen has made it into the top-10. Jalen Johnson is continuing to put up absurd stat lines and is constantly getting better while Trae Young misses time.
If you want to know how good Johnson has been since the last MVP ladder, he is starting to get into stats that only Oscar Robertson and Magic Johnson have previously recorded. He has had a triple-double in four straight games, including a 21-point, 18-rebound and 16-assist game.
The problem is the Hawks lost that game, and are a play-in team, which keeps him from being in tier three, but his numbers put him firmly at the top of tier four.
No. 8 – Victor Wembanyama, 25.8 PPG/12.6 RPG/3.8 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 6
Everyone knows how good Victor Wembanyama is when he is on the court. He’d probably turn the “Luka Doncic” tier into the “Luka and Wemby” tier if his health allowed, but he’s already missed 12 of his 17 allowed absences and is still on a minutes restriction. Yet, when he returned to action, Wemby scored 22 points in 21 minutes, and the Spurs handed the Thunder their second loss of the season.
Wembanyama is dominant on both ends when he plays, but it would be unfair to put him any higher.
No. 9 – Alperen Sengun, 23.5 PPG/9.4 RPG/7.1 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 7
Alperen Sengun has fallen two spots since the last ladder, at no fault of his own; other players are just playing at superstar levels. Sengun missed two games with an illness before coming back with a 22-point double-double and a 33-point triple-double in his last two games. The Rockets have also fallen from third in the West to fifth, with the Timberwolves right behind them at sixth.
Sengun’s claim to be in the top-10 in MVP consideration lies in the success of the Rockets. If they continue to fall in the standings, so will Sengun.
No. 10 – Tyrese Maxey, 31.5 PPG/4.7 RPG/7.2 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 8
Tyrese Maxey is really the leader of this sub-tier of really good scorers on low-playoff teams/ play-in teams. Brunson and Brown were able to elevate beyond this sub-tier, but Maxey is still more valuable than Anthony Edwards and Donovan Mitchell. Maxey, like Sengun, has missed two games with an illness since the last ladder. He also had a bad game, for Maxey’s standards, scoring only 12 points in 37 minutes against the Bucks.
Maxey still leads the NBA in minutes per game. Another encouraging sign for the 76ers is that both Joel Embiid and Paul George have had vintage performances in the two games Maxey missed. It’s probably wishful thinking, but if the 76ers get healthy and become a top-3 seed in the East, Maxey could rise out of his own sub-tier like Brunson and Brown.
No. 11 – Anthony Edwards, 28.7 PPG/4.9 RPG/3.8 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 12
Anthony Edwards is the reason why this tier is the “rest of the top-11” and not the top-10. Some people might be thinking, “Maxey above Edwards, no way,” and they’d probably be right. The reason why Edwards is below Maxey is that he is currently injured. Edwards scored 40 points on 71.4% shooting in his last outing, but has missed the last three games.
The Timberwolves are one of the hottest teams in the NBA right now, going 7-3 in their last 10 games. One of those losses was against the Thunder, so does it really count? Another loss was in a game Edwards didn’t play. When Edwards gets healthy, he will jump Maxey, and if the Timberwolves have a better record than the Rockets, he will pass Sengun.
Tier Five: Fallers and New Additions
No. 12 – Donovan Mitchell, 30.7 PPG/4.5 RPG/5.5 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 9
Donovan Mitchell continues to average 30 on a losing team. He’s an uber-athletic and clutch scorer, but the Cavaliers are currently the ninth seed in the East. Cleveland just lost to the Bulls, who have been the worst team in the NBA in December, in a game in which Mitchell scored 32. That’s basically been their season. The good news is that FanDuel still has the Cavs as the second-best odds to win the Eastern Conference.
Mitchell’s story is the same as everyone else’s: start to win, and you will rise. Brown and the Celtics did it. Brunson and the Knicks did it. Now Mitchell and the Cavs need to.
No. 13 – Austin Reaves, 27.8 PPG/5.6 RPG/6.7 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: 13
Austin Reaves is still suffering from playing behind Luka Doncic. But, Reaves is still dominating games where Luka misses. Doncic missed two games due to the birth of his second child. In those two games, Reaves had a 44-point double-double and scored 36 points. If you look at Reaves’ box scores, you can probably tell what games Doncic was out for.
Another negative for Reaves is that he’s recently been diagnosed with a calf strain. NBA teams are being extra cautious with calf injuries this season after all the Achilles tears last year. Reaves might not make the next MVP ladder.
No. 14 – Stephen Curry, 29.6 PPG/3.7 RPG/3.9 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: N/A
Unc has still got it. Stephen Curry has been on a scoring tear over the last month. Starting November 18, Curry has had only one game with fewer than 30 points. His last two games he scored 48 and 39 points. Curry is quietly averaging over 29 points per game while the Warriors don’t have the luxury of another 20-point scorer. The Golden State Warriors are still technically a playoff team, currently holding the eighth spot in the West, but have a negative record.
Curry is still dominating into his late 30s and deserves to be talked about like LeBron for his longevity.
No. 15 – Jamal Murray, 24.9 PPG/4.4 RPG/6.8 APG:
Last Ladder Ranking: N/A
Jamal Murray is lighting up scoreboards. Murray recently had a 52-point game on a ridiculous true shooting percentage of 95.6%. He followed up that performance with two 34+ point games out of his last three outings.
It is well known that Murray is one of, if not the league’s best, second option in the playoffs, but now he is showing it in the regular season. He suffers from the same problem Brown had in previous seasons, and Reaves has this season. If someone is going to win MVP from his team, it’s not going to be him.
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