The NBA season is in full swing, so we’re asking ourselves who was actually the MVP in the first few weeks. We’re trying to get a (far too) early ranking.
The MVP race has become increasingly toxic in recent years, and there are no heated debates this season (yet). Maybe it will stay that way, after all we will be allowed to dream.
We don’t really believe it, as the first weeks of the season indicate that we will have a very broad field of possible MVP candidates. Players from teams with a negative record were not taken into account, which is particularly damaging to Stephen Curry, who has had a really great season so far. He could certainly soon play a role in this ranking later this year.
Is that fair now? Probably not, but as already mentioned, there are plenty of others in the first few weeks who deserve to appear in this ranking. This becomes clear when we look at the names that didn’t make it into our top 5.
NBA MVP Ranking – Honorable Mentions (in no order)
Kevin Durant (Phoenix Suns)
Stats: 31.4 points, 7.1 rebounds and 5.5 assists on 53.3 percent FG and 52.2 percent three-pointers in 36.9 minutes (15 games) Team record: 9-6
This man remains clockwork even at 35 years old. Despite a whopping 20 throws per game, KD puts up 53/52/89 splits, that’s an announcement. It’s not Durant’s fault that the Suns got off to a very bumpy start to the season, even if the Suns are on the rise after five wins in a row. Most recently, KD almost single-handedly defeated the Utah Jazz twice in a row.
Why isn’t it enough for the top 5? Here we have to put our finger in the wound with various fourth quarters. Durant was extremely error-prone here and also had a hand in the Suns losing a few leads late on.
Tyrese Haliburton (Indiana Pacers)
Stats: 25.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and 12.3 assists on 52.1 percent FG and 46.2 percent three-pointers in 33.5 minutes (13 games) Team record: 8-6
With an average of 12.3 assists, Halliburton clearly leads the NBA in direct assists, and the Pacers star has also taken a step forward in his own scoring. Halliburton takes more shots, more three-pointers and also takes more free throws – all with increasing efficiency and fewer turnovers.
Similar to last year, the Pacers are completely lost without their playmaker, the on/off numbers confirm (+21.6!) what you see on the field.
Anthony Edwards (Minnesota Timberwolves)
Stats: 26.1 points, 5.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists on 46.7 percent FG and 38.9 percent three-pointers in 35.4 minutes (14 games) Team record: 11-3
Many expected another jump from Edwards, but the Wolves star made at least some of it. More importantly, Edwards has now developed chemistry with Rudy Gobert, which was a major problem in year one of the experiment. Now the Antman isn’t a pick’n’roll maestro, but his playmaking and shot selection have gotten better.
That’s the absurdity of Edwards. There are still a lot of little things he can do better, but he’s already one of the better players in the NBA. After Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jimmy Butler, Edwards should be the best two-way superstar. In particular, his defense against Jayson Tatum against Boston with five fouls in overtime was textbook.
LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers)
Stats: 25.7 points, 8.1 rebounds and 6.7 assists on 57.8 percent FG and 41.4 percent three-pointers in 33.8 minutes (15 games) Team record: 9-7
Honor where honor is due. It’s completely absurd that in Year 21, LeBron can still put up his usual statline of 26 PPG, 8 RPG, and 7 APG. This succeeds despite the fact that he throws less at the basket than ever before in his career. That’s only logical, because the Lakers will need LeBron for the rest of the season.
It’s still amazing how dependent the Lakers continue to be on LeBron (and defensively on Anthony Davis). While the on/off numbers aren’t as extreme as they were after the first few games (+27.9), they’re still extreme enough to mention LeBron in the MVP conversation, even if James has a lot of games in which he’s over preserved three quarters of his strength.
Luka Doncic (Dallas Mavericks)
Stats: 30.5 points, 8.3 rebounds and 8.1 assists on 49.1 percent FG and 40.8 percent three-pointers in 34.9 minutes (15 games) Team record: 10-5
The Mavs have cooled off a bit after a hot start, and it’s the same with Doncic, even though he set the bar pretty damn high. The three-pointer is better than ever before, and thanks to Kyrie Irving, usage has at least decreased slightly. At the ring, Doncic finishes better than ever before, but at the same time the Slovenian also takes significantly fewer shots here.
It is noticeable that Doncic goes to the basket less and takes his floaters less often. Is it because the threesome is just too good this season? This needs to be observed over a longer period of time. And one more thing: With Doncic, the Mavs are 7.6 points per 100 possessions worse than without him. Instead, Kyrie-plus-bench lineups were key for Dallas.
NBA MVP Ranking – Die Top 5
Platz 5: Joel Embiid (Philadelphia 76ers)
Stats: 31.9 points, 11.3 rebounds and 6.1 assists on 49.7 percent FG and 31.9 percent three-pointers in 34.6 minutes (14 games) Team record: 10-5
Compared to the previous two years, Embiid has slacked off a bit at the ring, and the Cameroonian also takes a touch fewer free throws. Instead, Embiid is now a little more involved in the flow of the offense and is allowed to use handoffs more, which has pushed his assist numbers up. At the same time, Embiid now solves double teams better, and new coach Nick Nurse’s offense helps here too.
And if in doubt, you can of course continue to throw the ball to Embiid in the post. Hardly anyone knows how to create things for themselves or draw fouls in such situations. Especially in the regular season, there is hardly an opponent who can stop Embiid from scoring. Accordingly, the center is once again leading the league in terms of scoring.
Platz 4: Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks)
Stats: 29.6 points, 10.4 rebounds and 4.6 assists on 60.1 percent FG and 23.3 percent three-pointers in 32.9 minutes (14 games) Team record: 10-5
The last few games have pushed Giannis into the top five as the Bucks slowly but surely gain momentum and Antetokounmpo is currently having the most efficient season of his career. Who would have thought it would help to have a certain Damian Lillard playing alongside you and also needing to be taken into account?!
Antetokounmpo now has three 40-point games this young season, including a season-high 54 points against the Pacers. A wild stat: In the six games before the game in Boston (21 PTS, 7/20 FG), Giannis always shot at least 59 percent from the field, five of which he took at least 20 shots. And one more thing: Against Indy, Giannis converted 16/18 from the line, otherwise it’s only 57 percent – that would be a new low.
Platz 3: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder)
Stats: 30.4 points, 6.1 rebounds and 6.3 assists on 53.8 percent FG and 35.8 percent three-pointers in 34.1 minutes (14 games) Team record: 11-4
Nobody makes scoring look easier than SGA, which is now almost impossible to stop using legal means. Gilgeous-Alexander is brimming with self-confidence and has now gained so much experience that he now knows exactly which opponents he can easily score against. There is hardly a spot within the three-man line that SGA doesn’t like, and the floater also falls with a somnambulistic security.
Above all, his recent performance with the Warriors was real MVP stuff. In overtime, the Canadian scored almost all of the points and actually blocked a step-back three-pointer from Stephen Curry. This also has to be mentioned, SGA has improved enormously defensively. It was known that he could do it, so the then youngster earned a starting spot with the Clippers.
Platz 2: Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics)
Stats: 27.9 points, 9.1 rebounds and 4.1 assists on 50.2 percent FG and 37.3 percent three-pointers in 36.9 minutes (15 games) Team record: 12-3
Like last year, Tatum started the season red hot and once again clearly stands out from Boston’s super team. It speaks for him that without the forward, Boston is just a mediocre team (net rating: 1.8) – despite all the star power. The Celtics only have an offensive rating of 107.9. Tatum is essential for Boston, also because his game is a bit more complete.
Tatum has added muscle again, the reward is a record of 73 percent at the ring, which was always a shortcoming for the forward. The shot selection is also a bit better, Tatum increasingly looks for the face-off ball and relies less often on his jumper. By the way, he also falls very well, 56 percent of his long twos are in, and 37 percent from downtown are more than within limits given the difficulty of the throws.
Platz 1: Nikola Jokic (Denver Nuggets)
Stats: 27.5 points, 13.1 rebounds and 8.9 assists on 57.9 percent FG and 30.3 percent three-pointers in 33.2 minutes (15 games) Team record: 10-5
The man is a machine. Sure, the Nuggets have had to accept their first setbacks recently, but the fact that Denver is still playing so high without Jamal Murray with a team that is by no means deep is mainly due to Jokic. The offense is a whopping 20.3 points per 100 possessions better when the Serb is on the field, which is once again a gigantic figure.
In addition, the center has only had two games this year in which he did not hit at least 50 percent from the field. The ejection in Detroit dilutes his counting stats, otherwise the Joker would probably scratch 30/14/10. His lead is not set in stone, but in this case the Joker gets the nod because he is simply the best player in the world at the moment. After all, that has to be worth something.
2023-11-24 07:34:00
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