NBA MVP rankings: LeBron James takes No. 1 spot — for now
The NBA MVP race is a mess.
James Harden, the season's frontrunner up to this point, is on the shelf for the next week, at least, with a hamstring strain.
Kevin Durant shined in Stephen Curry's 11-game absence, but the latter is back in top form while the former has missed Golden State's past three games with a strained calf.
LeBron James, who has been a spot behind Harden in these weekly rankings for the majority of the season, followed up Saturday's dominant performance against Orlando with one of the worst games of his career Monday against Minnesota.
And then there are the others — Kyrie Irving, Giannis Antetokounmpo and DeMar DeRozan, to name a few — who deserve consideration as well.
The silver lining to all this mayhem? We still have three months of regular season basketball left.
Paste BN Sports' weekly NBA MVP rankings, as voted on by Sam Amick, Jeff Zillgitt, Michael Singer and AJ Neuharth-Keusch, are below.
T-4. Kevin Durant, Golden State Warriors
Last week's ranking: No. 3
Season stats: 25.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 2.3 blocks, 50.1% shooting
Durant, who suffered his injury against Dallas last Wednesday, said it's more a matter of pain tolerance than anything else, so he should be back sooner rather than later.
“I wouldn’t say it’s the end game. But more so, I need to feel better,” Durant told Bay Area News Group on Saturday. “I’m not thinking about playoffs or how to get rest. I just want my calf to feel better so I can go out there and play the way I play. I don’t want any restrictions out there.”
T-4. Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
Last week's ranking: Not ranked
Season stats: 27.9 points, 6.4 assists, 5.2 rebounds, 1.7 steals, 49.2% shooting
Curry has played 162 minutes in five games since returning from an ankle sprain. During those minutes, he's tallied 176 points, 28 assists, 28 rebounds and seven steals. He's made 54 of his 94 shots from the field (57.4%), including 33 of his 62 three-pointers (53.2%). He's a plus-65 and the Warriors are 5-0. For the per-game crowd, that's averages of 35.2 points, 5.6 assists, 5.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals in just 32.3 minutes.
3. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
Last week's ranking: No. 4
Season stats: 28.7 points, 10.1 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 1.7 steals, 55.2% shooting
Only eight players in NBA history, per Basketball Reference, have averaged at least 28 points, 10 rebounds and four assists throughout a season. Antetokounmpo — the NBA's leading fan vote-getter for February's All-Star Game — is on pace to become the ninth.
2. James Harden, Houston Rockets
Last week's ranking: No. 1
Season stats: 32.3 points, 9.1 assists, 5.0 rebounds, 1.8 steals, 45.1% shooting
Historically, MVP winners don't miss more than a handful of games. So while Harden could very well return soon and catapult back to the top of these rankings, there's also the chance the length of his absence — he's already missed four games and won't even be re-evaluated until he misses two more — hinders his chances when it's all said and done. The most recent player to sit for more than six games and still win the award was Steve Nash, who missed seven in the 2004-05 season.
1. LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
Last week's ranking: No. 2
Season stats: 27.2 points, 9.0 assists, 8.2 rebounds, 1.7 steals, 55.8% shooting
Those aforementioned games against Orlando and Minnesota? James finished the first — a 131-127 victory — with 33 points, 10 rebounds, nine assists, six steals, made 12 of his 23 shots and was a plus-15. He finished the second — a 127-99 loss — with just 10 points (on 4-of-8 shooting), eight rebounds, five assists and was a minus-39, the worst mark of his career.
Still, the four-time MVP is well on his way to yet another otherworldly campaign, on pace to become just the fifth player in league history to average at least 27 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in a season, according to Basketball Reference.
Follow Paste BN Sports' AJ Neuharth-Keusch on Twitter @tweetAJNK