NBA MVP Rankings: Another Week of Brilliance From Nikola Jokić

The Nuggets star continues his reign, while Giannis Antetokounmpo makes his case with an impressive run.

The NBA regular season is winding down—the play-in tournament begins a month from now on April 16—and it feels as if the top five of the MVP field is likely set. At least four of the names have been on here for most of the season, and the fifth is the best player on the best team in the league. And for this week at least, there’s no movement among those five. Let’s get to the rankings.

(All stats through March 15. Previous rankings can be seen here.)

Jokić has led the Nuggets on an impressive five-game charge :: Isaiah J. Downing/USA TODAY Sports

1. Nikola Jokić

Four wins for Joker since we last checked in on him, including a 35-point, 17-rebound, 12-assist triple double against the Toronto Raptors on March 11. I am running out of ways to describe this dude’s dominance. In a hotly anticipated matchup against Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs on Friday, Jokić dropped a casual 31 on 68.4% shooting. And the Denver Nuggets have lost only one game since Valentine’s Day.

Nuggets Are Putting Their Foot on the Gas

2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

A few more 30-point performances for SGA over the last week or so, including 37 against the Miami Heat in a comeback victory last Friday, and 31 to hold off the Luka Dončić-less Dallas Mavericks on Thursday. The schedule lightens this week for the Oklahoma City Thunder, whose next three are against the Memphis Grizzlies, Utah Jazz and Raptors.

Thunder Have the Talent to Make a Deep Playoff Run

3. Giannis Antetokounmpo

The Milwaukee Bucks are 2–2 in their last four, though not really by any fault of Antetokounmpo. He had a triple double in a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers last Friday, then followed it up with 34 points and 10 assists in a win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday. In the month of March, Antetokounmpo is averaging a positively freaky 33.2 points, 11.3 rebounds and 7.5 assists a night, a slight uptick on his already magnificent numbers.

4. Luka Dončić

A blowout win and an early exit due to injury in his last two appearances resulted in Dončić’s first two games scoring under 30 points this month. In fact, he hadn’t scored fewer than 35 in March until recording “only” 27 against the Chicago Bulls. More importantly, he left the Mavs’ win over the Golden State Warriors with a hamstring injury and will be re-evaluated over the weekend.

NBA Power Rankings: Nuggets Surge to the Top, Timberwolves Falter

5. Jayson Tatum

After a brief two-game slide, Tatum and the Boston Celtics responded with four straight wins, including two over the Phoenix Suns. Tatum was especially brilliant against the Jazz on Tuesday, putting up 38 points. In March, Tatum is shooting 46.9% from the field, but 49.2% on threes.