NBA MVP rankings: Where Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum and more land ahead of Christmas

Stephen Noh

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NBA MVP rankings: Where Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jayson Tatum and more land ahead of Christmas image

We are now a third of the way into the season, and the MVP race is becoming clearer. There have been some terrific performances, but Nikola Jokic still has not relinquished the top spot he's held since our first go at this in November. 

Some players have cooled off considerably since then, while others have risen. Joel Embiid didn't make our list to start the season and won't be on any subsequent ones. He's already missed enough games to fail to meet the 65-game threshold for the award. Also, Anthony Davis has fallen out of the top five after a Lakers slide. 

Who has taken AD's place? Here are our leaders in the quest for the 2025 MVP award.

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NBA MVP rankings

Nikola Jokic

1. Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets

Averages: 30.9 PTS, 13.3 REB, 9.9 AST, 0.7 BLK, 1.8 STL, 55.8% FG, 48.9% 3PT

Team record: 14-10, 5th in Western Conference

Any MVP ranking that doesn't have Jokic up top simply isn't paying attention to what the big man is doing. He's second in the league in points, assists and rebounds per game. Nobody has ever come close to leading all three of those categories at the same time. 

It's not as if those are empty stats, either. Denver has always leaned heavily on its star, but this season has been on a totally different level. The Nuggets are 30.1 points per 100 possessions better with Jokic on the court vs. off it, according to Cleaning the Glass, which ranks in the 100th percentile of players.

The way Jokic gets his points is remarkable. Because the Nuggets don't have a lot of shooting, he has taken it upon himself to become one of the best 3-point shooters in the league. His 48.9 percent on those shots is behind only Taurean Prince and Isaac Okoro for the league lead, and he remains the best post-up player in the game. 

This would be Jokic's fourth MVP award. That would put him in a generational group including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Russell, Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain and LeBron James. He deserves to be among that company.

MORE: Nikola Jokic has Russell Westbrook to thank for reaching even greater heights

2. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

Averages: 32.7 PTS, 6.1 AST, 11.5 REB, 0.6 STL, 1.6 BLK, 61.4% FG

Team record: 14-11, 6th in Eastern Conference

After a 2-8 start to the season, the Bucks are slowly creeping back up the standings in the East. It has been Antetokounmpo dragging them up that mountain.

Thanks to an improved midrange shot, Antetokounmpo leads the league with 32.7 points per game with remarkable efficiency. He has yet to shoot worse than 50 percent from the field in a game all season.

This is a bit of a down year for Antetokounmpo defensively, but a below-average season for him is still one of the better ones in the league. He broke up a key lob to get the Bucks to the NBA Cup final against the Hawks, showing he can still make huge plays on that end of the floor. 

MORE: This is the best version of Giannis Antetokounmpo we've seen

3. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder

Averages: 30.3 PTS, 6.3 AST, 5.5 REB, 1.9 STL, 1.0 BLK, 51.0% FG

Team record: 20-5, 1st in Western Conference

The case for SGA isn't hard — he's the best player on the best team in the West. 

Gilgeous-Alexander is the engine for OKC's eighth-ranked offense. He is one of the best guards in the league at slithering his way into the paint, and he's a true three-level scorer. He's faced every type of defense this season, but no one can stop him from getting to the spots he wants. 

SGA is also one of the rare two-way stars in the league. He has great anticipation and has been a deflections machine, getting steals and leading runouts the other way. 

4. Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics

Averages: 28.2 PTS, 9.0 REB, 5.6 AST, 1.2 STL, 0.5 BLK, 45.3% FG

Team record: 21-5, 2nd in Eastern Conference

The Celtics continue to cruise this year. They're the No. 2 offense and No. 8 defense, and Tatum is helping them maintain that high ranking by playing both ends of the floor. 

Tatum leads the Celtics in points, rebounds, assists and steals. Boston is stacked, but it's Tatum who is generating many of the advantages that get it clean looks at the rim. Defensively, he can take different kinds of matchups and do whatever the team needs on any given night. 

5. Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks

Averages: 28.9 PTS, 8.6 REB, 8.2 AST, 2.1 STL, 0.5 BLK, 45.9% FG

Team record: 17-9, 4th in Western Conference

Doncic and the Mavs started the season below expectations. They've started to hit their groove in the last month, winning 12 of their last 14. Doncic's shot has come back, too — he's hit 32-of-78 from deep during that stretch (41.0 percent), bringing his season total up to 35.5 percent.

Doncic has had some huge games lately, including a 45-point triple-double in a win against a good Warriors team on Dec. 15. Those takeovers have become the new normal for him.

MORE: Ranking best trade destinations for Heat's Jimmy Butler

Honorable mention

Karl-Anthony Towns, Knicks: Towns is putting up some incredible numbers while helping guide the Knicks to the third-best record in the East. His 43.9 percent from deep is a career-high for the self-proclaimed best big man shooter in league history. He's also averaging a league-leading 13.9 rebounds per game. 

Stephen Curry, Warriors: Curry is having an awesome statistical season, averaging 23.0 points, 6.7 assists and 5.2 rebounds on 45.2 percent shooting from the field and 42.1 percent from 3. He has been the entire Golden State offense, but that hasn't been enough to keep the Warriors from sliding recently. If Dennis Schroder can provide more of a jolt to get them more wins, Curry should rise up this list. 

Kevin Durant, Suns: Here's how valuable Durant is: Phoenix is 13-2 in games he plays and 1-9 in games he misses. He hasn't played enough games to be higher up on this list. When he has been on the floor, his 25.7 points per game show he's still one of the league's premier scorers.

Donovan Mitchell, Cavaliers: The Cavs keep on cruising, maintaining their top spot in the East. It's been by committee. You could easily throw Darius Garland or Evan Mobley into this honorable mention category, but Mitchell is the guy who leads them at the end of games. His 23.6 points along with much-improved defense from his Jazz days have been essential for Cleveland.

Anthony Davis, Lakers: Davis was in the top five the last time we did this list. He's fallen off as the Lakers have slid down the standings. His defense, while still good, isn't at the level it has been in previous years. That's understandable given his role on offense has increased — his 27.8 points per game are the most he's averaged in a Laker uniform.

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Stephen Noh

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Stephen Noh started writing about the NBA as one of the first members of The Athletic in 2016. He covered the Chicago Bulls, both through big outlets and independent newsletters, for six years before joining The Sporting News in 2022. Stephen is also an avid poker player and wrote for PokerNews while covering the World Series of Poker from 2006-2008.