NBA Most Valuable Player Watch — 11/14/17

Almost one month after the start of the 2017-18 season, the NBA is already full of surprises and storylines to last us all the way until June. Luckily, however, basketball fans still get nightly entertainment for the next since months.

Since we last checked in on the Most Valuable Player award race here at Basketball Insiders, some things have changed. When the first list dropped, just two weeks had passed in this new season, and some early big-time performances catapulted a few players into the initial watch list. With under two weeks in the books, some consistency has formed for a few candidates, while a few newcomers find themselves smack dab in the middle of the race now.

Until the season really begins to settle in, you can expect the race or MVP to have some warranted fluctuation. Once the stars get into their groove though, the cream will most likely rise to the top.

With all of that said, let’s check in on our second edition of the MVP watch list.

6. Kyrie Irving

Just five minutes into his brand new stint as a Boston Celtic, Kyrie Irving lost his most talented teammate, Gordon Hayward, to a season-ending injury.

In a new city, with new teammates, a new coach, and learning chemistry on the fly, all Irving has done is lead the Celtics to a league-best 12-2 record.

After suffering a facial fracture last Friday night, Irving did sit out of Boston’s win Sunday against the Toronto Raptors. But in order for the Celtics to keep up their torrid pace of bodying opponents, they’ll need their star point guard.

When Irving isn’t on the court for Boston, their offensive rating goes down, their assist percentage goes down, and their turnover percentage goes up. While Irving isn’t averaging career-highs across the board, he’s making the right plays and drawing attention from defenses so that players like Al Horford, Jaylen Brown, and Jayson Tatum can flourish.

A month into the new era of his career, Irving is proving that he can be much more than LeBron James’ sidekick.

5. Kevin Durant

Year two of the Kevin Durant experiment in Golden State seems to be working out just fine.

The Warriors are 11-3 and look as dominant as ever. When the likes of Durant and Steph Curry are on the same team, it may be hard for either player to actually win the MVP award, but that doesn’t negate their performance in pursuit of it.

Durant makes a 14-point difference in the Warriors’ offensive rating when he’s on the court, an insane number (yet somehow still not the best on the team). He’s currently shooting a career-high 44 percent from beyond the arc, too, adding, even more firepower to an already blazing arsenal possessed by Durant and his teammates.

So long as the Warriors keep winning and Durant keeps scoring efforts in the high 20’s, coupled with his near eight rebounds a night, the 6-foot-10 wing will constantly be in the MVP discussion. However, winning may be a more difficult task just due to this supporting cast.

4. LeBron James

The start to the Cleveland Cavaliers’ season has been less than ideal. At just 7-7 through the one month mark of the year, legitimate questions are arising about how long the Cavs can keep their stranglehold on the Eastern Conference.

Despite all of the obvious problems with the roster and their effort, though, LeBron James is literally dragging his team into competition. No matter how much dead weight he can appear to be carrying at times.

In year 15 of his Hall of Fame career, James is averaging 28.1 points, 8.8 assists, and 7.6 rebounds a night. He’s shooting a career-high 80 percent from the free-throw line and posting an absurd 66 true shooting percentage. James is playing the most minutes per night since his first season with the Miami HEAT, and in order for his team to win games, it looks like it’ll have to stay that way.

While the first month of James’ life after Kyrie Irving hasn’t gone as well as planned for his team, his personal stats are looking better than ever. All with over 41,000 career minutes already under his belt.

If the Cavaliers have any shot at reaching a fourth straight NBA Finals, it’ll be because James turned in his fifth career MVP season.

3. Steph Curry

Just like Durant, Steph Curry has planted himself right in the thick of the MVP race after the first month of the season.

While both players are incredibly crucial to Golden State’s success, Curry has been arguably more important thus far. Remember that ridiculous 14-point swing Durant adds to the Warriors’ offensive rating? Curry’s is 21 points.

After initially debuting at No. 2 on this list, Curry does drop a spot, though. Despite his nightly brilliance for his defending champion ballclub, the teammates that Curry has alongside him in battle each night will eventually cost him in the long run for this award.

But, again, just like with Durant, that doesn’t negate the absurd impact Curry has on his team’s offensive dominance. It just likely will get overshadowed by a player doing similar things with less high-profile teammates.

2. James Harden

Kyrie Irving wasn’t the only superstar guard who lost an All-Star teammate early in the season.

James Harden had his buddy Chris Paul in the backcourt with him for all of one game, and all Harden has done since then is average 30 points, 10 assists, nearly five rebounds and shoot 39 percent from deep for the Houston Rockets.

All of that has equated beautifully to an 11-3 record and atop the Western Conference, jostling with Golden State for position among the West’s elite teams.

After losing out on last year’s MVP award to Russell Westbrook and his triple-double barrage, Harden looks poised to earn his own hardware this season. Even with Paul slated to return Thursday against the Phoenix Suns, Harden will still surely shoulder the load moving forward until his all-star teammate gets reacclimated to the Houston offense.

The 28-year-old bearded superstar continues his excellence as the main distributor in Mike D’Antoni’s offense, without sacrificing his scoring output. Even with Paul sharing the rock with him upon his return, Harden’s hot start and thirst for an MVP trophy should keep his numbers and impact right where they need to be as the season advances.

1. Giannis Antetokounmpo

Not yet has anyone supplanted the Greek Freak in his quest for the title of league’s Most Valuable Player.

The 22-year-old all-around superstar is willing the Milwaukee Bucks to victory every chance he gets. Despite just a 7-6 record in the early goings of this season, Antetokounmpo makes the Bucks a legitimate threat to hang with whoever they face on a nightly basis.

His averages are still ridiculous: 31.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 4.8 assists a night. But what Antetokounmpo does on the defensive end is what can really save the Bucks moving forward, especially now that they have Eric Bledsoe to shoulder some of the load on the offensive end.

When Antetokounmpo isn’t on the court, opposing team’s are posting a 120.6 offensive rating. When he is on the court, though? That rating drops all the way to 105.7 for his Milwaukee unit. Having the ability to stick every position on the court will do that for a player and his team.

It’s still very early in the season, but so far, Antetokounmpo is doing the best he can to keep his wire-to-wire MVP campaign intact.