NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) 2025-26 Season: Latest Power Rankings Ft. Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic | Nov 5, 2025

As we enter the second week of the 2025-26 NBA season, the mold of what teams will be like before the playoffs is starting to take shape. This also means that some players are far more productive than others and are steadily climbing up our MVP power rankings.

While the Oklahoma City Thunder continue their undefeated run, there are two other teams in the West starting to pick up some steam. Both the Houston Rockets and Los Angeles Lakers are on a 4-game unbeaten run.

The San Antonio Spurs slipped against the Suns as they found a way to stifle an unstoppable Victor Wembanyama. The 7-foot-5 "alien" looked out of sorts as he had a scoreless first half.

Powered by Austin Reaves and Luka Doncic, the Lakers are starting to make their mark on the season. The role players are starting to click, and despite the duo's absence in their back-to-back, they’re holding on to a 6-2 start.

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The Rockets, on the other hand, are fueled by Kevin Durant, who is taking a back seat. The "Slim Reaper" is averaging career lows in assists and field goal attempts, trusting his younger teammates to execute things.

In the East, the Bulls hosted the 76ers and broke the tie for the 1-seed. Thanks to Josh Giddey’s heroics, they stand at the top. He notched up a crucial triple-double as Tyrese Maxey’s offense suffered in the 4th.

Despite that, he is averaging career highs across points, rebounds, and assists. Joel Embiid has looked out of sorts, and Jared McCain’s return wasn’t as inspirational as one could have hoped for.

The real story in the East is the Milwaukee Bucks, and more importantly, Giannis Antetokounmpo. He is averaging 33.0 points on a ridiculous 70.0% true shooting, proving why he does things that often look inhuman.

Aside from otherworldly numbers, he scored a buzzer-beater vs. bitter rivals, the Indiana Pacers, and the moment marks his first since 2017. However, the Bucks got blown out on the second night of a back-to-back vs. the Toronto Raptors.

So how does that shake things up in the NBA MVP power rankings? Who is atop a very crowded ladder, and which players missed out? Here's a look at our weekly assessment.

Sportskeeda NBA MVP Power Rankings 2025-26 Season: Top 5 Players After Week 2

Notable mentions:

6. Austin Reaves (Last Week’s Rank: 8th)

7. Stephen Curry (Last Week’s Rank: 5th)

8. Cade Cunningham (Last Week’s Rank: NA)

9. Alpren Sengun (Last Week’s Rank: NA)

10. Julius Randle (Last Week’s Rank: NA)

T5. Luka Doncic

Previous Ranking: — Nil

PER: 36.47 | 67.2 TS% | Team record: 6-2 | 41.3 PPG, 11.5 APG, 8.3 RPG, 1.3 SPG, & 0.3 BPG

If you’re a little stunned at reading those numbers, don’t worry, your eyes are not deceiving you. In fact, Luka Doncic has put up 40 points or more in his first three games out of four, and in the one he didn’t? A 29-point triple-double. He’s broken the Lakers' record for most points in the first four games of the season, with a whopping 165, a record that dates back to the 1969-70 season.

Yes, Doncic has achieved all that. The Lakers are third in the West, and yet, he's fifth? Well, he hasn’t played as much as he should have, he’s missed half of the team’s eight games, and barely clinging to our power rankings. But that doesn’t mean we could ignore his greatness on the court.

One specific stat that backs his MVP case

His points total is the most in the first four games since Wilt Chamberlain in 1962-63. He also joined Chamberlain as the only Lakers player to score 40 or more in their first three games. Doncic is top 10 in points, rebounds, and assists to start the season.

T5. Josh Giddey

Previous Ranking: — Nil

PER: 24.49 | 59.4 TS% | Team record: 6-1 | 23.1 PPG, 9.1 APG, 10 RPG, 0.9 SPG, & 0.3 BPG

The Chicago Bulls have been atop the Eastern Conference standings for the start of the season, and this is something no one expected. Leading them to the charge is Josh Giddey, the Australian is having a career year, averaging career highs across the board. In a very crowded early MVP power rankings, he finds himself tied for fifth.

This is how good the competition has been: you lead your team to a 6-1 start, and yet, you are 5th best in the league. That is not a knock on his game; in fact, Giddey will likely earn his first-ever All-Star nod this year. He’s been shooting lights out, averaging 40.0% from 3 and 46.0% from the field, efficiency that will be needed if the Bulls are to make a case in the East.

One specific stat that backs his MVP case

Josh Giddey is the first player in Chicago Bulls history to record back-to-back triple-doubles since Michael Jordan. Rare air.

T5. Nikola Jokic

Previous Ranking: — 6th

PER: 35.10 | 68.7 TS% | Team record: 4-2 | 22.7 PPG, 11.3 APG, 13.3 RPG, 0.8 SPG, & 0.3 BPG

A lot was said about the Denver Nuggets and their team, how they’re projected to compete and contend. While they have shown flashes of brilliance, their contender status is in jeopardy as of now. Nikola Jokic has been sluggish to start the season, and even as we write this, we do see the humor of such a statement.

A relatively slow and out-of-shape Nikola Jokic is still making otherworldly plays and is averaging a triple-double to kick things off. He leads the league in rebounding and is 2nd in assists. He’s leading the league in potential assists and has an absurd 4.3 assist-to-turnover ratio. A true savant of the game, it’s only a matter of time before he stakes his claim for a 4th MVP. That being said, for now, he will have to be content with 5th on our 2025-26 MVP Power Rankings.

One specific stat that backs his MVP case

He started the season with 4 consecutive triple-doubles. No one else has more than 2.

4. Tyrese Maxey, Philadelphia 76ers

Previous Ranking: 4

PER: 27.30 | TS% 63.7 | Team record: 5-2 | 34.4 PPG, 8.4 APG, 4.9 RPG, 1.1 SPG, & 1.1 BPG

Last week, we answered how the 76ers would look without their best, and Tyrese Maxey held down the fort. This week, with Joel Embiid’s minutes increasing, it is still looking like Maxey is their best player. He ripped 39 points vs the Bulls, and despite a horrid 4th quarter offense from the 76ers, he is still firmly in the MVP race.

The 1x All-Star is leading the league in points per game. He’s also knocking down 48.5% of his threes at a huge 10 attempts a game. Such remarkable efficiency, combined with the fact that he is finding his teammates frequently, means the sky is the limit for the 25-year-old. He was just named player of the week.

Maxey is also becoming a top two-way threat; he averages 2.2 stocks a game, and had 3 huge blocks vs the Bulls.

One specific stat that backs his MVP case

The Franchise is yet to score below 25 points this season.

3. Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs

Previous Ranking: 3

PER:-30.78 | 61.0 TS% | Team record: 5-1 | 26.7 PPG, 13.7 APG, 3.2 RPG, 1.3 SPG, & 4.7 BPG

Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs’ indomitable start faded away when the Phoenix Suns found a way to stifle them. He was scoreless in the first quarter, and with his teammate Dylan Harper picking up an injury, the young guns find themselves in a bit of peril.

Stephon Castle, 2024-25’s ROTY, confessed that the team needed a humbling, and despite this loss, it's only a matter of time for them to come back storming.

They, in fact, split last week’s game 1-1, soundly beating the Miami Heat. Wembanyama’s terror in the paint continues, and he’s a runaway favorite for the Defensive Player of the Year award so far. 4.7 blocks a game is something we haven’t seen since the late great Dikembe Mutombo 30 years ago.

Wembanyama is a unique player. In his first 120 games, he has more points than LeBron James, more threes than Stephen Curry, more blocks than Hakeem Olajuwon, and more rebounds than Karl Malone.

He’s also fantastically acclimated to mid-range scoring and is now a genuine threat in the paint. This is the primary reason why he is on our MVP power rankings.

One specific stat that backs his MVP case

Victor Wembanyama has scored 68 points in the 67 plays that he has been left alone. But when doubled, that number drops to 8 points from 17 plays. (H/T Kevin O’Connor on X.com)

2. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks

Previous Ranking: — 2

PER: 41.98 | 70.1 TS% | Team record: 5-3 | 32.3 PPG, 6.3 APG, 12.6 RPG, 0.9 SPG, & 1.0 BPG

Giannis Antetokounmpo’s unbelievable efficiency, coupled with his superhuman shot diet, means he maintains the 2nd spot in our 2025-26 MVP Power Rankings. There could be a lot of arguments made about other deserving candidates, but Giannis’ Milwaukee sits 3rd in the East with a supporting cast that is, quite frankly, not good.

Their starting point guard is Ryan Rollins, and while Myles Turner playing center does mean that Giannis gets to play his preferred position of point forward; it doesn’t help that he gets doubled every game. He’s averaging an other worldly 70 TS% while putting up 32.3 points a game. Sure, it's unsustainable, but don’t tell him that. He’s on a singular mission to lead them to the promised land, and his demenaor after making a buzzer-beater says everything you need to know about where his head is at.

One specific stat that backs his MVP case

Since 2014, Giannis Antetokounmpo has had the most 30-point games in the NBA.

Video game numbers. Since the start of the season, Giannis has been the first to reach various statistical marks. To lead a team with so many gaping holes to a 3-1 record deserves merit on its own.

1. Shai Gilgeous Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder

Previous Ranking: — 1

PER: 31.93 | 65.1 TS% | Team record: 8-0 | 33 PPG, 6.6 APG, 5.0 RPG, 1.4 SPG, & 1.0 BPG

We value winning and a combination of scoring. The Thunder have made the best start in the history of their franchise. They are 8-0 Heading into the 2nd round of games for the NBA cup and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has been phenomenal. They’re not just good; they’re able to preserve him and his fitness. Over the last 3 games, he hasn’t played a single minute in the fourth quarter, all while averaging 30.3 points and 8.7 assists.

There have been enough jokes about him getting to the line, and for what it's worth, he’s not leading the league in free-throw attempts this season (he’s 5th). Remarkably, he now has the 3rd longest streak in NBA history, scoring over 20 points per game. He’s reached this mark in his last 80 games, a feat only bettered by the late great, Wilt Chamberlain.

Inflation of stats with or without Jalen Williams, Gilgeous-Alexander has a firm grip on his MVP trophy, and for now, remains atop our 2025-26 NBA MVP Power Rankings.

One specific stat that backs his MVP case

2.4 stocks a game average makes him a bona-fide two-way threat, and couple that with a 33.1 points average, the 2nd most ever in an 8-0 start for any team.

Edited by Jeet Pukhrambam