NBA MVP Ladder 2-16-21

(slamonline.com)

3. Stephen Curry

(Kelley L. Cox/USA TODAY SPORTS)

Steph Curry has broken into the MVP conversation in the last week with his stellar scoring. Curry has scored 30 points in 3 of his last 4 games, putting 40 on the Magic in a win Thursday night. Steph has had to carry an immense offensive role this year with the Warriors, but it hasn’t slowed him down a bit. Curry is averaging over 30 points per game for the first time since his first MVP season in 2014-2015. He is attempting the most threes per game in 2 seasons and is shooting 43% from deep. When Steph became a superstar, he literally changed the sport. His ability to shoot from anywhere trickled all the way down to how high school players started to develop. Teams are shooting threes now more than ever because of Steph. Curry right now is playing like that Steph. The Steph that will drop 50 on your head and shimmy his way back down the court. MVP Steph is firmly back, and frankly, never left. If Golden State was a better team, I believe he would be the front runner. But they currently sit at 15-13 in the 8th seed.

2. LeBron James

(Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

LeBron has lost his spot atop my MVP ladder after 2 weeks on the throne. James has been playing 1 quarter of basketball every night all season. The Lakers play “meh” basketball for 3 quarters and then turn it on and kill teams in the fourth. For me, this is why LeBron has lost his spot. The Lakers have had to gut out 2 overtime wins against OKC and a win against Memphis before getting crushed by Denver Sunday night. LeBron is still putting up amazing numbers, but they aren’t where they could be, despite him playing 35 minutes a night. I think with Anthony Davis’ recent injury, LeBron might not be in second for long. But for now, the Laker have lost the 1 seed and LeBron has lost the top spot of the week.

1. Joel Embiid

(Bill Streicher/USA Today Sports)

He finally made it! After 2 weeks at number 2, Joel Embiid is my current MVP front runner. Even though the 76ers only went 2-2 this past week, they are still the number 1 seed in the East. Embiid has continued to put up monster numbers for Philly. Over the past week, he is averaging 31.6 points and 11.3 rebounds per game. Joel did not play Monday night in a pivotal matchup against the Utah Jazz and Philly struggled. They lost the game by 11 and gave up 134 points to the Jazz. Embiid has stepped up his basketball IQ on both sides of the ball and it shows so far this year. He is taking less threes, which has caused his offensive efficiency to skyrocket. He is also getting real consideration for Defensive Player of the Year. LeBron is going to want his spot back, but Joel finally sits at the top of the leaderboard this week.