Nikola Jokic won first place after the All-Star break

The NBA MVP race will come down to who can stay healthy in the final few weeks of the regular season. During the entire first half of the year, Nikola Jokić was pretty much sitting at the top of the MVP rankingsbut then he suffered a knee injury, as a result of which Shai Gilgeous-Alexander overtaking him.

Now that Gilgeous-Alexander is out with an abdominal injury and Jokic returned to the court, the three-time MVP of the Denver Nuggets regained the top spot after the All-Star break.

Jokic, despite missing 16 games, put together quite the resume for another MVP award.

In addition to averaging a triple-double this season and leading the league in triple-doubles (20), Jokić is also shooting nearly 60 percent from the floor and over 40 percent from 3-point range. No player has ever done what Joker has accomplished this season, making his case for the MVP award hard to overlook now.

Since returning from his knee injury, Jokic has played in all seven of the Nuggets’ games, averaging 24.4 points, 13.0 rebounds and 9.4 assists per game while shooting 50.9 percent from the floor. As long as he continues to perform at this level with Gilgeous-Alexander out, he will have a slight lead in the NBA MVP race.

Previous NBA MVP rankings for the 2023-24 season: 16th week | 15th week | Sunday 14 | 13th week | Sunday the 12th | Sunday 11 | 10th week | 9th week | 8th week | week 7 | 6th week | 5th week | 4th week | 3rd week | 2nd week | 1st week

1. Nikola Jokic – Denver Nuggets*

Previous rank: #2

2025-26 Stats: 39 games, 28.7 points, 12.3 rebounds, 10.7 assists, 1.4 steals, 59.0 FG%, 42.0 3P%

When Jokic was sidelined with a knee injury, Gilgeous-Alexander firmly controlled the MVP rankings. It seemed like no one would be able to challenge the Oklahoma City Thunder’s reigning MVP, especially since Jokic had a tendency to miss more than 17 games, which would mean he couldn’t be eligible for end-of-season awards and accolades.

However, Jokic has missed 16 games due to injury, meaning he could still miss one of the Nuggets’ remaining 27 games and still be in good position to win the MVP award. Whether he can actually accomplish his historic feat and win his fourth MVP will definitely affect where the Nuggets finish in the Western standings.

As good as Jokic has been since returning from a knee injury, the Nuggets are just 3-4 in their last seven games and sit 6.5 games behind the Thunder for the top seed in the West. Denver is also 3.5 games behind Victor Vembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs for second place in the conference.

In order to firmly establish himself as the league’s MVP once again, Jokic will need to continue playing at the level he’s been at while leading the Nuggets to victories. At this rate, if the Nuggets get past the 55-win mark, it will be hard to deny Jokic the MVP award.

2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – Oklahoma City Thunder

Previous rank: #1

2025-26 Stats: 49 games, 31.8 points, 6.4 assists, 4.4 rebounds, 1.3 steals, 55.4 FG%, 39.0 3P%

Gilgeous-Alexander missed the Thunder’s final five games before the All-Star break with an abdominal injury, and there has been no word on his status when Oklahoma City resumes play Friday night at home against the Brooklyn Nets.

As of now, SGA doesn’t have to worry about missing 17 or more games to remain MVP eligible, but more games missed is just an advantage for Jokic at this rate. The good news for the reigning MVP is that he had a full week to rest and recover without playing a single game during the All-Star break, which will benefit his health.

When Gilgeous-Alexander returns, he will be four straight 20-point performances away from tying Wilt Chamberlain’s record of 125 consecutive games with at least 20 points.

Previous rank: #4

2025-26 Stats: 47 games, 25.3 points, 9.6 assists, 5.6 rebounds, 1.5 steals, 46.2 FG%, 33.0 3P%

At the All-Star break, Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons are 40-13. The last time The Pistons won 40 games before the All-Star break, advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals after winning 64 games during the regular season.

It’s already been a historic season for Cunningham and the Pistons, but they know the work isn’t quite done yet. Cunningham has continued to elevate his game as the season has gone on, and the most underrated part of his game that no one wants to talk about is his defense.

It’s certainly not hard to make a case for Cunningham being on the All-Defensive Team this year, and he played an integral role in the Pistons’ second-ranked defensive ranking.

After going 33-9-7 against the Charlotte Hornets on February 9, the All-Star guard went 28-7-9 against the Toronto Raptors just before the All-Star break. Those kinds of performances are hard to ignore on Cade’s MVP resume, especially with the Pistons atop the East standings.

4. Luka Dončić – Los Angeles Lakers*

Previous rank: #3

2025-26 Stats: 42 games, 32.8 points, 8.6 assists, 7.8 rebounds, 1.5 steals, 47.3 FG%, 34.5 3P%

Like Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic was kicked out at the All-Star break with minor hamstring injury. The good news is that the Los Angeles Lakers aren’t worried about this injury at all, and he played some minutes during All-Star Weekend in LA.

Doncic has now missed 12 games this season, meaning he is allowed to miss five more to remain in the MVP race.

Doncic will need a strong finish to the season to overtake Gilgeous-Alexander or Jokic for the top spot in the MVP rankings, even though he led the league in scoring all year.

5. Victor Vembanyama – San Antonio Spurs*

Previous rank: #5

2025-26 stats: 40 games, 24.4 points, 11.1 rebounds, 2.7 blocks, 51.1 FG%, 36.3 3P%

Since the start of February, Victor Wembanyama has averaged 26.3 points, 10.8 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game while shooting 55.3 percent from the floor. He ranks in the top 10 during this stretch in scoring, rebounding and blocks, where he currently leads the league.

The fact that Wemby is putting up the numbers he is while averaging less than 30 minutes per game is what makes him a true MVP candidate. Of course, leading the San Antonio Spurs to the third-best record in the NBA at the All-Star break also stands out.

Vembanyama is certainly on everyone’s radar entering the final stretch of the 2025-26 season, especially after his 40-point, 12-rebound double-double against the Lakers before the All-Star break. More standout performances like this will only see him up the MVP rankings.

It’s just missing the cut

6. Jaylen Brown – Boston Celtics (No. 6 last week)

7. Anthony Edwards – Minnesota Timberwolves (seventh last week)

8. Donovan Mitchell – Cleveland Cavaliers (8th place)

9. Jalen Brunson – New York Knicks (No. 10 last week)

10. Jamal Murray – Denver Nuggets (9th place last week)

*Signals player is in danger of reaching the minimum threshold of 65 games for awards/recognition.