7. LeBron James, forward, Cleveland Cavaliers
Seventh? Yeah, this is surely going to draw a bit of a debate. But let’s be clear here for a second. Despite James’ comments to the contrary, he has a stacked supporting cast. Both Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love are playing at the highest clips of their careers. That’s important to note when looking at the dynamic in Cleveland. No longer is James being asked to do everything and more.
Despite this, the game’s best basketball player is surely performing like it this season. He has the defending champion Cavaliers in position to earn the top seed in the Eastern Conference. He’s also been about as prolific as the aforementioned Kevin Durant on the season.
James is averaging 25.9 points on 18.1 shots per game. He’s shooting at a 53 percent clip form the field, including a 59 percent mark from inside the three-point line. Let’s not forget that the reigning NBA Finals MVP is also averaging 7.9 rebounds and 8.8 assists while playing at an elite level on the defensive end of the court.
As long as James continues to play for a championship contender and doesn’t show any real regression, he will always be considered a top MVP choice. Unfortunately for the King, his supporting cast this season makes it hard for him to crack the top five here.