2016 NBA Predictions: MVP Power Rankings: Week 10

2016 NBA Predictions: MVP Power Rankings: Week 10: The 2015-16 NBA season is already in its 10th week, and if you haven’t been paying attention, the defending champion Golden State Warriors aren’t exactly suffering from a title hangover. In fact, they are currently on track to break the Chicago Bulls mark for the best regular season record in league history. Not surprisingly, defending league MVP Stephen Curry is again having a strong season. To see how Curry and the rest of the top MVP candidates stack up, here is a closer look at the Week 10 NBA MVP Power Rankings. Don’t forget to get expert NBA picks and predictions daily on NSAwins.com

2016 NBA Predictions: MVP Power Rankings: Week 10

1. Stephen Curry, PG, Golden State Warriors

The defending league MVP has been even better this season, leading the NBA in scoring at 29.2 points per game for a team with a league-best 34-2 record. Curry is knocking down 4.5 3-pointers per game at a ridiculous 44.3 percent clip, and the versatile guard is also averaging 5.3 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 2.1 steals per game. Unless Curry and the Warriors slow down dramatically at some point, he is going to be tough to dethrone.

2. Kawhi Leonard, SF, San Antonio Spurs

San Antonio has the second-best record in the NBA, and Leonard has been the two-way force leading an offense that ranks sixth in the league in scoring and leads the league in scoring defense by an incredibly wide margin. He has been the model of efficiency on offense, averaging a team-high 20.7 points on 51.6 percent shooting and connecting on 1.9 3-pointers per game while shooting 49.3 percent from beyond the arc. He is also averaging 2.0 steals per game, and his ability to shut down an opponent’s best perimeter player has him as the early frontrunner to repeat as the Defensive Player of the Year. Leonard is the total package.

3. Russell Westbrook, PG, Oklahoma City Thunder

Even while playing alongside Kevin Durant, Westbrook has managed to stand out as an MVP candidate. He currently ranks fourth in the NBA in both scoring and assists, and he leads all players with 2.4 steals per game. He is also pulling down 6.9 rebounds per game as a point guard, and Westbrook is capable of posting a triple-double whenever he takes the court. More so than in years past, Westbrook is using his athleticism to take over games as both a scorer and passer, solidifying his case a legit MVP candidate and not just a player that piles up impressive stats.

4. LeBron James, SF, Cleveland Cavaliers

James continues to be the victim of his own success, and after setting the bar so high in recent years, his current averages of 25.5 points, 7.4 rebounds, 5.9 assists and 1.5 steals per game seem disappointing by comparison. The thing is, James is only concerned with winning at this point, and he has the Cavaliers sitting atop the Eastern Conference. He will do whatever his team needs on a game-by-game basis, and he just isn’t concerned with piling up unbelievable individual stats anymore. He isn’t going to win the MVP at his current pace, but he is a still a top five candidate without question.

5. Draymond Green, PF, Golden State Warriors 

Playing on the same team as Stephen Curry is going to make it next to impossible for Green to actually win the MVP Award, but the versatile big man still deserves some recognition. He has piled up four triple-doubles in his last five games, and for the year, he is averaging 14.7 points, 9.6 rebounds, 7.6 assists, 1.4 blocks and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 41.0 percent from 3-point range. Next to San Antonio’s Kawhi Leonard, there isn’t a better two-way player in the NBA, and if were not for the talent around him on his own team, Green would have an even stronger resume.