The second edition of Ballislife’s NBA MVP Ladder is here! There’s not much change at the top, but a very surprising name makes the tail end of the list in place of a superstar who has missed too much time recently to injury and is now expected to miss some more time.
1. Nikola Jokic (Age 30, 3-Time MVP)
Last Ranking: No. 1
Two weeks later, Jokic remains atop the second edition of Ballislife’s biweekly MVP ladder after continuing his superhuman performance through the end of November. Jokic is currently averaging a triple-double with 28.9 points, 12.4 rebounds and 10.9 assists per game while shooting 63 percent from the field. Those stats become even more absurd when you watch the tape and look at the shot diet he’s consistently taking.
Jokić now leads this decade in total points, total rebounds, total assists, and total steals!
No player in @NBA history has ever played a decade in which he led in 4 out of 5 major statistical categories. The record is 3, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the 70s. https://t.co/fgROTb77bY pic.twitter.com/hfkv0WQp59
— Crazy Stats (@NBAcrazystats) November 20, 2025
The Nuggets are looking to parlay their 14-6 start into the regular-season success that was lacking in 2024-25, which was a significant reason many MVP voters had him second to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on their ballots last season. What Jokic is doing isn’t any less absurd than it was two weeks ago, but the unprecedented start by the next guy on this list has us pacing toward another all-time close race for the award.
2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Age 27, 1-Time MVP)
Last Ranking: No. 2
This guy and the Oklahoma City Thunder just keep on winning. Even when the Golden State Warriors had them in a challenging position in the fourth quarter of Tuesday’s 124-112, SGA found a way to secure the road victory with his usual brilliance down the home stretch. The Thunder are now a remarkable 21-1 and the Warriors’ record-setting 73-win regular-season is very much in jeopardy if OKC can keep rolling.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has scored 30+ points in 17 of the Thunder's 21 games this season (81%).
The only players in NBA history to score 30+ points in 80% of their team's games in a season are Wilt Chamberlain (4x) and Michael Jordan (1986-87). pic.twitter.com/bkemvMlYXU
— NBA History (@NBAHistory) December 2, 2025
According to @NBAHistory on X, Gilgeous-Alexander is tracking toward a feat achieved by only Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain in NBA history. SGA has scored 30+ points in 17 of the Thunder’s first 21 games (81 percent), which would put him alongside those two greats as the only players to score at least 30 points in 80 percent of their given games in a season.
3. Luka Doncic (Age 26, No MVPs)
Last Ranking: No. 3
Even with LeBron James clearly checked out and cruising toward retirement, the Los Angeles Lakers appear to be as viable a threat as they have been since winning the championship in 2020. The reason for that is the pairing of Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, who slot third and fifth in this week’s rankings.
Teammates in NBA HISTORY to each have 200+ points & 50+ assists through their first seven games of a season:
Luka Doncic & Austin Reaves (2025-26)
That’s it. pic.twitter.com/5zfpGzW16o
— Greg Harvey (@BetweenTheNums) November 10, 2025
In most normal seasons, Doncic’s numbers and the Lakers’ success as a team would have him barreling toward the MVP award. Doncic leads the NBA in scoring with an average of 35.3 points per game and he averages both 8.9 rebounds and assists. Not to mention, Doncic’s five 40-point games this season lead the league and he hasn’t scored fewer than 19 points in a game yet this season.
4. Cade Cunningham (Age 24, No MVPs)
Last Ranking: No. 4
Like Doncic, Cunningham’s placing on this list would be far more eye-popping if it wasn’t for Jokic and Gilgeous-Alexander simultaneously playing some of the best basketball in human history. He was crowned Eastern Conference Player of the Month earlier this week for his performance in late October and November to start the season, as he has the Pistons in first place in East and second in all of the NBA with a remarkable 17-4 mark.
They’re starting to take notice…
Your Eastern Conference Player of the Month, Cade Cunningham. pic.twitter.com/zmC3Qf8Utt
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) December 2, 2025
The reason that record is so remarkable is because we’ve seen the depths Cunningham has lifted the Pistons franchise from. Just two seasons removed from starting the 2023-24 season an abysmal 2-28, the Pistons have emerged as arguably the best team in the East period and a team that everyone in the NBA needs to reconcile with as a serious contender. Cunningham averages 28.2 points per game and ranks second in the league with 9.2 assists per game.
5. Austin Reaves (Age: 27, No MVPs)
Last Ranking: Not Ranked
The fact that Austin Reaves’ name is justifiably appearing on this list (and replacing Giannis Antetokounmpos’s) is surely surprising to even the most loyal fans of his. You simply can’t argue with the results the Lakers are putting up, almost entirely because he’s become a perfect sidekick to Luka Doncic. And really, calling Reaves a sidekick at this point is probably disrespectful in its own right with how he’s producing.
Austin Reaves this season:
28.8 PPG
5.8 RPG
6.8 APG
68.1% TS (!!!)He’s currently having the most efficient 25-PPG season by a guard in NBA history. pic.twitter.com/gGCaMdG3IA
— Polymarket Hoops (@PolymarketHoops) December 1, 2025
Reaves is averaging 28.2 points per game and 6.6 assists per game this season, and it seems he’s always in position to give the Lakers a timely basket when they need one the most. Reaves began the season with a statement by scoring a career-high 51 points and 41 points in consecutive October games against the Kings and Trail Blazers, and to the surprise of many, he’s not only maintaining his role as a volume scorer but doing so among the best in the league.
