Kia NBA MVP Race: December 6th, 2021 | Latest Power Rankings by Sportskeeda

Last week's action in the 2021-22 NBA season made a huge impact in the Kia NBA MVP race. Stephen Curry had a horrid week, but didn't drop down the MVP ladder, as second-placed Durant had a pretty underwhelming week himself. The two former superstar teammates are expected to lead the race till the end of the season.

Meanwhile, Nikola Jokic is arguably the most valuable player in the league based on advanced stats and his importance to his team. But the Denver Nuggets aren't winning games. The NBA MVP award has never gone to a player of a losing team, so Jokvic is doubtful to repeat the feat this year. Similarly, Paul George might also not win the award regardless of his personal numbers, as the LA Clippers aren't winning games. For that reason, he is off our top five power rankings.

Elsewhere, DeMar DeRozan has finally made an appearance in our NBA MVP Power Rankings for this week. However, not many people are sold on his MVP case because his teammate, Zach LaVine, is having an MVP-caliber season himself.

Meanwhile, Jimmy Butler has slipped off our top five, as he hasn't played a single game all week. Moreover, the Miami Heat have lost five of their last eight games. So without further ado, let's get into our top five NBA MVP power rankings of the week:

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#5 Nikola Jokic

Reigning MVP Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets

Previous week's NBA MVP Power Ranking - 5th (-)

Last Week: Games played - 3; Games won - 2; Games lost - 1

Overall: Games played - 22; Games won - 11; Games lost - 11

Last Week: PPG - 24.7, APG - 6.3, RPG - 13.7

Overall: PPG - 26.1, APG - 6.4, RPG - 13.6

Last Week: FG% - 57.7%, 3P% - 41%, SPG - 0.7

Overall: FG% - 59.0%, 3P% - 38.7%, SPG - 1.1.

The reigning MVP Nikola Jokic is playing like he is out for his second award. He is averaging 26.1 points and 13.6 boards per game while dishing out more than six dimes a night.

Jokic leads the Denver Nuggets in every single statistical category, including shooting splits and field goals made. He also leads the NBA in most advanced stats, such as VORP (Value Over Replacement Player), Box Plus-Minus (all three - overall, defensive and offensive), win shares, etc. Most importantly, he has a historically high PER (Player Efficiency Rating) of 34.5.

However, the Denver Nuggets aren't likely to win enough games for Jokic to win the NBA MVP award again.

Michael Porter Jr. and Jamal Murray are both out for the season, while the role players are all underperforming. However, Jokic's presence on the court is often enough to overwhelm a few teams.

The Joker is in the same position as Stephen Curry was last season. A player who is indisputably valuable to his team, is putting up historic numbers, but the team has fared poorly. The Denver Nuggets have now lost seven of their last nine games.

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#4 DeMar DeRozan

DeMar DeRozan with the Chicago Bulls

Previous week's NBA MVP Power Ranking - N/A

Last Week: Games played - 3; Games won - 3; Games lost - 0

Overall: Games played - 24; Games won - 16; Games lost - 8

Last Week: PPG - 30.3, APG - 4.0, RPG - 5.7

Overall: PPG - 26.4, APG - 4.1, RPG - 5.3

Last Week: FG% - 58.7%, SPG - 0.7

Overall: FG% - 49.8%, SPG - 0.9.

DeMar DeRozan's MVP case is tricky,as his teammate Zach LaVine is putting on a show himself. LaVine often outscored DeRozan in games, and has been their team's go-to scoring option for many possessions when they needed a three-pointer. The narrative is that DeRozan cannot solely be responsible for the team's success because of the starcast around him.

However, DeMar DeRozan's exploits cannot be ignored. He averaged 30.3 points per game on 58.7% shooting in the last week, and the Chicago Bulls' latest victory was against the conference-leading Brooklyn Nets.

The Chicago Bulls are the best fourth-quarter team in the league, and DeMar DeRozan is a key reason for that. He is leading the NBA in clutch scoring and fourth-quarter points.

#3 Giannis Antetokounmpo

Milwaukee Bucks superstar and reigning FMVP Giannis Antetokounmpo

Previous week's NBA MVP Power Ranking - 3rd (-)

Last Week: Games played - 3; Games won - 2; Games lost - 1

Overall: Games played - 24; Games won - 15; Games lost - 9

Last Week: PPG - 40, APG - 9, RPG - 12.0

Overall: PPG - 27.6, APG - 6.0, RPG - 11.8

Last Week: FG% - 62.5%, SPG - 1, BPG - 0

Overall: FG% - 53.2%, SPG - 1.1, BPG - 1.7.

Giannis Antetokounmpo is out for his third NBA MVP trophy, and his value to the Milwaukee Bucks is undebatable.

He led the Bucks to victory over the Charlotte Hornets with a clutch game-winning bucket. Antetokounmpo wasn't making MVP headlines when the season began, as the Milwaukee Bucks weren't winning games, but now the reigning champions are back on track.

Antetokounmpo is averaging numbers similar to his past two MVP seasons, but many are suggesting voter fatigue could set in. Nevertheless, he is now in the top three of the NBA MVP race, and is expected to be one of the finalists if the Bucks continue their dominance.

The reigning NBA Finals MVP is now second on Basketball-References' MVP tracker as of today (22.3% chance). They purely use numbers and statistics to assess the value of a player.

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#2 Kevin Durant

Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant

Previous week's NBA MVP Power Ranking - 2nd (-)

Last Week: Games played - 3; Games won - 2; Games lost - 1

Overall: Games played - 23; Games won - 16; Games lost - 7

Last Week: PPG - 28.3, APG - 6.3, RPG - 8.3

Overall: PPG - 28.6, APG - 5.5, RPG - 7.7

Last Week: FG% - 44.8%, FT% - 95.8%, BPG - 1.0

Overall: FG% - 53.3%, FT% - 87.0%, BPG - 0.7.

Kevin Durant continues to put on a show while leading the Brooklyn Nets to the best record in the Eastern Conference.

He is the NBA's leading scorer at 28.6 points per game, and he is doing so on a ridiculous 53% efficiency. Durant's case for MVP is getting stronger, as the players around him aren't performing to their best.

Blake Griffin has fallen off the rotation, while James Harden is playing like a pale shadow of his illustrious self. However, if Kyrie Irving comes back and the Nets start winning games, Durant's numbers could go down.

Nevertheless, if we look deeper at his stats, Durant isn't having his best week so far. The Nets have consistently lost against strong teams, and are, in fact, 3-7 against .500 teams. They most recently lost to the Chicago Bulls for the second time this season.

Moreover, Durant's distance-shooting has taken a massive dip. He has gone from shooting 50% from beyond the arc two weeks ago to 38% last week and just an astounding 16% this week. He has gone scoreless from the three-point line in two of his last three games in the NBA.

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#1 Stephen Curry

Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors signs jerseys at the Staples Center.

Previous week's NBA MVP Power Ranking - 1st (-)

Last Week: Games played - 3; Games won - 1; Games lost - 2

Overall: Games played - 23; Games won - 19; Games lost - 4

Last Week: PPG - 20.7, APG - 4.0, RPG - 5.3

Overall: PPG - 27.5, APG - 6.5, RPG - 5.7

Last Week: FT% - 83.3%, SPG - 1.3, 3P% - 33.3%

Overall: FT% - 92.9%, SPG - 1.8, 3P% - 41.0%.

Stephen Curry didn't have the best week of his career, but the Golden State Warriors still have the NBA's best record.

He is averaging 27.5 points per game, the third-best in the league, while facing double and triple teams on a nightly basis. He shot poorly from the field last week, which led to two unfortunate losses, especially against the struggling San Antonio Spurs.

However, one week cannot dictate the NBA MVP race, and Curry is still the leading favorite across most major publications and sportsbooks.

Stephen Curry has also been incredibly clutch this season, which further solidifies his NBA MVP case. He routed the LA Clippers twice in the fourth quarter, and exploded for 20 points against the Cleveland Cavaliers, which fueled a 28-point swing and a comeback victory.

From what we know about Curry, a bad week means he will bounce back and explode soon. Should we expect a 50-piece from the baby-faced assassin in the coming week?