NBA Playoff MVP Rankings 2026: Top Superstars Dominating the Postseason So Far

Shouldn’t there be a Most Valuable Player award for the NBA Playoffs (MVP)?

Over the course of what feels like an eternity, people have been begging for this concept, and we have now provided you, our dear readers, with a glimpse of what that might have looked like at this point in time — after two rounds — during the previous season. Consequently, why don’t we reveal our Playoff Most Valuable Players (so far) once more?

In point of fact, the National Basketball Association ought to go one step further and include an All-NBA Playoff Team. Consequently, take into consideration the following, a top-five list of candidates for the Most Valuable Player award in the Playoffs, our ballot (once more: so far).

5. Cade Cunningham, Detroit Pistons

It’s possible that Cunningham’s playoffs is over, but what a ride it was! He played in two seven-game series, and during the entire season, he was Detroit’s primary (or only?) offensive option.

His ability to score and create with equal aplomb allows him to get to his spots, which are pretty much anyplace on a basketball court. He is able to do both with similar ease. His height of 6 feet 6 inches and his weight of 220 pounds make him significantly larger than the majority of those who are defending him. He is able to muscle his way to a midrange jumper or all the way to the hoop in the absence of a big. If you switch a big onto him, he will bring him back out to the perimeter, where he will dance his way to a blow-by drive or a step-back three.

The fact that this is true for each and every one of the great playmakers on our list is, of course, true; nonetheless, Cunningham had a degree of responsibility that was unmatched on his Pistons. Tobias Harris made a tremendous effort, but other than that, they lacked secondary creativity. They frequently put two non-shooters around him, including Jaleen Duren, who was having a very difficult time, and Ausar Thompson, who was an accomplished defensive player.

All of Detroit’s deficiencies, which were the exact ones we were anticipating heading into the playoffs, were exposed against both the Orlando Magic and the Cleveland Cavaliers. These are two teams that a No. 1 seed with sixty wins should have had no trouble destroying.

However, there is one thing that can be said with absolute certainty in Detroit: Cade Cunningham is here to fight.

4. Donovan Mitchell, Cleveland Cavaliers

Mitchell is the only player in the postseason to have scored more points than anybody else. It is true that Mitchell has played four more games than Jalen Brunson, the point guard for the New York Knicks, and six more games than Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the best player for the Oklahoma City Thunder and the two-time NBA Most Valuable Player. Mitchell, however, is a roving bucket who pursues scoring opportunities whenever they present themselves and becomes irritated when he is unable to do so, just like the majority of great shooting guards.

And Mitchell is without a doubt one of the best shooting guards in the history of the NBA. There is no doubt that the Michael Jordans, Kobe Bryants, and Dwyane Wades of the world are clearly on a higher level, but he is without a doubt on the list of the greatest shooting guards who have never won a championship. Mitchell has averaged 27.8 points per game during his entire playoff career, surpassing only Jordan, Luke Dončić, Allen Iverson, Kevin Durant, Jerry West, and LeBron James. Mitchell is the only player to have accomplished this feat.

Even though the Knicks have established a 2-0 series lead in their Eastern Conference finals, Mitchell is still dangling the carrot of a title in front of him. However, it looks to be hanging at a safe distance now that the Knicks have taken the leading position in the series. Nevertheless, Mitchell was the greatest player on the court in a second-round Game 7 that also featured Cunningham, and he was the one who brought the Cavaliers to this point.

The Cleveland Cavaliers might have a chance to win another championship if Mitchell were to improve his defensive skills and if James Harden, who is working with him in the backcourt, were not such a disaster. However, there are several levels to this game, as well as other levels to these rankings, and this is where Mitchell, who is a remarkable talent, in spite of the fact that he has some shortcomings, currently stands.

3. Jalen Brunson, New York Knicks

The only thing I could say about Brunson was, “What a player.” He has been doing an excellent job of covering the Knicks throughout this team’s run (and for years, in fact).

Even though he is only six feet tall, he is capable of performing incredible feats, such as finishing around the rim, stopping on a dime and pulling up from midrange, or dribbling into a three-pointer. He does these things, and you think to yourself, “He can’t possibly do it again,” but he still manages to do something similar. And once more. He does it so frequently that you recall, Oh, yeah, he’s just that excellent. He does it so effectively.

And that is how good he is. The famous statement that the Knicks, or any other team, could not win a championship with Brunson, an undersized point guard, as their primary option was made by Becky Hammon, the coach of the Las Vegas Aces, when discussing the situation in her capacity as an analyst. And it’s possible that she is correct.

However, at this very moment, such words are in a state of uncertainty because, according to the manner that these Knicks are currently playing, we ought to have complete faith that they are capable of winning the title. Brunson is their closer, scoring 9.1 points per game in the fourth quarter on 60/64/94 shooting splits, which is more than anyone else in these playoffs has scored in the fourth quarter alone. Nothing but electrifying material.

2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City Thunder

Gilgeous-Alexander, who has won the Most Valuable Player award in the NBA for consecutive seasons, is simply so reliable. He provides the game with what it requires, whether it be scoring when it is essential or creating when it is required, regardless of the lineup that the Thunder place around him given that they are able to field every possible look.

There is technique to what he does, driving his defenders into awkward positions, making contact, and finishing through it. Sure, he gets a lot of criticism for his dirty griftering, but there is skill to what he does. Following the realization that all of the great scoring guards performed the same thing, it is a lovely thing to witness.

In the same way that he led the NBA in points per game during the previous postseason (among all players who advanced to the second round), he is also leading the league in assists per game during these playoffs (again, among all players who advanced to the second round). And he has been no less than the Clutch Player of the Year down the stretch of games that have been really tight.

Over the course of the previous two years, he has been performing his best Michael Jordan impression, winning every major award, and he is currently seven wins away from being named the Most Valuable Player of the Finals for the second consecutive year. In his 368 minutes, the Thunder have a plus-73 rating. Naturally, they have a plus-62 rating when he is sitting on the bench; in fact, they are so good that they might win the championship without Williams.

Why does Gilgeous-Alexander’s cause suffer from this? In the first place, he has only participated in ten games, as his Thunder team has breezed through the first two rounds of the playoffs. They have a roster that is loaded. Despite this, the Student Government Association fosters an atmosphere that not only allows Williams to flourish, but also allows Chet Holmgren, Ajay Mitchell, Jared McCain, and virtually anyone else to perform to the best of their abilities.

Despite the fact that the Thunder may very well be on their way to winning a second consecutive championship and the beginning of a dynasty, none of this would be possible without the exceptional talent that is SGA managing the team.

1. Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs

The individual, who is 22 years old, is a monstrous being. On a basketball floor, he is capable of doing anything, including lifting up for a game-tying overtime 3-pointer from Stephen Curry’s range or tipping home any of his own misses within 15 feet. He is 7 feet 4 inches tall.

In all honesty, it is unjust. Nobody who is that tall should be so skillful, and nobody who is that slender should be so in shape to handle the rigors of the physicality that is prevalent in the NBA.Despite the fact that Wembanyama was totally dominated by Isaiah Hartenstein of Oklahoma City in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals, the Spurs center ended up with 21 points, 17 rebounds, and 6 assists.

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NBA Playoff MVP Rankings 2026: Top Superstars Dominating the Postseason So Far