Week 11 NBA MVP race: Isaiah Thomas joins top five
USA TODAY Sports' top five candidates for the 2016-17 NBA MVP award (from Sunday, Jan. 8 through Saturday, Jan. 14).
► NBA power rankings: Wizards rising, Knicks continue to fall
► Rookie of the Year race: Do you trust the process yet?
Also receiving votes: San Antonio Spurs' Kawhi Leonard, Toronto Raptors' DeMar DeRozan, Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo, Sacramento Kings' DeMarcus Cousins
5. Isaiah Thomas, Boston Celtics
As was seen with his late-game heroics in Boston's win over the Hawks on Friday, Thomas — better known as Mr. Fourth Quarter — is cementing his status as one of the league's most cold-blooded stars when it comes to late-game situation. The 5-foot-9 point guard is leading the NBA in fourth quarter points scored (9.9) and trails only Russell Westbrook, Anthony Davis and James Harden in points per game (28.2) for the Celtics, who have won six of their last seven and are just 1 1/2 games behind the Raptors for second place in the East.
4. LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers
James, who tied his season high with 15 assists in Friday's win over the Kings, is averaging 25.8 points, 8.3 assists and 7.8 rebounds on the season for the 29-10 Cavaliers, who continue to reign supreme in the Eastern Conference standings. Over the last 15 games, James has made 2.1 three-pointers per game at a 41.7% clip, as he continues to modify his game in his 14th NBA season.
“I have the ability to make threes,” James told reporters recently. “It doesn’t drive my game. Teams sag off me or tempt me to shoot, I’ve got to go up and knock them down. I’ve got to keep defenses at bay and keep them off balance throughout the whole game where they’re just not keying in on my drive or keying in on my postups. I’ve got to be able to knock down some outside shots too, so I work on that as well.”
MORE NBA:
Monday's Cavs-Warriors showdown newest chapter of NBA's fiercest rivalry
Cavs aren't done tweaking their roster
NBA will consider shortening games due to millennial attention spans
3. Kevin Durant, Golden State Warriors
Durant averaged 27.0 points and shot 56.9% from the field and 53.3% from beyond the arc in three games this week — all wins. On the season, he's averaging 26.0 points (on a career-best 53.7% from the field), 4.7 assists and a career-high 8.6 rebounds and 1.7 blocks. He and the Warriors will host to the Cavaliers at Oracle Arena on Monday. In his first game against the defending champs on Christmas Day, Durant dropped 36 points and grabbed 15 rebounds.
2. Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder
Westbrook put together back-to-back triple-doubles this week (his 18th and 19th on the season), but had 16 turnovers and shot just 30.9% from the field during those games — one of which the Thunder lost to the Timberwolves. On the season, the superstar point guard is averaging 30.9 points, 10.7 rebounds and 10.5 assists, still well on his way to becoming the first player since Oscar Robertson (1961-62) to average a triple-double over the course of an entire season.
1. James Harden, Houston Rockets
One-upping Westbrook, his former Thunder teammate, Harden became just the fourth player in NBA history to have back-to-back 40-point triple-doubles this week in wins over Toronto and Charlotte, joining Pete Maravich, Michael Jordan and Westbrook (2014-15). The MVP frontrunner is averaging 28.4 points and a career-high 11.7 assists and 8.2 rebounds this season for the Rockets, who sit in third place in the West with a 31-11 record.
List of voters: USA TODAY Sports' Jeff Zillgitt, Sam Amick, Kevin Spain, AJ Neuharth-Keusch and Michael Singer; The Arizona Republic's Doug Haller; The (Memphis) Commercial Appeal's Ronald Tillery; Detroit Free Press' Vince Ellis; Indianapolis Star's Nate Taylor; Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Charles Gardner; The (Bergen) Record's Steve Popper; HoopsHype.com's Jorge Sierra and Raul Barrigon; USA TODAY Sports Weekly's Howard Megdal.