NBA MVP Power Rankings: New No. 1 rises after Embiid vs Jokic showdown

On Monday, the Dallas Mavericks will play their toughest opponent yet, the Boston Celtics. Thankfully for Dallas, they won't have to play in Boston, as the Celtics are currently a league-best 20-1 at home.

The Mavericks will need to play their best brand of basketball if they wish to stick around with the Celtics. For Grant Williams, this will be his first game against his former team. Williams has had a rough first half to the season with the Mavericks but will look to bounce back against his former team.

In the Mavericks' last game, they played the Los Angeles Lakers in a game that never felt close. The Lakers did a great job all night pushing the ball in transition and scoring the basketball. Even with Luka Doncic back from injury, the Mavericks still couldn't find an offensive rhythm.

NBA MVP Power Rankings: New No. 1 rises after Embiid vs Jokic showdown

After such a crushing defeat, it was apparent the Mavericks needed to upgrade defensively. The Mavs have been linked to multiple players but as we inch closer to the February 8 trade deadline, the Mavericks have been in more and more rumors as the days pass. It seems it's only a matter of time before the Mavericks pull the trigger on a trade.

If the Mavericks wish to capitalize in the Luka era, they need to make a trade that will give them a puncher's chance at the NBA title. They do not have to shove all their chips in on one player, but they must upgrade around their 24-year-old superstar.

With the trade deadline fast approaching, let's take a look at this week's NBAA MVP Power Rankings before the playoff push intensifies.

10. Anthony Edwards

Last week's rank: 9

Despite winning and dominating, Anthony Edwards will drop one spot in this week's rankings, going from the No. 10 spot to No. 9. Edwards has continued to showcase his talents on all levels and it was no different this week after throwing down an insane dunk.

9. Tyrese Haliburton

Last week's rank: 10

Tyrese Haliburton will rise the rankings once again after leading his team to a positive record. Haliburton finally gets some much-needed help after Pascal Siakam was recently traded to Indiana. His name could rise if he and Siakam can hit their stride together.

8. Domantas Sabonis

Last week's rank: 7

Domantas Sabonis will drop in this week's rankings after losing four straight games. The Kings need to get things back on track if they wish to avoid the play-in. They will play the Atlanta Hawks on Monday in a must-win game.

7. Kawhi Leonard

Last week's rank: 8

Kawhi Leonard and the LA Clippers have once again defined the odds and dominated in this week's games. The Clippers recently went on a 22-0 run to come back and close out a game vs the Brooklyn Nets.

6. Jayson Tatum

Last week's rank: 5

Despite dropping, Jayson Tatum has had an eventful week. He led his Celtics to multiple big wins and after losing to the Denver Nuggets on their home floor, it was clear this won't be the last time we will see a Celtics vs Nuggets matchup.

5. Giannis Antetokounmpo

Last week's rank: 6

After Giannis Antetokounmpo extends his win streak to four games in a row, he will rise. Antetokounmpo has missed multiple over the past week, but when playing, the Bucks are 4-0 with him.

The Bucks continue to be disrespected in the national media. They constantly go under-talked about, and their only mention in the media is about their head coach, Adrian Griffin. Griffin has often been under scrutiny for his mismanagement of the roster and rotations. However, after a four-game winning streak with Giannis playing, the narrative should change.

Despite going under talked, the Bucks are currently 29-13 and are second in the Eastern Conference. Antetokounmpo has been a huge reason the Bucks are so dominant. In their four-game win streak, they have beaten several good teams, including the Boston Celtics.

In the win over Boston, the Bucks embarrassed the Celtics on national television. At one point TNT had to switch the games that were being showcased. After a huge win over the Celtics, the Bucks were geared up to make a push for first place.

Unfortunately for the Bucks, they didn't count on their superstar missing a game vs the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs would take care of business and beat them by 40 points. After such a crushing defeat, Antetokounmpo's importance was on full display. The Bucks have since rebounded with a massive win over the Detroit Pistons, but they will look to build on their winning streak with another game against the Pistons on Monday night.

4. Luka Doncic

Last week's rank: 3

Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic has been on a slight decline over the past few weeks. He will need to redeem himself against the Boston Celtics on Monday night.

The Dallas Mavs welcomed back Doncic after a week-long ankle sprain that kept him out of multiple key games. Wednesday's game against the Los Angeles Lakers would be his first game back, and it didn't go quite to plan for the Mavericks.

Despite Doncic being healthy, the Mavericks came out sluggish against the Lakers. Doncic was the one exception, as he finished the game with 33 points, but his impact was minimal as the Mavs couldn't make a shot to save their lives. The team shot just 27 percent from behind the 3-point line.

To add insult to injury, the Mavericks race for homecourt advantage has grown farther away with the loss to the Lakers. It's important the Mavericks start to win games early if they wish to be within the top six seeds. Having a full roster is a good start.

Doncic's race for MVP has also grown further as he has recently dropped behind OKC's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. With a win over Boston on Monday night, it could convince enough fans to put the Slovenian above Shai, as these two players continue to be compared to each other often.

For now, Doncic will need to do his talking on the court and show the voters why he is deserving of the MVP. A win over the Celtics could do just that.

3. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Last week's rank: 4

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the OKC Thunder continue to defy the odds of a young team and extend their record to 29-13. Their next game is against the Portland Trailblazers for a chance at 30 wins.

After yet another win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, many have called the Thunder the team to beat out west. While they haven't officially taken first place yet, they have gotten a lot closer with Saturday's win over the Wolves.

Before the Thunder's marquee win over the Wolves, they went to Utah to play the Jazz. Utah has recently been on a roll, winning seven of their last ten games. The Thunder put a stop to the hottest team in the league and won 134-129 behind their superstar.

Following that game, the Thunder headed to LA to play the Clippers on national television. For the Thunder, they were dealt a bad hand as they were on the second night of a back-to-back. However, they didn't let this stop them and pushed the Clippers to a contested game late in the fourth quarter.

Unfortunately for the Thunder, Paul George decided to end the game by himself and turned into the second coming of Michael Jordan. George dominated in the final minutes and made multiple shots to extend the Clippers' lead over the Thunder.

Shai's next game will be against the Trailblazers, where they will have a legitimate shot at grabbing their 30th win of the season.

2. Nikola Jokic

Last week's rank: 1

Nikola Jokic leads the Nuggets to multiple big wins but will drop in this week's rankings from the No. 1 spot after losing to Joel Embiid and the 76ers.

The Denver Nuggets have emerged as one of the best Western Conference teams in recent weeks and it's due to their superstar's play. Jokic has dominated in every game this week including the loss to the Sixers where he dropped a near 20/20 game.

Behind Jokic's 25 points, the Nuggets would push the Sixers to their breaking point. Fortunately for the Sixers, they have a homegrown superstar by the name of Joel Embiid. With Embiid, the Sixers would overpower Denver and win 126-121 in an NBA classic.

After playing Philadelphia, the Nuggets traveled to Boston on their East Coast road trip. The Celtics were previously 20-0 at home, which marked a franchise best. Jokic wasn't having any of that and took the game over by scoring 34 points. This included a clutch bucket to elevate Denver over Boston late in the fourth quarter.

Many fans expect this won't be the last time Denver and Boston see each other, as this could be a potential NBA Finals matchup. Jokic followed up his performance in Boston with yet another big-time game in Washington.

While playing the Wizards, Jokic would drop 42 points and 12 rebounds in the win. Jokic has finally decided to step on the gas, and the Nuggets are winning because of it.

1. Joel Embiid

Last week's rank: 2

Joel Embiid climbs the ranks and retakes his throne in this week's rankings.

Embiid and the Sixers have been on a role this past week. After returning from a lengthy injury, Embiid has been on full focus and has led his team to four straight wins. Behind Embiid, the Sixers could be regarded as the hottest team in the league and it shouldn't be a debate.

After defeating Jokic and the Nuggets in Philly, Embiid traveled to Orlando to tear up yet another team. The Magic have been on a rough streak recently and have failed to gather multiple wins in a week. A win over the Celtics could have been the perfect jumpstart to the season.

Unfortunately for the Magic, they ran into a brick wall, and the former MVP would drop 36 points on their home floor. Following the win in Orlando, Embiid and the Sixers took on the Charlotte Hornets. For the Hornets, they never expected to get close in this game, and behind an Embiid double-double, they never did.

With his perfamnce in Charlotte, Embiid created history as he was just the third player in NBA history to score 30 points in 20m straight games. It is important to highlight that Embiid missed multiple games in between his streaks, but regardless, history was made.

Embiid will have to defend his MVP title once again this week as they will play Jokic and the Nuggets again. This time, Jokic will be the one with a homecourt advantage. For Embiid, it will be important he can go 2-0 against his rival.

For more information on Joel Embiid, the MVP race, and Dallas Mavericks basketball, stay plugged in.