NBA MVP Power Rankings: Who climbs the ladder after Joel Embiid's injury?

2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Last week's rank: 4

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the OKC Thunder have dominated over the last week. Gilgeous-Alexander will rise in this week's rankings after an Embiid injury and great play.

Gilgeous-Alexander has led his team to three straight wins now, and after capturing first place in the Western Conference, Shai and the Thunder have maintained first place in the past week despite a hard schedule. Their most recent victory was a double overtime thriller over the Toronto Raptors.

While Shai only managed to score 23 points in the game against Toronto, he still recorded three blocks and two steals. Shai also managed to have 14 assists on Sunday night. With Shai's amazing play recently, he has led his team to multiple wins in a row.

Over the last week, the Thunder managed to beat the former champions, Denver Nuggets. With a combination of defense and rebounding, the Thunder managed to squeak past the Nuggets 105-100.

Over January, Shai managed to score over 30 points in 14 of the 17 games he played in January. This stretch of play can only be rivaled by Dallas' Luka Doncic and Philadelphia's Joel Embiid. Gilgeous-Alexander has managed to reach an elite level of scoring, which only strengthens his case for winning this season's MVP award.

OKC's next game will be against the Utah Jazz in a highly contested matchup in the Western Conference.