NBA Player Power Rankings: All-Star Break Edition

2. Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City Thunder

Last Rank: No. 3

Position: Small Forward

Age: 26

Slash Line: .506/.394/.895

Season Averages: 36.2 MPG, 27.8 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 4.5 APG, 1.2 BPG, 1.0 SPG, 2.4 3PM

When Kevin Durant, “Struggles,” he still manages to play at a level that’s comparable to the very best in the NBA. That’s imperative knowledge when acknowledging the fact that Durant struggled for much of the 2015-16 regular season.

As months have passed and the injury rust has worn off, Durant has progressively returned to the level at which he won MVP in 2013-14.

Durant is averaging just under 28 points per game on a slash line that’s flirting with 50-40-90. He’s averaging 32.3 points over the past 10 games, and 29.7 points since January 1—a large enough sample size to deduce that Durant is back to being an elite scorer.

With four scoring titles already on his resume, there’s reason to believe that Durant will make the race for the league’s lead in points per game interesting over the next two months.

Durant’s week included a 40-point performance against the Golden State Warriors and a masterfully efficient 32-point clinic at the Phoenix Suns. With six 30-point games in his past eight appearances, Durant is looking like himself again—bad news for the rest of the NBA.

The question is, can Durant do enough during the final two months to close the gap and catch Stephen Curry in the race for MVP?

Next: Cue the MVP Chants