1. LeBron James
2015-16 Stats: 25.3 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 6.8 APG, 1.4 SPG, .520/.309/.731 shooting, 27.6 PER
After watching LeBron James bring the city of Cleveland its first championship in 52 years, after watching him lead the Cleveland Cavaliers back from a 3-1 NBA Finals deficit over a 73-win team, and after watching him drop a triple-double on opening night…are you really going to think about putting anyone but him in this No. 1 spot?
In the offseason, there was a lot of talk about LeBron coasting through the regular season. The idea was that head coach Tyronn Lue would rest him more to save his strength for another Herculean title run against another Warriors juggernaut. King James responded with a 19-14-11 triple-double on 9-of-14 shooting in just 32 minutes in the Cavs’ season opener.
If LeBron can continue to put up gaudy stat lines like this in limited minutes, he may just “coast” to his sixth MVP Award the way Stephen Curry did last year — put up insane numbers, bury your opponent early, and enjoy the fourth quarter off with a double-digit advantage in hand.
Next: 2016-17 NBA Power Rankings: Week 1
When Curry capped off the greatest regular season in NBA history, LeBron James snatched the title of “world’s best basketball player” back from him in the Finals. No one has taken that title from the King yet, and until it happens, no one is knocking him off this pedestal as the league’s best small forward either.