Alexander's meteoric rise continues with the Oklahoma City Thunder star in the running for the MVP award for a second straight season after helping OKC to a 30-6 start in the 2024-25 campaign. The slim 6-foot-6,

In the top 5 list, four players repeat from last year. We've reached the second half of the NBA season with two teams comfortably leading their conferences. In the East, the Cleveland Cavaliers (36-7) are on pace for their best season ever,

The 2024-25 NBA All-Star starters will be announced Thursday night, and for my money, there are four locks to earn one of the 10 spots: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic, the league's two leading MVP candidates,

In mid-December, Denver’s Nikola Jokic had a healthy lead on Gilgeous-Alexander in ESPN’s MVP straw poll, conducted several times over the course of each season by Tim Bontemps.

If there is any hopeful throwback to Knicks history it is that the last time the Knicks had two starters in the All-Star Game it was in 1975 when Walt Frazier and Earl Monroe made up the backcourt.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and LeBron James were named among the starters for next month's NBA All-Star Game on Thursday. James meanwhile will be making his 21st All-Star Game -- all of them as a starter.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander delivered a 39-point masterclass Friday night in the Thunder's 126-101 win against the Knicks.

The fifth spot was another tough choice. Jalen Brunson is the beating heart of a Knicks offense that has been a force this season and he could well be No. 5 on my board, but the defensive concerns and credit for that offense also going to Karl-Anthony Towns bumped Brunson down one spot in my book to sixth. By the end of the season, this may flip.

Alexander, Donovan Mitchell and Karl-Anthony Towns were named starters Thursday night for the 2025 NBA All-Star Game.

So some like Alperen Sengun, Domantas Sabonis and Jaren Jackson might get reserve spots. But the real tough decision is measuring Kevin Durant, LeBron James and Anthony Davis against Victor Wembanyama. I’ll go with Durant and LeBron this time — and assume the other two will be in the game.