NBA players are most likely to win the MVP award this season? Here are the top contenders ranked based on their odds.

Next to the Indiana Pacers, the Atlanta Hawks currently have the worst skid in the Eastern Conference, as a 126-111 loss to the Miami Heat extended their losing streak to five games.

Elsewhere, the LA Clippers have gotten hot. Kawhi Leonard has turned back the clock to a decade ago. He's been an efficient 30-plus point scorer as they try to claw themselves back into the postseason picture. Every week, Thunder Wire will release updated 2025-26 NBA Power Rankings. Here is the Dec. 29-Jan. 4 edition:

The FanSided NBA team — myself, Matt Moore, Wes Goldberg, Chris Kline, Lior Lampert and Quinn Everts — is excited to share our ranking of the 99 best players in the NBA. These rankings are a living document, updated regularly throughout the year ...

The candidates for the Most Improved Player (MIP) award are living proof that statistical feats in the NBA aren't confined to All-Stars and MVPs.

Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel are off to historic starts for their age and class, with Flagg scoring a significant number of points for a player before his 19th birthday and Knueppel having hit his 100th 3 in his 29th game, breaking the previous record for fewest games to hit 100 3s by 12.

For reasons we'll delve into as we go, these are the five most overrated players in the NBA right now. While that's a subjective distinction (and these are, ultimately, subjective rankings), the general idea is that public perception about these players outpaces their actual production and impact on winning.