Stephen Jackson leaves out LeBron James from his current top-5: “Best in the league right now, Kevin Durant”

LeBron James is arguably playing at an MVP level, which is astounding when his age is taken into account. If not for his spectacular performances, there’s no telling where the LA Lakers would have been in the standings.

As impressive as the four-time MVP has been, some would not include his name among the top 5 players in the league. Here’s former NBA player Stephen Jackson naming his five best current players:

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“Best in the league right now, Kevin Durant. I would go Giannis [Antetokounmpo], Luka [Doncic], Jokic and Embiid. Excuse me, I’ll take Jokic out and put in Jayson Tatum.

"He [James] ain’t in my top 5 right now, not right now. He’s in my top 3 all-time but right now in the league, he is not the 5 best player in the league right now.”

To rank as one of the top 5 best in the NBA automatically merits inclusion in the race for the MVP award. All of the names Stephen Jackson mentioned have been squarely in the conversation for the Michael Jordan Trophy.

LeBron James’ play, though, can’t be disregarded, particularly over the past two months. The newly-named NBA All-Star captain has improved his scoring output since the start of the season. He averaged 25.8 PPG in October and November, 31.2 PPG in November, fourth-best in the NBA, and 34.3 PPG this month.

James’ scoring average this month is second only to Joel Embiid’s 35.4 PPG. More importantly, he kept the LA Lakers afloat while Anthony Davis was sidelined with a stress injury that caused him to miss 21 games.

Without LeBron James playing like a man possessed, the Lakers would have certainly dropped near the bottom of the standings. LA managed to keep a 11-10 record while Davis was rehabilitating his injured right foot.

James has been so good that JJ Redick hasn't disregarded his MVP chances if the Lakers finish in the top 4 in the West.

LeBron James isn’t showing signs of slowing down

LeBron James has been on blistering scoring form since turning 38 years old.

Opponents know what to expect when they face LeBron James. He’s been inefficient from behind the arc, but he’s still getting buckets like he’s 10 years younger.

After averaging 25.8 points to start the season, he’s now up to 30.2 PPG. James didn’t reach at least 40 points this season until he turned 38 years old. Since then, he’s had five such games, peaking with 48 markers last Jan. 16 in a 140-132 win over the Houston Rockets.

The other night, he dropped 41 points, nine rebounds and eight assists against Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics. If not for a controversial call, James could have been the hero in that game versus the Lakers’ bitter rivals.

LEBRON JAMES TONIGHT:

👑 41 points
👑 9 rebounds
👑 8 assists
👑 50.0% FGM
👑 50.0% 3PM

*117 points from passing Kareem for #1 scorer of all-time

*9 assists from passing Steve Nash & Mark Jackson for #4 all-time in assists https://t.co/8SggSlqOwS

The LA Lakers are 23-27, but they could have easily been better than .500 if not for several missed calls. LA is only two games away from a play-in ticket.

LeBron James may not be in many MVP conversations, but he’s showing the world that he can still carry his team to relevance when healthy.