| RANK | Player | RUNDOWN | RECENT |
| 1 |  |
Jamal Crawford, G, LA Clippers: The second leading scorer for the Clippers, who have gone on what can only be classified as a rampage over the past month, Crawford has yet again proven that he can be a prominent player on a winning team. The Clippers, for the first time in decades, are looking like they can legitimately compete for an NBA title. | – |
| 2 |  |
Kevin Martin, G, Oklahoma City He has lived up to the hype to this point. Martin isn’t always playing at the end of games, and he isn’t always in the top 3 in scoring for his team, but his contributions for the Thunder have helped OKC fans forget how incredible their former draft pick has looked in a Rockets uniform. | – |
| 3 |  |
J.R. Smith, G, New York: J.R. Smith, playing defense? Consistently? It’s true. To this point in his career, Smith has never shown this much effort on both ends this deep into the season. Add the fact that he’s putting up career-high numbers in nearly every shooting category, and you end up with a Knicks team that is looking like one of the few teams (maybe the only) in the East with the means to compete with the Heat in the playoffs. | – |
| 4 |  |
Carl Landry, F, Golden State: Unbeknownst to most, Landry has been putting up numbers at an impressive rate for a long time. In fact, only 3 seasons ago (the last time he got consistent minutes), Landry was able to put up over 16 points per game. Now that he is forced to sit behind MVP candidate David Lee, and playing less than 25 minutes per game, Landry is still putting up numbers that any coach would be ecstatic to see for their backup big. | – |
| 5 |  |
Louis Williams, G, Atlanta: Nobody is surprised to see Lou Williams doing what he’s doing for the Hawks. Last year for the Sixers, he was able to actually lead his team in scoring in the shortened 2011-12 campaign. This year, he is proving that last year is no fluke, helping make the Hawks much more competitive than most expected coming into this season. | – |
DROPOUTS: None
FIVE TO WATCH: Manu Ginobili, G, San Antonio; Ray Allen, G, Miami; J.J. Redick, G, Orlando; Andray Blatche, F-C, Brooklyn; Marcus Thornton, G, Sacramento.
PREVIOUS RANKINGS: Rookie | Power | Most Improved | MVP |
Tim Faklis is the editor of TJFHoops.com, and covers the NBA for SheridanHoops.com. Click here to follow him on Twitter.
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