Basketball Reference Blog

Top 5 NBA Players of the 2021-2022 Season

Posted by Jonah Gardner on October 25, 2022

(last updated on October 3, 2025)

The 2021-22 season featured a number of astonishing individual performances, with a lot of NBA superstars operating at the peak of their powers. While Stephen Curry led the Warriors to another NBA championship and the Boston Celtics built a juggernaut around their stifling defense, one of the big stories of the regular season was how many players put up exceptional stat lines. Picking the top NBA players of 2021 is a challenge, so we’re using Box Plus/Minus to find out who were the top five by statistics.

Photo of Nikola Jokić

Nikola Jokić

Pronunciation: \ni-KOLA yo-kitch\

Nikola Jokić ▪ Instagram: nikolajokicofficial

(Joker, Big Honey, Cookie Monster, Yoke, Big Tipper)

Position: Center ▪ Shoots: Right

6-11, 284lb (211cm, 128kg)

Team: Denver Nuggets

Born: February 19, 1995 (Age: 30-226d) in Sombor, Serbia rs

Draft: Denver Nuggets, 2nd round (11th pick, 41st overall), 2014 NBA Draft

NBA Debut: October 28, 2015

Experience: 10 years

15 15
+1
SUMMARY

2024-25

Career

G

70

745

PTS

29.6

21.8

TRB

12.7

10.9

AST

10.2

7.2

FG%

57.6

56.0

FG3%

41.7

36.0

FT%

80.0

82.4

eFG%

62.7

59.6

PER

32.0

28.5

WS

16.4

128.0

The back-to-back MVP, Jokic had a jaw-dropping statistical season in 2021-22. Clearly one of the best NBA players of that year, Jokic led the league in Box Plus/Minus with a record-breaking 13.7. He also became the first player since Wilt Chamberlain to average 13 rebounds and 7 assists per game. The Joker added a third MVP with another typically dynamic performance in the 2023-24 season.

Photo of Joel Embiid

Joel Embiid

Pronunciation: \jo-ELL em-BEAD\

Joel Hans Embiid ▪ Instagram: joelmbiid

(JoJo, The Process, Do-a-180, Troel, The Phantom of the Process, Big Fella)

Position: Center ▪ Shoots: Right

7-0, 280lb (213cm, 127kg)

Team: Philadelphia 76ers

Born: March 16, 1994 (Age: 31-201d) in Yaounde, Cameroon cm

College: Kansas

High Schools: Montverde Academy in Montverde, Florida, The Rock School in Gainesville, Florida

Recruiting Rank: 2013 (16)

Draft: Philadelphia 76ers, 1st round (3rd pick, 3rd overall), 2014 NBA Draft

NBA Debut: October 26, 2016

Experience: 9 years

21 24
+1
SUMMARY

2024-25

Career

G

19

452

PTS

23.8

27.7

TRB

8.2

11.0

AST

4.5

3.7

FG%

44.4

50.1

FG3%

29.9

33.9

FT%

88.2

82.8

eFG%

48.1

53.4

PER

23.4

28.2

WS

1.4

64.9

In almost any other year, Joel Embiid’s season would have been more than enough to win an MVP award, but this year he came in second in the voting. Still, Embiid was clearly one of the top NBA players of 2021-22. He became the first big man to win the scoring title since Shaq and the first player since Michael Jordan to average 30 points per game and 1.5 blocks per game. The Process got some revenge on his fellow dominant big by claiming the NBA MVP for the 2022-23 season.

Photo of Giannis Antetokounmpo

Giannis Antetokounmpo

Pronunciation: \YAHN-iss ah-dedo-KOON-bo\

Giannis Antetokounmpo ▪ Instagram: Giannis_An34

(last name previously spelled Adetokunbo)

(The Greek Freak, The Alphabet)

Position: Power Forward, Small Forward, Point Guard, and Shooting Guard ▪ Shoots: Right

6-11, 242lb (211cm, 109kg)

Team: Milwaukee Bucks

Born: December 6, 1994 (Age: 30-301d) in Athens, Greece gr

Relatives: Brothers Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Kostas Antetokounmpo, Alex Antetokounmpo

Draft: Milwaukee Bucks, 1st round (15th pick, 15th overall), 2013 NBA Draft

NBA Debut: October 30, 2013

Experience: 12 years

34 34
+1
SUMMARY

2024-25

Career

G

67

859

PTS

30.4

23.9

TRB

11.9

9.9

AST

6.5

5.0

FG%

60.1

55.1

FG3%

22.2

28.4

FT%

61.7

69.3

eFG%

60.7

57.0

PER

30.5

25.8

WS

11.5

120.8

The Greek Freak celebrated his title with a season that reminded everyone why he is one of the top players in the NBA. Giannis ranked second in Box Plus/Minus, second in scoring, and ninth in defensive win shares. His 29.9 points per game were a career high and the most by a player also selected to the All-Defensive First Team since Kobe Bryant in 2007.

Photo of Luka Dončić

Luka Dončić

Pronunciation: \LOO-kuh DON-chitch\

Luka Dončić ▪ Instagram: lukadoncic

(The Matador, El Matador, Cool Hand, The Don, Wonder Boy, El Niño Maravilla, Swaggy L, Luka Legend, Too Easy, Luka Magic)

Position: Point Guard and Shooting Guard ▪ Shoots: Right

6-6, 230lb (198cm, 104kg)

Team: Los Angeles Lakers

Born: February 28, 1999 (Age: 26-217d) in Ljubljana, Slovenia si

Draft: Atlanta Hawks, 1st round (3rd pick, 3rd overall), 2018 NBA Draft

NBA Debut: October 17, 2018

Experience: 7 years

77 77
+1
SUMMARY

2024-25

Career

G

50

450

PTS

28.2

28.6

TRB

8.2

8.6

AST

7.7

8.2

FG%

45.0

46.8

FG3%

36.8

35.0

FT%

78.2

75.1

eFG%

53.6

54.2

PER

24.1

25.5

WS

5.9

57.1

Luka Dončić continued his meteoric rise, establishing himself as one of the top NBA players in the 2021-22 season. He averaged 28.4 points per game, 9.1 rebounds, and 8.7 assists. Luka was the first player in NBA history to make three All-NBA First Teams through age 22, and he has done it twice more since.

Photo of LeBron James

LeBron James

LeBron Raymone James ▪ Instagram: kingjames

(King James, LBJ, Chosen One, Bron-Bron, The Little Emperor, The Akron Hammer, L-Train, Benjamin Buckets, Captain LeMerica)

Position: Small Forward, Power Forward, Point Guard, Center, and Shooting Guard ▪ Shoots: Right

6-9, 250lb (206cm, 113kg)

Team: Los Angeles Lakers

Born: December 30, 1984 (Age: 40-277d) in Akron, Ohio us

Relatives: Son Bronny James

High School: St. Vincent-St. Mary in Akron, Ohio

Recruiting Rank: 2003 (1)

Draft: Cleveland Cavaliers, 1st round (1st pick, 1st overall), 2003 NBA Draft

NBA Debut: October 29, 2003

Experience: 22 years

32 23 23 9 6 6 6 23 23 6 6
+10
SUMMARY

2024-25

Career

G

70

1562

PTS

24.4

27.0

TRB

7.8

7.5

AST

8.2

7.4

FG%

51.3

50.6

FG3%

37.6

34.9

FT%

78.2

73.7

eFG%

57.1

54.8

PER

22.7

26.9

WS

7.7

271.4

Despite being 37 years old, LeBron James had one of the best statistical seasons of his career in 2021-22, average 30.3 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 6.2 assists. He became the oldest player to average 30 or more and even played a substantial amount of minutes at center for the first time in his career.

In a remarkable year, there are many other players who deserve to be mentioned among the top NBA players of the 2021-22 season. The next five by Box Plus/Minus are:

FAQs

Who was the best player in the 2021-2022 NBA season?

Most experts think the best player was Nikola Jokic, who won the MVP award and led in most stats. However, many others thought Joel Embiid was the best player, thanks to leading the league in scoring while playing dominant defense at center.

Who was the best defensive player in the 2021-2022 NBA season?

Marcus Smart won the Defensive Player of the Year award for 2021-22, while Jayson Tatum led the league in Defensive Win Shares.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, October 25th, 2022 at 4:38 pm and is filed under Top 10 Lists. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

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