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As we hit the halfway mark of the NBA season, it's clear that injuries have played a significant role in the landscape of the league. Top players like Luka Doncic and Joel Embiid have already sat out numerous games, putting their end-of-season award eligibility in question. On the other hand, there have been plenty of surprises, with the Cleveland Cavaliers leading the East and the Houston Rockets making a quick ascent in the West. With the midpoint now upon us, it's time to start evaluating potential candidates for the NBA postseason awards. This week, I'll be sharing my picks for some of the league's top honors. Today, let's take a look at the MVP race and who stands out at this point in the season.

2. Nikola Jokic
3. Jayson Tatum
4. Giannis Antetokounmpo
5. Victor Wembanyama

This is a virtual dead heat right now between Gilgeous-Alexander and Jokic for the top spot — if this were the end of the season, I would have lost a lot of sleep trying to pick between them. I ultimately leaned toward SGA because of his defense on Oklahoma City's stifling best defense in the league (which is 3.8 points per 100 possessions better than second-place Orlando). But this is an even race with half a season to go.

Gilgeous Alexander is averaging 31.4 points, 5.9 assists, 5.5 rebounds and 2 steals a game, while Jokic is averaging 31.2 points, 13.2 rebounds and 9.8 assists (plus 1.8 steals). The argument for Jokic is he has a heavier lift — Denver does not have the depth of talent around Joikic that OKC does around SGA. There's some truth to that, but Gilgeous-Alexander is leading a team running away with a deep Western Conference (6.5 games ahead of second-place Houston). Again, this is a coin flip.

I think two other players — Jayson Tatum and Giannis Antetokounmpo — could rise to the top spot by the end of the season.

Tatum remains incredibly efficient averaging 28.1 points, 9.4 rebounds and 5.3 assists for the champion Celtics, having taken a step forward this season into a slightly larger role on a team battling injuries the first part of the year. Antetokounmpo is putting up video game numbers — 31.4 points, 11.9 rebounds and 6 assists a game — and the intensity and focus of his play helped the Bucks turn around their slow start and win the NBA Cup. A strong enough second half from Tatum or Antetokounmpo could vault them to the top.

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.

Right now, however, Victor Wembanyama is fifth on my ballot. He is running away with Defensive Player of the Year while averaging 25.1 points and 10.8 rebounds a game. His play, with Chris Paul feeding him the rock, has dragged the Spurs to 18-19 on the season and in the mix for one of the final play-in spots in the West — way ahead of schedule. What is asked of Wembanyama nightly, considering the team around him, is massive, and defense matters a lot in these rankings (see SGA in first). Wemby is fifth on my board for now, but that might change before the season ends.