Who is the best player in the NBA heading into the 2021-22 season? T1. Giannis Antetokounmpo: 5 votes T1. Kevin Durant: 5 After Antetokounmpo powered the Bucks to an NBA title and Durant — following his incredible performance against Milwaukee in the Eastern Conference semifinals — led Team USA to a fourth straight gold medal in the Tokyo Olympics, the two of them split the voting for the honor of the league’s top player going into next season. For those who backed Antetokounmpo, the reasoning was obvious: the way he guided Milwaukee through the playoffs and to the franchise’s first title in 50 years. “People love to focus on his faults,” an Eastern Conference executive said of Antetokounmpo, “but he’s a hell of a player.”