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David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

Age: 31

Position: SF/PF

2016-17 Per-Game Stats: 23.4 points, 9.0 rebounds, 9.3 assists, 1.1 steals, 0.5 blocks

Yes, these rankings are reactive to what's happened in the last few weeks. But they also take a bit of history into account, or else we'd see established studs falling out of the countdown entirely while players on unsustainable hot streaks rise to the top.

LeBron James has not been better than Kawhi Leonard, Russell Westbrook or James Harden during the 2016-17 season, but he's working with a remarkable head start. After all, he re-established himself as the league's premier talent during the 2016 NBA Finals.

And it's not like he's been anything less than stellar to start the year.

The Cavaliers still have just a single loss (7-1), and that record is largely because James has been willing to change his role and continue thriving. He's let Kyrie Irving take over the primary scoring load, content to sit back and facilitate while doing all the little things. It's why he's closer than ever to averaging a triple-double—something no player other than Oscar Robertson has ever done.

When Tristan Thompson is on the floor, the Cavaliers' net rating goes up by a meager 0.1 points per 100 possessions. That impact rises to 3.7 when we're talking about J.R. Smith. With Irving or Kevin Love playing, the net ratings actually go down—by 21.9 points per 100 possessions for the point guard and 23.3 for the power forward.

But when James enters the proceedings, his squad's net rating skyrockets from minus-15.5 to a stellar 14.7.

If he's not the leader in the early-season MVP race, he's right up near the front of the star-studded pack. Either way, he's still the sport's premier superstar.

Adam Fromal covers the NBA for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @fromal09.

Unless otherwise indicated, all stats are from Basketball-Reference.com, NBA.com or NBA Math and are current heading into games on Nov. 12.