Yes, it is July, and the summer league is in full swing, so it is a perfect time to rank MVP candidates for next season. Yes, this is way too soon, and it is happening.

Nikola Jokic won it last year, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finishing as the runner-up. Luka Doncic, Giannis Antetokoumnpo, and Jalen Brunson round out the top five on last year’s voting results.

One name that will not be in the rankings despite being a front-runner for the MVP last season is Joel Embiid. It has nothing to do with talent, but after not being healthy heading into the playoffs last season, it’s easy to envision the Philadelphia 76ers wanting to be conservative with his minutes.

So, without further ado, these are the way too early MVP rankings.

Putting the best player in the world fifth in the MVP ranking probably feels wrong. Nikola Jokic has been arguably the best player in the NBA for a while now. He has won three of the previous four MVPs.

Jokic is currently the favorite on FanDuel to win the award, but there are challenges with winning it next season, mainly voter fatigue. Having already won three MVPs can work against Jokic because he will have to be better than last season. That won’t be easy, considering he averaged 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds, and 9.0 assists.

Denver had a rough offseason, losing another key member of their championship team from two seasons ago in Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. If Jokic can keep the Nuggets elite this season while somehow improving his averages, he has a shot. But he’ll be fighting the modern attention span.

Is it already time?

Edwards had a strong regular season for the Minnesota Timberwolves, averaging 25.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 5.1 assists, but he kicked up a notch when the playoffs rolled around, especially in the first two rounds. All his numbers went up: scoring (27.6), rebounding (7.0), and assists (6.5). Even his three-point shooting went from 35.7 percent to 40.

Beyond Edwards’ numbers, his defense was outstanding in the playoffs. He never backed away from a challenge and defended against Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, and Jamal Murray. His impact on both ends of the floor was felt in every series.

If Edwards can bring to the regular season what he brought in the playoffs on both ends of the court, then FanDuel’s odds (+1200) of him winning the MVP are too low.

It was a disappointing end to the Milwaukee Bucks season, mostly because Giannis Antetokounmpo missed the playoffs. But Antetokounmpo was incredible during the regular season, and even garnered a first-place vote in last season’s MVP voting.

Antetokounmpo finished second in scoring last year at 30.4 points per game, while shooting 61.1 percent from the field and grabbing 11.5 boards. He’s still absurd.

FanDuel has his odds as the fourth best for next season at +600. He is a wrecking ball on offense and a menace on weak-side defense. Playing for Greece’s national team in the Olympics, Antetokounmpo has looked healthy and ready to go.

If the Bucks can get Damian Lillard going next season and keep Khris Middleton healthy, Antetokounmpo will have enough talent around him to make a run in the Eastern Conference and the MVP award.

Luka Doncic is a regular on these preseason MVP lists, and this year is no different. He is coming off leading the Dallas Mavericks to the NBA Finals and making a late-season run for the MVP.

Eventually, Doncic has got to win it.

FanDuel has Doncic with the second-best odds of winning the MVP next season at +370. For Doncic to improve his chances of winning the award, he must lead the Mavs to a better regular-season record. They finished this season fifth in the standings despite him leading the league in scoring with 33.9 points.

It might be a small blessing for the Mavs that Doncic’s Slovenia squad failed to qualify for the Olympics. He will have a full offseason to recover from the long list of nagging injuries he suffered during the year. That should help him to start training camp and the season off fresher than usual.

That said, there is no reason to believe Doncic’s scoring will drop off anytime soon; in fact, it has gone up each of the last four seasons. If he can keep the same numbers up and the Mavs finish in the top three in the West, Doncic might finally win the award.

It will be challenging for Shai Gligeous-Alexander to top last year’s season. He put up massive numbers, averaging 30.1 points per game on 53.5 percent field goal percentage and 6.2 assists, and his Thunder finished with the top seed in a brutal Western Conference. That would be good enough in a normal regular season to win the MVP, but Nikola Jokic is on a different level these days.

That said, Gilgeous-Alexander is my favorite for MVP. On FanDuel, he is currently third at +550. The Thunder have improved and should again be one of the best teams in the NBA this season. The offense will still rely heavily on Gilgeous-Alexander’s shoulders.

The question is, what can Gilgeous-Alexander add to his game that will get the voter’s attention? The easiest way to do that is to improve his three-point shooting. He shot a decent 35.3 percent from three last year but if he can get that up to 38 percent, he will turn into a complete three-level scorer that will drive defenses crazy.

Every season someone jumps up the rankings with outstanding play. Here are a few players with a legitimate chance to climb into the top five MVP rankings.

Jayson Tatum is an MVP talent; there is no questioning that. The hardest part of his candidacy for the award is that his team is too good. It seems silly, but the Boston Celtics do not need him to be dominant for them to win with the talent they have amassed. Boston just won the championship with a good, not great, playoff run from Tatum. His game will go unnoticed by many voters because the play of Jaylen Brown, Kristaps Porzingis, and company will mask it.

Jalen Brunson, the people’s hero of New York. Fresh off giving the Knicks a substantial financial gift by signing a discounted extension this summer, Brunson has a legitimate chance to win the MVP after finishing fifth in last season’s voting. With how New York has loaded up with defensive wings this offseason, they look like threats to the Boston Celtics. He averaged 28.7 points and shot 40 percent from three with 6.7 assists. If the Knicks finish on top of the Eastern Conference with the same type of production from Brunson, he could win the MVP award.

It feels like Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies have been overlooked. Some of it has to do with Morant’s behavior two seasons ago and the rash of injuries the Grizzlies suffered all season, including Morant’s. This has the chance to be a fantastic comeback story, and narratives always play a role in MVP voting. In the 21-22 season, he finished seventh in MVP voting. He averaged 27.4 points, 6.7 assists, and 5.7 rebounds. The drawback is the 65-game mark he has only played surpassed that number once.