The fantasy king took back his throne in Week 23, as Nikola Jokić made his return from injury to put together a stellar pair of performances that vaulted him to the top of the fantasy rankings. The rest of the upper echelon is composed of a quartet of elite names as well, including a trio of guards that have essentially been mainstays in the top five throughout the season.
The following players averaged the most fantasy points per game last week (two-game minimum):
#1. Nikola Jokić, Nuggets 
Last Week: 62.4 FP/G Season Rank: 1 (64.0 FP/G)
Jokić sat out the first game of Denver's three-game week before making a triumphant return from a rare five-game absence with a 39-point, 10-rebound, 10-assist triple-double that featured 16-for-25 shooting in a win over the Bucks on Wednesday. He had a less prolific scoring performance but more well-balanced stat line in a blowout victory Friday against the Jazz, turning in 27 points, 14 boards, six assists and four steals while converting 10 of his 12 visits to the charity stripe into points.
#2. Donovan Mitchell, Cavaliers 
Last Week: 56.0 FP/G Season Rank: 35 (39.3 FP/G)
Mitchell rocketed through the rankings in Week 23 by significantly outperforming his already impressive season-long standards. The star guard averaged 29.0 points, 8.3 rebounds, 8.0 assists and 2.0 steals across 35.8 minutes per game in his three contests after sitting out Tuesday's clash against the Trail Blazers due to a groin
The fantasy king took back his throne in Week 23, as Nikola Jokić made his return from injury to put together a stellar pair of performances that vaulted him to the top of the fantasy rankings. The rest of the upper echelon is composed of a quartet of elite names as well, including a trio of guards that have essentially been mainstays in the top five throughout the season.
The following players averaged the most fantasy points per game last week (two-game minimum):
#1. Nikola Jokić, Nuggets
Last Week: 62.4 FP/G Season Rank: 1 (64.0 FP/G)
Jokić sat out the first game of Denver's three-game week before making a triumphant return from a rare five-game absence with a 39-point, 10-rebound, 10-assist triple-double that featured 16-for-25 shooting in a win over the Bucks on Wednesday. He had a less prolific scoring performance but more well-balanced stat line in a blowout victory Friday against the Jazz, turning in 27 points, 14 boards, six assists and four steals while converting 10 of his 12 visits to the charity stripe into points.
#2. Donovan Mitchell, Cavaliers
Last Week: 56.0 FP/G Season Rank: 35 (39.3 FP/G)
Mitchell rocketed through the rankings in Week 23 by significantly outperforming his already impressive season-long standards. The star guard averaged 29.0 points, 8.3 rebounds, 8.0 assists and 2.0 steals across 35.8 minutes per game in his three contests after sitting out Tuesday's clash against the Trail Blazers due to a groin injury. He bookended the week with a pair of double-doubles as well, generating a 25-point, 14-assist tally at the expense of the Spurs on Thursday and a 24-point, 12-rebound effort, which also included four steals, in a wild win over the Clippers on Sunday afternoon.
#3. Luka Dončić, Lakers 
Last Week: 54.0 FP/G Season Rank: 5 (52.9 FP/G)
Dončić maintained his No. 3 ranking despite uncharacteristically posting only a single double-double in four games during Week 23. Nevertheless, the prolific guard helped his cause with a 39.0% success rate from behind the arc on his way to an average of 30.0 points, which he complemented with 8.0 rebounds, 7.8 assists and 1.3 steals across 38 minutes per contest. Doncic appears fully integrated into the Lakers' system at this point, and given Los Angeles still has an opportunity to improve its playoff seeding, he should continue seeing a full workload outside of any calf-injury maintenance-related absences.
#4. Kawhi Leonard, Clippers 
Last Week: 53.9 FP/G Season Rank: 54 (36.1 FP/G)
Leonard has been somewhat of a forgotten superstar this season due to both his injuries and James Harden's emergence as the No. 1 option on the Clippers, but the two-time NBA champion offered a reminder of what he's capable during his two-game stint this week. Leonard posted a third straight double-double (27 points, 10 rebounds) against the Knicks to start his week Wednesday, and he followed it up with a signature 31-point, six-rebound, two-assist, four-steal, two block effort. To say Leonard rode a hot hand would be quite the understatement, considering he drained 62.5% of his attempts, including 58.3% of his 12 shots from beyond the arc, over his pair of Week 23 appearances.
#5. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder 
Last Week: 53.0 FP/G Season Rank: 4 (54.2 FP/G)
SGA led his Thunder to another 3-0 week with a trio of 30-point performances, posting an average of 34.0 points (on 49.3% shooting), 6.3 assists, 6.0 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game. Gilgeous-Alexander still logged a solid 32.6 minutes per contest despite OKC already having locked in the No. 1 seed in the West, as he continues to put the finishing touches on his MVP case.
This Week's Preview
The following players are top fantasy point producers and play at least three games next week with fewer than two matchups against top-10 defenses:
Nikola Jokić Nuggets (64.0 FP/G) - MIN, SA, @GSW, IND
Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks (56.4 FP/G) - PHO, @PHI, @MIA, @NOP
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder (54.2 FP/G) - CHI, DET, @HOU, LAL
Jayson Tatum, Celtics (48.4 FP/G) - @MEM, MIA, PHO, WAS
Karl-Anthony Towns, Knicks (47.0 FP/G) - PHI, @CLE, @ATL, PHO
