Jayson Tatum is now the early favorite for NBA MVP

BOSTON -- It's early in the NBA season. Really early. But it's hard not to get excited for Jayson Tatum and the level that the Celtics superstar is playing at to start the year.

This newfound level has Tatum sitting as the early MVP favorite, according to BetOnline.ag.

Again, it's early. The Celtics have 68 games and five months left in the regular season. There is a long, long, long way to go before the NBA hands out the Maurice Podoloff Trophy.

But boy is Tatum playing some incredible basketball at the moment. His play is certainly worthy of sitting atop the MVP conversation at the moment.

Tatum is third in the NBA at 31.9 points per game on 49/37/87 shooting splits. He's not just settling for threes and jumpers either, aggressively attacking defenses and finishing at the rim. It's led to a career-high 9.1 free throw attempts over the first month of the season.

Tatum has eclipsed 30 points in eight of his games this season, with a pair of 40-point evenings. He had an unreal four-game stretch last week where he scored at least 31 in all four contests -- all Boston wins -- including a 24-hour blitz where he dropped 77 points and pulled down 18 rebounds in back-to-back victories over the Nuggets and the Pistons.

And that is just his scoring. Tatum is also passing at an extremely high level, and his defense has also reached new heights. He's become the complete package, and there is little that the rest of the NBA can do about it right now.

With his dominance on full display each night, Tatum has been serenaded with MVP chants. Now he's not just in the MVP conversation, but he's at the top of it.

He was asked about the MVP hoopla after a 27-point effort in a win over the Thunder on Monday night. Tatum would obviously love to bring home that individual trophy, but that isn't what he's playing for this season.

"It's always been a dream of mine. It's an honor just to be mentioned and thought of me being an MVP. But it wasn't a goal of mine coming into the season. I wanted to play at an MVP level, meaning I was playing great basketball, being efficient, and being on one of the best teams," Tatum said Monday. "My goal, and I've said it all summer and preseason, was to get back to the Finals and not have that feeling [of defeat] again. 

"Along the way, if we win enough games and I play well enough to win that, obviously that's a dream come true. But for me, I didn't say one time this summer I want to win MVP. I more want to play at that level and effect the game on both ends night in and night out, do what I can to help us win games," he said.

That's an MVP answer right there. Winning a championship is the focus; the MVP would just be a nice byproduct of the team's success. That is the mindset you want your best player to possess. 

We'll see if Tatum can maintain this MVP level throughout the season. It certainly won't be easy as defenses make adjustments. But Tatum's track record has been that he usually plays his best basketball after the All-Star break. That has to be a terrifying thought for the rest of the NBA.

It's still super early in the season, but if Tatum keeps playing like this and the Celtics keep winning, he's going to be in the MVP conversation all season.