Bas Breaking Down the Early MVP Race at FIBA 3x3 World Tour 2026
MIES (Switzerland) - FIBA 3x3 commentator and analyst Bas Rozendaal breaks down the early contenders in the 2026 FIBA 3x3 World Tour MVP race. With eight of the season's 18 events complete, the race is beginning to take shape, but the numbers alone don't tell the full story.
I know we’re only 3 months into the 2026 FIBA 3x3 PRO Circuit season, but hear me out.
The World Tour has a total of 18 events scheduled for 2026. 8 of those have come and gone. That means we have a pretty clear look on who the early seasons stars are, and who would be considered in a potential MVP conversation.
Or, more accurately, an MVP debate.
This is not as simple as opening the Statistics page, clicking on Player Value, sorting from highest to lowest and handing out the award for whoever appears at the top.
Player Value is a logical place to start, as it’s the best all-round individual statistic available in 3x3 basketball.
For those unfamiliar, the formula is as follows:
(S-EFF x PTS) + KAS + DRV + DNK + BS + BZR + (REB/2) – TO
All of the above are straight up counting stats, outside of S-EFF (Shooting Efficiency) which measures the total points a player has versus the amount of shots taken from 1, 2 and the free throw line.
So Player Value rewards efficient scoring, key assists, drives, dunks, blocks, buzzer-beaters and rebounding. Turnovers pull the number down.
If we take the Player Value per game, it gives us a fairly complete picture of what a player contributes on a game to game basis.
MVP, however, isn't awarded to the player with the highest spreadsheet. It's awarded to the player whose season tells the strongest story.
Volume matters. Winning matters. Availability matters.
That last part might sound obvious, but consider the following: Baskets Bonn had their worst event of the season in Zadar, finishing 10th. Fabian Giessmann was not there. That’s an important detail when trying to gauge who is the Most Valuable Player.
So, we take the following into account:
• Individual production
• Games Played
• Team Success
• Signature Performances
• Player Responsibility
• Defense
• Team performance when the player isn’t rostered
That leaves us with 3 tiers:
The race leaders.
The immediate challengers.
Players who are one big result away.
Let’s dive in.
Tier 1: The Leaders
‘Nuff said, these are your early season frontrunners.
Strahinja Stojacic (Ub)
25 games | 8.6 Player Value per game | 213.8 total Player Value | 5.8 points per game
Early season, Strahinja Stojacic is still my MVP.
Not by a mile, but he’s still first.
His 8.6 P-VALPG ranks 10th among all players on the World Tour, but if we adjust to at least 5 games played to weed out some high performers who went out after a couple of games in a single event, he’s up to 5th.
Let’s break down the numbers:
I’ve taken the liberty of breaking a players P-VALPG down to the statistics going into it on a per game basis. You’ll notice that BZR (Buzzer-Beaters) are missing. That’s because of the rarity of the stat. The current leader on the World Tour seasons in BZR has 2. The TO (Turnover) axis is inverted, as a lower number of TO leads to a higher player value.
Dr. Strange contributes in a multitude of ways. He’s the driving force behind the Ub offensive engine, quite literally. Stojacic’s 2.5 DRV per game ranks first among all contenders in this article, that shows you the pressure he puts on the rim and the opposing defense. Not only that, he sets up his teammates to score to the tune of 1.6 KAS per game. All of that, and he barely turns the ball over in a total of 25 games played, which is the third most on the World Tour this year.
Ub have also won two World Tours and have been around the final stages of almost every single event they have played. That’s impossible to ignore.
The number one player in the world is winning this race because he’s been very good at almost everything, has done it for longer than most of the competition and has gotten his team into the winning column. At this point, that is still the strongest case for MVP.
Stefan Milivojevic (Liman)
24 games | 7.6 Player Value per game | 181.6 total Player Value | 5.1 points per game
Liman’s season creates an interesting problem. They have won two World Tours, and have been very consistent. But who is their best player? Simeunovic leads them in scoring. Milutinovic is the brains behind the operation. But when you break down the stats, the Gladiator truly stands out.
His 7.6 P-VALPG is about a point above Milutinovic, and a full 2 ahead of Simeunovic. He’s also played the most events for the Serbians, and picked up an MVP award in Ulaanbaatar. He wasn’t a part of the Utsunomiya Opener win. Still, he’s consistently produced while stepping into a new role on a new squad in 2026.
Let’s see how he gets it done.
A lot of similarities with Strahinja, with the Gladiator leaning more playmaking then rim pressure. He is the more efficient shooter, but is a tad lower in PPG. That’s not a bad comparison at all.
The case for the Gladiator leans heavily on Ulaanbaatar for now, but with the way Liman plays when he’s on the court he could be the one hoisting the trophy at the end of 2026.
Worthy de Jong (Amsterdam RABOBANK)
18 games | 8.1 Player Value per game | 145.8 total Player Value | 7.2 points per game
Worthy has the cleanest scoring résumé case among established candidates. He’s averaging 7.2 PPG with good efficiency, while also contributing in a major way on the boards (4.1 RPG). That alone puts him in the conversation.
Then you look at Amsterdam’s results. When Worthy has been on the floor, they have often looked like one of the best teams in the world. They won Vienna, with Worthy grabbing the MVP, and got to the finals in Zadar and Amsterdam. That last one is where context becomes important. Worthy didn’t play in the final game in the ‘Dam. Would Amsterdam have won if he had been available? There is no way to know.
That absence does two things for Worthy’s case, however. It cost him the opportunity to add another World Tour victory, whilst averaging close to 10ppg. It also underlines his importance to Amsterdam.
His statistical profile is more score-heavy than Stojacic and Milivojevic, but averaging over 7 a game with Amsterdam winning more then ¾ of their games on the World Tour shouldn’t lead to much criticism.
The big question for Hype Worthy going forward becomes volume. He’s played 7 fewer games then Stojacic and Milivojevic, and is now dealing with a foot injury which we don’t know the timetable for. In case he returns and leads Amsterdam to another World Tour win, he could be number 1 very quickly.
Tier 2: The Immediate Challengers
These players aren’t waiting for the top three to collapse, they are close enough to take control of the race themselves.
Each one has a strong case. Each one is also missing something.
Fabian Giessmann (Baskets Bonn)
12 games | 9.1 Player Value per game | 109.5 total Player Value | 8.7 points per game
The Future has arrived in the MVP debate, and has the performance we all remember to back it up. Baskets Bonn had never won a World Tour before Amsterdam. They started all the way in the qualifying draw and made it to the final game, before going down 16-9 to an unchained Amsterdam RABOBANK in front of their home fans.
Fabian then made like Atlas and threw the comeback on his broad shoulders, scoring eight of Bonn's final twelve points to complete one of the defining performances of the season.
That’s insane. There are good games, and then there are games that become a building block for a players legacy going forward. Giessmann’s final game in the Dutch capital belongs in the second category. His overall numbers back it up too.
Giessmann averages 8.7 PPG with a 9.1 P-VALPG, producing through scoring, dunks, blocks and rebounding. When engaged he’s an unsolvable conundrum operating from the low block, while also able to knock down his long range attempts. Did I mention he plays a physical brand of defense as well? Even out to the perimeter? The man’s called the Future for a reason.
The argument against Giessmann is sample size. Twelve games shows that the production is real, but he’s very far behind the top contenders who are all around or over 20 games played. The argument for him is that he’s produced one of the more defining individual performances of the year.
Nauris Miezis (Ulaanbaatar MMC Energy)
9 games | 10.4 Player Value per game | 93.5 total Player Value | 6.7 points per game
Speaking of low sample size, I present you Nauris Miezis. The Maze has been revamped this year, after joining Ulaanbaatar MMC Energy. So much so that he’s produced the best P-VALPG among serious candidates. That alone makes him interesting.
The full stats make him impossible to dismiss:
He scores efficiently, tops all players in KAS per game, rebounds at an elite level for his position and rarely wastes a possession. And his case isn’t one of individual production either. Ulaanbaatar have been one of the most consistent teams this season, placing top 4 in all but 1 of their 6 played events. That’s after getting only 3 top 4 finishes ALL last season (12 Events). The impact is clear.
Miezis misses 2 things to be considered in the Leader tier: Games and a World Tour win. Don’t count him out on that last one though, as he’s gotten Ulaanbaatar very close already!
Niklas Kropp (Skyliners)
21 games | 8.1 Player Value per game | 170.4 total Player Value | 6.3 points per game
Niklas Kropp’s case isn’t just about production. It’s about survival. Skyliners have been riddled with injuries in 2026. Lineups have changed, important players have gone down.. They’ve played a ton of games with just 3 active bodies. The team has rarely been able to settle into anything resembling a normal rhythm.
Kropp is the one keeping them afloat. That’s what makes his 21-game body of work so impressive. He’s singlehandedly kept the Skyliners from completely falling off a cliff, all while making a major leap in volume, output and responsibility both offensively and defensively.
This is how the number shape up:
His 8.1 P-VALPG is backed up by both scoring and rebounding, as well as him leading the entire league in total blocks! Not only that, he’s had to step up as a creator leading to an career high in KAS per game.
Now, the Skyliners haven’t won a World Tour yet. It remains to be seen whether they can get healthy enough to do so. But credit where credit’s due. Kropp has kept the Germans relevant at a time when they should’ve been falling down the standings. That makes him one of the best “value” cases in the literal sense of the word.
Tier 3: One Big Result Away
These players have numbers good enough to enter the conversation. They lack either volume, consistency or team success at the highest level.
James Parrott (Miami)
11 games | 9.7 Player Value per game | 106.2 total Player Value | 6.5 points per game
James Parrott’s numbers are better then the placement here suggests. His 9.7 P-VALPG is higher than Giessmann’s, whilst playing the same number of events. But Miami’s results this year have been lackluster.
Yes, they won Zadar. Yes, James picked up MVP. They have not placed better then 5th in any other event. This category is named One Big Result Away for a reason.
Air Parrott’s statistics deserve some merit though.
This is elite two-way production. An efficient 6.5 PPG, good DRV and REB numbers, and an absolutely absurd 1.55 blocks per game.
Individually, this would put him into the conversation at the top of this article. The resume for his team isn’t backing that up.
He needs another Miami run, that would change the tone.
Dennis Donkor (Antwerp)
16 games | 6.9 Player Value per game | 110.5 total Player Value | 6.6 points per game
Antwerp have been one of the strongest Challenger teams this season, with Dennis the Menace being a big part of those results. 4 Challenger finals, wins in Shibuya and Lion City.
Dennis’ case comes down to two things.
• The Challenger results haven’t really transferred to the World Tour for the Belgians, who have a 4th place as their best result on the year.
• His P-VALPG is a tad below other contenders.
Solid numbers, no doubt, at 6.6ppg with good shooting efficiency, while keeping his turnovers low. It’s a more narrow profile then those of the leading candidates, as he doesn’t accumulate huge rebounding, KAS or defensive numbers.
He has been the leading offensive presence on a team that has repeatedly played for trophies. For now, that’s been on the Challenger level. If it translates, Dennis surely rises in tiers in this conversation.
Franck Seguela (Toulouse)
12 games | 8.2 Player Value per game | 99.0 total Player Value | 6.6 points per game
Seguela is an interesting one. His contributions are very broad, just look at his P-VALPG breakdown.
This chart screams swiss army-knife, and that’s exactly what Seguela has been for Toulouse all year.
You could argue that their main offensive creator in a team concept has been Suhard, but Franck still averages a team high 6.6ppg. He’s a big reason why the French side is seeing improved rebounding numbers, while also chipping in blocks, drives, key assists and even dunks. Turnovers are a limiting factor, giving back some of the value he creates.
Imagine these numbers with Toulouse making more of an impact in the winning column, something they have not done this year.
Others Worth Mentioning
Since we’re only 3 months into the 2026 season, a lot of players either haven’t played enough or haven’t gotten off to a good start. Here are some names worth mentioning, despite to me not being a part of this conversation for now:
• Cameron Forte (Shanghai) has produced on offense and on the boards, as expected. Shanghai however hasn’t been good, and BullyBald’s defense has left something to be desired.
• Evaldas Dziaugys and Raudondvaris got off to a slow start in 2026, before turning things around in Marseille. More events will help Evaldas.
• Dianliang Zhang (DeQing) has a very solid statistical case, as one of the most consistent scoring threats in the paint in all of 3x3.
• Isaac Mayo (Fuengirola) has quietly been very good (9.2 P-VALPG) for an up and coming Spanish side. Not there yet, but good to keep an eye on this guy
• If only Kyle Guy and Phoenix had more events.
The Race Right Now
As mentioned at the start, Stojacic is my number one for now. But not comfortably.
As things shift over the next few months, the MVP race is only going to get louder. Nine more World Tours remain before the Rio Finals, and with the parity we've seen across the PRO Circuit, there may never have been a season where so many players could make a legitimate claim.
That’s what makes this race so fascinating.
Stay Connected
Follow all the latest action from the FIBA 3x3 World Tour throughout the 2026 season by visiting the official World Tour website, where you can find the latest news, team standings, player statistics and everything you need to follow the Race to the Final. Fans can also keep track of the Event Calendar and the latest FIBA 3x3 Individual and Federation Rankings as teams and players continue their push toward the season finale.
Want to learn more about 3x3 basketball? Explore the official FIBA 3x3 Rules to understand the unique fast-paced format of the game, or discover the FIBA 3x3 Competition Structure to see how the discipline’s global pathway connects grassroots events, professional tours and world-class international competitions.
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