Toronto FC's star forward Sebastian Giovinco was named MLS Player of the Week after a fantastic performance against the San Jose Earthquakes last Saturday. The ex-Juventus man has been excellent since arriving to North America, but it's still premature to refer to him as the league's best player.

Giovinco has scored five goals and has recorded six assists in 11 games this season. He's also taken a high amount of shots. The 28-year-old has mustered 54 attempts, which is tied for the league lead, per the official MLS website.

Giovinco's reported $7 million salary plus bonuses, according to the Toronto Sun's Kurtis Larson, and European credentials magnify his accomplishments and diminish his failures. Some media members have suggested that Giovinco could be MLS' best player. Sportsnet's Michael Grange is one reporter who is making this claim:

An argument can be made that it is the case. Giovinco has been toying with MLS defenses since his debut on March 7 against the Vancouver Whitecaps. He made one of the league's top defensive midfielders, Matias Laba, look average before assisting Jozy Altidore's first goal.

He followed up that performance with a dud against the Columbus Crew and a decent showing against Real Salt Lake. The Italian finally started to dominate on April 4 in a 3-2 loss to the Chicago Fire. Giovinco recorded a goal and an assist in that match.

Within this dominant run, he made a poor showing in the 2-1 defeat in TFC's home opener against the Houston Dynamo on May 10. 

This hot streak has led to Giovinco's MLS Player of the Month nomination. He was undoubtedly one of the best players in May, but there are others who are deserving of more plaudits than the TFC star.

Benny Feilhaber has been excellent in midfield for Sporting Kansas City, recording four goals and a league-high seven assists this season. Feilhaber was also named MLS Player of the Month for April. He's been one of the consistently best playmakers in the league and gets little recognition for it.

Clint Dempsey has also been exceptional for the Seattle Sounders, scoring seven goals to go with six assists this year.

FC Dallas' Fabian Castillo has been brilliant with his electric pace, technique and improved finishing. The Colombian has similar attributes to Giovinco as well, although Castillo plays out wide. Producing four goals and five assists as a winger is not too shabby, either.

The Vancouver Whitecaps' Pedro Morales is a clever creator and one of the team's main attackers. His two goals and four assists are lower than the Italian's numbers, but Morales is a more intelligent player who can change the pace of a game at will. 

Kaka can compete with Giovinco in terms of passing, vision and overall technique. The 2007 Ballon d'Or winner has six goals and two assists, which is impressive for a player who is past his prime. 

L.A. Galaxy striker Robbie Keane is a complete forward who, when healthy, is one of the league's most clinical goalscorers. He has an MVP award to back up that claim, and he's also scored 55 goals in 90 career MLS matches.

Lee Nguyen and Obafemi Martins were candidates for the award in 2014. The former has struggled with injuries, but he's less than a year removed from scoring 18 goals. Meanwhile, Martins has been ever-present for the Sounders with six goals from just 19 shots this campaign, per the official MLS website.

Also something to keep in mind is Giovinco's fitness. He was already in midseason form by the time he arrived in January after his preseason in the summer with Juve.

Giovinco only appeared in 12 games for club and country from August 30 to January 25, but he was still training every day and ready to play whenever he was called upon. Any player arriving from Europe in the middle of its domestic season is going to have a head start on the rest of MLS.

The Turin native could still claim the 2015 MVP award, but he won't truly be tested until the summer when games are more frequent, the travel becomes grueling and fatigue starts to set in. It won't be any easier when Altidore and Michael Bradley are away on international duty.

There's no doubt that Giovinco is a terrific addition to MLS, but he's not the undisputed best player in the league as some have claimed. There are several others who are better.

Peter Galindo covers MLS and U.S. soccer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @GalindoPW.

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