For the duration of the season, the 2023-24 MVP race has been a two-man showdown between Denver center Nikola Jokic and Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, with both being regarded as odds-on favorites to win the silverware.
Recently, however, a new challenger appears to have entered the conversation, causing a bit of a schism between these two aforementioned superstars, as not only is the Nuggets big still in possession of the number one spot on the NBA’s ladder board, but SGA has officially been dropped from the top two.
As things stand, the 25-year-old is third in the new rankings, with Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic moving up to second place.
Luka Doncic passes Thunder standout Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the MVP race. The Slovenian baller is on track to have his greatest season yet, averaging 33.9 points, 9.8 assists, 9.1 rebounds, and 1.5 steals while shooting 48.7 percent from the field and 3.7 percent from distance.
With his great play to date, he has led the Mavericks to a 43-29 record, including a 9-1 record over the last ten games.
Of course, despite Doncic’s recent replacement, Gilgeous-Alexander still has the support of multiple previous MVP winners in his quest for the historic title, with Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal going so far as to proclaim, “The MVP is SGA.” Period.”
Shai keeps on spinnin’ pic.twitter.com/uMx0OMb0fH
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) March 27, 2024
Frankly, his averages of 30.4 points, 6.3 assists, 5.6 rebounds, and 2.1 steals on 54.0 percent shooting from the floor and 36.7 percent from deep, combined with the fact that the Thunder are in a legitimate position to claim the top seed in the Western Conference at 50-22, make his case unbelievably strong, even if the oddsmakers don’t see it.
It will be interesting to see how the race plays out over the next several weeks, but, as coach Mark Daigneault recently referred to, whether Gilgeous-Alexander wins the MVP award or not, the most important thing for him is attempting to help his team contend for an NBA championship.
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