NBA: Catching up with the 2 true MVP frontrunners
Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks
So, these two players are in no particular order, but I believe Luka Doncic is one of the two clear best players in the league so far this season.
In just his second NBA season, Luka is taking the league by storm and it’s hard not to love what the 20-year-old is doing so far.
His average of just over 30 points per game ranks third in the league behind Harden and Antetokounmpo and he ranks second for assists per-game, averaging 9.2 each night in that category. He is also adding over 10 total rebounds per-game which means he is just 0.8 assists per-game short of averaging a triple-double across this entire season.
In a team full of solid role-players, Doncic is proving to be the outstanding No.1 player that the Mavericks really needed. He is quite clearly the shining light on the team and despite having the likes of Porzingis in their starting unit, Doncic is proving to be one of the most valuable players in the league.
After finishing last season second-to-last in the Western Conference with a poor 33-49 record, the Mavericks did not look like they would be a contender this season despite the budding young talent in Doncic.
Yet, Luka has taken them into genuine Western Conference contention with a 15-6 record through the first quarter of their season, sitting them fourth in the West at this point. The highlights of their start to the year include five wins from eight games against teams with a .500-plus record, including wins against Houston and Toronto. They have also won eight of 10 games on the road this season, proving they are capable of winning just about any matchup they face.
Another reason that Doncic is an MVP frontrunner is his incredible play in high-pressure situations of games. Looking at the Mavericks trip to play Houston, the game was closed to just five points midway through the last quarter with the momentum on the Rockets side.
From that point, Doncic put up 13 points to lead the Mavericks on a 25-6 run and bury the game for the Mavericks and an important win against their cross-state rivals. In that same game, Harden on the other side missed four straight 3-point attempts and was completely outplayed by the Slovenian sensation, proving how good Doncic is developing his game in pressure situations.
The other main reason why Luka stands out amongst the rest is his ability to lead and carry the Dallas team, as touched on before.
As mentioned, when talking about LeBron before it was established that James’ required help from another superstar to be able to lead the Lakers back into genuine championship contention. This transition into a “dynamic duo” league is seen elsewhere such as the Clippers (Kawhi & PG), Rockets (Harden & Westbrook) and even the Nets (Durant & Irving).
What makes Doncic so unique is that he is leading the Mavericks and putting up these incredible numbers without a really dominant No. 2 player. Kristaps Porzingis is clearly that man, but he only averages 16 points per game which is almost half of what Luka averages on a nightly basis. He does have reliable help through other players on the roster but Doncic is the No.1 man by a country mile for Dallas, very unusual for a player in just his second season.
All these factors are why I believe Luka Doncic is one of the top two MVP candidates so far this season, just ahead of LeBron James and James Harden.