With almost a quarter of the season already over, the league has witnessed some magnificent individual performances. Like always, the likes of Joel Embiid, Stephen Curry, Nikola Jokic, and Luka Doncic, among a few more superstars are having a pretty terrific start to their campaign. However, this 22-23 season, we have also seen unexpected MVP-like displays from Jayson Tatum, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and De’Aaron Fox.
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Yesterday, after the rematch of the 2022 Western Conference Finals Warriors-Mavericks matchup, several fans and pundits spoke about the interesting duel between Curry and Doncic.
While analysts were discussing which of the two megastars was having a better season, Stephen A Smith decided to talk about Tatum’s chances of winning the Maurice Podoloff Trophy.
Also Read: NBA Twitter Marvels Over Jayson Tatum and Co’s Offensive Clinic vs. Hornets
“Jayson Tatum is special”: Stephen A Smith
On the recent episode of ESPN’s “First Take”, SAS spoke about the spectacular season JT has been having. Further, putting the Celtics star into the MVP conversations, the 55-year-old analyst said:
“I think that Luka is a leading candidate for the league MVP, Giannis. I will officially, on national television throw Jayson Tatum into that conversation, for the Boston Celtics. If you don’t know you should ask somebody, this brother is special.”
Smith continued, “He’s putting on a show and trying to make amends for his struggling performance in the NBA Finals. But, Jayson Tatum is a superstar in this league and he plays like one. Night in, night out basis, you got to contend with that brother. I put him right there.”
Averaging a staggering 30.8 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game, the former Duke Blue Devil is leading the Cs to the best record in the entire association.
Smith is absolutely right, the 6-foot-8 forward is one of the early frontrunners to grab the MVP honors.
Stephen A Smith lauds Curry and Doncic after their duel
Stephen A. also spoke about the two stars who produced a pretty epic battle. First, the ESPN analyst spoke about the Slovenian MVP, who managed to put up a historic 41-point triple-double.
“Luka obviously is having a sensational season, and I think that it’s an inditement to some degree against the Dallas Mavericks. You gotta give him some additional help. You cannot ask Luka to carry the load that he’s carrying for so long. You gotta look at a star like that and you have to get complimentary pieces.”
Further, Smith simply stated Steph’s greatness following his 32/5/5 night at Dallas.
“Steph Curry is phenomenal. Steph Curry is a future Hall-Of-Famer, he’s the greatest shooter I’ve ever seen. The conditioning that he is in constantly moving without the ball, all of this other stuff, it’s magnificent.”
