After missing three games, Luka Doncic returned to the court in remarkable fashion, dropping 40 points in the Los Angeles Lakers’ 117-112 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies. The season might have just begun, but this was already the third time the Slovenian star has taken the game by the scruff of its neck.
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And given that Doncic has looked like a million bucks since shedding 30 lbs during the offseason, analysts strongly believe he might be a fitting candidate for this year’s MVP. This is his eighth year in the NBA. Up until last year, he had been named in five straight All-NBA first team selections, reaching almost touching distance of the MVP title in 2023-24, only coming third behind Nikola Jokic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
So, “Can he finally do it this year?” is the question everyone has been asking. He is in LA, playing for the gold and purple nation, leading the team out of the shadows of LeBron James, and is primed to take over as the team’s face for the foreseeable future. If there is ever a time, it is now. However, former Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki believes that Doncic’s MVP chances rest firmly on how well the Lakers do this season.
Doncic scoring 40 points in three consecutive games to start the season makes him only the second player in NBA history to do so. The only other person on that list is Wilt Chamberlain, who pulled it off twice in 1961 and 1962. Naturally, many have been saying how Doncic might just end up averaging 40 this entire season.
While Nowitzki does admit that scoring has generally been up in the NBA, maintaining such a high average seems like a lot, even for a man of Doncic’s pedigree. Udonis Haslem agreed with the former power forward and pointed out that if he were to sustain that pace, it would have to be very intentional, to the point of being selfish, and consequently, not playing good basketball.
Blake Griffin, also present on the panel, noted that Doncic has been anything but selfish, which makes his scoring all the more impressive. “The game is just coming to him. You’re not seeing him force shots. He didn’t take bad shots tonight and he’s still getting 40,” he added.
Taylor Rooks went on to take this moment to introduce the MVP conversation, even though by her own admission, it’s too early to call. Nowitzki then said that he would love for Doncic to get the nod. “He’s been at an incredible level for years now. I think he deserves it,” he said.
“The question I have is, are the Lakers going to have a good enough record. Usually, it has to be like a Top 2, Top 3 seed at least in the conference to even get that love. And so, we will see how the Lakers’ season goes. I mean, obviously, LeBron is still out. They still have a long season in front of them, but if he keeps it up, you can’t keep him out of that conversation,” he further explained.
Doncic will obviously have some serious competition, even if the Lakers manage to put together a strong enough season to keep him in the MVP conversation. Stars like Victor Wembanyama are putting up some insane numbers, while Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are all right there in the mix.
