With approximately two weeks left in the regular season, the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award race is reaching its final stages. A few of the top candidates include Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic, Victor Wembanyama, Nikola Jokic, and Cade Cunningham.
In a recent episode of 7PM in Brooklyn, Carmelo Anthony expressed that he thinks Gilgeous-Alexander will be a back-to-back MVP winner.
“The players know who the real MVP is. That’s all that matters… To me I think it’s clear cut. I think it’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. It’s the best team in the NBA. Best player on the team. That’s hard to argue.”
This season, Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 31.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game. He currently holds the No. 1 spot in the latest edition of the NBA’s MVP Ladder.
The MVP Race
Although Gilgeous-Alexander has maintained his status as one of the top players in the league, the NBA’s 65-game minimum for major postseason awards could deem him ineligible for MVP honors. He can miss five more games before facing ineligibility.
While the Oklahoma City Thunder have 11 games remaining in the regular season, Gilgeous-Alexander may need to be cautious in the remaining games. For instance, Cunningham is expected to miss at least two weeks of action due to a left lung pneumothorax, which will likely remove him from the MVP race.
Jokić and Wembanyama are also nearing awards ineligibility, as both players are within two games of the limit. Meanwhile, Doncic has similar flexibility to Gilgeous-Alexander.
As suggested by Anthony, Oklahoma City’s team success adds to Gilgeous-Alexander’s MVP campaign. The Thunder hold the best record in the NBA at 56–15 and are on an 11-game winning streak.
Even if the 27-year-old guard does not finish the season as the NBA’s MVP, the reigning NBA champion Thunder are expected to make another deep playoff run. The last time a franchise won back-to-back titles was the Golden State Warriors in 2018.
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