Alien for MVP
Will Victor Wembanyama’s out of this world feats this season herald a new San Antonio dynasty? Will he get the league’s much-coveted MVP award?
The MVP Race
The race for the MVP award has been insane this season, to say the least, and it is because of the contenders. With a few games remaining, we are much closer to knowing who gets it, and the air is brimming with suspense.
There is Jaylen Brown (28.6 points, 7 rebounds, 5.2 assists)of the Boston Celtics, who has been excellent and consistent all season long. In the absence of Jayson Tatum, he has been a solid presence, helping the team into a 50-win season. His case for the MVP award is solid.
Number 4 on the rankings at the moment is Luka Doncic (33.6 points, 7.8 rebounds, 8.3 assists) who has been a beast for the past month. He is behind the Lakers’ resurgence, winning 13 of their last 15, and gaining momentum towards the playoffs. The Lakers are currently ranked third in a stacked western conference. Luka is a dark horse, and his supporters are asking what more he needs to do to finally get the award.
Next on the list is Nikola Jokic (27.8 points, 12.8 rebounds, 10.8 assists) of the Denver Nuggets. The team has been up the standings all year thanks to the Joker, and he has been the fantasy enthusiast’s dream all season, averaging a triple double. He has been very consistent, and the pace in which he produces is something very difficult to keep up with.
Of course, the list is not complete without the defending champions’ team’s best player, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (31.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, 6.6 assists). The 30 a night he has been giving is remarkable because of how historically efficient he has been. The Oklahoma City Thunder rules above the standings, thanks in no small part to Shai. In fact, they were predicted to be winning 74 games this season at one point, but things rarely play out as expected. A lot of things could be anomalies which get in the way, but sometimes, the anomaly is one player.
Alien for MVP
Victor Wembanyama (24.2 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.1 blocks) has just passed Shai in the MVP rankings, and there are two main reasons.
First, Wemby plays defense like no other. In the past three games, he has blocked 17 shots. It is remarkable for a very young player (in his third year) to be so dominant defensively.
Second is his dominance–he recently dropped 41 points and 16 rebounds against the Bulls, but the impact he has on his team (and on the other teams they play against) cannot be summed up entirely by numbers. The Spurs are on an 11-game winning streak, and could actually get the first seed if they keep winning and the Thunder drops some games. The clincher is this–he is doing all that playing under 30 minutes a night. Imagine the things he can do if he played more.
Perhaps the more important question is, how far can he take the Spurs into the playoffs? The Spurs have been dominating, and their mix of young talent, hustle, and good system are too much for some teams (even for the defending champs). Adding a 7’5” gift from the basketball deities definitely helps. It will be exciting to see what they can do in a playoff series. Expectations are definitely high.
So will Wemby get the award? Maybe. But like he said after they lost the Olympic final to the Avengers, everyone ought to be scared. The Alien is coming.
Wrong. He’s already here.
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Here are the matches this week!
