NBA MVP Discussion Thread 2023-24

[AussieCeltic]

Tatum will lose shots to KP and Jrue.

Same happened to Lebron when he went to the Heat. Scoring went down, percentages went up. Being on the best team goes a long way.

I backed Luka last year but I think his time will come later. I believe this is Tatums year. 28/9/6 on the #1 seed would get it done IMO.

[Ruma85]

Tatum will lose shots to KP and Jrue.

Same happened to Lebron when he went to the Heat. Scoring went down, percentages went up. Being on the best team goes a long way.

I backed Luka last year but I think his time will come later. I believe this is Tatums year. 28/9/6 on the #1 seed would get it done IMO.

Even though i'm not pulling for Tatum to win it, it has been long time since a celtic has won it.

[_NoMas]

Kawhi. The sheer surprise and shock of him playing 65 games is going to have the voters make him the next unanimous MVP

[Joshyjess]

Tatum - Why? Because I'm a Celtic's Homer - nuff said!

[zero rings]

As long as Jokic stays healthy it’s going to be tough for anyone to have a better season than him. He is by far the games most consistent player.

Only way I see him losing is if the Bucks or Celtics steamroll the league for 60+ wins.

[jokeboy86]

Probably Tatum but probably not Jokic. Only way he could win it is if Denver gets the #1 overall seed and wins 60+. Lets face it Jokic is probably the least marketable/no buzz best player in modern sports history. At least people hated Barry Bonds so he was polarizing and at least Duncan did some ads and was a tiny bit more marketable. You’re talking about a great player who’s even less interested in being a face of the league than Duncan and KAJ were.

The mainstream/talking head media will always be looking for a reason not to give him an MVP and hopes he doesnt win a title this year or any more years. Why? Because they’ve openly said that him being the best player in the NBA is not good and does nothing for business or the league’s brand.

Yes he won his 1st ring but the media wont treat this like they have when more marketable greats like MJ, Lebron, Steph, or Giannis when they won their 1st and they were basically shoo-ins the following season if their team got the 1 seed and they played enough games.

Also similar to last year the historical aspect of another MVP for Jokic factors even more into this year then it did last year. Jokic winning another MVP would give him 3 to go along with one title and once again has NBA media begrudgingly thinking about their all time rankings Ask yourself do you think they want to have a discussion about Jokic’s place in history if he wins a 3rd MVP to go along with a ring now? Only 8 players have won 3 MVPs and at least one title and when you look at the list only Moses is not considered a consensus top 10 player.

[bisme37]

Read on Twitter

[Wolfgang630]

Joker will be too busy helping Jamal Murray get to the All Star game for a max

[itsxtray]

Murray brings his playoff averages to the regular season he's making an all-nba team. Jokic doesn't shoot much during the regular season anyway, Murray can put up 20 shots a game.

[JayMKE]

Narrative wise if Tatum or Luka can take it they will over a 3rd MVP for Jokic or Giannis.

[CharityStripe34]

If Gianni and Jokic are healthy, play very well and their teams win a bunch of games (at least 55) it'll be hard to pick against either one. One's a walking 25-10-9 and the other a 30-12-6.

That being said, if the Celtics go on a tear and Tatum's efficiency is really high (while being a very good defender) I can see him garnering some steam for an MVP. Luka and Embiid will definitely receive votes if they have great seasons.

[Alatan]

NBA media on life support.

[AleksandarN]

SGA has a chance, poll shows Tatum leading, not sure about that, especially with all the help they have. Hard to believe media will award him one keeping that in mind. Luka is always a favorite, it could happen. Embiid has a chance, but I don't see him producing better than last year without Harden. Same with Joker obviously, you know the media is itching to award it to him. ANT and Zion could make a play at it, Zion obviously health matters the most.

Media itching for Jokic?? More like Jokic being Jokic which naturally leads him to the MVP. He should get MVP if he stays at his level. The MAIN criticism for some was that he hasn’t won a chip. Even by your logic if he repeats his production who will stop him getting his third? It is NOT media giving him the mvp. It is about him rightly earning it. As he should have been won last year.

[Wolfgang630]

I hope we can go a year without hearing Joker played bad in the All Star game so it’s a negative against him.

[eyeatoma]

SGA has a chance, poll shows Tatum leading, not sure about that, especially with all the help they have. Hard to believe media will award him one keeping that in mind. Luka is always a favorite, it could happen. Embiid has a chance, but I don't see him producing better than last year without Harden. Same with Joker obviously, you know the media is itching to award it to him. ANT and Zion could make a play at it, Zion obviously health matters the most.

Media itching for Jokic?? More like Jokic being Jokic which naturally leads him to the MVP. He should get MVP if he stays at his level. The MAIN criticism for some was that he hasn’t won a chip. Even by your logic if he repeats his production who will stop him getting his third? It is NOT media giving him the mvp. It is about him rightly earning it. As he should have been won last year.

No sorry, he shouldn't have won last year. He took the last month off basically. Even you said that Embiid deserved it at the end. Now, in the playoffs Jokic showed that he was able to maintain his dominance. He is clearly the best player in the league right now, but Embiid rightfully deserved that MVP.

[eyeatoma]

Read on Twitter

Anyone think Jokic looks a little like he did to start his career, he definitely packed on some pounds...

Wonder if there is a drop off to start the season.

Personally I hope not, hes on my fantasy team lol.

I

[azcatz11]

The media is dying to give this to Luka. I think this is his year. He will be an undeserved MVP

[Bornstellar]

The media is dying to give this to Luka. I think this is his year. He will be an undeserved MVP

Mavs are going to have to win 50+ which I don't see happening. I think this is Tatum's year

[iggymcfrack]

Feels like it should be pretty hard for anyone but Jokic to win it this year. Not only is he the clear best player in the league coming off an all-time playoff run with pretty much everyone acknowledging he got screwed out of the MVP last year, there’s no obvious competition.

Giannis has a better scorer joining his team so his numbers will be down and anything good that happens team-wise will be mostly attributed to Dame joining. Embiid’s known as a guy who never gets it done when it matters, is coming off an MVP more derided in the offseason immediately after it than any in at least 25 years. Luka’s probably not even making the playoffs. Tatum’s numbers already weren’t big enough to merit serious MVP consideration and he’s gonna get his numbers cannibalized by KP and Jrue. KD and Steph are both ancient by MVP standards and neither has played enough games to qualify for the award since 2019.

The only players I could realistically see being worth betting other than Jokic are guys who would be bringing a team out of nowhere to a top record. SGA has a shot in Oklahoma City. He put up great numbers last year and that team could be ready to turn the corner. Zion’s young and if he can stay healthy, the Pelicans could easily get the 1 seed. Other than that, I don’t really see a lot of realistic options.

[iggymcfrack]

The media is dying to give this to Luka. I think this is his year. He will be an undeserved MVP

I’d be very surprised to see the Mavs get a top 6 seed this year. There’s no way he gets it for leading the Mavs to the play-in.