THE NBA MVP CASE FOR LUKA DONCIC

Yes, Luka Doncic is one of the top superstars in the NBA. He averaged a league-leading 33.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 9.8 assists per game in the regular season. And yes, he pulled the Mavs out of Play-In hell and helped them secure a fifth seeding in the highly competitive Western Conference. 

While his stats certainly make the case, the question is, can he overcome Nikola Jokic's shadow and win the NBA MVP trophy?

Now if you consider all of the important Jokic metrics—fifth in total points, second in total rebounds, second in total assists, and leading in total plus-minus, along with a staggering 69.8 true shooting percentage in crunch time—the argument for Jokic seems pretty locked or is it?

When the NBA announced the 3 MVP finalists earlier in the week, you may have thought that Doncic would win, at least judging by the reaction of the social media portion of the internet. Clearly, Doncic is a social media favorite with the people and the bots to win the MVP.

SURVEY SAYS
According to The Athletic’s recent anonymous survey of 141 NBA players, Nikola Jokic will be This Year's MVP, with Luka coming in third.

The Breakdown:
Jokic: 41.8%
SGA: 36.9%
Doncic: 9.9%

If the vote holds true, this will be Jokic's 3rd MVP in four years.

MAKING THE LUKA CASE
Clearly, it looks like Jokic is going to win his third MVP, but it is not a stretch to rationalize Doncic’s 33.9 points, 9.8 assists, 9.2 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game and conclude that he is at the very least even with ‘The Joker.’  Now factor in how well the Dallas Mavericks played down the stretch after they made significant roster moves; he also earned his first career scoring title and broke the Mavs' single-season scoring record. Then, factor in his team leadership, including getting the most out of Kyrie Irving; it is actually pretty easy to check the MVP box for the league's leading scores.