NBA MVP Ladder: Three big men battle for first place

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NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – FEBRUARY 17: Luka Doncic #77 of the Dallas Mavericks celebrates a score during the first half against the New Orleans Pelicans at the Smoothie King Center on February 17, 2022 in New Orleans, Louisiana, NBA MVP Ladder: Three big men battle for first place. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /

As the NBA All-Star break comes to a close, we’re able to take a deep breath and get ready for the final sprint of the season. The trade deadline has passed and the buyout market is thinning out. Teams are who they are at this point, and the MVP race is coming into focus.

There has rarely been a season with as much turmoil and drama as this one. The Eastern Conference is wide open, with at least eight teams dreaming of a Finals appearance.

The Western Conference felt like a two-team race all season, but Chris Paul’s injury and Golden State’s continued struggles have opened that side up as well. Incredible individual performances are everywhere.

I bring all this up because the NBA MVP race has never been closer at this point in the season, as ESPN’s Tim Bontemps’s straw poll can attest, and the impact of the final standings is likely to be immense. For example, if Nikola Jokic can single-handedly drag a crippled Nuggets team to a four or five seed, that will hold a lot of weight with voters.

A lot can change in the remaining 20ish games. We’ll be tracking all the changes here every week, so check back often to see the newest ladder.

NBA MVP Ladder: 5. Luka Doncic

Pts/Rebs/Asts/Stls/Blks: 27.5/9.2/9.0/1.1/0.5

FG%/3P%/FT%: 44.9%/33.5%/73.1%

Off EPM / Def EPM: +4.1/+0.8

Luka Doncic was widely expected to be a top contender for MVP this year. A slow start due to poor shooting and conditioning issues torpedoed that conversation, but he’s creeping his way back into down-ballot consideration.

Mark Cuban on Luka Doncic: “I think he was humbled a little bit. I think he didn’t like being called out for his weight and other things, and it finally clicked that there’s a level of discipline that’s required.“ https://t.co/6O0b8SY11u
— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) February 22, 2022

He leads the league with a ridiculous 36.3 points per game in February while hitting 43 percent of his threes. Luka is putting forth the best defensive effort we’ve ever seen from him, and it’s no surprise that he’s posting a positive Defensive Estimated Plus/Minus for the first time in his career.

The trade of Kristaps Porzingis has fueled Luka to even greater heights, and he’s scored 49, 21, 45, and 51 points in his last four games (three of which were wins).

Dallas as a whole has had the sixth-best offense and eighth-best defense over the last two weeks before the All-Star Break, and they are just 1.5 games back of the four-seed held by Utah.

If Dallas can claim home-court advantage, and Luka continues to put up eye-popping stats, he’ll have a strong case for a top-five MVP finish for the second time in his young career.