INDIANAPOLIS – Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic, the Abbott and Costello of NBA All-Star weekend, barely left each other's side Saturday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
During warmups for his Western Conference team practice, Doncic tried to bank every shot. Jokic shot left-handed. Meanwhile, our Balkan brethren were smiling and exchanging multilingual jabs.
The slapstick between the two continued into Doncic's media interview session, where Jokic hid behind a curtain and poured water on the back of Doncic's neck as he answered the first question. Doncic said something bad about Slovenia and quickly covered his mouth.
Oops.
Everything was fun until the end dallas morning news A reporter asked Mavericks star Doncic why his name isn't mentioned more prominently in NBA Most Valuable Player discussions.
“I don't know,” Doncic said. “It's the media. It's not me.
“This isn't my fault.”
No, it's not. Frankly, there's no good explanation why Doncic's MVP candidacy drew as much attention here in icy Indianapolis as the cars on the road and the people on the sidewalk.
Doncic averages 34.2 points, which leads the NBA. And it's not just little by little. He has an average difference of 3.1 points from his closest opponent, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Doncic would appear to be in the best position of his six-season career to win his first MVP award, by any metric, and where it matters most on the court. However, Doncic ranks fourth on NBA.com's latest MVP ladder, behind Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Doncic scored 73 points against Atlanta, tied for fourth in NBA history. The Mavericks (32-23) entered the All-Star break on an NBA-best-tying six-game winning streak, but national TV analysts rarely bring up Doncic's name in MVP discussions.
Perhaps a standout performance at the 73rd All-Star Game on Sunday night at Lucas Oil Stadium will further advance Doncic's candidacy, but one of the biggest stages will bring him to the basketball world. I have to remind you that he is the most prolific scorer in the sport.
“I don't think so,” Doncic said, adding with a shrug, “I don't know.”
The problem with that idea is that Doncic hasn't shown any inclination to promote himself in any of his past four All-Star appearances. He totaled 28 points in 93 minutes in the All-Star Game.
Doncic has never scored more than eight points in an All-Star Game. He never recorded more than eight assists. He never recorded more than three rebounds. Last year in Salt Lake City, he attempted five shots and collected four points in 18 minutes.
He is the most dominant offensive player in basketball and will celebrate his 25th birthday in 10 days. Doncic was the first player on Saturday to answer a question about whether Kevin Durant, 35, could ever score a 100-point game in the NBA, but Doncic has yet to win Player of the Month this season. He has only won the Player of the Week award twice.
“If you look at Luka's 70-point game, he's making tough shot after tough shot,” said Durant, who will play in his 14th All-Star Game on Sunday. “I feel like someone can break that 80 point mark.” [barrier] –It's difficult to score 100 points in a match. To get to 100 shots, you have to make every shot and make a lot of shots. ”
The most overlooked aspect of Doncic's MVP candidacy is that he has primarily carried the Mavericks' backs due to the team's plethora of injuries.
Kyrie Irving missed 22 games. Center Derek Lively II missed 18 games. Fellow starter Dante Exum missed 24 games.
Two-time MVP Jokic sat out 14 games with co-star Jamal Murray, but no other Nugget starter missed more than six games.
While Doncic is in the best shape of his career and playing his best basketball over the last six seasons, many in the sport are wondering who among today's young stars is LeBron James (39) as the face of the NBA. ) at a time when we are wondering whether he will be the successor.
The buzz is getting even louder as James will play in his 20th All-Star Game on Sunday.
“I see Luka, Ant. [Anthony Edwards], Shai, these are players who are really in their prime,'' 10-time All-Star Stephen Curry, 35, said Saturday. “They've already earned All-Star honors, but they have a perspective on what that means in terms of the opportunities on and off the court that basketball has the doors to open.
“You have a lot of talent to choose from in that regard. Like me and Bron and KD, like me and Bron and KD, who have done it our way and tried to do it. , I think the more you understand the authenticity around that, because it might look different to different people.”
There's certainly credibility and uniqueness to Doncic's game. Offensively, he dominates games in a way we haven't seen since James was in his prime: scoring, playmaking and rebounding.
But when asked Saturday about his historic season and his chances of becoming the first Maverick to win the NBA's top scoring title, Doncic refused to rate himself. That's for others to do, he said.
“I still have a long way to go,” he said. “So, I enjoy every moment. . . . I just appreciate every day. Every game. Every practice. For me it's fun. So it's a dream for me to do this as a job. ”
It's not a convincing MVP campaign speech, but it's not in Doncic's nature to make it difficult for himself.
Even if Doncic doesn't suddenly transform into an All-Star Game shooter on Sunday, he has an obligation to at least surprise us a little. Don't be a wallflower. Show off his handles. Surprise us with some of the amazing passes he regularly makes to helpless opponents.
Granted, it's absurd that the NBA's leading scorer — by a wide margin — is currently a stealth MVP candidate.
No matter what he does on Sunday, even if he spends most of the night joking around with the Joker, keep in mind one thing: He's not in the MVP conversation.
“This isn't my fault.”
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