The NBA MVP race is as closely and viciously contested as ever. Nikola Jokic might just be the most statistically devastating offensive weapon of all time; Joel Embiid completed his metamorphosis into a seven-foot Kobe Bryant; Giannis Antetokounmpo is the most dominant player on the best team in the league. At a certain point, all three of these guys deserve to win. In fact, the runner-up and third-place finisher would win MVP in most seasons in NBA history. This is a question with no right answer, but former NBA player/current NBA podcaster JJ Redick has Giannis Antetokounmpo atop his MVP ballot.
“Here's what I landed on,” JJ Redick said, “my MVP for this season was Giannis. Number two was Joel Embiid and umber three was Jokic. Number four was Tatum, and number five was Donovan Mitchell. The Giannis thing is interesting because I don't think he's gonna win, but I think he's the MVP this season. And the more I thought about it and the more I try to talk myself out of it, I just couldn't do it. He's the MVP. He's the best player on the best team. Best win percentage of all three of these guys.
JJ Redick further argued that “Giannis is number one” in his ballot because of what he has accomplished: 30 [points per game] 10 [rebounds per game] and five [assists per game] on over 50% shooting, numbers that only Wilt has done before.
Redick added that Giannis is shooting over 55 percent, which is a historic season for him since it's the first time he has done that.
“He had a historic season—six of the seven previous times that a player's averaged 30 10 and five, they've won MVP. I don't think it'll be seven out of eight, but for me, Giannis is the MVP,” Redick added.
It doesn't look like Giannis Antetokounmpo will wil MVP, especially with Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic ahead of him in other MVP ballots. Nonetheless, there's no denying that JJ Redick makes a great point here.
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