The NBA MVP feels like a two-horse race between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic, and it may come down to the wire as to who may be the winner at the end of the season. In ESPN's latest MVP poll, there was a change, and Brian Windhorst explains why he made the decision.
“I voted for Jokic in the first poll and felt pretty strongly about where he was,” Windhorst said on The Hoop Collective. “He has done nothing to hurt his case in that time.
“But Shai has been so impressive, and the Thunder have been so dominant that it is really a classic case for MVP. So with nothing against Jokic, I did vote for Shai for first in this.”
Though Jokic continues to put big numbers and do what he usually does on a nightly basis, Gilgeous-Alexander has been on another level, and it has helped the Thunder have one of the best records in the NBA.
He's averaging 32.5 points this season, which is a career-high, and when it's all said and done, voters may look at that and the Thunder's record and decide to go with him for the MVP.
Jokic still has enough time to change minds, but right now, it looks like Gilgeous-Alexander is in the lead for winning the award.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the lead for MVP

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has had three 50-point games in three weeks, and it's obvious that he's on another level offensively at the moment. No matter what defense teams throw at him, he always finds a way to get a bucket and hasn't seen a shot that he doesn't like.
After his third 50-point game, head coach Mark Daigneault shared what makes Gilgeous-Alexander special.
“He's always been on this track, you know. It's not like he just started scoring lately,” Daigneault said. “He looks at the game like a puzzle he can solve. He's always trying to get better.
“That's what I give him the most credit for. He's got a vision to always improve. He never rests on what he's doing. Then he puts the work ethic behind it, which is the horsepower of it. That's why he keeps getting better.”
If Gilgeous-Alexander can keep this up, there's a good chance that he can walk away with the MVP award, but Nikola Jokic will be staring him down. The Denver Nuggets center has shown that he can get hot as well, and this could be one of the tightest MVP races the league has seen in years.