Shai Gilgeous‑Alexander, Victor Wembanyama, Nikola Jokic Tipped as MVP Finalists for Next 5 Years by Hall of Famer

Shai Gilgeous‑Alexander, Nikola Jokic, and Victor Wembanyama are the three finalists for this year's MVP awards.

Shai Gilgeous‑Alexander, Victor Wembanyama, Nikola Jokic Tipped as MVP Finalists for Next 5 Years by Hall of Famer

Nikola Jokic, Victor Wembanyama, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Image via FirstSportz)

In Short
  • Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokic, and Victor Wembanyama are the NBA MVP finalists for the upcoming years.
  • Tracy McGrady predicts these players will dominate the MVP race for the next five years.
  • All three finalists delivered impressive performances in their respective Game 1s during the playoffs.

Towards the end of the regular season, the five players standing atop the KIA MVP Race were Shai Gilgeous‑Alexander, Nikola Jokic, Victor Wembanyama, Luka Doncic, and Jaylen Brown.

Those players have managed to be in their respective positions simply because they have led their respective teams to admirable playoff positions. What makes them valuable is that when they are not playing, their teams have struggled to a certain degree. However, not all of them are eligible to win the prestigious Michael Jordan MVP award.

The NBA, through its network partner NBC, announced that Shai Gilgeous‑Alexander, Nikola Jokic, and Victor Wembanyama had made it as the three finalists.

That MVP list gonna look like that for the next… I’mma give it five.

Tracy McGrady said

This was the Hall of Famer’s response when NBC studio host Maria Taylor asked how long he thinks they will continue to appear on this list.

Their colleague, Carmelo Anthony, though, was not convinced and asked if Tracy McGrady thought Nikola Jokic would continue to be on this list five years from now.

His logic was based on the fact that the Serbian is the oldest among the three at 31. However, Taylor spoke for McGrady by suggesting the former Houston Rockets guard does not believe there would be a drop off in the Joker’s abilities even that late in his career.

All three MVP Finalists have had stellar Game 1’s

While some sections of fans might fume at the mere thought of Luka Doncic and Jaylen Brown being omitted from this race, others could point to how these three finalists have performed when the going gets tough.

Nikola Jokic scoring a ridiculous shot
Nikola Jokic scoring a ridiculous shot (Image via Nuggets/X)

Shai Gilgeous‑Alexander excelled for his Oklahoma City Thunder, scoring 25 points, seven assists, four rebounds, and two blocks in just 29 minutes of play against the Phoenix Suns.

It was a different matter that the latter were not playing well. But even then, to produce that much and get some early rest proves he is a player most likely to defend his MVP award.

Nikola Jokic led his Denver Nuggets again, scoring 25 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists. Triple-doubles seem to have become the norm with him, which is why they are not highlighted as much as they used to.

Then comes Victor Wembanyama, whose 35 points in 32 minutes were enough to seal the deal for the San Antonio Spurs in their battle against the Portland Trail Blazers.

Such performances should go a long way in deciding who the MVP is. But some might point to how SGA got his 25 points, especially when compared to Jokic and Wembanyama.

Shai Gilgeous‑Alexander explains why he draws that many fouls

It so happens that out of Wembanyama’s 35 points, only four were from the free-throw line. Nikola Jokic was one step better than him, garnering just one point from his sole trip to the line. On the other hand, Gilgeous‑Alexander attempted 17 shots, converting 15 of them. That means 60% of his scoring production came from the line.

After their game against the Suns, a reporter asked the reigning league MVP to shed some light on how he manages to get such a high volume of calls.

When you drive the ball a lot, you get fouled a lot just because most of the fouls happen on drives, and I drive the ball a lot.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander replied

Some players, both past and present, have pointed out that it is a skill to be able to draw that much contact. However, that praise has not stopped Gilgeous-Alexander from being criticized about it. After all, fans and analysts believe that it is unethical to rely so much on free throws.

Also Read: