As the NBA regular season comes to an end, the MVP discussion still remains hot. This year has offered a very tight race between four individuals: Luka Doncic, Nikola Jokic, Victor Wembanyama, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. They all built a strong case for themselves and accomplished multiple standards but, there is only one trophy to give.
With this battle being one of the most talented and stacked MVP races of all time, the decision is definitely a hard one. However, with Doncic missing the 65-game requirement and with Jokic having a month-long slump during the season, the race remains between SGA and Wembanyama. Here is the truth: SGA deserves the MVP, the NBA will grant the award to Wembanyama for a variety of reasons that are both ethical and non-ethical.
Wembanyama is averaging 25 points, 11.5 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game. He is easily winning defensive player of the year and it’s not even close. Compared to SGA’s statline who’s averaging 31.1 points, 6.6 assists per game and a field goal percentage of 55.3, marking him as one of if not, the most efficient player of all time. By looking at the stats from face value, SGA’s numbers stand out more, considering he’s averaging six more points and not only that, he is the best player on the best team, which would settle the case for most people. Nevertheless, Wemby is not the one to be slept on; his case goes beyond the statsheets.
Wemby’s offense is often criticized for not being the most impressive. He is in 13th place for points per game average which is way behind the rest of the MVP candidates. Despite this factor, in an interview Wembenyama was asked to list his reasons for why he deserves to win MVP. His three reasons were: defense is undervalued in today’s league, the San Antonio Spurs have dominated the number one team Oklahoma City Thunder, and that offense is more than just scoring points.
He certainly made strong points; in fact, they were so strong that a couple of days later, Wemby suddenly jumped in MVP rankings from third place to knock off SGA at first. This was not a coincidence, the NBA definitely took this opportunity to get headlines. It also seems as if they don’t want to upset their future all-time generational talent, who will most likely be the face of the league. Not only that, if Wemby wins the MVP, he will be the youngest player to ever receive the award. This can also generate more talks revolving around the NBA.
The NBA has been involved in multiple cases of purposefully choosing outcomes in order to receive views and protect its organization. It can range from Luka Doncic to all of a sudden the Mavericks winning the first overall pick with a 1.8% chance to win the lottery and jumping 10 spots to grab the top pick, the biggest move by any team in lottery history, according to ESPN Research. There’s also a similar case where ESPN sports analyst Kendrick Perkins claimed that the NBA is playing racist if Nikola Jokic – who was originally favorite, won the 2023 MVP. Ironically enough, Joel Embiid suddenly pushed Jokic off first and secured Philadelphia an MVP since Allen Iverson in 2001. Perkins’ vocal advocacy and controversial take significantly impacted the narrative and influenced voters. Wembanyama’s three reasons for MVP might be playing a similar role.
The NBA definitely wants to promote its future superstars, which is why many players get away with a variety of moves that bend the rulebook. More superstars equals more viewers which brings more money for the league. It is shaping up for the NBA to be ready to go all in for Wemby being the next guy to run the league. The attraction he brings is a huge factor, a 7 ‘4 foot guard-like menace, making everyone around him minuscule, is definitely something the league would want to promote and giving him the MVP does just that. Wemby will likely follow the path that Derick Rose followed – hopefully not the injury part- a hometown hero and secure legend status amongst San Antonio and the NBA. SGA had his great run last year and definitely deserves this year’s award but, favoritism will most likely hurt his case.
The legit reason for Wemby’s MVP case is that he is the NBA’s most dominant defender since Bill Russell. There are many situations where defenders would avoid taking any sort of shot when Wemby’s presence is near, but this is not accounted for in the stats. Besides that, Wemby is on a tight minute restriction in contrast to the rest of the candidates. It can also be pointed out that the Spurs’ offense is a team-based offense, unlike the Thunder where they space out and let SGA get as many one-to-one possessions. On the other hand, SGA has still proven to be an MVP threat, playing better statistically this year than in his previous year, when he won both the MVP and finals MVP. Unlike Doncic and Jokic, SGA’s reasons to be excluded for MVP are not valid; he’s been playing better and has proven himself time over time. Wemby is a great defensive player and a good offensive player, while SGA is a great offensive player and a good defender, the difference between both is that one is in the second seed and the other is in the first seed.
As a Spurs fan, seeing Wemby win MVP would be awesome but, his time will come later, SGA deserves the trophy but due to the recent statements by Wemby, favoritism, and the narrative that will run across the internet if SGA loses the race, it grants benefits for the NBA and voters to side with Victor Wembanyama being the youngest MVP of all time and kicking off his promising career.
