Despite being one of the most ridiculous players that NBA fans have been privileged to see in the current era, Luka Doncic will go yet another year without an MVP in his trophy cabinet. Plenty of Los Angeles Lakers fans were outraged at that reality. It turns out the head coach of the team is right there with the fanbase.
The NBA announced their finalists for the MVP award on Sunday. The three frontrunners for the trophy were Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, and San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama. Doncic was nowhere to be found.
Despite missing the 65-game threshold, the NBA did grant an extraordinary circumstances exception for Luka to be eligible for accolades like MVP. That didn't change anything. Doncic was not a finalist, and his head coach was not a fan of how the voters cast their ballots this year.
Redick told reporters ahead of Game 2 against the Houston Rockets: "Disappointed. He deserved to be there.”
JJ Redick's MVP love for Luka Doncic will reassure Lakers fans
Redick has obviously had a front-row seat to watching Doncic play all year. There is some bias in backing his superstar player, sure, but there is also a first-hand experience on seeing everything Luka offers a team on a nightly basis.
Lakers fans get that same type of viewing experience, even if it does not come from the close-up look that Redick gets. Regardless, the conclusion of both the second-year coach and the fanbase is the same. Doncic should have been among the finalists.
Many Lakers fans will still outright lobby that Luka should have won the award altogether. Those feelings are more than understandable. However, given how voters typically do business, there was too much ground to make up in people's minds after the hamstring injury.
The most confident of fans will push for the idea that Doncic should have been there all year. A surging month of March should have sealed the deal for Luka, not served as a path back into the MVP race. There may very well be truth in that sentiment.
The Lakers have suffered their fair bit of chaos throughout the year with injuries, fluctuating roster make-up, etc. Doncic was a stabilizing force during just about every significant stretch of the year.
Lakers fans will certainly understand the value in that after watching their superstar point guard backpacking the team through some of their lowest lows and highest highs. Their coach gets it too. Unfortunately for both parties, the NBA MVP voters made up their minds about Doncic early and did not buckle when evidence suggested they should have.
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