How do you decide who deserves the MVP award more between Victor Wembanyama and Luka Doncic? One way would be to swap the players and ask yourself which team would be better off. Just how good would the Lakers be if they had Wembanyama instead of Doncic?
Evaluating which player brings more value to their team is a difficult task for anyone trying to decide on the NBA's MVP award. Is it the scoring and team success of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander? The all-encompassing box score stats of Nikola Jokic? The historic defensive impact of Victor Wembanyama? The herculean offensive creation of Luka Doncic? Which matters more?
Adding layers in only adds to the debate. How do you factor in teammates? Clutch performance? Health and minutes played? On and on until the amount of data being considered is dizzying. Lakers fans may know in their gut that Luka Doncic deserves the MVP - but how do they prove it?
One approach suggested by analytics guru Databallr is to consider what the Lakers would be like if they plugged in Wembanyama instead of Luka Doncic. That may seem a preposterous idea, but, well, the Lakers sort of did that a year ago but with Anthony Davis and Doncic!
Setting aside that teams are usually built to optimize their level of play around their superstars, it's a fascinating thought exercise. It probably does little to decide the debate, but it does highlight the impact each player has.
And Wembanyama on the Lakers? He would be really, really good.
The Lakers would be dominant with Wembanyama
The idea of upgrading on Deandre Ayton with one of the best young centers in NBA history -- and a surefire Top 5 player in the league already in his third season - is a dream come true for Lakers fans. Wembanyama locks down the paint in a truly unique way, and his length and recovery allow him to defend on the perimeter and still erase shots at the rim.
On offense, Wembanyama is a devastating finisher, a confident shooter and a monster in transition. He is still growing as a ball-handler attacking defenses in isolation or in a pick-and-roll action as the ball handler -- but the fact that he can do those things well at all at 7'5" is dazzling. He is a truly special player.
The Lakers' lack of wings would make replacing Doncic in the lineup a difficult task, but it would allow Austin Reaves room to run the show with the greatest of partners in Wembanyama, who is a dynamic threat to roll to the rim or pop to the 3-point line. And how is a team going to slow down both LeBron James and Victor Wembanyama in transition?
A starting lineup of Reaves, Marcus Smart, Rui Hachimura, LeBron and Wembanyama is not the deepest collection of players, but the high-end star talent is tremendous. Yes, the Lakers would lose Doncic's preternatural playmaking and shot creation, but between Reaves and James, the team could make up most of that -- and what they would gain on defense would be staggering.
Wembanyama or Doncic?
It's hard to conclude for certain, but it does seem like the Lakers would be a better team with Wembanyama rather than Doncic. Does that mean anything for the current MVP debate?
Perhaps it means Wembanyama is more valuable because, as he himself puts it, defense is half of the game. Or perhaps it means that the Lakers need Doncic all the more and what he is doing on a roster that remains not optimized to his skillset is extremely impressive.
Either way, both Wembanyama and Doncic are elite talents, both deserving of being in the MVP conversation. Just a couple of weeks remain to settle the debate.