Luka Dončić has been lingering around the edges of the NBA’s MVP conversation all year long. But he was never really seen as a serious contender for basketball’s most prestigious individual award. Instead, for the majority of this season it was seen as a two-man race between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokić—just like last year. A few stars had moments in the sun, such as the Celtics’ Jaylen Brown or the Pistons’ Cade Cunningham, but their candidacies lost steam for different reasons. By the time March came about, a second straight MVP win for Gilgeous-Alexander seemed all but inevitable.
That has officially changed. Dončić has been on a tear this month and his latest stretch of absolutely ludicrous performances forces his name to the forefront of any conversations surrounding who the best player in basketball is. What’s more, it makes him the favorite to win the 2025–26 MVP award.
