While Nikola Jokic and James Harden are getting more attention for the 2021 NBA MVP award, more candidates are doing the job and leading their teams to have very good seasons, including the reigning back-to-back MVP, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard.
The latter took care of business when CJ McCollum and Jusuf Nurkic, the second and third-best players on the team, went down with injuries, Dame stepped up and led his team, making it clear he won’t back down even after losing his two wingmen.
His recent performances have gotten him a lot of praise and even after Nurkic and McCollum are back, Lillard keeps playing at the highest level and some say he should be considered an MVP candidate now.
One of those is Jalen Rose, who made the case for Lillard during a recent edition of ‘Jalen & Jacoby.’ The former NBA player said that even with his teammates healthy, Lillard has continued playing at a great level, making the Blazers the 6th best team in the West with a 29-18 record (3:55).
“You know what I was thinking? Dame’s gonna have a legitimate shot at winning MVP,” Rose said. “That’s what I was thinking as we started talking about and we started sorting through these candidates. The Blazers are getting healthy and as that happens, Dame Dolla continues to be outstanding like he has been the entire basketball year.”
Lillard has been doing great things in recent seasons and this could be the one where he wins an MVP award. Of course, the competition is hard with Jokic, Harden, Giannis, and even Embiid making a return to the floor this weekend. The All-Star point guard is one of the best players in the league right now and if he keeps this pace and his team keeps climbing up, he could have a big shot at the MVP, as Jalen said.
Dame, of course, would prefer winning a title with the Blazers rather than the MVP award but this is something that a lot of players dream of and this year he has a legit case at the award. Lillard is averaging 29.8 points, 7.8 assists, and 4.3 rebounds, he has been the best player in the clutch in the league this season and seeing how things are going, that won’t change anytime soon.
