Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic finds himself in the MVP conversation today, but NBA analyst Craig Carton doesn’t see him winning the award. Carton shared a wild conspiracy theory on his Craig Carton Show about LeBron James and Klutch Sports Group not wanting Doncic to become the MVP.
“Luka Doncic has no chance to win if he gets to 65 games because of Klutch Sports and LeBron James,” Carton said. “That there’s not a world that any of us live in where LeBron James and Klutch Sports will allow Luka Doncic to become MVP because it’s another argument against LeBron being the greatest of all time.
“Because how can you be considered the greatest of all time if your teammate is the MVP of the league and you’re not?” Carton added. “… There’s a lot of people saying that even if you thought Luka deserved it, he has no chance to get it because LeBron won’t let it happen.”
WILL KLUTCH SPORTS BLOCK LUKA FROM WINNING MVP?
“Luka Dončić has no chance to win, because of Klutch Sports & LeBron James! Another argument against LeBron being the greatest of all time!” — Craig Carton@craigcartonlive @TyJohnsonNews #NBA #Lakers #LeBronJames #LukaDoncic pic.twitter.com/EigeW5lFoU
— The Craig Carton Show (@CraigCartonShow) March 24, 2026
We have heard absurd conspiracy theories over the years, but this might just be the most ridiculous one. Even if we assume for a second that James and his agent, Rich Paul, CEO of Klutch Sports Group, don’t want Doncic to win MVP, there is nothing they can do about it. We only need to look at the players who have won major awards since Klutch Sports was founded in 2012 to show they don’t have that kind of influence.
The only player to have won MVP or DPOY while signed with Klutch Sports is James. That was also all the way back in 2013 when he was named MVP. Since then, James has finished runner-up in 2014, 2018, and 2020. If he and Paul had any sort of say, he would probably have won in 2018 and 2020.
So, if Doncic fails to win MVP in 2026, it’ll not be because of James and Paul. It’ll be because the 100 media members voting for it believe there is a more deserving candidate.
Doncic does have a good case to win MVP. The 27-year-old is averaging 33.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, 8.4 assists, 1.6 steals, and 0.6 blocks per game in 2025-26.
Doncic is the league’s leading scorer and has led the Lakers to a 46-26 record, good enough for third-best in the Western Conference. Despite all of his incredible play, his name wasn’t really being brought up in the MVP conversation even as recently as February.
It took Doncic putting up a 50 and a 60-point game in March and the Lakers going 11-2 in the month for him to finally start getting some love. Stephen A. Smith has the Slovenian as his top MVP candidate now.
Doncic still isn’t the favorite to win MVP, though. That would be Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is averaging 31.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 6.6 assists, 1.4 steals, and 0.8 blocks per game. The Thunder having a league-best 57-15 record greatly helps Gilgeous-Alexander’s case.
San Antonio Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama is another contender. Wembanyama is putting up 24.3 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.0 steals, and 3.0 blocks per game in 2025-26 for a Spurs team that is second in the West with a 54-18 record. The Frenchman has even explained why he should win MVP.
These three, along with the likes of Nikola Jokic and Jaylen Brown, have a few games left this season to improve their case. It will take something dramatic, though, for Gilgeous-Alexander to not win MVP for the second year in a row.
