Dallas Mavericks: Dwight Howard Admits Change of Mind on Luka Doncic MVP Credentials

As seen during the regular season, Doncic was clearly a force to be reckoned with. Throughout the span of 70 games, the five-time All-Star guard averaged 33.9 points, 9.2 rebounds, 9.8 assists, and 1.4 steals per game. He also shot 48 percent from the field, 38 percent from beyond the arc, and 78 percent from the free throw line.

Although Doncic led the league in scoring and pushed the Mavericks to the fifth seed before the regular season ended, he was never considered in the top two of the MVP race as Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic and Oklahoma City Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander put up stronger cases than him. In the end, it was the Serbian big man that took home the award, the third time in his impressive NBA career.

Former NBA Star Dwight Howard Changes Mind on Dallas Mavericks Star Luka Doncic’s MVP Bid This Season

Although Jokic won MVP, Dwight Howard publicly expressed his support for Gilgeous-Alexander. With OKC gone from the playoffs, it looked like the former NBA star has shifted his tone towards Doncic’s side, as seen in a couple of tweets he posted on X:

‘It’s crazy the person who should have probably got MVP is going to the Western Conference Finals,” Howard tweeted.

“I have no tension with Shaq and second I don’t hate on other centers ! My favorite player now is Wemby , I said Jokic is Top 5 all time centers now, Embid is a monster, and Boogie cold  but I felt like Shai deserved MVP this year ! But I’m apologizing to Luka because I didn’t really pay much attention to his impact this season until now so I felt for me not to mention Luka as a snub was terrible on my part  tbh If they gave it to Luka it might not have been a snub to anyone… the man basically averaged a Tripple Dub,” he added.

Although the other two candidates put on an impressive run this season, the fact that Doncic is left to compete for a ring while posting great numbers gives more foundation for Howard’s tweets. His side may potentially get stronger if the Mavericks advance to the NBA Finals at the expense of the Minnesota Timberwolves.

It remains to be seen whether Doncic can get the job done or not. What’s certain, though, is that the Mavericks star is proving his doubters wrong in this year’s playoffs.