Ex-NBA champ floats quirky fix to settle Shai Gilgeous-Alexander vs Nikola Jokic MVP standoff
This year's MVP race between Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic is probably the tightest it has been in years. Both superstars have made a strong case for why they deserve to win the award this season, and it likely won't be easy for the voters to choose a winner.
2008 NBA Champions Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett discussed the two MVP candidates on KG Certified's latest episode which was released on Friday. They focused on Jokic's numbers, saying that if he didn't win, it would certainly go down as the best regular season performance to win the league MVP award.
This prompted them to suggest something that's never been done before.
"Has there ever been a co-(MVP)?" Pierce asked.
After learning that it has never happened before, Garnett interjected.
"If there ever was a time for one [it is now]," he said.
Pierce would finish that statement for him by agreeing that this year would be a good time to set such a precedent.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is leading the league in points per game at 32.8. Additionally, he's also averaging 5.0 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.7 steals. His leadership can be considered the main factor as to why the OKC Thunder are the number-one seed in the West with a 64-12 record.
Meanwhile, there's still no guarantee on where the Denver Nuggets will stand once the postseason starts. They are third with a 47-30 record, but the LA Lakers (46-30), Golden State Warriors (45-31), Memphis Grizzlies (45-32), Minnesota Timberwolves (45-32) and LA Clippers (44-32) could all still overtake them.
However, Jokic has been among the league leaders stat-wise. He is third in points (29.7) and rebounds (12.8) and is second in assists (10.2) on the leaderboard. The biggest factor working against him right now is voter fatigue as the Serbian won the last two MVP awards as well.
Also read: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander drops reaction as Drake releases MV of his viral hit 'Nokia'
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was the MVP runner-up to Nikola Jokic last season
This isn't the first time that Nikola Jokic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are head-to-head for the MVP award. Last season, they were also among the top players being considered for the award.
Ultimately, Jokic won the award with 79 first-place votes. Meanwhile, Gilgeous-Alexander got the second-most with 15.
Jokic finished last season with averages of 26.4 ppg, 12.4 rpg and 9.0 apg. He was tenth in scoring, fourth in rebounding and third in dimes.
Meanwhile, SGA put up 30.1 ppg, 5.5 rpg and 6.2 apg. His scoring average was the third-best in the league, behind only Luka Doncic's 33.9 and Giannis Antetokounmpo's 30.4.
It wasn't just the MVP race that these two were engaged in last season. Their respective teams, the OKC Thunder and the Denver Nuggets, were also chasing each other for the top spot in their conference. That race also persisted to the very end of the regular season and both teams finished with a 57-25 record.