“Jokic and Giannis arguably have had two of the greatest individual seasons ever” - JJ Redick believes it’s hard to make the argument for DeMar DeRozan to win the MVP
DeMar DeRozan is having one of the greatest seasons of his career and has been frequently mentioned in MVP conversations.
Whether he's a strong enough competitor to overcome the magnificent Giannis Antetokounmpo or the ever-reliable Nikola Jokic remains to be seen.
The power forward made his way to the Chicago Bulls from the San Antonio Spurs during the offseason. He made his debut for the Bulls on opening night of 2021, in a win against the Detroit Pistons.
He has been partly responsible for the Bulls' good run this season, as the team ranks second in the Eastern Conference standings. He made the All-Star selection and was a member of the winning team, Team LeBron.
Many believe DeMar DeRozan is a candidate to win the league's MVP award this season. But former NBA player JJ Redick disagrees, claiming Jokic, Giannis and Joel Embiid are all ahead of the Bulls power forward.
He strongly believes the three big men stand a better chance and have had better seasons than DeRozan. Reddick had this to say:
"Individually to compare DeMar's season to what Joel and really what Jokic and Giannis have done. Jokic and Giannis arguably have two of the greatest individual seasons ever and their teams are in contention. It's hard to make the argument that DeMar is more of a valuable player than those guys."
Is DeMar DeRozan a tier below the likes of Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo?
DeMar DeRozan leads the Chicago Bulls in points, field goals, free throws and assists. He has surpassed his season-high of 27.3 points per game in his time with the Toronto Raptors in 2017.
He currently averages 28.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game. His shooting has seen tremendous growth as he has shattered his prior best shooting efficiency this season.
He is shooting 52.1% from the field, netting 10.9 times in 19.9 attempts per game and 35.3% from beyond the arc.
Longest streak of 30-point games in Bulls history:
11 — Michael Jordan
10 — DeMar DeRozan https://t.co/UANVgUPvmk
On his show, "The Old Man and the Three," Redick spoke about DeRozan's impact this season. He acknowledged his amazing mid-range shooting skills, pointing out its importance in the playoffs.
"I want to sort of appreciate DeMar because he gets his sh*t in the mid-range. As we've seen in the playoffs recently, whether it was Kawhi's run with the Clippers or with the Raptors, Devin Booker and Chris Paul last year, certainly Anthony Davis, Jimmy Butler. Like, you need guys that can operate in the mid-range in the playoffs. You need guys that can go get you a shot."
But in regards to his top 3 MVP contenders this season, Redick leaves out the Bulls power forward.
His list includes the most popular three in the MVP conversation, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid. He had this to say:
"To me, there's three guys, it's Giannis, Jokic and Embiid. Those three guys are on a different tier, but when we talk about a story, and we talk about what someone is doing individually, DeMar, Ja, those guys are as good as anyone in the league."
Antetokounmpo is averaging 29.4 points, 11.2 rebounds and 6 assists per game. Jokic is averaging 26 points, 13.8 rebounds and 7.9 assists per game. Finally, Embiid is putting up 29.7 points, 11.1 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game.
While DeRozan is certainly on par with that trio in terms of scoring, they each produce more in other facets of the game, at least based on raw statistics.