Heading into the 2022-23 NBA season, SI Sportsbook has Dallas Mavs' Luka Doncic ranked among the highest MVP odds.
In the first five years of Luka Doncic's young career, he's accomplished more than most will in a double-digit year career.
Winning Rookie of the Year, making four All-Star teams, and being named to four All-NBA First teams is just scratching the surface of Doncic's accolades and what's to come in the future.
In SI Sportsbook's NBA odds, the Dallas Mavericks superstar ranks with the third-highest chances to hoist the MVP trophy this season at +500, behind Milwaukee Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo and Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic, both at +450. Last season's MVP Joel Embiid ranks directly behind Doncic at +600.
Doncic, unlike the others in the top-four, has yet to be crowned MVP of the league despite being the undisputed MVP for the Mavs. Both Antetokounmpo and Jokic are two-time winners alongside Embiid, who, again, won his first last year. Although Doncic hasn’t crossed that threshold, he’s at least been on the ballot over the last four years, including as high as No. 4 in 2019-20 and No. 5 in 2021-22.
It certainly feels like Doncic is due for this feat, as his play has been nothing short of MVP quality over the last four years. That said, where your team finishes in the regular season standings has a lot to do with how high your chances are of winning the prestigious award. And for the Mavericks, they just haven't been high enough in the Western Conference to help Doncic out.
This year won't get any easier for Dallas in a stacked Western Conference, so for Doncic to surpass his fellow MVP candidates, the Mavs will need to take a considerable leap up the standings. With a revamped roster that’s more talented that last season’s team on paper, the Mavs have high hopes of being able to make that leap.