Analyst and commentator Stephen A. Smith is well known for his strong personality and often contrarian opinions – but this time, he may have taken it to another level.
Appearing Thursday on “First Take”the American journalist revealed the four players he believes will contend for the NBA MVP award down the stretch of the regular season.
What’s raising eyebrows is the absence of Nikola Jokic: the Denver Nuggets star, who is once again averaging a triple-doublewas left out of even the top four in Smith’s ranking.
The MVP race is really tight. There are so many strong cases for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Victor Wembanyama, Luka Doncic, and Jaylen Brown
Stephen A. Smith via “First Take”
The choice has already drawn criticism from many fans, surprised to see Jokic excluded from the MVP conversation according to the ESPN analyst.
The last time Smith placed the Serbian at No. 1 in the MVP race dates back to the 2020-21 season. Since then, he has overlooked him on multiple occasions, despite results ultimately validating the Nuggets big man (MVP in 2021, 2022, and 2024).
While the inclusion of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Victor Wembanyamaand Luka Doncic appears widely reasonable, the decision to slot in Jaylen Brown – despite his excellent season with the Boston Celtics – over Jokic is far more debatable.
Regardless of Smith’s opinion, the Serbian’s season will not go unnoticed. It may not be the year of his fourth MVPbut when you’re putting up 27.8 points, 12.8 rebounds, and 10.8 assists per gamethere’s really not much left to add.
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