Dallas Mavericks' Luka Doncic Among 3 Finalists for 2024 NBA MVP

Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic was named among three NBA MVP finalists.

Apr 21, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) is defended by / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

On Sunday, Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic was named a finalist for the 2023-24 KIA NBA Most Valuable Player. 

Doncic joins two other finalists, including Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets, the overwhelming favorite to win, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder. If named the MVP, Doncic would become the first Maverick to win the award since Dirk Nowitzki in 2006-07. Regardless of which finalist wins the honor, it'll mark the sixth consecutive international-born player to win MVP. 

Apr 21, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (77) is defended by / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

No matter the result, this will be Doncic’s highest finish in the NBA MVP voting in his career. He’s finished in the top 10 of MVP voting every season from 2019-20 through 2022-23, topping out with a fourth-place finish in the 2019-20 season.

Doncic has been All-NBA First-Team for four consecutive seasons and should be a lock to be First Team again this season. Only 27 players have made the All-NBA First-Team five times or more; he’ll have done it five times in his first six seasons at just 25 years old. 

Doncic averaged an impressive 33.9 points, 9.8 assists, and 9.2 rebounds, the first player in NBA history to average at least 33 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists in a season.

He was able to keep the Mavericks afloat while Kyrie Irving dealt with injuries in the early part of the season, and then the front office acquired PJ Washington and Daniel Gafford at the trade deadline, which helped the Mavs get to 50 wins by the season’s end. There was a late push for Doncic to win the MVP by analysts like Chris Broussard, but it was likely too little, too late.

The MVP will be announced in the coming weeks, but no date has been announced yet. Last year, the winner was announced on May 5th.