The MVP race this year in the NBA is going to be very competitive, just like every year. Some of the top candidates include Giannis Antetokounmpo, captain of the first seeded Milwaukee Bucks while averaging 30 points per game, 13 rebounds and 6 assists. This would be his back to back MVP! We can’t forget the 2018 NBA MVP James Harden, who is currently breaking historic scoring records with the season he’s having. The man is averaging 38 points per game, 6 rebounds, and 7.5 assists. He’s doing a good job solidifying himself as one of the greatest scorers to ever play the game. But how could we possibly forget about the 20 year old European phenom Luka Doncic? He is currently carrying a Dallas Mavericks team much shorter on talent than most of the higher seeded teams in the competitive NBA western conference to being the 5th ranked team, only 2 games back of being the 3rd best in the West. All while averaging a near 30 point triple double! (30 points per game, 10 assists, 10 rebounds)

Reid Barrett is a senior here at Goffstown High School, and he also loves the NBA. He loves watching and following basketball, so he was very excited to give his take on the NBA MVP race. His pick was Giannis Antetokounmpo. He explained; “He is the leader of the best team in the NBA while having the best individual season in the NBA. With being able to rest for a good portion of the game, he plays so well with his team on the court that he can sit out ¼ of the game and still be able to carry his team to the spot they are at.“

He described the amazing team play of Giannis while being able to get rest, which is definitely one of his greatest strengths moving forward throughout the last 55 games of the regular season for the Bucks.

Liam Kilbreth, another Goffstown High School senior and another avid NBA fan had a very solid take on the NBA MVP race; he said Luka Doncic. However, he almost gave the edge to Giannis Antetokounmpo. He did a good job reasoning his decision to pick Luka over Giannis: “Giannis is a better player on the stat sheet, but Luka is carrying a team with less talent than Giannis and is more fun to watch. So gotta say Luka simply because he’s electric and has fun while competing at a very high level.” 

Liam did a good job at explaining his pick for MVP this year, especially where he describes how Luka Doncic is carrying a team with less talent. For that reason, along with the fact that Luka is only 20 years old, he has a much stronger case for his MVP run this year moving forward against Giannis. The decision of the MVP race this year will have a polarizing effect on all passionate NBA fans around the globe, only time will tell what superstar takes home that trophy.