ESPN Makes Major Prediction for Luka Doncic's Seventh NBA Season

Luka Doncic's sixth NBA season was one for the ages, bringing the Dallas Mavericks to their first NBA Finals since 2011. Entering his seventh in the league, reaching for the stars appears to be the expectation, as ESPN would put it.

Doncic unleashed himself as an offensive machine throughout the 2023-24 season, averaging 33.9 points, 9.8 assists, and 9.2 rebounds per game. Not only did he have career highs in points and assists, but he also did this on remarkable shooting splits of 48.7% shooting from the field and 38.2% from beyond the arc.

Easily securing an All-Star nomination, he was named to the All-NBA First Team as he finished third in MVP voting and sixth in Clutch Player of the Year voting.

Even though his numbers dipped in the postseason, he had noteworthy assistance from his star teammate Kyrie Irving as well as his supporting cast to make a marvelous run to the NBA Finals. Despite losing to Boston in five games, Doncic finished the playoffs averaging 28.9 points, 9.5 rebounds, 8.1 assists, and 1.9 steals on 44.6% shooting overall and 32.2% from deep.

While there were some areas where he struggled, particularly on defense in the Finals, it's clear that his place among the NBA's elite is his to keep. Despite that, in a recent prediction by ESPN, they have him winning the Most Valuable Player award in the upcoming season with Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder finishing the top three in the list.

The trio made strong arguments for MVP last season, with Jokic coming out victorious for the third time. He will look to claim his fourth award in five years, joining LeBron James and Michael Jordan if he achieves the feat.

As for Gilgeous-Alexander, he is coming off the heels of a spectacular season elevating the Thunder to the top spot in the Western Conference before losing Doncic's Mavericks in six games.

The MVP battle will be an intriguing one once the season gets underway, but nonetheless, Doncic will make a huge case for it when he has Dallas in the top three of the West while putting up remarkable statistical performances in the process.

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