As the regular season winds down, attention shifts to postseason awards. Every award, regardless of perceived importance, matters for historical posterity. At the head of that list is the Most Valuable Player. Since 1956, the league has awarded the season’s best player, as voted on by a group of sportswriters from the United States and Canada.
Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis recently discussed the player he believes should hoist the trophy.
Bobby Portis Believes NBA MVP Race Is Down to Two Previous Winners
After 11 NBA seasons and four stops, Portis believes he knows what great talent and elite seasons look like. While a guest on “The Run It Back Show” on FanDuel TV, the power forward said the race for the prestigious individual award comes down to the two previous winners.
Bobby Portis believes SGA or Nikola Jokic deserves to win MVP 👀🏆
“Other than those two, I don’t see anybody else that’s worthy.”@BPortistime | @MichelleDBeadle | @ChandlerParsons | @TeamLou23 pic.twitter.com/ymERQmTLBV
— Run It Back (@RunItBackFDTV) March 30, 2026
“Bobby Portis believes SGA or Nikola Jokic deserves to win MVP 👀🏆 ‘Other than those two, I don’t see anybody else that’s worthy.’ @BPortistime |@MichelleDBeadle |@ChandlerParsons |@TeamLou23”
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SGA is the nickname for the reigning MVP, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The 27-year-old averages 31.4 points, 6.6 assists, and 4.4 rebounds while shooting 55.1% from the field. That includes connecting on 37.9% of his three-point attempts.
Running the show from the point guard spot, Gilgeous-Alexander helped the defending NBA champions to a 59-16 record, the best in the league. With seven games to play, the Thunder own a 3-game lead over the San Antonio Spurs. To illustrate their success, one stat stands out: The Thunder haven’t lost three games in a row all year.
On the other hand, Nikola Jokic, the Denver Nuggets star, makes a strong case. The 6-foot-11, 284-pound center leads the NBA in assists per game (10.8) and rebounds (12.9) while scoring 27.9 points every contest. If Jokic holds on to the assist crown for the remainder of the regular season, he will become the first center to lead the league.
If he wins, Jokic would become the latest four-time MVP winner, following LeBron James in 2013. In addition, he makes 57.3% of his shots and 38.8% from beyond the arc. Denver sits at No. 4 in the Western Conference standings, currently tied with the Los Angeles Lakers at 48 wins apiece.
How voters will parse the importance of each player remains to be seen. The two teams will meet in Denver on April 10. For the Nuggets, that game could matter for playoff seeding. As a result, the outcome could have significant award implications.
However, before that, Oklahoma City plays the Lakers twice. If the Thunder dispatch the Lakers, Jokic’s Nuggets could sew up the No. 3 seed before then. Yet, the question remains: Would the respective head coaches, Oklahoma City’s Mark Daigneault and Denver’s David Adelman, sit their stars with playoff seeding secured?
