00:00So every Friday, I check the NBA, the Kia, NBA.com MVP ladder because I want to see where guys
00:07are falling in this.
00:09They rank the top five with description and then go all the way through the top ten.
00:13So I'll ask you guys, because it's been a topic of conversation this week, especially since taking down the fully
00:21healthy OKC Thunder Wednesday night.
00:24Head to head against SGA.
00:26Head to head. Where would you guess Jalen Brown ranks on this list?
00:31I'm going to guess that SGA is still number one.
00:34Yeah. I am hoping that he ranks second.
00:40He's not. He's not because I'm going to here. Here's what SGA is number one.
00:44I would guess Luca is number two. Wemby is probably number three.
00:48Wemby or the Joker, number three or four. And then Jalen five.
00:52Five. Shyam, do you want to guess? No, I'm right with I'm in lockstep with Wiggy here.
00:57He's got to be like five. I am shocked.
01:00Jalen Brown is five still. Yeah. Five still.
01:03This is the highest that he's ranked in the MVP ladder the entire season.
01:09He can't budge past five. And you got his ranking right.
01:13Wiggy. But Shay dropped down to two. OK, so Wemby is one.
01:18Wemby's one. Wemby's one. Wow.
01:20Shay's two. Joker's three. Luca's four.
01:24And then you get Jalen at five. And here's here's the explanation from the writer.
01:28He says there's something to be said about executing a takedown of Gilgis Alexander and the West leading Thunder on
01:34Wednesday.
01:35Brown did so spectacularly. But one game hardly defines his MVP candidacy.
01:41Did he not? Has he not this person not been watching the whole season?
01:45Well, did he not watch the last matchup between SGA and Jalen Brown?
01:51Did he did he miss something? Did he not?
01:54One game's not enough. I feel I feel like this is this is just stat ranking to me.
02:01Like, I totally feel like this is stat ranking, because when you look at Luca and the writer here notes
02:07that Luca's defense has improved over this season, the Lakers defense has improved recently.
02:13Like, that's nice. But then give him the most improved defensive player of the year award.
02:18Like, Jalen's impact on the defensive side, you saw it against OKC and that it has like he has averaged
02:2932 and a half points over the last five games.
02:32So with Jason Tatum coming back, he has continued to be a ball dominant and point scoring player.
02:38It's just he can't budge past this national ranking.
02:43And and as because I remember and I couldn't remember, I know that the Celtics lost the game, but the
02:49Wemby Jalen matchup, I feel like Jalen might have got, obviously, statistically, if we're talking stats, that the numbers better
02:59than Wemby.
03:00And I'm not taking anything away from Wemby.
03:02The reason why last time you got tossed so that against the Spurs.
03:06No, no, I'm talking about maybe the first game, the first time they played.
03:09The first game was was good, but Wemby was coming off the bench.
03:12Right. So I would say here's the thing that I when I was going through the MVP voting and I
03:18was kind of looking at it.
03:19My thing is this. All of those guys had a legit all star number two player on their team.
03:27Jalen Brown is the only one without a legit number two.
03:30Wemby has DeAndre Fox.
03:34Luka obviously has LeBron.
03:37Is it possible?
03:40Great point by you.
03:41Is it possible that it's similar to Drake May and the ease of schedule argument where they're looking at the
03:49Western Conference being so much better?
03:51I don't know.
03:52Than the than the Eastern Conference.
03:54But you play Western Conference teams, though.
03:57I understand that.
03:58It would make sense if it's just like Wemby and Shea ahead of him.
04:03I would get that.
04:04But like these are all Western Conference.
04:06They are.
04:06They are.
04:07That's what I'm saying.
04:09But you played against the you out dueled when they played the Lakers.
04:13Because he dominated Luka Doncic.
04:16Right.
04:16You I could see if you didn't play against these teams.
04:19The thing is, in the NBA, unlike football, you play against those teams.
04:25So you play against the Lakers.
04:27You play against San Antonio.
04:28You play against the Denver Nuggets.
04:30You play Oklahoma City.
04:31So you can see how he does in the matchup if both guys play.
04:36That's the that's the other difference.
04:38So even though the Western Conference might have better teams, you still play against them.
04:43But I think that that I think to Greg's point, I think it's a really good one that they get
04:47higher consideration because they're going up against those teams more often than in the East where you see the Cavs
04:54this number of times.
04:55You see the Pistons and those are good teams, but it's not like running through the Spurs and OKC all
05:00the time.
05:00Yeah, that's what I think might be going on.
05:02But it's really two teams.
05:04I'll give you the Spurs.
05:05The Lakers have been good.
05:06I know.
05:07But the Lakers, if you were to say the Lakers or the Detroit Pistons or the Cleveland Cavaliers, I would
05:12say that they're kind of on the same level.
05:14I think the Lakers are better than we'll see the Pistons with Cade coming back.
05:18I'm saying with Cade, right?
05:19I would say I think the Cavs are a different tier.
05:22We're in those.
05:23I would say like the Lakers have been good.
05:25I'm not taking anything away from how Luca has been able to perform, but I just look and go, OK,
05:31San Antonio and Oklahoma City, I'll give you.
05:35But Denver and the Lakers, I feel like you can compare them to Detroit and maybe the Cavs and maybe
05:44a little bit of the Knicks.
05:45I thought for sure Jalen would at least be top four.
05:48Like, and I think it really is that he hasn't been in the conversation before this season.
05:54It's taken a long time for him to assert himself into the conversation.
05:58And now they just can't budge him past these other names.
06:01He's in the conversation.
06:02He was a finals MVP.
06:04Right.
06:04Yeah.
06:05But the problem is.
06:06That's different.
06:06That's different than being the season long.
06:08I understand that.
06:09You know, you know.
06:10In the conversation.
06:10It's not like they don't know he exists.
06:13Right.
06:13But I don't think they, the thing that I think, I don't think they give him credit because they're like,
06:20this is not who he really is.
06:22Like, he's not really the guy who goes out there and averages 28 points like he's doing.
06:27He's doing this because he's having a year with Tatum's not there and maybe he's taking more shots.
06:3432 and a half since over the last five games with Tatum back.
06:37Right.
06:37But they look at like Luka Doncic has always been looked at one of the best players in the NBA
06:43and some of those other guys.
06:44Right.
06:45Where I don't think they give Jalen that respect.
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