The NBA Is Failing Luka Doncic: How League Decisions, Team Struggles, and Missed Opportunities Are Holding Back Basketball’s Brightest Young Superstar

In the modern NBA, the bar for greatness has shifted. The Most Valuable Player award, once the crowning achievement for the league’s superstars, has become nearly unattainable—even for players posting historic numbers. Luka Dončić, the Dallas Mavericks’ transcendent guard, is the latest and perhaps most glaring example of a generational talent whose legacy may be defined as much by the era he plays in as by his own accomplishments.

From LeBron James’s dominance in the late 2000s to Nikola Jokić’s triple-double wizardry and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s recent scoring explosions, the standards for MVP have risen to heights that would have seemed impossible even a decade ago. The result: “MVP inflation”—and a growing list of superstars, like Dončić, whose brilliance is overshadowed by the statistical arms race of the modern game.

A Brief History of MVP Excellence

The MVP award has always been a marker of basketball greatness. In the past, remarkable stat lines and winning records were enough to secure the trophy. LeBron James, for example, won four MVPs from 2009 to 2013, averaging 28 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists, all while playing elite defense. Kevin Durant broke the mold in 2014, winning MVP with a scoring average (32 points per game) not seen since Michael Jordan’s 35-point campaign in 1988.

Steph Curry redefined offense in 2016, winning his second MVP while shooting 45% from three on 11 attempts per game—a feat unthinkable just years before. Russell Westbrook’s 2017 MVP season, averaging a 30-point triple-double, shocked the basketball world, earning him the award despite OKC finishing as the sixth seed.

But these stat lines, once considered outliers, have now become routine. James Harden averaged 36 points in 2019, a mark only Jordan has topped in the modern era. Giannis Antetokounmpo, in back-to-back MVP campaigns, averaged nearly 30 points, 13 rebounds, and 6 assists, all while anchoring one of the league’s best defenses. Nikola Jokić, in three MVP campaigns, has posted numbers close to a 30-point triple-double—at efficiency levels that dwarf Westbrook’s—and Joel Embiid and SGA have made Durant’s 2014 scoring look pedestrian.

The Rise of MVP Inflation

The past decade has brought “MVP inflation”—the phenomenon where the statistical bar for the award rises higher and higher. In 2005, Steve Nash won MVP with a stat line of 15 points, 3 rebounds, and 11 assists. Today, those numbers wouldn’t crack the top ten among point guards. Players like Luka Dončić, SGA, Tyrese Maxey, Jalen Brunson, Cade Cunningham, Steph Curry, James Harden, LaMelo Ball, Josh Giddey, and Jamal Murray are all producing more than Nash did in his MVP season.

And it’s not just point guards. Kevin Garnett’s 2004 MVP season—24 points, 14 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 stocks (steals plus blocks) on 50% shooting—was once historic. Now, Giannis routinely posts even higher scoring and efficiency, with only rebounds and defensive stats lagging behind. Dirk Nowitzki was a unicorn in 2007; Nikola Jokić now averages more points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks, with vastly better efficiency.

The competition has never been steeper. The combined production of top-five MVP candidates has skyrocketed since the 2020s. Per 100 possessions, the numbers are staggering: in 1986, MVP candidates averaged 31 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks on 51% shooting. In 2006, those numbers rose to 35 points, 8 rebounds, and 9 assists on 47% shooting. In 2026, the mark is 43 points, 12 rebounds, and 12 assists on 54% shooting.

The Pace Myth—and the Truth About Modern Scoring

Critics often point to the increased pace of play as the reason for inflated stats. But the data tells a different story. The average pace in 2025-26 is just over 100 possessions per game—higher than the past 20 years, but lower than the run-and-gun eras of the 1960s, 70s, and early 80s. What’s not average is the amount of points scored per possession. Today’s players are more skilled, smarter shot-takers, and better equipped scorers than ever before.

League-wide free throw percentage has climbed nearly 15% since the NBA’s creation and 4% since the ABA merger. Two-point field goal percentage and true shooting percentage have both soared, while turnover rates have declined. Since the implementation of the three-point line in 1980, players have improved their three-point accuracy by 8%. The game is more efficient, more skilled, and more competitive than at any time in history.

Luka Dončić: The Ultimate MVP Snub

No player embodies the paradox of modern greatness more than Luka Dončić. His numbers are staggering: in the 2025-26 season, Dončić is posting one of the most productive MVP seasons ever—tied for second all-time, behind only Nikola Jokić. Over his career, Dončić has produced six seasons that would rank in the top 30 for MVP production, five in the top 20, four in the top 15, three in the top seven, and two in the top three.

Yet, despite his out-of-this-world numbers, Dončić has never won the award. The reason? The unwritten rule that MVPs must come from top-three teams in their conference—a rule that has held firm except for rare exceptions like Michael Jordan in 1988, Russell Westbrook in 2017, and Jokić in 2022. Dončić’s Mavericks have rarely met the team success criteria, and even when they do, the competition is simply too fierce.

This season, Dončić is finally winning enough games. The Lakers are a top-two team in the West and top-three in the league. But even with adequate team success and historic production, Dončić still can’t top MVP leaderboards. Jokić and SGA have set the bar impossibly high with ultra-efficient triple-doubles and scoring on the NBA’s next dynasty.

The History of MVP Snubs

Dončić isn’t alone in his frustration. NBA history is littered with stars who did everything right but couldn’t win the award. Dominique Wilkins, Clyde Drexler, Patrick Ewing, Tracy McGrady, Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Damian Lillard—all posted elite numbers and led their teams to strong regular seasons, but were overshadowed by even greater contemporaries.

The MVP, it seems, is as much a product of timing as talent. Wilkins was outshined by Jordan, Ewing by Hakeem and Robinson, T-Mac and Wade by Iverson, Nash, Kobe, and LeBron, and Kawhi and PG-13 by Curry, Westbrook, Harden, and Giannis. Now, Dončić finds himself in the shadow of Jokić and SGA.

The Legacy Question: When Numbers Aren’t Enough

What makes Dončić’s situation especially poignant is the impact on his legacy. Future generations may not appreciate his brilliance if it isn’t reflected in MVPs, Finals MVPs, or championships. Analysts have begun to chart the discrepancy between a player’s career box plus-minus (a measure of on-court impact) and their trophy case. Dončić sits at a career box plus-minus of 7.68—bettered only by Jokić, LeBron, and Jordan—but has zero MVPs, Finals MVPs, or championships to show for it.

The list of “overachievers”—players whose accolades outpace their impact—includes Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O’Neal, Wilt Chamberlain, Curry, Duncan, Bird, Magic, Kareem, LeBron, Russell, and Jordan. The “underachievers”—those whose impact exceeds their hardware—feature Dirk Nowitzki, Wade, KD, Drexler, Garnett, and now a host of young stars like SGA, Embiid, Giannis, and Jokić. But Dončić is in a class by himself: a generational talent whose legacy is being stripped away in real time.

Don’t Hate the Game—Hate the Era

The lesson of Luka Dončić’s career is clear: sometimes, you can do everything right and still fall short. The MVP award, once a reflection of individual brilliance, is now a contest of statistical extremity and team dominance. Dončić is not a victim of the voting system; he’s a victim of his era—a time when greatness is everywhere, and the bar for recognition is impossibly high.

Opposing superstars, his own franchise, and the NBA’s evolving standards are all doing his career a disservice. We know, in real time, how special Dončić is. But if he can’t achieve the game’s biggest milestones, history may not remember him kindly.

The NBA’s Evolution—and Its Consequences

Basketball has never been better. The league is more skilled, more efficient, and more competitive than ever before. But as the standards rise, so do the risks. Greatness is harder to quantify, and legacies are harder to secure. Luka Dončić is the poster child for this new reality—a player whose impact is undeniable, but whose accolades may never match his talent.

For fans, the challenge is to appreciate greatness in the moment, rather than relying solely on trophies to tell the story. For the NBA, the question is whether the standards for recognition have become so high that even the best can’t reach them.

What do you think about Luka Dončić’s place in NBA history? Is MVP inflation changing the way we judge greatness, or is it simply a reflection of basketball’s evolution? Share your thoughts in the comments, subscribe to our newsletter for more coverage, and join the conversation as we continue to explore the most compelling stories in sports.