{"id":467529,"date":"2026-02-11T07:10:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-11T07:10:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/467529\/"},"modified":"2026-02-11T07:10:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T07:10:09","slug":"former-wnba-star-gets-candid-about-luka-doncics-mvp-case","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/467529\/","title":{"rendered":"Former WNBA Star Gets Candid About Luka Doncic’s MVP Case"},"content":{"rendered":"

Former WNBA super star Candace Parker isn\u2019t tiptoeing around the conversation for who is the best player in the league right now. In her view, Los Angeles Lakers<\/a> star guard Luka Doncic<\/a> should be the NBA\u2019s MVP frontrunner right now and the fact that he isn\u2019t being treated as such says more about voter fatigue than his actual impact.<\/p>\n

Appearing on the podcast Cousins with Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady<\/a>, the former WNBA champion drew a pointed comparison that immediately resonated: Doncic may be getting \u201cKobe\u2019d.\u201d Not criticized. Not diminished. Just taken for granted.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t Kobe Luka,\u201d Parker said. \u201cDon\u2019t get bored with greatness. Luka Doncic is a beast, and I feel like, to some extent, we overlook greatness because you see it for an extended period of time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Luka\u2019s MVP case is straightforward<\/p>\n

Since arriving in Los Angeles, Doncic has functioned as the engine keeping the Los Angeles Lakers in the title conversation. Through 42 games, he\u2019s averaging 32.8 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 8.6 assists, leading the league in scoring while carrying an uneven roster through injuries and inconsistency.<\/p>\n

Those are MVP-level numbers by any historical standard. Yet Doncic continues to sit just outside the consensus top tier of MVP chatter, largely because the Lakers remain sixth in the Western Conference and are still battling to avoid the Play-In.<\/p>\n

That framing of wins first, context second is exactly what Parker is pushing back against.<\/p>\n

Parker knows this city and this narrative<\/p>\n

Parker\u2019s perspective carries weight, and not just because of her basketball resume. The former No. 1 overall pick spent 13 seasons with the Los Angeles Sparks, winning Rookie of the Year and two MVP awards in Los Angeles. She understands both the expectations and the blind spots that come with sustained excellence in this market.<\/p>\n

Her argument isn\u2019t that team success doesn\u2019t matter. It\u2019s that individual dominance shouldn\u2019t be penalized simply because it\u2019s become routine.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat Luka is doing, we cannot get bored with that,\u201d Parker said. \u201cIf you win MVP, it\u2019s this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Doncic has been firmly in the MVP conversation since his second season in the league, but has never finished high enough in the voting to truly be a factor. Outside of last season where he only played 50 total games between his time with the Dallas Mavericks<\/a> and after being traded to the Lakers, Doncic finished as a First Team All-NBA selection five straight years with three top-5 MVP finishes.<\/p>\n

The highest he finished was third in the 2023-24 season<\/a>, getting a mere four first place votes behind Oklahoma City Thunder<\/a> guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (15 votes) and the eventual winner, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (74 votes).<\/p>\n

The Kobe Bryant parallel isn\u2019t accidental<\/p>\n

Parker\u2019s warning draws directly from history. Kobe Bryant<\/a>, one of the most dominant players of his era, finished his career with just one MVP award (2008). That outcome still feels incomplete.<\/p>\n

In 2006 and 2007, Bryant led the league in scoring at 35.4 and 31.6 points per game, dragging flawed Lakers rosters into playoff relevance. MVP voters, however, leaned toward cleaner narratives and stronger team records. Steve Nash won in 2006. Dirk Nowitzki followed in 2007 after Dallas won 67 games.<\/p>\n

The lesson, as Parker sees it, is clear: sustained excellence can become invisible. Doncic is averaging the second most points per game of his career (32.8) and getting to the free throw line a career-high 10.9 times per game, all while averaging a near triple-double.<\/p>\n

At age 26 there is clearly more time for him to make a run at MVP. But if voters are not impressed by what he is doing now, it won\u2019t become anymore intriguing over time with the rise of players like Victor Wembanyama, Cade Cunningham and other stuffing the stat sheet as well.<\/p>\n

A contrasting MVP debate<\/p>\n

During the same podcast discussion, Tracy McGrady made the case for Jaylen Brown<\/a>, citing Boston\u2019s ability to stay near the top of the East despite losing multiple starters and dealing with Jayson Tatum\u2019s absence.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a valid argument and a familiar one. But Parker\u2019s stance cuts deeper. MVP, in her eyes, isn\u2019t just about standings. It\u2019s about recognizing when a player is redefining the floor for greatness.<\/p>\n

Right now, that player is Luka Doncic. If voters hesitate because they\u2019ve seen this level of dominance too often, Parker\u2019s message is a reminder worth heeding: greatness doesn\u2019t become less valuable just because it\u2019s consistent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Former WNBA super star Candace Parker isn\u2019t tiptoeing around the conversation for who is the best player in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":467530,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[629],"tags":[49,48,82,630],"class_list":["post-467529","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wnba","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-sports","tag-wnba"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467529","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=467529"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/467529\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/467530"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=467529"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=467529"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=467529"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}