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<\/p>\nIt might sound surprising at first, but Isiah Thomas isn\u2019t holding back he believes Luka Doncic\u2019s dominance today is heavily influenced by none other than James Harden. That\u2019s a bold claim, especially considering how unique Luka\u2019s game looks on the surface.<\/p>\n
But as Doncic continues to thrive especially after his move to the Los Angeles Lakers, where his numbers have jumped to another level the comparison starts to feel a lot more interesting. Thomas\u2019 take digs deeper than just stats, pointing to style, control, and the way modern superstars shape the game around them.<\/p>\n
Thomas took to X to say, \u201cThere\u2019s no Luka if James harden doesn\u2019t exist\u2026 James harden changed the game and he doesn\u2019t get enough credit. Luka plays exactly how prime harden played in Houston. And the you couldn\u2019t stop NOTHING!!!! Real hoop game with manipulation of the game to go in they favor OMG.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Is Luka Doncic in the Conversation for MVP?<\/p>\n
The MVP race is getting interesting again, and while a few familiar names are still leading the charge, the order isn\u2019t as clear-cut as it was earlier in the season. Players like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Nikola Jokic continue to anchor the conversation, but there\u2019s been a shake-up behind them. Cade Cunningham has surged into the spotlight thanks to Detroit\u2019s strong position in the standings, although his recent health issues could complicate things moving forward.<\/p>\n
What makes this year even more intriguing is how closely the MVP discussion lines up with All-NBA selections, especially with positions no longer being a factor. At the same time, durability is becoming just as important as performance. The league\u2019s 65-game requirement is quietly looming over several candidates, and one or two missed games could completely change the outcome.<\/p>\n
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Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77)\u00a9 Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
(\u00a9 Jonathan Hui-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Luka Doncic is making his late push. Since landing with the Los Angeles Lakers, he\u2019s been putting up eye-popping numbers and carrying a massive offensive load. He\u2019s doing a little bit of everything at an elite level, and if his all-around impact especially on defense continues to trend upward, he could seriously disrupt the race before it\u2019s all said and done.<\/p>\n
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Related: NBA Makes Decision on Luka Doncic After 16th Tech<\/a><\/p>\n This story was originally published by Lindys Sports<\/a> on Mar 27, 2026, where it first appeared in the NBA<\/a> section. Add Lindys Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It might sound surprising at first, but Isiah Thomas isn\u2019t holding back he believes Luka Doncic\u2019s dominance today…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":681976,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[7,909,296,86572,292,1535,2036,560,150,368,6,253,209],"class_list":["post-681975","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nba","tag-basketball","tag-cade-cunningham","tag-detroit","tag-hoop-game","tag-houston","tag-isaiah-thomas","tag-isiah-thomas","tag-james-harden","tag-los-angeles-lakers","tag-luka-doncic","tag-nba","tag-nikola-jokic","tag-shai-gilgeous-alexander"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116300939923447366","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/681975","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=681975"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/681975\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/681976"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=681975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=681975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=681975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}