Luka Doncic, LeBron James
Photo: Dallas Mavericks/Twitter

Luka Doncic is set to make another big leap this season. The Dallas Mavericks’ young star is expected to win the MVP over such players as LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic and Damian Lillard. Doncic led the poll of eight NBA executives and scouts, which was carried out by ESPN.

The 21-year-old Slovenian already has Rookie of the Year award under his belt. In his second season, he helped the Mavericks return to the playoffs and has already entered the MVP discussions. This season, which will be his third in the NBA, he could take another step and enter the elite company of MVPs.

Doncic received 4 votes, followed by Jokic (2) and Lillard (1) and Antetokounmpo (1). Last season, the 21-year-old Slovenian averaged 28.8 points, 9.4 rebounds and 8.8 assists per game. One Eastern Conference scout expects Doncic to win multiple MVPs in his career.

Per Tim Bontemps of ESPN:

“If you put a gun to my head and you have to go win a playoff series, I’d say LeBron,” an Eastern Conference scout said. “But I’ll tell you what: That motherf—er in Dallas is coming. … That dude is going to win multiple MVPs.”

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James received no votes as he is expected to be focused on winning his fifth ring this season which could negatively impact his stats. No votes were cast for LeBron’s co-superstar Anthony Davis either.