Despite putting up stellar numbers, Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard was omitted from NBA.com’s recent MVP forecast. Earlier in the week, NBA analyst Sekou Smith left Portland’s leading man off his list of award hopefuls.
According to Smith, Lakers newcomer LeBron James is the favorite to capture his fifth MVP award. Along with LeBron, Kawhi Leonard, Stephen Curry, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Joel Embiid populate the list of the five most-likely award winners.
The forecast goes on to include an additional 10 players.