After residing in the No. 2 spot for a lengthy stretch of the 2020-21 season, Damian Lillard will have to settle for fifth-place in this week’s edition of NBA.com’s Kia MVP Ladder. According to columnist Michael C. Wright, the Trail Blazers guard will need to overcome both the uptick in the play of two Western Conference foes, Nikola Jokic and Damian Lillard, as well as the returns of Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo if he expects to hoist the trophy at season’s end.
Along the way, the Blazers will need to string together more victories, something they’ve had a difficult time doing recently.