On Feb. 16, the Portland Trailblazers saw themselves up by twenty-four, but then their lead got cut to a nine-point deficit to the Oklahoma City Thunder. However, at the end of the game, they came out on top courtesy of Damian Lillard’s 31 points, 10 assists, and 7 rebounds. Lillard, throughout the season, has been buzzing around the NBA about how the season could be an MVP season and possibly more. Lillard has been a dominant player in the NBA for years and is looking now, more than ever, to put himself and his team in the best chance of winning. He is currently 30 years old and is considered to be in his prime years right now and he is performing nothing short of excellence.

Lillard has been dominant on the offensive end and has made game-winning shots after game-winning shots. The clutch criteria he has had on his name for most of his career is not looking like it is fading away anytime soon. While he usually plays in the shadow of All-Star teammate CJ McCollum, Lillard is still putting up impressive numbers, but more importantly, he is giving his team wins. 

In comparison to other players, Lillard is fourth in the NBA with 29.3 points per game, tenth in assists, and third in three-pointers made per game. Lillard is balling night in and night out and is without a doubt a serious MVP candidate. Essentially, he is not only putting up good numbers, but he has led the Trail Blazers to a 17-10 record. Portland is currently sitting as the fourth seed in a tough Western Conference and the fifth-best team in the whole league.

Lillard, without a doubt, has a very impressive resume at the moment to be the 2020-2021 NBA MVP, but there’s still more to be achieved to be the clear front runner for the MVP award. Other players such as LeBron James and Luka Doncic also have very good resumes to be the MVP, but if Lillard keeps putting up wins and impressive performances like he has been, there is no doubt in my mind that Lillard will be this year’s MVP.