The Deep 3 Podcast - We Picked Every NBA Player That Can Win The 2026 MVP | TD3 Clips

Episode Date: October 15, 2025

Which NBA players will be in the MVP race this year? #nba Check out the TD3 merch: https://the-deep-3-shop.fourthwall.com/ Listen on Spotify!: https://open.spotify.com/show/3elbbqVumwqz8wlIdknsLW Listen on Apple Podcasts!: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-deep-3-podcast/id1657940794 Follow us on TikTok!: https://www.tiktok.com/@thedeepthree Follow us on Instagram!: https://www.instagram.com/thedeep3podcast/ Isaac's twitter: https://twitter.com/byisaacg Mo's twitter: https://twitter.com/Mojo99_ Donnavan's twitter: https://twitter.com/Dsmoot3D Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Let's talk about the theoretical NBA MVP race for this season. I want to sit down and talk about how many players can realistically win the MVP this year. Okay. So we know the names are usually on the ballot. What's the case for everybody and how many names are actually going to have a chance? Everybody's always like, he can get into the conversation. What's the actual conversation going to look like? All right.

Automatic lots for the ballot. Yokic. Always going to be top two. Shea. Oh, probably going to be top two for the next, at least three years as long as the team's good. Yonis? It feels like he's on the ballot. Yeah, it feels like he's always, again, he's always on the ballot.

He's like a mortal lock for three every year. There's something in the air. Some Devonovvention has decided that Yannis will be third place in MVP for every year of his career. Yeah, and we're going to get to February and everyone's going to be like, I don't know, man. Yonis is having a crazy season. He's the most underrated player. And so he'll be there. So that's one, two, and three.

Luca. You would think we'll get back in the convo. He's good enough that he's always in the conversation. Do we think the Lakers are going to be good enough that he'll have an actual case over Yokich and Shea, who probably will be both in the standings? If they're the three seed, maybe. That's not a guarantee you, but they could be. They were three seed last year. I could only see the happening if like the nuggets are below.

So it's got to be like either the three seed and like there's a two seed and. Yeah. Yeah. But I think Luke is good enough. The team's probably good enough. He'll always be striking this ends. I guess he probably gets a spot on can win the MVP. Yes, he can do that will win it.

The Lakers are going to have to be a top two seed minimum. Yeah. Like he's that you can't put him higher than three on your like predictions, I think. Okay. Like, you can't really expect him to be above Yokish and Shea. So that's for, ain't? Canning, so that's where the convict is interesting.

Can't he realistically win it? Like, that's the next name that we can assume will, like, make the jump and, like, you know, he's due to get into that tier at some point. But we know those other three guys are already there. We know Yonis is going to be there. He's going to have the backpack type of argument to him. The Timberl's going to have to have a special season.

They better be the fucking one seed, and he better average 30. Like, I don't know how you'd argue him over his Shay unless the OKC team falls off. Yeah. And why would that happen? I am, I am kind of optimistic because this is, this is going to be the, the first offseason in a while where they aren't bringing in somebody new that they have to completely like reintegrate. So that makes me feel like he's less likely with MVP though because there's no real, we're hoping that these young guys step up and they can maintain where they're at. Unless you think one of these young guys is going to be like an elite elite elite elite role player and helping take the next jump. I feel like this year is about reshuffling and maintaining the status quo.

Terran Shannon, Jr., you are the one. You scared me. Yeah, I feel like this issue is about maintaining, though. Like, are they going to make a jump? And that's how they low you to sleep. Ah. And now, Ant has the power of surprise, the element of surprise on his side. And when nobody thinks that the Timberwolves are going to be at the top of the conference,

nobody thinks that they're going to take that leap, boom, they take the leap. So you give an aunt, the number five spot as a realistic MVP candidate? Yeah, he can be on the ballot. Yeah, it can be five. It can be five. No, not can be on the ballot. Can he win? is there going to be he can win if ant comes out and the ant averages and he has like one of those

scoring seasons if he averages 29 30 points a game he can win MVP this year it would be like shay's last year it would have to be best score on the best team and they're driven by him offensive yeah yeah i can see that okay that that's a clear top five now is there anybody we wouldn't see coming because like obviously those top four guys that best players in the world and you know foreseen jump into that is there anybody else you think could jump into that top five and be one those guys that preventally is going to be there. Man. Brunson's not doing it.

I don't think Brunson and D. Mitch are going to be like the lead scores on the top two teams in the East, but the lead scores on the top two teams in the West are just going to be a lot better. Yeah. And both of those teams are very, like obviously like their scoring drives a lot, but those teams are very well rounded as well. So I think Cade Cunningham, if he like reaches another level offensively with like how bear his team is and then he also drives into a top.

top two they have to be no no no he has to be the one seat i think i think kate because he's like several levels below these guys so you said like if the offense drives another level he better draft another level and then a level and then we can talk about shay convos so they got to be the one seed like easily and have some like unforeseen team success that he's driving i think because unless you guys think he's taking like a top five player leap which not doing that i don't i don't rule out but i don't really see that as a ceiling i don't yeah i don't think that's happening i don't i don't than Cade can win it this year. Yeah, I feel, I mean, it's always hard to say with a young guy because you never know.

But I feel like for this year, I'm kind of expecting him to be around the same level he was last year. I don't know what I see, like, a necessarily gigantic jump coming. Yeah, unless like just every shot just goes in. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He can get better on the margins, of course. But like, yeah. There's no clear path where you're like, oh, Wemby is going to be more sort of a post score. And it's going to add the midrange game.

Like, I don't really see that coming. The only thing that I could say is like, okay, Jason Tatum's there out of the east. Someone needs to go ahead and take that spot. So it's just more of a player. Well, then Yonis would probably take that spot out of the- Yonis was already there. That's true. Is there any world?

What does Wembe have to do? For everyone saying he's going to be a top-five player, what would a Wembe MVP case look like? Top five or six seed. 35, no, no. You can be higher. You have to, you have to be a top three seats. Dude, this team is dog shit.

No, I understand. But like, Yokits and Shay and Luca, their numbers are also going to be Godi and they're probably going to have just, as much, if not more, team success. So either Wemby and the Spurs are a top three seed, and Wembe is averaging like 30, 12, and 4 or whatever with like three blocks. Either that happens, or they're the five seed, and he's averaging like 30,

and he just has one of like the stupidest seasons of all time. What if-winning D.O. And it's like, yeah, and it's like Russell Westbrook. That's the part you just said. I'm trying to foresee the discourse. What if he's D.P.O.I. By runaway favorite again. And what if he average?

just 30. How often do we see D.P.O.I. is the average 30 and let's say five assists. It's Janus adjacent. Even better, though. Exactly. So, I know, it's pretty much when Janus won Bulls. You don't, you don't really see that in discourse very often. In the course of NBA history, there's been like three guys that have won DPOI and average 30. Yeah. If Yokic and Shea kind of like have regular seasons for their success where it's not, they're not clear runaways, I wonder if there will be a mounting argument if they are, let's say, the five seed surprisingly competent. Yeah. And he's literally, averaging 30 points per game on elite efficiency

and being the clear DPOI. I could kind of like see the argument budding up. Yeah. I think what could also go towards his way to narrative wise is again how dog shit his team is without him on the court. Those narratives, those plus minus merchants, gonna go crazy

for him. Oh yeah, and with the defense too, his backup probably Luke Cornet. He might have a stupid plus minus. Dude's going to be historic. Yeah, historic. Luke Renet is his backup, which fine player, fine backup. The gap in creation and shot blocking, his plus minus is going to be absurd. Yeah.

And I thank you guys for giving me these talking points to when we get to this point in the season. Yeah. But it would, yeah, it would probably have to be, not even trying to be funny. It's probably going to have to be closer to like 35 in DPOI. Just because where Yokic, Yolk is passing, he can average 28 and his passing

is still going to be otherworldly. She's going to average 30 in his sleep. And then we're talking about Luca, you know, getting back to Luca form. Luca can roll out of bed and get 32.99. So he's going to have to be better than them statistically, I think. Like, it's going to have to be like 35, 12, and 6. Okay.

Well, now we're getting into, like, trying to like theoretically understand possible discourse and like plan arguments, like it's a Heisman race. What if I just lost my turn at that? I thought, dude, you have you locked in right now. I'm like, okay. I started thinking about Hezeman for a second. And I was like, oh, my husband. I completely forgot I was going to say.

Honestly, I was, I was thinking, like, if he genuinely has, like, the greatest defense season of all time, then I think the argument is it. Average five blocks the game, we'll talk. Okay, what I was going to say is, do we feel like everything you said, if it's him and Yokic and Yokic is also absurd

for all the same reasons he always has been? Voter fatigue, we know, kind of heard him last year. I don't know if it rebounds, if it's like a year off thing, if, like, one year you get voted fatigue next year you're the favorite. but if that stays a little bit,

Wembe will have like the ultimate opposite of voter fatigue. Remember everybody for years is like, we gotta give him to Luka, he's gonna be the preseason favorite. If Wemby has a tiniest chance

of winning MVP, there will be a gigantic glaze session to try to convince yourself that he should get it. Just because it'll be cool and different and unique and we've seen the same guy

that's been for so long and he's the next shiny thing, they will be bending over motherfucking backwards to make an argument for him. Yeah, like the storyline is insane. They're going to be like,

yo, he was trained with mugs and K. Hey, G, bro. Who are other players doing it? The monks? I don't even think about that. The narrative's going to be dumb, bro.

Hey, I might be one glazing. That's a good argument. I'm ready. Where does that phrase come from? What, glazing? Bending over backwards. I don't know. I don't know.

Yeah, zero clue. It's been words together. When he was in China, in front of the Dynasty fiction. He was in front of a Mao, I mean to say. He was in front of Mao posing the photos. I was so curious about the next word that came up. I was like

In front of Crazy He was the picture in China In front of Mao In front of the picture of Mao I was an old Chinese leader Okay So like

There's a There will be an argument For that That will be like I can just imagine I can imagine Kendrick Perkins on TV You'd be like

We've never seen a player Like this No one's ever Shoulder the load I can just force you get already? Yeah, I can see it. Is that the only one? So, like, Wembe has an outside chance and we can say is the fifth option. Is there a Brunson thing if there's one Z, like New York bias? He would also have to average 30. I think it would, it would have to be 30 and they

got to win like 65 games. I like 65 is nuts. That'd be crazy. Yeah, it would have to be 30, 30 points on like 60 wins. Do we force? Is there a last day? dance, Steph Curry element in here potentially. No. That man did not win MVP. I'm sorry, Seth. I don't think he can do it. Keep in mind.

The pace they're on after they got Jimmy Butler. That's a like trajectory of being a team good enough to be in convos. I don't remember what the winning percentage was, but it was stupid. It was like 18 and 3. Yeah, so obviously they can't maintain that because that would be what? How many losses would that be 12 losses on the season? Yeah. Yeah, so that'd be a 70 win season.

He was also averaging like 29, 30 as well. Yeah, like Jimmy, we were talking about Jimmy kind of like revitalizes production. It's a 70 win pace. Yeah, so what if they're on a 64 win pace? And he's averaging 28 points for game. So, yeah, if the Warriors win 70 games, Steph Curry can win MVP. For sure, dude, if they had a 70 win season

to close out his prime, he would get the most automatic, just like legacy MVP I've ever seen. Yeah, yeah. It wouldn't even be a discussion. I don't even feel bad about it either. I'd look the glaze happen. Like, he undoubtedly wouldn't be better

than Yo Kitton Shay, and he would get it no matter what, just because that would be a crazy moment. just coasting off a name first ever MEP Coasing off a name they They win 70 games He's probably gonna average like 26 Still

Still don't mean you're better than those guys He still wouldn't be better than Yogychia I mean 70 wins and 70 wins I guess in the scenario he was to some extent But we know what's up He wouldn't be better than those guys At least Yokin's he wouldn't be better Yeah

I don't know But also like the narrative point of winning more games And he go if he Let me tell you something right now I'm talking to If Steph Curry and the Warriors win 70 games and he does like normal step stuff I'm taking every chain

from every player and I'm putting it directly on Steph Curry's neck understand he's snatching everybody's chain if they do that what happened okay last scenario if they win 70 games and Curry does what we think but okay C went 72

and Shay has the exact same stat line as last year voter fatigue no they already don't fuck with Shane they don't focus with Shay it does it does curry glaze keep it's against Curry Curry's not Yolkish I understand that but like I'm sorry like you have

if you have we're in the same conference and I win more games than you I'm sorry you get it like Shay would get it I would argue for step obviously can you know I promise you

the narrative is gonna go gonna go 100% towards towards Curry has less help more responsibility more impact on and off ball makes people better more he is the system so it's harder for him to move

she's young I understand. I'm going to make these arguments, but I'm telling you, I do think Shay would get it. They're going to say, take Curry off the Warriors, see where his team's at versus Shane. There's still a playing team. You're getting PTSD right now. Shut the fuck out.

That's what they're doing, bro. You're getting PTSD. I can see it. It's the worst time of year. Why did I start this combo? I know. I can see it. Hearing that last year, maybe one of freaking down a bottle.

That was ridiculous. The one. OK, she would still be a 50-win team. God, that was so stupid. Yeah. While Chet was on twigs for legs, no backup point card. I'm so sure. Okay, that's the MVP combo.