Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the runaway favorite to win his second consecutive MVP award as the Oklahoma City Thunder currently have the best record in the NBA. But not on the set of Pardon the Interruption with Michael Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser. That person is Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown.
During a mail time question, the iconic ESPN pairing were asked for their MVP votes amongst SGA, Brown, and Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs with Wemby saying that he wanted to win the award.
According to the current odds, Gilgeous-Alexander is an overwhelming favorite at -900 on FanDuel. And it’s easy to see why. The Thunder are 57-15 and SGA is averaging 31.5 PPG and shooting a career high 55.5% from the floor. And although it hasn’t been talked about much this season, he has done so with the Thunder missing All-Star Jalen Williams for a large portion of the season and constant ins and outs to the lineup due to injuries up and down the roster.
Brown currently sits at +20000, a 200-1 longshot. But both Kornheiser and Wilbon think him carrying the Celtics while Jayson Tatum has been recovering from his achilles tear is a greater accomplishment.
Today on ‘PTI,’ Michael Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser both say Jaylen Brown is the NBA MVP right now pic.twitter.com/3s7xa04GwW
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) March 24, 2026
“I have a vote in this. And I will tell you it’s tightened up. My vote, and I’m not even sure the order. I think it’s Jaylen Brown one, I think it’s SGA two, and I think it’s Victor three. And then don’t talk to me about a guy who plays half the court, Luka Dončić,” Wilbon said.
After ripping Luka’s defense, Wilbon said that he would cast his vote for Wemby if the Spurs catch the Thunder out west. He even called the French sensation “the face of worldwide basketball.” However, he said Brown was “leaning at the tape” as his current leader in the MVP race.
As for Kornheiser, he also advocated for Brown while also hyping up Wemby’s chances if the Spurs continue their run and topple the Thunder in the Western Conference.
“If I had a vote today, I would vote for Jaylen Brown,” Kornheiser said. “Because Jaylen Brown has been so resolute and dependable in the absence of Jayson Tatum. And Boston is in second place in the East and San Antonio is in second place in the West. But what Wembanyama has been doing lately is kinda sorta amazing. Since February 1st that team is 22-2, that’s the best record in the NBA.”
Currently, Wemby is the third favorite for MVP at +1200.
Brown and Wembanyama both have strong cases for entirely different reasons. Brown has averaged a career high in leading the Celtics to a season that nobody could have dreamed of with his running mate missing the majority of the action. And Wemby’s leap has coincided with the Spurs being way ahead of schedule in their build towards their next championship. Both are certainly worthy of All-NBA selection.
But what’s incredible is that the only person not seriously mentioned during the entire discussion was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning league and Finals MVP!
What does SGA need to do to get a modicum of respect at this point? You could say what you want about his propensity for drawing fouls (although that narrative seems drastically overplayed when looking at the actual numbers) but to have an entire discussion about the MVP award and give him just one passing mention? Cue up the Michael Jordan Last Dance memes.
