If you have already written Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in as the NBA Most Valuable Player for the 2nd year in a row, let’s hope you used a pencil
Even with 3 games left in the NBA regular season, it might still be too early to rule out Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, according to one venerated NBA insider.
“I don’t think Jokic’s MVP case is dead, I just don’t,” The Ringer’s Bill Simmons said on Tuesday. “And I’ve really got to look at this over the next 5 days because you’re supposed to treat each season individually. And the truth is, if you just look at Jokic’s numbers and the fact (the Nuggets) are now up to a 3 seed, I really think you have to be a Top 3 seed or have 1 of the five best records in the league to really be considered for MVP … we have awesome candidates this year, but this Jokic season, it’s the most special offensive season he’s ever had. It’s one of the great offensive seasons anyone’s ever had in the history of the league.”
Opposed to the Thunder, who seemingly have an endless stream of players they can run out each night, Jokic has had to do it almost on his own for most of the season, with key teammates like Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun missing huge chunks of the season.
We can say that Jokic’s numbers hold up to any great individual season in NBA history — 28.0 points, 12.9 rebounds, and 10.9 assists while shooting 56.8 percent from the field, 82.9 percent from the free-throw line, and 38.0 percent on 3-pointers.
Nikola Jokic’s 4th MVP Puts Him in Rare Group
Jokic, 29 years old, is already a 3-time NBA MVP, so winning 1 more puts him in the rarest of air when it comes to NBA royalty.
Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar holds the NBA record with 6 MVP wins, while former Boston Celtics center Bill Russell and Chicago Bulls guard Michael Jordan are the only 2 players to have won 5 times.
Were Jokic to win 1 more MVP trophy, he would become the 3rd player in NBA history to win the award 4 times, along with Wilt Chamberlain and LeBron James.
Jokic’s group of 3-time winners includes himself, Moses Malone, Larry Bird, and Magic Johnson.
Three-Way Race for NBA MVP: Joker, SGA, Wemby
The Nuggets are on a 9-game winning streak and are as hot as any team in the NBA with Jokic leading the way — they close the year with home games against the Memphis Grizzlies and Oklahoma City Thunder, followed by a road game against the San Antonio Spurs in the regular-season finale on Sunday.
The NBA MVP race is coming down to 3 players with Jokic, SGA and Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, and The Ringer’s Michael Pina made a great case for Jokic on Monday.
“The two leading MVP candidates, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Victor Wembanyama, play for more stable powerhouses that are expected to square off in the conference finals,” Pina wrote. “But I also think — from almost everything I’ve read and heard that’s related to the never-ending MVP discourse — that Jokic has been taken for granted. Whether we’re measuring value, skill, or production, Denver’s center (still) stands alone.”
NBA Insider: Nuggets Center Nikola Jokic’s MVP Hopes ‘Not Dead Yet’