“Nikola’s journey from the 41st pick in the draft to MVP is one of the most remarkable individual stories we have witnessed in sports,” NBA.com reports.
Jokic and The Nuggets look for a deep playoff run
Jokić is also the first Denver Nugget to win the Most Valuable Player award. Being names the 2021 MVP is something that Jokić is very proud of, but knowing the kind of person and player he is Jokić will not be satisfied until he can take his team as far into the playoffs as possible as the Nuggets are serious candidates for the Western Conference Finals if they can get past Devin Booker and the Suns first.
According to Bleacher Report, “Jokic’s critics will likely point to his defense as the biggest reason why he shouldn’t have been crowned MVP. He finished with a real defensive plus-minus of plus-1.96, 14th among centers and he allowed opposing shooters to hit 51.8 percent of their field-goal attempts”. Denver is currently down in that series 1-0 and Jokić’s lack of defensive intensity is being shown. Denver is also missing Jamal Murray who is currently out for the season with a torn ACL as they look to steal a Game 2 win as well as home-court advantage Wednesday night June 9th at 9:30 pm eastern daylight time.
People could possibly argue that other players made a strong case for The MVP award throughout the season but none of them were as consistent from start to finish as Nikola Jokić was. It seems we have found the perfect fit for the 2021 most valuable player award and it is Nikola Jokić, also known as “The Joker.”