National Post (National Edition)
Jokic repeats as NBA MVP
Triumphing in a race that spawned months of debates among media members and fans, Denver Nuggets centre Nikola Jokic won his second straight NBA MVP award.
The 27-year-old Serbian, whose selection last year made him the first centre to win the award since Shaquille O'Neal in 2000, joined LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Giannis Antetokounmpo as the only active players to win backto-back MVPs. Jokic also became the fifth centre in league history to win the award in consecutive years alongside Hall of Famers Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Moses Malone.
Joel Embiid and Antetokounmpo were the other finalists. ESPN first reported the news of Jokic's MVP.
This season was marked by perseverance and incredible statistical production for Jokic, who led the injury-ravaged Denver Nuggets in points, rebounds, assists, blocks and steals.
With Canadian guard Jamal Murray sidelined since April 2021 with an ACL injury and forward Michael Porter Jr. limited to just nine games, Jokic averaged a career-high 27.1 points to go with 13.8 rebounds and 7.9 assists while guiding Denver to 48 wins.
Jokic's unique do-everything role, in which he functions like a point guard on offence and a centre on defence, positioned the fourtime all-star to lead the NBA in several advanced metrics, including Player Efficiency Rating, Win Shares, Real Plus Minus and Value Above Replacement Player. Jokic's 32.8 PER was the highest recorded in league history.
Despite that impressive resume, Jokic's candidacy drew some scrutiny because Denver finished as the Western Conference's sixth seed, winning fewer games than Embiid's Philadelphia 76ers and Antetokounmpo's Bucks.
Embiid, 28, won his first scoring title by averaging 30.6 points per game. Philadelphia won 51 games, marking its third 50-win season in the past five years.
Meanwhile, the 27-yearold Antetokounmpo led the Bucks to 51 wins and the Eastern Conference's third seed, drawing praise for late-season head-to-head victories against Embiid's 76ers and Kevin Durant's Brooklyn Nets.
The Nuggets were eliminated in the first round by the Golden State Warriors.