Denver Nuggets star center Nikola Jokic is having an amazing season, and it should result in him being chosen as the clear cut, no question about it Most Valuable Player in the NBA when the season ends in a few days.
But it might not work out like that.
Don’t be too shocked if someone else – like Philadelphia’s Joel Embid, or New York’s Julius Randle or even Golden State’s Steph Curry – end up getting more votes and stealing Joker’s trophy. Why? If you’ve lived in the Mountain Time Zone long enough, you already know the answer to that question.
Nuggets fans are 100% right in pointing to the facts to bolster the case for their guy: Joker is in the top-10 in the NBA in scoring, rebounds and assists. No one else is. He’s played in every Nuggets game this season and has logged the second most minutes played. This after a grinding playoff run to the Western Conference Finals last fall and a shortened two month offseason.
He’s averaging a double-double this season, including more than 26 points per game, and has recorded 15 triple-doubles. He’s been at his best when his team has needed him the most, which is the actual definition of an MVP.
Still, there are plenty of influential voices out there clamoring for Embid, or Randle or Curry or (two-time defending MVP) Giannis Antetokounmpo or even Chris Paul to get the award. What all these voices have in common is a comfortable seat in a coastal time zone.
Ya, the dreaded East (or West) coast bias rearing its ugly head again.
It’s no secret that the basketball media, including folks like Tim Legler, Shaquille O’Neal, Kendrick Perkins, Charles Barkley and Stephen A. Smith don’t see a lot of Nuggets games. They see clips. But they watch the New York Knicks, or the Philadelphia 76’ers or the Golden State Warriors if they can stay up that late. They’ve ALL created reasons to latch on to the candidacy of someone else, just like they’ve ALL dismissed Denver’s chances of playoff success since star guard Jamal Murray was lost to a knee injury (and they could still be proven right about that, we’ll see…) The Nuggets have won nine of 11 games since Murray went out.
These biased pundits also have failed to take notice of what Joker has done since Murray went out — which is to sustain and even raise his level of play and help to elevate the play of others like Michael Porter Jr. and even role players like Facundo Campazzo.
But what they DO notice is self-promotion. And in that arena, Joker is a total loser.
Embid, Randle and Curry have each come out publicly and touted his own MVP candidacy. Embid – who’s missed almost a third of his team’s games this season (19 to be exact) – said recently, “There’s no doubt” he’s the MVP. Some in New York want to give Randle the award precisely because he plays in the Big Apple. “People understand how tough it is to play in New York and bring a winning mentality back to the Knicks,” whined the Knicks Taj Gibson. “Julius has earned credit for the MVP race. He deserves it.”
Curry was even more bold in touting his own case. “I mean, I’ve got to be” the MVP, Curry said on a national radio show. “I’ve got to be. I probably won’t get it, but whatever. I like to be dramatic sometimes. So, I’m just setting the table.”
None of these guys are shy about self-promotion because they know that the basketball public eats it up nowadays. The NBA has become a haven for “look at me” self-promotion, and it’s no secret that it’s helped the league gain a greater audience. So when they make a statement like that or send out a tweet or post something on Instagram, there are a lot of voters who are listening and agreeing. It’s the nature of the beast.
Meanwhile, Joker downplays the individual award talk and tries to stay focused on carrying his team to the postseason. He loathes self-promotion which is probably why he’s so comfortable in the Mountain Time zone. He talks softly and carries his team, that’s about it.
And if he doesn’t win the MVP award – which would be the first in Denver Nuggets history and earn him a place in the Basketball Hall of Fame someday (every eligible MVP is already enshrined) – it will be because he’s not a “look at me” chest thumper. And because those voters who reside in those comfy chairs in those coastal venues continue to have the attitude that what happens at altitude doesn’t really matter.
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