NBA MVP Race: Making the case for each of the top 3 favorites

Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets 

Last year 2020-21 NBA MVP, Nikola Jokic is looking to add yet another MVP trophy to his collection. The “Joker” is having an incredible season for Denver and he is clearly the leader of that team. He helped take the Nuggets to the Western Conference Finals in the 2020 season where they would lose to the eventual champions, the LA Lakers.

In his MVP campaign last year, Jokic averaged 26.4 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 8.3 assists and did not miss a single game.

His numbers this season are close to those that won him MVP in 2021. In 52 games played this season, the Serbian 7-footer is averaging 26.0 points, 13.8 rebounds, and 7.9 assists per game. He also shoots 37 percent from deep and has a field goal percentage of 57 percent.

Jokic has become an example of what a modern-day center should play like. Almost 14 rebounds a game is typical for a player of his size. The assists and points he scores are not though. He is just shy of averaging a triple-double and I would not be surprised to see Jokic do that at some point in his career.