Has Denver Nuggets Star Nikola Jokic Solidified the MVP Award?

The Oklahoma City Thunder currently sit atop the Western Conference with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander compiling a compelling MVP case, but is Nikola Jokic solidifying the award?

The NBA season is filled with twists and turns and the 2023-24 campaign is no different. The Western Conference playoff picture is separated by a razor-thin edge from 1-10 each day dramatically changing the bracket. 

As is typical each season around this time the NBA's Most Valuable Player race heats up. As everyone rushes to predict the winner some hoping to have the sizzling standout slant, others remain level-headed. 

On Monday, the Athletic released a storyline column where a panel of writers discussed the biggest things to watch for down the home stretch of this season. As the MVP chase was brought up, we saw our first sweltering take of the race. 

"Nikola Jokić has been in control ever since Embiid was clearly out of contention, and I expect Jokić to cruise into the finish line with his third MVP of his career. He’s the best player in the world on a team many consider as the heavy favorite to win it all. It should be a fairly easy decision for all voters." Will Guillory wrote in a column on the Athletic Monday. 

While the opinion of Jokic being the leader in the clubhouse, or outright securing votes already is not outrageous, the Nuggets star isn't exactly cruising his way to the winner's circle. 

Never in the history of the NBA has the Most Valuable Player Award been strictly about who is the better player. If that were the case LeBron James and Michael Jordan would have more than their current share of honors. It has always been a season-by-season case. 

The Most Valuable Player in the 2023-24 season is still a two-man race, and should likely come down to who finishes atop the Western Conference between Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jokic. 

Gilgeous-Alexander has been a prolific scorer with world-class defensive impact for his usage. A rare two-way star who is one of the most efficient players in the sport and has helped drag this upstart Thunder team from two games below .500 to the inside lane for the top seed in the West. 

Jokic is one of the best players in the world and is more than deserving of his third MVP award, but let's not put the kids to bed just yet with 15 games still to play. 

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