Source: AAron Ontiveroz / Getty
Nikola Jokic won his third NBA MVP award Wednesday night, but it was left up to Shaquille O’Neal to completely ruin the moment.
Soon after Jokic found out he’d won MVP, he was tossed off to TNT’s Inside The NBA crew to talk about it, with O’Neal being a bit too honest out of the gate.
“You’re the best player in the league… I thought SGA should’ve been the MVP”
Shaq told Jokić he’s best player in league but thought SGA should have won MVP pic.twitter.com/HM8lL0qtje
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 9, 2024
“Joker as the president of the Big Man Alliance – you are the vice president of the Big Man Alliance – you know I love you. The best player in the league, I want to congratulate you.” O’Neal began. “I want you to hear it from me first; I thought SGA [Shai Gilgeous-Alexander] should have been the MVP. That’s no disrespect to you, but congratulations.”
Jokic’s typical nonchalant attitude shined through when he responded to Shaq, letting him know it’s okay to disagree with the winner as plenty of other talented players earned it, too.
“Thank you, Shaq, we don’t judge people here. That’s fine; it’s your opinion. I’m joking,” the NBA champ said before laughing. “For real, there are a lot of players that deserve it.”
However, Jokic’s dominance proves why he deserves the award. The Nuggets are the reigning champions, and Jokic averages 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds, and 9.0 assists.
Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić is the recipient of the Michael Jordan Trophy as the 2023-24 Kia NBA Most Valuable Player. pic.twitter.com/CeKSGycIB4
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 8, 2024
The argument is that there were players who averaged more in each stat category—these weren’t even career numbers for Jokic—but Joker was the only player on the ballot to rank in the NBA’s top 10 in points, which indeed is very valuable.
The majority of voters did think Jokic earned the honor, with 79 of 99 possible votes, and was trailed by Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Dallas Maverick Luka Doncic.
Despite Jokic’s strong-willed team of Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon, and Michael Porter Jr., they’re currently in an 0-2 hole against the Anthony Edwards-led Minnesota Timberwolves. He finds himself in the same position as Joel Embiid did last year—an arguable regular-season MVP who might not make a deep playoff run while the runner-up flourishes.
See how social media is reacting to Jokic’s third MVP below.
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