Serbian Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets was named Most Valuable Player (MVP) for the third time in his career.
After 2021 and 2022, 2024. Serbian Nikola Jokic, of the Denver Nuggets, was voted best player (MVP, “Most Valuable Player”) for the third time in his career, the NBA announced Wednesday, May 8. The Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City) and the Slovenian Luka Doncic (Dallas) finished 2nd and 3rd respectively in the standings.
Nikola Jokic finished second in 2023, behind Joel Embiid of the Sixers, but had the satisfaction of leading the Nuggets to their first NBA title that year.
This season, the 29-year-old center averaged 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds and 9 assists for Denver. He is also the second player in NBA history, after Oscar Robertson in the 1960s, to record 2,000 points, 900 rebounds and 600 assists during a season.
For the third year in a row, no American player was in the running among the three finalists for the MVP title. The last American MVP was James Harden in 2018.
The Nuggets got off to a bad start in the half
Jokic is the ninth player to be named MVP three or more times. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar holds the all-time record with six MVPs, Bill Russell and Michael Jordan each hold five titles and Wilt Chamberlain and LeBron James four. Moses Malone, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson were each three-time MVPs.
It remains to be seen whether Jokic will be able to combine an MVP award and the NBA title this season. The Nuggets lost the first two games of the Western Conference semifinals against the Minnesota Timberwolves, and must try to recover on the Timberwolves’ home court starting Friday.
