February 14, 2021; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets Center Nikola Jokic (15) dribbles the ball in front of Los Angeles Lakers striker LeBron James (23) in the second quarter at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
While the NBA’s off-season leaders made statements last year, the surprising Western Conference finalists Denver Nuggets took a step back last year by making Jerami Grant lost to the Pistons. This meant that her hopes for this season rested more than ever on Nikola Jokic’s shoulders.
This ability to carry a team on his shoulders reminds Nuggets’ great Alex English of a certain aspiring goat. This is none other than LeBron James.
English holds the franchise record for most points, assists and minutes played. So he recognizes the value that the joker brings to the ground. Since Jamal Murray couldn’t repeat his Orlando Bubble form, the Serb was the only ranger for them.
« If you look at him seriously, the record was good, there were times when he had to carry the team like LeBron (James) would have done it earlier. Yes, he has a legitimate shot.
« You take him out of the equation, the Nuggets are a good team. You stay there and they have a chance at the NBA championship to win. «
The Serb not only achieved an average career high of 26.8 points, 11.1 rebounds and 8.5 assists per game, but also achieved an FG efficiency of 57.1%. But that’s not the main reason he deserves to be the MVP over LeBron James and Joel Embiid.
His case – unlike other MVP contestants, he has appeared in every game for his franchise this season. Even with a busy schedule filled with multiple games in a row, he never took a night off. The remaining two are currently injured and on track to miss more games.
So he’s the favorite to take home the elusive gong. English evaluated the other two’s candidacy and said:
“Joel Embiid, you could say he had a good year. He was hurt, he was outside. I don’t think he had the impact on his team that Joker has with the Denver Nuggets. The only player of this stature who he determines whether his team will lose or win is LeBron James. And he’s out too. «
Hopefully Jokic can maintain his form for the remainder of the regular season and beyond until the playoffs. Then he will definitely get away with the Maurice Podoloff Trophy.
Read More – ‘Frontrunner’: The former NBA Champion Counts James Harden vs LeBron James & Joel Embiid for MVP 2021
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Bharat Aggarwal works as a multisport -Author for EssentialSports, writes stories about Formula 1 and the NBA, while also having a clear passion for other sports such as tennis, cricket, soccer and MMA.
After graduating from the University of Delhi, he joined EssentialSports last year and previously worked as a sports copywriter for The Selector App at the B2B company Story Digital.
To get in touch please email [email protected] or send a DM on Twitter to Iam_bharat07.
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