By
MARK KISZLA |
mkiszla@denverpost.com | The Denver Post
PUBLISHED: May 2, 2023 at 8:13 a.m. | UPDATED: May 3, 2023 at 11:33 a.m.
Nikola Jokic is better at basketball than Joel Embiid. But in a season when the NBA decided to name its MVP on the basis of political bickering rather than what actually happened on the court, guess which player won?
Maybe we should all demand a recount. But let me tell you something, brother. When
Embiid was declared the winner Tuesday of the league’s most prestigious individual award, know the last man that gave a hoot?
The same Joker who dropped 39 points on Phoenix in the playoffs one night earlier and incited the Ball Arena crowd to chant “Nugs in four!” during a celebration of a
97-87 comeback victory.
“Hopefully it’s going to be a sunny day, so I can be in the swimming pool,” said Jokic late Monday, revealing his election day plans.
And how on brand was that? On a spring afternoon when Jokic could’ve got all hot and bothered about being denied a chance to become the first player since Larry Bird in 1986 to be saluted as MVP three seasons in a row, he was more worried if the Colorado weather was suitable for swimming.
His level of concern about the voting results?
“Zero interest,” Jokic said.
I’m not a gambling man, but ever since the talking heads at ESPN began denigrating the candidacy of Jokic late in the regular season, I would’ve bet your mortgage the MVP trophy was going to be shipped to Embiid in Philadelphia.
And that’s all well and good. Embiid enjoyed a wonderful season. Jokic has his eyes on a bigger prize.
“I know what motivates Nikola Jokic, what motivates myself and the rest of those guys in that locker room, is not the MVP. It is our journey to try to win the first championship in franchise history,” Denver coach Michael Malone said.
Brother, to tell you the straight Serbian truth, I think finishing second in the voting might actually be a relief to Jokic. The long list of things he’s more passionate about than the outcome of the MVP election includes these items:
No. 1: Mucking out his horse stables back home
No. 2: Getting hugs from his young daughter
No. 3: Deciding what funny boxers to wear on game day
During Game 2, on a night when Nuggets guard Jamal Murray turned his eyes to the heavens to beseech the basketball gods to allow him to make just one lousy jumper and the home team trailed as much as 68-61 late in the third quarter, Malone happily confessed his team won ugly, quickly adding: “I don’t mind ugly.”
What Jokic did, however, was a thing of essential beauty to the Nuggets’ championship aspirations. The rare basketball player who finds more joy in passing than shooting realized early he had no choice but to attack a Phoenix defense that stubbornly refused to double-team him, and Jokic dutifully strapped struggling Denver teammates on his back.
Joker killed the Suns softly with floaters in the lane and bullied physically gifted center Deandre Ayton under the hoop. In addition to those 39 points, he added 16 rebounds.
“Nobody in the league or the world can guard,” Jokic, Nuggets guard
Bruce Brown said. “We all know he should be MVP.”
After Denver staked itself to a 2-0 lead in this best-of-seven series, with a capacity crowd in the arena calling for a sweep against the team Las Vegas oddsmakers had established as the favorite to emerge from the West, the real MVP took his own sweet time unwinding from a performance that would do Steph Curry or Michael Jordan proud.
The Nuggets are blessed with a superstar who sees a big goofball in the mirror. He’s a Joker, to be sure, right down to his choice in underwear.
I wait so long in Denver’s locker room for Jokic to shower, dress and share his self-deprecating pearls of wisdom after a game, I should probably pay rent. But while cooling my jets, I have learned a thing or two. For example: Your Nuggets center has a wicked funny taste in boxers. Underneath the fine and stylish European attire he wears into the arena, Jokic sports wacky underwear that on any given night colorfully celebrates Budweiser the King of Beers, or might be adorned with the face of SpongeBob SquarePants.
After silencing Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and the grousing Suns, who seem to have a beef with a ref after every whistle, Jokic slipped into silly boxers that proclaimed “That’s what she said” across his booty.
Which serves as one more reminder: Don’t worry, be happy. Who gives a hoot about the official voting results?
We all know Jokic is the real MVP of Bud-drinking, SpongeBob-loving everyday peeps like you and me.
Fearing they might be used as door stops in his horse stable, I asked the Nuggets center if he knew the current whereabouts of his two MVP trophies.
“In my house,” replied Jokic, assuring me he hasn’t lost track of the hardware.
Know what I’d like to see next?
The Nuggets and Sixers in the NBA Finals. Jokic vs. Embiid. With the most important trophy in pro basketball on the line.
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