An uphill battle, to say the least
Phoenix Suns v Denver Nuggets | Tyler McFarland/Clarkson Creative/GettyImages
The Thunder pulled away late on Sunday to turn a close, competitive game into a blowout, winning 127-103 over the Nuggets in Oklahoma City. Denver lost Aaron Gordon early on in this one and Nikola Jokic was hampered by an elbow injury while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander stole the show with 40 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists.
It was certainly an MVP-like performance from SGA; putting up the big numbers in a signature win over the reigning MVP and the number two team in the Western Conference on national television. But the award shouldn’t be decided by one game – let’s not forget Jokic put up 31/21/22 his last time out.
That’s not to say SGA can’t win and shouldn’t be the favorite, but if he wins, it should be on the merit of his entire season, in which he needs to be better than Jokic. It’s debatable as Jokic leads in most statistical categories, but Gilgeous-Alexander is having an all-time scoring season for a team that is running away with the West.
But the problem is that some voters already have their minds made up and are following narratives and storylines, instead of actually rewarding the most valuable player. One of the loudest voices in NBA media, Stephen A. Smith of ESPN weighed in on NBA Countdown before the game tipped off on Sunday and according to him, the season might as well be over.
Stephen A. Smith says he doesn’t “care what Jokic does”
Smith went on a tangent, interrupting Kendrick Perkins, who was praising Jokic to rant about Gilgeou-Alexander. Smith pointed to SGA’s scoring numbers, his 50-point games, and the Thunder’s dominant record, then stating that if he keeps this up, “I don’t care what Jokic does”.
The desk host, Malika Andrews called out Stephen A., reminding him there’s plenty of season left and asking if there is “nothing that can happen?”, to which Smith responded, “Did I stutter?”. He admitted his vote was decided two months ago and when pressed by Bob Myers admitted it’s fair to say he would view the race differently if Jokic had never won it before.
The video:
“I don’t care what Jokic does” https://t.co/lSboBW84L7 pic.twitter.com/RGRnYliaoy
— n i k o l a e s t h e t i c (@nikolaesthetic) March 9, 2025
Biased voters like Stephen A. Smith why Jokic won’t win MVP
This rant by Smith just proves what Jokic is up against. Smith admits he is holding Jokic to a higher standard and weighing history and legacy, rather than simply deciding which player is most valuable. That just speaks to the voter fatigue and narrative-driven discourse that Jokic is working against.
Jokic has arguably had the best season of his career and could still finish with a bang as he does unprecedented things almost every night. It seems crazy to think this MVP race should already be over with a month to go in the season, but you heard it straight from the horse’s mouth, and this is why there is simply too much for the Joker to overcome.