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The Ringer's Bill Simmons doubled-down on his MVP take, picking Denver Nuggets' Nikola Jokic over Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. After Simmons leaned toward Jokic in the MVP race, he revealed he sealed his vote with Nikola over Gilgeous-Alexander this year.
Simmons says Jokic earned the upper hand as his triple-double average throughout the season played a big part, per The Bill Simmons Podcast.
“I voted for Jokic. I thought it was the best offensive season I’ve seen since Jordan. Like for what somebody did game after game, quarter after quarter,” Simmons said. “All the s*** he did for that team, not only was he, first of all to be top three in points, rebounds, and assists is bonkers. I just can’t believe it, but not trying to pad stats, not doing the s*** Westbrook did in 2017.”
The choice wasn't easy for Simmons. However, in the end, Jokic's unprecedented 60-point triple-double performance factored into his final decision.
“I thought the stuff he did day-to-day, week-to-week, I’ve never seen anything like it. I was leaning there, leaning there, and than that 60,10, and 10 game, I was just like this is it,” Simmons added. “We may never see anything like this again. I just had to pick him.”
The Nuggets finished the regular season 50-32, which was the fourth-best record in the Western Conference. The Thunder led with a league-best 68-14 mark.
Bill Simmons' Nikola Jokic for MVP take for Nuggets All-Star
Nuggets All-Star Nikola Jokic secured his triple-double average in a 117-109 win against the Grizzlies. 2024-25 is the first campaign Jokic has ever averaged a triple-double.
The Ringer's Bill Simmons addressed Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jokic's MVP race, signaling Nikola's impressive numbers as the reason he's leading toward the Nuggets All-Star.
“The problem with the SGA candidacy, and he’s been amazing, we’ve talked about it, he’s having one of the best guard offensive seasons in the history of basketball,” Simmons said. “But if you gave Jokic, SGA’s two through twelve, I’m pretty sure he would be able to win 65 to 70 games with the team SGA has, and that’s where it dicey.
“What are you gonna remember when you remember this season? For me, it’s what Jokic did with this f****d-up Nuggets team that fired their coach with a week left and he had like the greatest offensive season I’ve seen since Jordan played.”
Jokic averaged 29.6 points on 57.6% shooting, 12.7 rebounds, and 10.2 assists in 2024-25.
