As NBA analysts continue to react to Denver Nuggets All-Star Nikola Jokic’s historic 56-point Christmas Day classic, has he surpassed Oklahoma City Thunder All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the MVP race? Zach Lowe believes so. After Jokic and the Nuggets’ 142-138 overtime thriller against the Minnesota Timberwolves, coupled with the Thunder’s recent string of losses to the San Antonio Spurs, the landscape of the Western Conference has shifted.
The wounded defending champion Thunder (26-5) still sits atop the standings, but it isn’t nearly as scary as the team that entered the NBA Cup semifinals with a near-perfect record (24-1).
At the same time, Jokic and the Nuggets were in the midst of a six-game win streak, heading into Christmas, and are now only 3.5 games behind the top-seeded Thunder, and 2.5 games behind the second-placed Spurs, which gives Jokic a significant boost in catching up to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in their MVP race, Lowe said, per The Zach Lowe Show.
“Jokic has a big edge in pretty much all,” Lowe said. “You can find one here and there, like the dunks and threes, adjusted plus minus, Shai still is a little bit ahead, but this is a different landscape than last year, where we all understand who the best player is, and all the other arguments, now it’s just one day past Christmas, tons of stuff could happen. But Jokic has reclaimed the throne.”
Jokic's incredible 56-point triple-double (16 rebounds, 15 assists) led the Nuggets to a four-point overtime win, as Denver is 8-2 in its last 10 games.
Nikola Jokic breaks Stephen Curry's OT record in Nuggets win
Nuggets All-Star Nikola Jokic broke Warriors' Stephen Curry's overtime record in Thursday's win against the Timberwolves. Despite blowing a fourth-quarter lead, Jokic's 18 points in OT broke Curry's previous record for most points (17 points) scored in an overtime period, per Underdog NBA.
After Jokic's 56-point triple-double against the Timberwolves, the Nuggets will embark on a seven-game road trip, starting against the Magic on Friday.
