Denver Nuggets star center Nikola Jokic has been named the NBA MVP after a career season, one in which the Nuggets finished as the 3rd seed in the Western Conference. It's much deserved for Jokic, who was one of the three finalists, with the other being Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid and Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry.

Taking a step back, Jokic had an insane path to becoming the MVP of the NBA and one of the best players in the league. Here's how Jokic went from an unknown to an NBA superstar.

Just a kid from Serbia 

Nikola Jokic was born in Serbia in 1995 and started his professional basketball career there as well. In 2012, Jokic signed a contract with Mega Vizura of the Mega Basket league. As a teenager, he didn't put up terrific numbers right out of the gate, but the next season is when Jokic started to blossom and flash the potentials of an NBA-type player.

Nonetheless, Jokic made his mark and garnered the attention of NBA teams. Jokic was also a member of the Serbian Olympic team in 2016 and played for Serbia in the FIBA World Cup in 2019, although his numbers there didn't exactly jump off the page.

Nikola Jokic drafted by the Nuggets

In 2014, Jokic was selected 41st overall by the Denver Nuggets. In hindsight, the fact he went so low is hard to fathom, but it took him some time to blossom into the superstar player he is now.

However, a lot of people missed the selection of Jokic on draft night, as he was picked during a commercial break that went viral after he was announced as the MVP.

After being drafted, Jokic played one more season overseas and averaged 15.4 points with 9.3 rebounds and eventually departed to go join the Nuggets after the season ended. He would join the Nuggets summer league team and proved his worth, eventually signing a contract after the summer.

The rest is history 

Since then, Jokic has become a star. In every one of his six seasons thus far, he has averaged double-digit points. He has suited up for at least 70 games in every season, and his success is wildly surprising, even more surprising after 40 players were selected before him in the 2014 NBA Draft.

Jokic averaged just 21 minutes per game in his rookie season, but the number increased to nearly 28 minutes a game in 2016. Now, Jokic is the heart and soul of the Nuggets team and a fan favorite, not to mention a player filled with neverending memes.

Jokic averaged 19.9 points with 9.7 rebounds and seven assists in the 2019-2020 NBA season that was paused to the COVID-19 pandemic. He was a huge part of the Nuggets' pair of epic 3-1 comebacks against the Los Angeles Clippers and the Utah Jazz before their fantastic run ended at the hands of LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and the Los Angeles Lakers.

Then came the 2020-2021 NBA season, and Jokic has essentially dominated the entire season, even after the brutal, season-ending injury to Jamal Murray. The Nuggets finished as the 3rd seed in the Western Conference and are aiming to make a run at an NBA Finals trip.

Remember when Jokic viral for this hilarious picture of him as a kid?

 

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That leads us to now. Nikola Jokic is the NBA MVP, beating out Joel Embiid and Stephen Curry, each of who had phenomenal seasons in their own right. Oh, and Jokic just turned 26 years old in February and is barely reaching his peak in the NBA.

Jokic has become the face of the Nuggets team and everywhere you go you can see Jokic No. 15 jerseys. Yes, Carmelo Anthony was Np. 15, but it now belongs to Jokic, a telling sign of how talented he is as a player and how valuable he is to that franchise.

Truth be told, this might not be the only MVP award Nikola Jokic ends up with in his trophy case.