The Denver Nuggets haven't generated a ton of fanfare throughout the 2023 NBA Playoffs, but they surely won't care much given that they have managed to make it all the way to the NBA Finals. Part of that lack of fanfare trickled to Nikola Jokic during his MVP race with Joel Embiid, which is a topic that Michael Malone looked at after Denver's Game 4 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday night.
The 2023 MVP race between Jokic and Embiid was heavily debated, which was due in large part to how this was the third year in a row the award ended up being between these two guys, and how good they were both playing. But many fans took this as an opportunity to completely thrash the guy they weren't rooting for, and Michael Malone believes that had an impact on Jokic as the season went on.
"I don't know this for a fact. He never told me this. In my opinion, I think the negativity around the MVP race did get to him. I can't blame him. The guy goes out there & does his job every night & he's being criticized."
Michael Malone on Nikola Jokicpic.twitter.com/cDmPv20XD1
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) May 23, 2023
Jokic obviously had another dominant season, and after winning the previous two awards, he had a real case to win MVP for the third straight season. Of course, Embiid obviously ended up winning, but that didn't stop fans from constantly trashing both of these guys as they battled to be named the best player in the league.
If Jokic was impacted by the criticism he received throughout the MVP race, he certainly didn't showcase it very often. Jokic had a strong finish to the season, and has been at the top of his game yet again throughout the entire postseason. Jokic probably would have liked to win another MVP award, but at the end of the day, he is now just one step away from becoming an NBA champion.
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