Amid the increasing campaign for Joel Embiid to win MVP this 2022-23 season, Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic opened up about his bid as well and emphasized he couldn't care less who wins. For him, whoever takes the award is deserving anyway.
Jokic has been largely considered as the favorite to win the accolade for the most part of the season, but the recent incredible streak by Embiid has allowed him to surpass the Nuggets star on the MVP odds. It certainly didn't help the Serbian's case that Denver has struggled recently.
The Joker could be just the fourth player in NBA history–after Larry Bird, Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell–to win MVP for three straight years, but he's definitely not thinking about that.
“It's enough, I can't, really. Third year… I don't really think about it. I play one game at a time, and that's it. If it's going to be, it's going to be. Whoever wins will deserve to win, that's how it will be for sure,” Jokic said, via Glas Amerike.
Sure enough, Nikola Jokic's focus is on the bigger picture. After winning two straight MVPs already, he knows what he and the Nuggets need to accomplish next: win the championship.
Denver has a chance to do just that this 2022-23 campaign, especially with the team set to finish atop the Western Conference. However, Jokic knows they cannot be too overconfident as well, which is why he is not looking beyond the first round of the upcoming playoffs.
“I don’t know, my expectation is that we pass the first round, and then we'll see. Since we can win in the first round, I don't even know who we’re going to face right now. Whether it's Golden State or Minnesota, or the Lakers, Oklahoma, or Utah, I don’t really know, but I think when we look at the record with them this year, it's not very fabulous, so… we’ll see,” Jokic added when asked about his playoff expectations.
It remains to be seen who'll win MVP this season, but don't expect Jokic to be really engaged in the debate.
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