NBA: Ranking every MVP winner in league history

SANTA MONICA, CA - JUNE 25: James Harden, winner of the 2017-2018 MVP award, poses with his mom Monja Willis in the backstage photo room during the 2018 NBA Awards at Barker Hangar on June 25, 2018 in Santa Monica, California. (Photo by Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images) /

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Nikola Jokić (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) /

NBA: Ranking every MVP winner in league history: 34. Nikola Jokić

Stats:

18.5 points
9.8 rebounds
6.0 assists

Accomplishments:

3 time All-Star
3 time All-NBA
1 time MVP

The only reason, we repeat, the only reason why Jokic is near the bottom of this list is that it’s incredibly early in his career. As the most recent MVP winner, his poaching of the award mostly came as several other candidates suffered the sort of injuries that kept them out for a long period of time. Still, that shouldn’t take away from Jokic’s greatness.

At seven feet tall and not a fleet of foot, Jokic is essentially a point center. He punishes players down low, kills double teams with no-look passes and despite being unable to jump over a phone book, Jokic hauls in a ton of rebounds.

The three All-Star appearances and three All-NBA selections aren’t entirely impressive but by the time he pulls the curtains down on his career, he’ll reach double figures in both categories. While it’ll be a tough ask of him to bring in more MVP hardware, when it’s all said and done, Jokic will punch his ticket to the Hall of Fame.