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It was not that much of a surprise when Nikola Jokic won his third MVP award this season. The Denver Nuggets may not have taken the top spot in the Western Conference, but everyone knows the team wouldn’t even be able to thrive without him orchestrating the offense.
Jokic’s stats are impressive, but his numbers don’t tell the entire story for the Nuggets. Without the Serbian leading the team, the Nuggets have little to no chance of making a deep playoff run.
However, not everyone is happy with Jokic winning his third MVP award. Shaquille O’Neal has come forward with a clear belief that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander should have gotten the MVP for the incredible work his Oklahoma City Thunder have done.
He’s so set on his beliefs that he even told Jokic that he believes the Canadian should be getting this year’s awards. While the man himself understood that Shaq was just sharing his thoughts, fans weren’t as warm to his thoughts.
Denver Nuggets fans troll Shaquille O’Neal for believing Nikola Jokic doesn’t deserve his MVP award
The way Shaq told Jokic that the Oklahoma City Thunder guard deserved the award more than he does was jarring that everyone had an immediate reaction to his sentiments.
Understandably, Denver Nuggets fans were in an uproar over his comments. Per The Spun’s Andrew Holleran:
“Shaq telling Jokic to his face was some insecure, major hater energy. Pathetic behavior, and big shoutout to Jokic for handling that respectfully,” one fan wrote.
“Big petty hater energy… Sad to see the legends go out like that..” one fan added.
“This is so unprofessional,” another fan wrote.
However, Holleran also noted that not everyone was hating on the Hall of Famer’s words:
“Honestly I respect this more than saying it to everyone else. Also Joker does not care. Just another day down until he gets to see his horses!” one fan added.
It’s understandable why O’Neal believes Shai Gilgeous-Alexander deserves the plaudits with the impressive season he put up for the Thunder. He finished the 2023-24 season with 30.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 6.2 assists on 53.5% shooting and 35.3% from long range.
However, it can be argued that the Thunder would have still performed fine without SGA. Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams have done a brilliant job of being secondary stars to the guard they can handle almost every NBA team just fine.
You cannot say the same for the Nuggets. Nikola Jokic occupies such an important spot in the team’s roster that they would be lost without him. While it’s fair to cheer for another player to win MVP, to discredit him of the honor is to deny his value to the defending champs.
More must-reads:
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- Gordon Hayward calls role with Thunder 'frustrating'
- The 'Most triple-doubles in the postseason' quiz
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