The Nuggets swept the Lakers in the Western Conference finals, and after the final game, Nikola Jokic had a classy message for Joel Embiid.
Jokic, whose superb play helped the Nuggets advance to the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history, was awarded the inaugural Magic Johnson Trophy after defeating Los Angeles. The award is given to the Most Valuable Player of the Western Conference finals.
After receiving the award, during the postgame press conference, Jokic was asked once again about the regular season MVP. The two-time MVP has said many times that he could care less about the award, and he reiterated as much on Monday.
“People are just mean in saying that Embiid shouldn’t have won it. I think he should have won it. … He was really amazing”
A humble move from Nikola Jokic to defend Joel Embiid’s regular-season MVP win. pic.twitter.com/8u5ddJkfoH
— USA TODAY Sports (@usatodaysports) May 23, 2023
Jokic said that while he doesn’t think about MVP, he shared some kind words about Embiid, who was this year’s winner:
“People are just mean in saying that Embiid shouldn’t have won it. … I think he was playing … extremely, extremely tough basketball through the whole season.”
This was a classy gesture by Jokic, who finished second place to Embiid in voting for the award.
If he had defeated Embiid in the voting, Jokic would have become just the fourth player in league history (and the first since Larry Bird) to win three MVP awards in a row.
Instead, however, he will focus on winning his first NBA championship. The Nuggets enter the NBA Finals as the heavy favorites.
