Denver Nuggets: 4 reasons Nikola Jokic is the MVP
By Sean Carroll
Why Denver Nuggets C Nikola Jokic deserves MVP: Improved defense
The biggest chink in Jokić’s armor has always been his defense. The talented big man can score with anyone in the league, but when he’s asked to defend in space, it gets tricky.
It’s also harder for the simple fact that Jokić plays the center position, the position that’s often the last line of defense for most trips down the court. While poor defensive players have won this trophy in the past, they’re usually not big men who have to stick their hands up under the rim most times.
Tim Connelly and the Nuggets brass have done an incredible job at surrounding Jokić with the right kinds of players: Paul Millsap and Aaron Gordon – two athletic, defensive-minded big men who can cover for Jokić and sometimes take the harder matchup from him.
But at the end of the day, if it’s big versus big, Jokić will have to sit there with the armbar in the back and then rotate over to protect the rim when needed.
This slide doesn’t exist to say he has done a full 180-degree turn, but he has shown progression on that side of the court, so much so that he’s not a gaping hole anymore.
Nuggets fans will remember the ‘Euro fouls’ he used to commit when he simply couldn’t shuffle his feet fast enough to stay in front of the player which not only gave the other team an advantage, it also put another foul on Denver’s best player – not good.
The aforementioned 109 defensive rating from basketball-reference is a solid number but when looking at other outlets measurements, it jumps to a 114.4 per PBP Stats and +8.2 points worse via Cleaning the Glass.
What he does do well is rebound the ball, an underrated component of defense. Using the same Cleaning the Glass numbers, he pulls down 23.1 percent of opponent misses, an elite number, and this season he has stayed out of foul trouble to a career-high 3.1 percent.
When limiting those numbers to just two-point field goals, he pulls down 27.1 percent of those rebounds according to PBP Stats. Rudy Gobert’s number is 26.5 percent on two-point misses.
By no means is Jokić a perfect defender, but he has made strides in the area and his offense far outweighs his defensive shortcomings. “Quickly, change the slide,” yells Denver fans.