On Monday, Nikola Jokic was able to add the first piece of hardware to his trophy case of which figures to be many before the 2025-26 NBA season is in the books. He was named Western Conference Player of the Week after leading the Nuggets to a 4-0 record while averaging 31.3 points, 11.3 rebounds, and 13.3 assists.
This is small potatoes for the Joker, who has taken home much more prestigious honors with regularity over the course of his illustrious career. But still, it’s nice to see him getting off to such a hot start and being rewarded for it.
Also, it’s nice to see him doing this without it being out of necessity. For once, it hasn’t been Jokic carrying a bunch of sad sacks around him, but quite the opposite. He’s had a few big scoring games, but overall, his field goal attempts and scoring are way down from last year, while he has been feeding his teammates left and right.
Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon have each gotten off to a hot start, which certainly helps, and they’ve gotten nice bench minutes from Peyton Watson, Tim Hardaway Jr., Jonas Valanciunas, and others. This has all made Jokic’s life easier and allowed him to put up these monster stats without undertaking a crippling workload.
Battle for NBA MVP will be as close as ever
Given his ridiculous start to the season, you’d think Jokic would be well on his way to a fourth MVP award, but that’s going to be a tall task. Even as well as he’s playing, the competition is going to be as tight as ever.
The reigning MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, has picked up right where he left off, leading the Thunder to a 10-1 start despite Jalen Williams’ absence. Victor Wembanyama has taken a major leap and has the Spurs out to a surprising 8-2 start. Luka Doncic looks as good as ever and has led the Lakers to an impressive 8-3 start. Giannis Antetokounmpo still exists.
The point is, the league is as deep with elite talent as it has ever been before. While Jokic continues defying the odds and breaking record books, we are going to see a familiar story when it comes to voter fatigue, legacy, and other things. The voters want to rush to anoint the next thing, which could prove costly.
Maybe the Nuggets will be so good, and Jokic’s dominance so undeniable, that voters will have no choice but to give in to his greatness. But color me skeptical unless some of these other teams and players start falling off a cliff.