BREAKING: Nuggets' Nikola Jokic Disappointed After Major NBA Award Announcement on Wednesday
The Denver Nuggets’ 2024-25 NBA season came to a disappointing end in the second round of the playoffs as they were eliminated by the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Denver was able to challenge the Thunder in the series as they forced the series to seven games, though Game 7 did not go their way.
In Game 7, the Thunder were able to dominate their way past the Nuggets at home by 32 points, clinching their spot in the Western Conference Finals while Denver now enters a crucial offseason.
Of course, the Nuggets have some key decisions to make regarding their vacant general manager and head coaching vacancies and they may also decide to make some changes to their roster.
Denver Nuggets superstar center Nikola Jokic.
© Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
One player that will likely be staying in Denver during the offseason is Nikola Jokic, who put together arguably the best season of his career.
Because of this, Jokic was a finalist for the 2024-25 Kia NBA MVP award which was announced on Wednesday night ahead of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
Unfortunately for Jokic, he did not win the award as the NBA announced that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Thunder was named the 2024-25 NBA MVP.
Breaking: Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has won the NBA MVP award, sources tell ESPN.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) May 21, 2025
Of course, both Shai and Jokic put together incredible seasons that has had them as the frontrunners for the MVP award since early in the season and while both players put together MVP-caliber seasons, only one of them could win the award.
Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic
© Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
The voters believed that Shai deserved it over Jokic this season as he put together the best season of his career and led the Thunder to the best record in the NBA.
While that may be the case, Jokic made a strong argument for the award after he finished the season averaging 29.6 points, 12.7 rebounds, 10.2 assists and 1.8 steals per game while shooting 57.6% from the field and 41.7% from three-point range.
Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic
Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images
Despite Jokic putting together historic numbers, including becoming just the second player in league history to average a triple-double throughout an entire season, the voters elected to choose Shai for the award instead of giving Jokic his fourth MVP this season.