The Denver Nuggets spent the offseason retooling their roster in an effort to make another championship run this upcoming year. Of course, the guy who will play the most important role in the team’s overall success is superstar center Nikola Jokic, who appears poised for another big campaign.
Over the past few years, Jokic has turned himself into the most dominant offensive player in the league, and it’s resulted in a slew of awards going his way. Last season, though, he ended up getting beaten out for the MVP Award by Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in a somewhat controversial vote. However, entering the new season, Jokic has been predicted to reestablish himself as the top player in the NBA.
Nikola Jokic Predicted to Win the 2025-26 MVP Award
Jokic is one of the all-time great success stories in the history of the NBA. A second-round pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, Jokic has gradually turned himself into a player who is so good he’s literally changing how the game of basketball is played in real time. Simply put, there is no other center who has ever put up the sorts of numbers Jokic has been posting in the history of the league.
Not only is Jokic an incredible three-level scorer, but he’s also one of the best rebounders in the league. What makes him stand out, though, is his playmaking abilities. Year in and year out, Jokic is coming in towards the top of the league in the assists category, despite being a big man. Last season, Jokic averaged a triple-double in the 70 games he played, racking up 29.6 points, 12.7 rebounds, and 10.2 assists per game while shooting 57.6% from the field.
And yet, that wasn’t enough to beat out Gilgeous-Alexander for the MVP Award last year. While SGA was spectacular in his own right (32.7 PPG, 6.4 APG, 5 RPG, 51.9 FG%), some folks believed Jokic was more deserving of the award. Ahead of the new season, Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints conducted a poll of 40 media members to see who they chose to win several major awards, with Jokic being predicted to take home his fourth career MVP Award.
“After coming up short in his quest to win the MVP award for a third consecutive season, Nikola Jokic is viewed as the heavy favorite to reclaim the award during the 2025-26 NBA season,” Siegel wrote. “Jokic is the best player in the league right now, and it shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone that NBA media members believe he enters the year as the favorite once again.”
Nikola Jokic Has Sights Set on Bigger Goals Ahead of 2025-26 Campaign
GettyNikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets fields questions during Media Day at Ball Arena on September 29, 2025 in Denver, Colorado.
Individual awards are nice, but they have never been particularly important to Jokic. He’s found himself in several tightly contested MVP races, and he’s never seemed too concerned with whether or not he comes out on top. At the end of the day, Jokic’s main goal is to win games. If he puts up big numbers, great, but if he doesn’t, it’s not an issue as long as Denver wins.
The Western Conference is loaded with title contenders, but the duo of Jokic and Jamal Murray is still more than capable of going on a deep playoff run. With a new and improved supporting cast, the Nuggets appear capable of making some noise this upcoming season. If Jokic ends up winning another MVP Award, it ultimately wouldn’t be a surprise to see Denver emerge as one of the top title contenders as the season goes on.
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