The Denver Nuggets and Oklahoma City Thunder squared off on Monday night as the second game of a back-to-back between the two squads.
Oklahoma City defeated Denver on Sunday 127-103 but the Nuggets were able to get their revenge on Monday as they defeated the Thunder 140-127.
Nikola Jokic led the way for Denver, recording 35 points, 18 rebounds and eight assists while Jamal Murray added 34 points, four rebounds and six assists of his own.
For the Thunder, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way with 25 points, three rebounds and seven assists while Lu Dort recorded 26 points and seven rebounds in the loss.
Of course, Monday's matchup featured the two frontrunners for this season's NBA MVP award with Jokic and Shai. Both players have had incredible seasons thus far but unfortunately only one of them can win the award.
After Monday's victory, Jokic gave his thoughts on the MVP race.
"This is my third or fourth year in a row so…I'm really…I can't control it…I will say I think I'm playing the best basketball of my life so if that's enough it's enough," Jokic said on the MVP race. "If not, the guy (Gilgeous-Alexander) deserves it. He's really amazing."
Nikola Jokić on the MVP race between him and SGA:
"This is my third or fourth year in a row so…I'm really…I can't control it…I will say I think I'm playing the best basketball of my life so if that's enough it's enough. If not, the guy deserves it. He's really amazing." pic.twitter.com/p3Cx46tQmV
— Katy Winge (@katywinge) March 11, 2025
Of course, Jokic is already a three-time MVP but he makes a great point about him playing the best basketball of his career.
This season, the 30-year-old center is averaging 28.8 points, 12.9 rebounds, 10.5 assists and 1.8 steals per game while shooting 57.4% from the field and 43.0% from three-point range.
Jokic is averaging career highs in points, rebounds and assists per game and is also on pace to join Russell Westbrook and Oscar Robertson as the only players in NBA history to average a triple-double throughout an entire season.
Despite this, Shai is also having an incredible season for the Thunder and is currently the frontrunner to win his first MVP award.
While that ma be the case, it may take until the final games of the regular season to know who will win this season's MVP award between Jokic and Shai.
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This story was originally published March 10, 2025 at 11:17 PM.