Nikola Jokic snubbed in the NBA’s first “MVP ladder” of the season

Denver Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic is off to a blazing start in the 2024-25 season.

That’s nothing new, after all he’s won three of the last four NBA MVPs, but even Jokic is doing things we’ve never seen before.

For example, he became the first player in NBA history to post at least 150 points, 50 rebounds and 50 assists through the first five games of the season. That’s just silly production, and obviously averaging a triple-double, which Jokic is still currently doing.

Through eight games the Serbian sensation is posting 28.8 points per game (fourth in the NBA), 13.5 rebounds per game (first in the NBA) and 11.0 assists per game (first in the NBA). Yes, the sample size is small, but Jokic has dragged the Nuggets to a 5-3 record after an 0-2 start and key injuries to Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon.

So surely Jokic is the NBA MVP through the very early part of the year, right?

Wrong.

The league’s official media partners released their first MVP ladder, and Jokic isn’t on top. He’s not even second.

AD leads the way in the first @KIA MVP Ladder of the season 👀

Full List: https://t.co/oSFdBrXZV0 pic.twitter.com/Ib3Clh0cLc

— NBA TV (@NBATV) November 8, 2024

Anthony Davis and Jayson Tatum are off to great starts, there’s no denying that, but neither is doing what Jokic is doing. In fact, Jokic leads Davis in rebounds, assists, three-point percentage, free throw percentage, BPM and VORP. Neither Tatum nor Davis is top-5 in the NBA in rebounds or assists per game, again categories Jokic leads.

Could this be our first sign of voter fatigue? Perhaps. There’s going to be real momentum to not want to give Jokic a fourth MVP in five years. People like seeing different guys win the top awards, even if they’re not the most deserving.

The good news is it’s Nov. 8, so this is an insanely early MVP projection. Still, Nikola Jokic is playing out his mind, and that effort isn’t being recognized like it should right now. That’s nothing new to Nuggets fans.