Jamal Murray joins Nikola Jokic for top-10 NBA MVP consideration

Denver Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray recently said he wanted to be an NBA MVP one day.

Most people were surprised by the comments, but maybe Murray isn’t so crazy after all.

NBA.com’s Shaun Powell released his latest “MVP ladder” on Friday and Murray cracked the top-10 favorites right now for the prestigious award.

Best duo in the league 🤝 MVP conversation pic.twitter.com/jfLIOb07Zo

— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) January 16, 2026

It’s no surprise to see Nikola Jokic, winner of three of the last five NBA MVPs, at No. 2 on the list. But seeing Jamal Murray getting the respect he deserves at No. 10 is awesome. Remember, Murray has never been an NBA All-Star.

Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is currently first, while Luka Doncic, Victor Wembanyama and Jaylen Brown round out the top-5.

Jokic is battling a knee issue, but has resumed on-court work and could return by the end of the month. That would put him on track to play at least 65 games, the minimum required to be eligible for awards.

Jamal Murray has been awesome all year, but particularly without Jokic. In three of his last five games, Murray has scored at least 33 points. He also dished out 16 assists against the Nets and 17 dimes against the Celtics.

On the season, Murray is averaging 25.8 points per game, 7.5 assists and 4.5 rebounds. It’s the most complete year, thus far, of his career.

Jamal Murray isn’t going to win MVP this season, but him even being apart of the conversation is cool. To check out the full list, click here.

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