Nathan MacKinnon presents Nikola Jokic with his MVP trophy

Nathan MacKinnon has returned the favor to Nikola Jokic.

The two MVPs are making a habit of being in the same room together.

Two weeks after Jokic presented MacKinnon with his Hart Trophy before the Avalanche’s home opener, MacKinnon presented Jokic with his NBA MVP award on Saturday at Ball Arena. It’s the Nuggets second game of the season, but MacKinnon was on the road with the Avalanche during their opener on Thursday.

Another "shared moment" between MVPs #MileHighBasketball #goavsgo @DenSports1043 pic.twitter.com/VWUgvJuFaz

— Cecil Lammey (@CecilLammey) October 26, 2024

NBA MVP 🤝 NHL MVP

Had to return the favor pic.twitter.com/PbHNERKDBB

— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) October 26, 2024

Jokic of the Nuggets and MacKinnon of the Avalanche made history this past summer. They became the first duo in the same city to win NBA and NHL MVP since Magic Johnson and Wayne Gretzky did it in 1989 in Los Angeles. That’s pretty awesome company to keep, and the only other time it’s ever been done.

Ball Arena has a huge banner honoring the accomplishment, and the Avs and Nuggets really leaned into it in a brilliant way by having Jokic do the honors for MacKinnon, and then the roles flipped on Saturday.

Jokic joined an elite group of NBA players when he won his third MVP, becoming just the ninth in the history of the league to do that. He also put up video game numbers last year, something we’ve grown accustomed to. Jokic averaged 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds and 9.0 assists a game on 58 percent shooting.

Those were good for league bests in Player Efficiency Rating (31), Win Shares (17), Box Plus-Minus (13.2) and Value Over Replacement Player (10.6.).

It’s a special time to be a sports fan in Denver. And having Jokic and MacKinnon develop a friendship and want to do this for each other is cool. Now, let’s see if some more hardware can come to the Mile High City this season.