Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets finished as MVP runner-up in the 2022-23 season, but the five-time All-Star went on to win his first Finals MVP, NBA championship, and now Best NBA Player at the 2023 ESPYS.
In 69 starts of the 2022-23 season, Jokic averaged 24.5 points, 11.8 rebounds, a career-high 9.8 assists, 1.3 steals, and 33.7 minutes per game. The eight-year veteran also shot a career-best 63.2% from the floor and 38.3% beyond the arc.
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Nikola Jokic is taking home the award for the ESPYS Best NBA Player ๐ pic.twitter.com/6Q914mWGlA
โ NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) July 11, 2023
Nikola Jokic, 28, joined Boston Celtics legend Larry Bird as the only players to average at least 20 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists for a career in NBA history. Jokic would have become the first player since Bird (1984-86) to win three straight MVP awards.
However, the two-time All-NBA member finished second in MVP voting behind Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid. In Denverโs 94-89 series-clinching win over the Miami Heat in Game 5 of the 2023 NBA Finals, Jokic became the lowest-drafted player in league history to win Finals MVP.
Jokic was selected 41st overall by the Nuggets in the second round of the 2014 NBA Draft. He passed Dennis Johnson, who was drafted 29th overall in 1979. Joker became only the third second-round pick to win Finals MVP, joining Willis Reed and Johnson.
Denver Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic wins Best NBA Player at 2023 ESPYS after winning first Finals MVP, championship
Moreover, the Nuggets center joined Giannis Antetokounmpo, Dirk Nowitzki, Tony Parker, Tim Duncan, and Hakeem Olajuwon as the only players born overseas to win Finals MVP.
In 20 appearances of the 2023 NBA Playoffs, Nikola Jokic averaged 30 points, 13.5 rebounds, 9.5 assists, 1.1 steals, 1.0 block, and 39.4 minutes per game. The 6-foot-11 center also shot 54.8% from the floor and 46.1% beyond the arc.
Nikola Jokic is the 2nd player to average a triple-double in series-clinching wins in a single postseason all-time (min. 2 games).
He joins Magic Johnson, who did this in 1982 and 1983. pic.twitter.com/RVI0OiAxTr
โ ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 13, 2023
The only NBA players to record Jokicโs playoff numbers at age 28 or younger (at least 1,869 points, 820 rebounds, and 496 assists) are LeBron James, Magic Johnson, Bird, and Scottie Pippen.
Additionally, Jokic is the first player in NBA history to lead the league in points (600), rebounds (269), and assists (190) in a single postseason. Heโs the first player since Jamesย in 2020 to average 25 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists in four series in a single postseason.
Nuggets teammate Jamal Murray wins Best Comeback Athlete
Nuggets teammate Jamal Murray also won Best Comeback Athlete at the 2023 ESPYS. The sixth-year guard missed the entire 2021-22 season due to an ACL injury. In 65 starts of the 2022-23 season, Murray averaged 20 points and a career-high 6.2 assists.
โI wanna thank my family, my friends, my coaches, the whole Denver Nuggets organization, all the fans for having belief in me from the start. But I want to give a big shout-out to my teammates for helping me get my confidence back,โ said Murray at the ESPY Awards ceremony.
โAll season long, all rehab long, they supported me through the ups and downs with the rehab of the season, of the playoffs, which meant a lot for me to get here today.โ
In the 2023 Western Conference Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers, Murray scored 53 combined points in three quarters between Games 2 and 3.
This was the most points scored in a three-quarter span of the last 25 years of playoff basketball. Murray averaged 32.5 points on 52.7% shooting, 40.7% from 3-point range, and 95% at the foul line during the WCF.
Moreover, he became the first player to record 10 or more assists in his first four career NBA Finals games. The guard is the third player in NBA Finals history to record 12 or more assists in a single game without a turnover, joining Robert Reid (17 in 1986) and Magic Johnson (13 in 1987).
Murray joined six players to average at least 25 points, five rebounds, and five assists through a minimum of 50 career playoff games: Michael Jordan, Jerry West, James, Stephen Curry, Antetokounmpo, and Denver teammate Nikola Jokic.
