Nikola Jokic Opens up on MVP Contention & the Secret to His Improved NBA Season

Denver Nuggets talismanic center Nikola Jokic is arguably in the form of his life right now. Despite playing in a jam-packed season, Jokic is one of the few players in the league who has played every single game this season.

With a much better physique and him getting much more aggressive on the scoring end, Jokic has led the Nuggets in every department this season. Given his incredible form, he has become one of the favorites to win the MVP trophy.

Nikola Jokic speaks about improved physique and MVP chances

While Jokic has been a great player in the league for at least a couple of seasons now, the Serbian has turned it up a notch this season. Much of it has been because of his much better physique.

The 26-year-old was seen as a rather sluggish player prior to the COVID-19 break. But ever since the break, he has changed his physique significantly, Jokic is looking like a different player all together.

Jokic spoke about the same recently. In an interview with ESPN, the 3-time All-Star opened up about how improvements in his physique have helped his game.

“I just wanted to change something you know I wanted to see can I do it can I really change my body, and I lost a lot of a lot of pounds and I feel much better you know to be honest uh I mean I still don’t run faster, I think it just maintained I don’t get tired that that fast, I can play a lot longer I think by changing my body helps me a little bit in defensive too and experience.”

With a much better physical presence, ‘the Joker‘ has become a much better defender. He can also out-muscle his opponents to get tough baskets to fall through. The Serbian has also become much more aggressive offensively.

He has also continued his all-round displays, providing multiple assists and grabbing many rebounds. Currently Jokic is averaging 26.2 points, 10.9 rebounds and 8.6 assists per game. These incredible stats have made him a favorite for the MVP trophy. The 26-year-old also spoke about his feelings towards the MVP trophy.

“I mean I never think about it to be honest I never even I don’t I didn’t come here to want to be a mvp of the league you know. I always think someone is better than me, I want to compete to beat him just by that mentality I’m going to be underdog always.”

Jokic has truly been sensational this season. He has been one of the most consistent players and has led the team to an impressive record as well. The Nuggets now are only a single win away from becoming the third seed in the West. Given all of these factors, the Serbian deserves to be the MVP of the league.