I still remember the excitement building throughout that 2021 NBA season, watching Nikola Jokić transform from an All-Star into an absolute force of nature. When the MVP voting results finally dropped, it wasn't just a victory for the Denver Nuggets center—it felt like a validation of a new kind of basketball intelligence. Jokić secured a landslide victory with 91 first-place votes, amassing a staggering 971 total points from the global panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. That's 91 out of 101 possible first-place votes, a dominant showing that left little room for debate.
What made his win so compelling, beyond the raw numbers of averaging 26.4 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 8.3 assists, was how he redefined the center position. I've always been drawn to players who see the game differently, and watching Jokić orchestrate the offense from the high post was like watching a chess grandmaster at work. Joel Embiid finished second with 586 points and just one first-place vote, while Stephen Curry rounded out the top three with 453 points. The gap tells you everything—this wasn't a close race. Jokić's consistency throughout the grueling COVID-affected season, playing every single game while other stars dealt with injuries and health protocols, gave voters exactly what they needed to make a clear choice.
Thinking about that season brings to mind something deeper about team sports and leadership. There's a saying that resonates with me, especially in basketball: "Ang dami namang beses na dinala na rin tayo niyan sa championship. Nabibitin lang pero may rason ang lahat." It translates to "There were many times that he brought us to the championship. We fell short, but there's a reason for everything." This perfectly captures Jokić's journey—he had carried Denver deep into playoffs before, but 2021 was the year everything clicked into place for his individual recognition, even if the championship would come later. Sometimes the MVP award recognizes not just what you've accomplished, but the potential of what you're building toward.
The voter breakdown revealed some fascinating patterns that I found particularly telling. While Jokić dominated the overall count, the single first-place votes for Embiid and Curry showed there were still strong alternative perspectives in the room. Chris Paul received 11 first-place votes himself, finishing fifth overall—a testament to his incredible leadership in Phoenix's turnaround season. What surprised me most was Giannis Antetokounmpo only managing one first-place vote despite another spectacular statistical year. Voter fatigue is real, and it clearly impacted the two-time MVP's chances. These nuances in the voting patterns show how context and narrative shape these decisions as much as pure statistics do.
Looking back, Jokić's 2021 MVP season wasn't just about being the best player—it was about being the most complete player during the most challenging season in recent memory. His win signaled a shift in how we value big men in the modern NBA, proving that court vision and playmaking could be as valuable as rim protection and low-post scoring. While Embiid would eventually claim his own MVP two years later, Jokić's breakthrough season laid the groundwork for Denver's eventual championship run, proving that individual excellence and team success, while sometimes arriving at different times, are ultimately connected in ways we can't always immediately see.
