Nikola Jokić is the best basketball player on the planet, and he was also, importantly, the NBA's best player this season. But he is also almost certainly going to fall short in MVP voting to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for reasons that were on full display in Game 5.

Nikola Jokić lived up to his nickname on Friday, arriving at the Ball Arena wearing a Joker-inspired purple and green suit before helping the Denver Nuggets to a dramatic, overtime 113-104 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 3 of their playoff series.

May, and we still do not yet (officially) know who the 2025 NBA MVP is. The likely winner is Oklahoma City Thunder star guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who helped pace the Thunder to a stellar 68-win regular season campaign.

DENVER — After a tough Game 2 in Oklahoma City, Nikola Jokić opted for a costume change ahead of Game 3. With his Denver Nuggets back home and a chance to take a 2-1 series lead in the Western Conference semifinals, the Joker dressed up pregame Friday night as, well, the Joker. Seriously.

Denver Nuggets star center Nikola Jokić has done it all in the last few seasons. He has won three of the last four Most Valuable Player awards, winning in the 2020-21, 2021-22, and 2023-24 seasons, has been selected to the All-Star team in each of the last seven seasons and perhaps,