On Monday night, the 2022-23 NBA season was on the line for LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, with the team facing a 3-0 deficit in the Western Conference Finals against Nikola Jokic’s Denver Nuggets.
The Nuggets were able to come out on top on Monday night in Los Angeles, with Jokic putting on a show once again with yet another triple-double to lead Denver to a win in the playoffs.
Although Jokic came short of winning a third straight NBA MVP award, with the regular-season award going to Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers, he has played at an extremely high level during this postseason, convincing those like Colin Cowherd of Fox Sports that he’s the best player in the world.
"He is the best basketball player in the world… The gap between Jokic and Anthony Davis is massive."
— @ColinCowherd on Nuggets advancing to the NBA Finals pic.twitter.com/CxnJWk01RY
— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) May 23, 2023
At this point, it’s hard to argue with Cowherd’s stance, as Jokic has proven time and time again that he’s the best player in the league, with the ability to lift his teammates’ level of play on a daily basis.
Jokic may be a bit of a liability on the defensive end of the floor, but there’s no doubting his ability to elevate his team and make everyone around him better, which has been on display throughout these playoffs.
With the Nuggets advancing to the NBA Finals, Jokic and company will await their opponent, which will likely be the Miami Heat, who have a 3-0 series lead against the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Denver will likely be the favorite if the Heat advance to the Finals and the underdog if the Celtics somehow pull off a miracle and beat Miami.
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