Nikola JokiÄ Has Been the MVP All Along Even before LeBron James and Joel Embiid went down with injuries, the Denver big man deserved the award. Author: Apr 1, 2021 Welcome to the Morning Shootaround, where every weekday you’ll get a fresh, topical column from one of For many NBA fans, the race for MVP has gotten considerably less interesting in recent weeks. First was Joel Embiid, a season-long frontrunner, who went down with a bone bruise three weeks ago. Then LeBron James, whose play had him firmly in the conversation for the honor, went down with a high-ankle sprain a few weeks ago that figures to keep him out of action through at least mid-April.