Nikola Jokic Didn't Lose the MVP Trophy After All

Nikola Jokic was a busy man on Tuesday. The Serbian centre won Denver’s first NBA Championship in the history of the franchise and admitted he might have lost his Finals MVP trophy in a post-game interview. That’s not surprising, considering Jokic seemed like he couldn’t care less about the trophy after the game.

The trophy was nowhere to be seen for two days, and it really seemed like Jokic had lost it for a while. However, despite his best efforts to misplace the trophy, it is now clear the Nuggets had it the whole time, and it resurfaced during Denver’s championship parade on Thursday.

Where was the MVP Trophy?

Jokic may not be a fan of individual recognitions, such as the Finals MVP award, but he will be happy he didn’t lose the trophy, as it is a testament to an amazing season in which he clinched a historic NBA Championship for the Nuggets and claimed the Finals MVP award.

Against the Miami Heat, the Denver star averaged 30.2 points, 14 rebounds, 7.2 assists, and 1.4 blocks per game. 58.3% of all his field shots went in, while his success from behind the 3-point line was 42.1%.

And while Jokic didn’t seem to get all too excited after the NBA Finals win and didn’t look like he was having fun during the locker room celebrations, he obviously enjoyed the moment enough to lose his trophy.

He admitted to ESPN’s Malika Andrews that he left the trophy in Sparky Gonzales’ room, the equipment guy for the Nuggets. Jokic told Andrews that when he returned to the room, he couldn’t see the trophy.

Andrews was surprised that the player came to the interview without the Finals MVP trophy, saying he was the first one to do so, and she had done a couple of those interviews before.

Jokic responded that he really didn’t know what had happened. “I left it in Sparky’s room, and it’s not there anymore,” the Serbian star said, adding that he hoped the trophy would arrive in his house.

That’s exactly what happened. Andrews later reported that the Nuggets’ equipment manager had the trophy and it would be ready for the championship parade, which it was.