NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal has expressed his disagreement with Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic being named the league's MVP for the third time in four seasons. During an interview with Jokic on "NBA on TNT," O'Neal stated that he believed Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander should have received the award.
Shaquille O'Neal is among those who believe another player deserved the accolade.
During an interview with Jokic on "NBA on TNT," the former Los Angeles Lakers star expressed his thoughts on the voting results.
"You know I love you, you're the best player in the league," O'Neal said to Jokic.
"I want to congratulate you, but I want you to hear it from me first. I thought the SGA should've been the MVP, that's no disrespect to you, but congratulations."
O'Neal was referring to Gilgeous-Alexander, who received 15 first-place votes, 40 second-place votes, 40 third-place votes, three fourth-place votes, and one fifth-place vote in the MVP race.
Jokic responded by saying, "Thank you Shaq. We don't judge people here, so that's fine. It's your opinion. I'm joking."
The six-time NBA All-Star added that "there's a lot of players that deserve it."
Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 30.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 6.2 assists per game.
Meanwhile, Jokic averaged 26.4 points, 12.4 rebounds, and 9.0 assists per game, but he was the only player to rank among the NBA's top 10 in all three categories.
Jokic received 79 of a possible 99 first-place votes.
He joins Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Wilt Chamberlain, and Bill Russell in that exclusive club.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
