I see Jokic as contributing to winning at a higher level and in more ways than SGA does. SGA has maybe been more consistently great (Jokic has sleep-walked his way through a couple games), but when Jokic is locked in, no one is stopping him from doing anything he wants to do.

SGA is an incredible all-around player, and I see him as being a legit #1 that could bring his team a championship. If he weren't up against an all-timer in Jokic (as well as Embiid, if he were healthy) he'd be a no-brainer MVP.

That said, I think SGA gets more credit for OKC making a jump this year than is merited. IMO OKC's jump in winning this year is more on account of the growth and contributions of Chet and Jalen Williams than it is because of SGA making a jump. Also Cason Wallace has been awesome as a rookie and has taken minutes away from Giddey and Dort, diminishing their neutral-at-best impact.