(Reuters) – Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic has won the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award for the second straight year, the league announced on Wednesday.
The Serbian big man receive 65 first place votes from a panel of 100 sportswriters and broadcasters, comfortably beating out Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid, who finished second, and Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was third.
Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker and Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic rounded out the top five.
It marked the first time that both the top three and four of the top five finishers in voting were international players.
Embiid hails from Cameroon, Antetokounmpo from Greece, and Doncic from Slovenia.
The 27-year-old became the 13th player to win the award in consecutive seasons.
A prolific scorer and outstanding passer, Jokic became the first player in NBA history to record at least 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 500 assists in a season and the first player to average at least 25 points, 13 rebounds and 6 assists in a season.
The 41st overall pick of the 2014 draft, Jokic led the Nuggets to the playoffs for a fourth straight time this season. The shorthanded squad fell to the Golden State Warriors in five games in the first round.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles; Editing by Stephen Coates)
