Anthony Edwards ready to make his Kia MVP case against three-time winner Nikola Jokić

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Decades ago, when former NBA commissioner David Stern pushed barriers and crossed borders, helping make the game truly global, he envisioned a league where foreign players would populate rosters and eventually All-Star teams.

But does the MVP award dominate?

The trophy is named after Michael Jordan, but there is no truth that he is the last American born to win it. Maybe it just seems that way lately, given the annual arm wrestle between Nikola Jokić, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid that shows little sign of ending.

Not since James Harden in 2018 has anyone from the United States hoisted the most treasured individual award over his head. While the sport was invented by a Canadian (James Naismith), it has been dominated by the US ever since, from the enclosed West 4th courts in Manhattan to the playgrounds of South-Central LA and everything in between.

That said, the game changed, and for the better, when Stern’s dream was realized. The more talent that comes, the finer the product and the deeper the interest worldwide.

Which brings us to this: Will this finally be the year that the alien grip is loosened?

And will Friday’s game between the Nuggets and Jokić against the Timberwolves and Anthony Edwards (9:30 ET, ESPN) serve as a potential torch/trophy pass?

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Will Edwards be the first American to win MVP this decade?

While Jokić is coming off an epic triple-double against Brooklyn — 29-18-16, the second player (behind Oscar Robertson) ever with that stat line — and three MVPs in four years, Edwards is again showing the skills that elevate him as a young basketball takeover.

Wolves president Tim Connelly said Edwards has a chance to become the game’s greatest ever. And Edwards’ response?

“I think he’s right.”

The Olympic experience last summer can only motivate Edwards as he was around Team USA and LeBron James, Stephen Curry and his idol, Kevin Durant, putting him in the company of past MVP winners. Edwards even said himself before rubbing shoulders with them that he intends to get better.

“Playing against the best players in the world in practice all summer, that was the best thing for me,” he said.

He came into this season determined to improve his game and is already showing a fresh wrinkle — like a volume deep shooter. He is third in the league in total 3-point attempts (61) while shooting an impressive 41.5% overall from deep.

Obviously, that’s a small sample size, and those numbers tend to drop as the season goes on. But by comparison, Curry averaged a league-leading 11.8 attempts last season while shooting 40.8%.

Edwards has never made 40% for a season, and last year he attempted just 6.7 per game. battle, so this is both different and drastic. That can only make him more dangerous because Edwards is at his best while attacking the rim. With defenses forced to respect his outside shot and play him close to the perimeter, Edwards now pump faking and driving could have a posterizing effect.

“I want to be whatever the team needs me to be,” Edwards said, “whether it’s scoring, passing, defending, getting rebounds and showing everybody that I’m coachable.”

Here’s how Edwards can garner some first-place MVP votes, assuming he stays at or near that level:

1. No Karl-Anthony Towns

With Towns in New York, Edwards must replace some of his former teammate’s deep shots. Perhaps this also leads to an increase in scoring if his efficiency is reasonable. Edwards is tied with 30 points per game, and it’s not unrealistic to see him increase that between now and the end of the season. If he challenges for that score, it will give him statistical impact.

2. Wolves win?

This is the tricky part. The West is deeper than last year, so staying at or near the top of the West like Minnesota was in 2023-24 will be a challenge. If the Wolves finish top-three, that’s enough to dismiss any team-isn’t-good-enough arguments.

3. A fresh face

He is part of the evolution of the game, a member of the impatient young core in his 20s who was next. The only catch is whether Luka Dončić of Slovenia or Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, two other members of the young club, beat him to the trophy.

It won’t be easy for Edwards or any other American to break the foreign-born grip, as Joker, among others, is poised to remain among the game’s very best this season.

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Will Nikola Jokić win his fourth MVP?

Just to be clear: Jokić doesn’t seem to care if he wins another MVP. And believe him when he says it. His place in history is already secured, and besides, he’s just chasing Larry O’Brien trophies when he’s not tending horses.

But to win his second championship, he’ll need to produce an MVP-caliber season — especially with the Nuggets looking vulnerable — so his MVP desire is a fairly moot point.

It’s really about the voters and whether they get Joker Fatigue when it comes time to cast their ballots in 2025. Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain and Larry Bird are the only players to win three straight seasons, and Russell and LeBron James are the only ones to win four times in five seasons. Jokić would match both of those achievements.

Three reasons why (and perhaps how) it could happen next summer:

1. Jokić is a walking triple-double

As long as he shows the dominant dominance, he will be in contention. But here’s another example where voters get fickle: Are they suffering from triple-double fatigue? Russell Westbrook won in 2016-17 by averaging a triple-double. When he averaged again four seasons later, he received just one MVP vote.

2. The Nuggets are shaky without him on the floor

That has proven true even in their championship season. When he plays, the Nuggets usually run smoothly. When he sits, they wobble. It reflects a “true” MVP who makes his team better. Which leads to…

3. The Nuggets must win 50-plus games

Again, this is where it becomes as much of a challenge for Joker as it is for Edwards. Their MVP fates may rest on where their teams finish in the standings, and the West is merciless — as are the voters. A team’s record remains unnegotiable among voters. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the only MVP winner whose team did not make the playoffs.

In this decade, only three American-born players – LeBron, Harden and Curry – managed to finish among the MVP finalists. Last year top four vote getters were foreign players.

This is a season that beckons a shake. Jayson Tatum should be in the mix with the defending champion Boston Celtics. Maybe Anthony Davis got off to a hot start with the Los Angeles Lakers. New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson was the highest-finishing American-born player in last season’s poll.

And then there’s a confident North Star in Minnesota. Edwards sees only one path to not only win the MVP, but to be elevated as the greatest of all time.

“Just work,” Edwards said. “Go out there and believe it. I’ve seen a lot of guys who have a chance to be really good at this game, but they just don’t believe it. Some guys put in the work but don’t believe it, some guys believe in it but don’t put in the work. I believe in it and put in the work. If it doesn’t happen, if it does, it does.”

He paused.

“It will probably happen.”

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