This could be a wrong decision in the long run.
I get that Nikola Jokic is no-nonsense and Joel Embiid can be a polarizing figure to root for.
But this is the same reason why The Joker had to lose the MVP award.
Again, this is not a knock on Jokic's exploits. In terms of potentially winning the MVP award for a third time, this is his best chance to make the finals, much less than to win the Denver Nuggets' first NBA championship.
What if they lose though?
Worse, what if they fail to make it out of the Western Conference semifinal round?
The MVP award is a regular season award but it has playoff implications. Jokic, prior to the Minnesota series win, has never gotten past the Western Conference semis since winning the top individual award. Worse, Denver was gentlemanly swept by the Golden State Warriors in his second MVP season. The reason why it was cool for Jokic to accept the award with a parade of his friends and family after tending his farm is because it has been that long since he last played. The idea of Jokic winning his third consecutive MVP award might put him in the same conversation as Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, and Larry Bird but without nothing to show, his achievement is pretty much like the 73-9 win-loss record set by the Golden State Warriors.
The record is distinct because you have to be that good to break the record and you have to be super unfortunate to eclipse it.
And it's not like Jokic is in bad company. Jokic is going to be the 13th player to win back-to-back MVPs (14th if you consider that LeBron James had two back-to-back MVP situations). Aside from the aforementioned back-to-back-to-back winners, The Joker is going to be with the likes of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Moses Malone, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Tim Duncan, Steve Nash, LBJ, Steph Curry, and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
As for Embiid, he can basically win the award and lose the playoffs without any implications. Of course, he needs to have a solid excuse to miss the entire playoffs because that would just be a selfish move but this is not the first time a MVP has failed to lead his team to the finals. Again, Jokic is an example of having a bad MVP record. In 15 playoff games as MVP, Jokic just won 33 percent. This includes Phoenix's sweep on Denver in 2021 and the aforementioned Golden State series win in 2022. There is a reason why Embiid in the conversation if he had a lot of DNPs and this is because of Jokic's exceptional 2022-23 season.
And now, this is the fun part. Without the MVP discussion, Jokic is now free to zoom in on the bigger task in hand. Denver, as of this writing, is 2-0 against the Phoenix Suns. There is a chance that the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers might sap the energies of each other. Back in the East, New York and Miami are basically Cinderella teams with an Embiid-less Philly playing as if their lives are depending on it against the supposed top seeds, Boston.
Would it be awesome for Jokic to unleash some sort of a "revenge" tour by winning over Phoenix, and then defeating Golden State, en route to Finals victory over the Philadelphia 76ers?