Nikola Jokic Whiteness Cost Him The NBA MVP | Bobby Burack

On March 13, OutKick published a column foreshadowing a scenario in which Nikola Jokic would lose the MVP award based on the color of his skin. Jokic was the prohibitive favorite at the time.

In April, ESPN commentator Kendrick Perkins accused white voters of favoring white players and diminishing black players.

He did so without any evidence. We say without evidence because all existing evidence proves the contrary.

Joel Embiid won the award on Tuesday, becoming the 29th black player to win MVP. By complaining, just five white players have won the award.

Also known as five too many according to Perkins. Or less than 15 percent.

Perkins had to exaggerate the number of white voters by some 20 percent just to finish his argument. He proved himself to be as uninformed as he is unhinged on Twitter.

#THEFACTS.

Nonetheless, he hijacked the conversation. He made the MVP award less about on-court production and more about the skin colors of the candidates.

Remember, racial hysteria doesn't require merit to be effective.

As we explained, Perkins challenged voters to prove they are not racist. The days of just being not racist are now formerly.

White sportswriters are hardly the most fearless of men. Most just want to fit in, feel accepted and go where the wind blows.

They fear nothing more than someone calling them racist, be it via a baseless claim. As most claims of racism are.

And there’s no better way to avoid the daunted racist label — an oft career death sentence in media — than proving you are not a racist.

Voting for a black player over Jokic is perhaps the best means to prove you are not an R-word. After all, each MVP is public.

Challenge accepted.

Fox Sports Radio host Doug Gottlieb agrees:

It's not hard to imagine cowardly white writers at ESPN, Bleacher Report, and The Ringer sacrificing their vote in the name of anti-racism.

Or black voters voting against Jokic to avoid buffoons like Perkins labeling them sell-outs for propping up the legacy of a white dude.

Look at the voting chart from 2022: black voters secured the victory for Jokic.

Perkins got mad,

Consider the MVP race emblematic of the state of sports media:

Store that checklist. It's sure to happen again, given the success.

Perkins is already celebrating Embiid becoming the 29th black MVP:

OutKick requested a comment from Perkins through ESPN PR. We wanted to give him a chance to defend himself. ESPN said no thanks.

The sports media exhausts their energy trying to uncover examples of racism. They search tirelessly to find the valuable combination of a racist and his victim.

They need not look any further than Perkins and Jokic, respectively.

Jokic's whiteness didn't earn him his previous two MVP awards. But his whiteness cost him his third.