Column Says 3-time MVP Jokic Faced Racial Bias as NBA Embraces Wembanyama

1 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jun 2

A June 2 column argues the NBA and much of its media resisted fully elevating Nikola Jokic despite 3 MVPs and a championship, while quickly embracing Victor Wembanyama after San Antonio's Game 7 West finals win.
Kendrick Perkins calling Wembanyama "the best thing" for the NBA since LeBron James is presented as evidence of a double standard, given Perkins' 2023 criticism of Jokic's MVP support and broader complaints about international players.
The piece cites past remarks from Draymond Green, Gilbert Arenas and Mark Jones to argue hostility toward Jokic was not mainly about nationality but about a white European holding the sport's top spot.
It places that treatment in a wider pattern, linking it to debates around Caitlin Clark, Larry Bird and even boxing, and concludes Wembanyama will likely be celebrated in ways Jokic never was.

Sources

If NBA insiders agree Nikola Jokic is the best, who is truly driving the public narrative against him?

Beyond race, what cultural and market forces determine who becomes the celebrated face of the NBA?

What makes a Black European rookie a more 'acceptable' NBA king than a dominant White European champion?