His no-look passes mesmerize defences and leave them wondering what just happened and his anticipation of his teammates' movements is what allows him to execute these passes. Nikola Jokic (Photo via NBA.com) Passing Breakdown: Jokic is a generational talent when it comes to passing and playmaking, and if I’m being honest, there hasn’t ever been a centre who comes close to the playmaking ability of the Joker. However, he has shown on countless occasions that his unique playstyle for the Centre position leaves defences often scrambling and scratching their heads in finding a solution to contain him. His nonchalant demeanour and seemingly apathetic attitude on the court can be misinterpreted for a lack of interest in the game. Now, this may be a bold statement as Jokic is only 5 years into his career however his numbers, when compared to other historical big men, can’t be disputed.
Today, Nikola Jokic is arguably the best center in the NBA and is by far the greatest passing big man to ever play the game. To be fair though, anyone looking at this guy at the time would definitely make similar assumptions. Turns out, the entire NBA were the ones who were sleeping on Jokic, with media experts and draft analysts making comments like “Perhaps this sounds harsh, but Jokic is being talked up as an NBA prospect and it is hard to see how he gets there unless he can really improve his athleticism”. His brother started shouting “You got drafted in the NBA! How do you sleep right now?”. Jokic answered the phone groggily whilst half asleep. On the night he was drafted, his older brother Nemanja called Jokic from New York to break the news while popping open a bottle of champagne. But to be fair, Jokic himself wasn’t expecting to get drafted either. He didn’t have his profile examined or any highlights playing during the pick. Funnily enough, when Jokic was about to be drafted with the 41st pick by the Denver Nuggets, ESPN cut to a Taco Bell commercial break for the entirety of his selection. Nikola Jokic was practically unknown coming into draft day. Those 2 were Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic. Although many of these players turned out to be above average players in the league, only 2 have made an all-star appearance in their careers thus far.
With potential superstar prospects such as Andrew Wiggins, Joel Embiid, Aaron Gordon, Julius Randle, Zach Lavine and many more tipped to take over the reins of the NBA in this rapidly changing landscape. Nikola Jokic | The Greatest Passing Big Man Of All TimeĬoming into the 2014 NBA draft, analysts touted this draft class to be one of the deepest in recent history.
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