NBA – Nikola Jokic, a legend that is being built… in almost indifference

“Do you feel like you’ve already had a bad match this season?“The question deserved to be asked to <a href="https://www.archysport.com/2022/01/power-rankings-memphis-in-a-sprint-at-the-heart-of-the-marathon-nba/" title="Power Rankings | Memphis in a sprint at the heart of the marathon | NBA“>Nikola Jokic and a journalist launched into a press conference after another memorable performance from the Serbian giant.”The second, I believe“, retorted the person concerned, taking as a reference the defeat of the Nuggets against the Clippers. A meeting concluded with 41 points on his personal score, as his interlocutor immediately pointed out. “Oh. So no.“Even while being modest and often distant about his own performances, the 29-year-old couldn’t help but recognize that his start to the season flirts outrageously with perfection.

All NBA superstars have off days. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander missed out on the clash against the Warriors. Jayson Tatum faltered at times. Anthony Edwards too. Luka Doncic grits his teeth and drags his feet. All, except Jokic. However, it was above all the very delicate first week of his team which was mainly highlighted. Two opening defeats at home then a victory snatched in overtime against a very modest Toronto team. Except that since then, Denver has achieved five consecutive successes and even seven victories in eight matches. The 2023 champions have gaps – the bench, the defense, the fluctuating fitness of Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr and missing at least one elite sniper in the squad – but they are once again clearly in the mix. race to win the trophy next June.

Other teams are favored by the predictions. The Thunder and its young, athletic, deep but still inexperienced armada for the big games of the playoffs (a second round played last year) is ultimately more selling. The revival of Stephen Curry’s Warriors or even that of Kevin Durant’s Suns too. There is still an advantage that the Nuggets have unlike their competitors. A major asset. 211 centimeters and 128 kilos. The best player in the world. The “Joker.”

And yet, no headlines on specialized sites The Athletic or ESPN to relate his cards. Little buzz or discussion about it. As if it were commonplace. The league is looking for a new face for the post-LeBron-Curry-KD era while it still has a boss at the top of his game. A man above all others who dominates individually and statistically as very few players have done in history, or even the greatest among them when that was the case. His averages are dizzying: 29.7 points on 56% shooting and a similar three-point percentage, 13.7 rebounds, 11.7 assists and a PER of 33, which would constitute a single-season record. The best performance of all time is rightly held… by Nikola Jokic, obviously, after he managed to do better than Wilt Chamberlain.

All of this has almost become commonplace. Because he has achieved excellence every year for five years now. In the meantime, the guy has taken three MVPs and he clearly could have had a fourth if the voters, no doubt out of weariness, had not preferred Joel Embiid in 2023 (while the Serbian released one of the best exercises of all his career). He is still the overwhelming favorite for the trophy today. It ultimately doesn’t matter whether or not he is elected in a few months. Even if his career ended tomorrow, his place among the most legendary basketball players is already assured. And he would be very high in the hierarchy.

Perhaps the extent of his talent is not fully appreciated. Its seasons are exceptional. His 2023 playoff campaign is a masterpiece every bit as impressive as the best years of potential GOATs Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson and company. So why so little media attention? Sacred mystery. In the end, it’s always been like this with Jokic. He came into the league through the back door, infamously being drafted in the second round just as the television network that owned the rights was airing a Taco Bell commercial. Even in its misfortune, the NBA is lucky since this non-event has become a cult moment. He did not arrive in the United States with the label of new prodigy, unlike Victor Wembanyama or Luka Doncic.

The Sombor native was perceived as a heavy and unathletic interior. Even the Nuggets didn’t think about giving him a chance right away. Then they quickly understood. But even after his rise, Nikola Jokic is nothing like the superstar who pulls the cover towards him. He also pretends to be disinterested by talking about his great passion for horses or by flatly repeating that, for him, the most important thing is to be able to return to Serbia as soon as the opportunity presents itself. A character that the media leaves alone. It would still be a big mistake to think that he doesn’t care about the results of his team or basketball. On the contrary. He is a fierce competitor who is determined to win. He sometimes shows frustration or annoyance on the field when he feels that the situation is beyond his control. But unlike others, he has never (or at least not publicly) put pressure on his franchise to obtain reinforcement. He just plays. And he does it better than anyone on this planet.