Nikola Jokic has taken the basketball world by storm by delivering the Denver Nuggets their first-ever NBA championship. In doing so, he further cemented his case as the best active player in the league. After beating the Miami Heat in the NBA finals, Jokic went on to win the Finals MVP. With compliments flowing all across the board for the big man, Jerry West recently joined in by delivering the ultimate compliment on ‘Podcast P with Paul George‘.
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The Lakers legend and Hall of Famer has always spoken highly of the Serbian and is amazed by his basketball IQ. In 2020, West praised Jokic by comparing him to players like LeBron James, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, and Chris Paul. It is astounding to him how a player with little athletic ability can impact the game in so many ways while being calm and composed.
Jerry West thinks Nikola Jokic is a joke
Nikola Jokic is not your orthodox NBA player. A triple-double machine, Jokic makes his teammates better around him while doing absolutely everything else on the court. And it all happens in the most boring, yet effective way imaginable.
Recently while appearing on Paul George’s ‘Podcast P’ show, Jerry West couldn’t help but shower his praises on the Nuggets superstar. Here is what he said:
“Jokic is a joke. He is a joke. You watch him play and you look at him, everyone talks about he doesn’t do this and doesn’t do that. If you watch him around the basket, he absolutely will shoot the ball, touch the ball and catch it on the other side before these guys move. He’s gotta an incredible instinct to play the game.”
Those are some inspiring words coming from a former NBA legend. Refusing to stop there though, Jerry then takes decided to take a dig at the casual fans whose inability to analyze the game results in neglecting the greatness of Jokic. West says:
“It’s all they talk about in TV. The best player in the game. Every person watching that know anything about basketball, they would pick the best dunker.”
As sad as it may sound, Jerry West is not wrong here. But then again, Jokic doesn’t seem to care one bit. And really, that shouldn’t even be surprising, considering just how wonky his priorities have shown themselves to be.
Nikola Jokic has different priorities than his teammates
While everyone around him is celebrating the amazing feat the team just accomplished, Nikola Jokic has his own priorities. He is not one for all the hoopla and the drums. For him, he has done his job, done it well, and it’s now time to go back home.
A huge fan of horse carts racing, Jokic can’t wait to live that part of his life till the next season begins. This was seen during the previous season when he won consecutive NBA MVP awards.
Many may say that nothing is more important to them than family. However, the way Nikola Jokic approaches basketball, it almost seems like nothing is important to him aside from his family… and of course, his horses. In every single way, this Serbian superstar is just built differently.
