The unorthodox gameplay of Nikola Jokic has maintained itself to be a nightmare for opposition teams to deal with for years. The 3x MVP’s almost casual way of conducting his business, along with the IQ to always make the right play has bewildered defenses for years. However, despite these significant challenges, Brad Miller recently made a bold declaration about guarding the Serbian superstar.
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During his latest appearance on All The Smoke, the 48-year-old shockingly backed himself in a contest against the Denver Nuggets talisman. As per the former NBA man, guarding ‘The Joker’ just the way he had guarded his opposition back in the day would be enough to contain him, saying,
“[I would guard him] the same damn I guarded everybody. Bust their a**…Nah, he is slow motion. I could guard him. We’re at the same pace…that should be slow as fast, fast as slow and that’s kind of his pace. That’s how I played. I would be all right with Joker”.
This elongated the list of methods the NBA stars could theoretically use to mitigate the influence of Jokic on the court. However, while Miller expressed his desire to match the pace of the Nuggets star, Kevin Garnett had previously outlined a different method to counter him. During his appearance on All the Smoke, he revealed,
“The first thing I’m finna do, I’m finna initiate the fight early. As soon as you take it out and you’re trailing…I’m at the free throw line at that end, waiting on you…By the time we get to the three-point line, I’mma run back ’cause I got some responsibilities…But I gotta switch it up. Next time…I may let him run,” he mentioned.
These statements showcased the plethora of methods a player could use while contesting Jokic. However, it remains easier said than done to this day. Several modern-day teams and players have implemented multiple strategies over the years to contain The Joker. Yet, the number of them that have limited the player in any way can likely be counted on a single hand.
After all, the reigning MVP is inarguably one of the most skilled big men of all time. And perhaps given all the evidence fans have had so far, perhaps both former players are getting a bit ahead of themselves in this discussion.
That said, apparently, Brad Miller seems to be in no mood to reel back his statement.
Brad Miller believes he has enough reasons to back himself in this discussion
Soon after coming into the league, the Indian-born made a name for himself as a defensive enforcer. During his time in the NBA, he had to face numerous legendary big men in their prime, namely Shaquille O’Neal and Tim Duncan amongst others. While contesting them on the floor, Miller took pride in coming up with innovative methods to contain them.
Using Duncan as a reference, he revealed one such tactic on the show, stating, “Every time I played Tim, I would always pinch on the hip. Every time you pinch someone on the hip, 99% of the time, they would dip and drop on their arms, so you can get around them. I would do that s**t to him. That was one of my tricks”.
In this theoretical match-up against Jokic, Miller would have likely used this old trick in his book. Additionally, the former Bull would like also fund other ways to try and gain the upper hand on the Serbian. So, while the result of this match-up will never be known, at least the confidence Miller seems to have in himself seems justified.
