The Jokic debate

I am playing the best basketball of my life at this time.

– Nikola Jokic

Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic turned the NBA on its ear once again. The three-time league Most Valuable Player etched his name in the history books a week ago, registering the first 30-20-20 game in league history in their overtime win against the Phoenix Suns. The Serbian big man tallied 31 points, 21 rebounds, and a career-high 22 assists. Jokic already had a triple double before the end of the third quarter. So technically, he registered two for the game.

Some people believe that Jokic was actually robbed of the Most Valuable Player award two years ago, because the American league did not want to give a foreigner three straight citations. This may be significant in the following discussion. So let’s keep an open mind.

Is Nikola Jokic worthy of being considered among the top NBA centers of all time? There are many big names in that list: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Shaquille O’Neal, George Mikan. Where would he fit in among the greatest of all?

Generally, there are three stats that most fans weigh their decisions on. First, of course, would be the number of championships that that center won while playing. Although it’s more complicated than that, winning is, after all, the main goal in basketball. In connection with this, knowledgeable spectators also count the number of MVP awards received. The last category that matters the most is personal stats. How mightily did the player add on both ends of the floor?

Let’s look at championships first. In this category, Russell’s accomplishments are untouchable: 11 rings as a player and as playing coach, including eight straight from 1959 to 1966. He was central to the Boston Celtics’ juggernaut in the early days of the NBA. A far second is Abdul-Jabbar with six: one with the Milwaukee Bucks and five with the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1980s. Minneapolis Lakers slotman George Mikan comes in third with five championships way before most of us were born. Shaq, Robert Parish and – shockingly – Will Perdue each have four rings. 

Career scoring belongs to Chamberlain, with a staggering 30.1 points per game. Joel Embiid is second, Abdul-Jabbar third. O’Neal is fourth, barely ahead of Bob McAdoo. Rebounding again belongs to the old-timers. The Stilt is way out in front with a mind-blowing 23,924. Russell, Abdul-Jabbar, Malone and Parish follow. 

Now, in terms of MVP’s, Kareem is king with six trophies, Russell has five, Chamberlain four, just above Joki?, who is tied with Moses Malone at three apiece. But bear in mind that, in terms of both championships and individual awards, Wilt won two titles in eight – yes, eight – finals appearances, losing six times, simply because his teams were getting run over by Russell and his Celtics. Does that diminish his greatness? That in itself is a discussion for another day.

Given the wealth of talent and abundance of awards, it seems a bit early for Nikola Jokic to be included in the discussion of greatest centers of all time. But he is very, very close to being in the same room with those immortals. But if he wins another MVP, and or the Nuggets clinch another trophy, he will definitely be part of the conversation.