Nikola Jokic won the MVP during the 2020-21 season, and he has led the Denver Nuggets to a 2-0 start to the season. He is putting up averages of 29.5 PPG and 14.5 RPG thus far, and it looks as though the Nuggets could be a force even if they’ll be without Jamal Murray for part of the season.
After the San Antonio Spurs were defeated by the Denver Nuggets, coach Gregg Popovich has compared Nikola Jokic to an all-time great in Larry Bird. Popovich mentioned Jokic’s passing ability as something that in particular that likens him to Bird.
Jokic was just great. He was too much for us… He’s a real spectacular, interesting, different player. He’s like a 7ft Larry Bird type guy. The way he can pass, the way he can read things, it’s incredible.
Of course, Larry Bird is an all-time legend, and he’s recently been included in the all-time NBA 75 list (obviously). Nikola Jokic has a long way to go until he builds up a similar resume to Bird, and of course, there have to be some championships involved. It’s clear that Gregg Popovich is mostly comparing the two stars’ playstyles though, and the two do have some things in common. Nikola Jokic and Larry Bird are both all-around offensive players who were able to both score and make plays for others, as well as being really good on the boards.
The Denver Nuggets will rely on Nikola Jokic a lot this season, and hopefully, he is able to uplift his team. He did step it up and lead the Nuggets to a No. 3 seed last season with Jamal Murray out, so perhaps we’ll see Nikola Jokic bring the Denver Nuggets to a good finish in the Western Conference once again.
