Nikola Jokic’s ridiculous stat lines should be enough to prove he’s clearly the best basketball player in the world, but what separates him from the competition is the way that he provides an elite offensive system all by himself.
Players like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luka Doncic, and Giannis Antetokounmpo can all put up gaudy stats, arguably even on par with Jokic’s. But they simply can’t impact the game in the same way that Jokic can, as he is constantly evolving and adapting his style to fit the teammates around him, and provide whatever is needed to make his team successful.
Since the Joker hit his prime in the late 2010s, his presence on the court has been enough to guarantee a very good to elite offense. He raises the level of play of everyone else around him and has elevated the play of every teammate he has ever had.
In fact, some could even argue that he has dragged his teammates places and carried them on his back when necessary. He has infamously never played with an All-Star or All-Defense player, and even when his “star” teammates have been hurt, Jokic has found a way to make them competitive and get them to the playoffs.
Jokic can support any lineup, regardless of injuries
That has never been the case with even the other top superstars in the game, who have struggled without ideal circumstances. Giannis led his team to the title in 2021, but when Khris Middleton got injured, the team wilted and hasn’t won a playoff series since 2022.
SGA and the Thunder obviously just won a title, but Shai had a stacked team with an All-NBA sidekick and several All-Defense players. Before that, SGA had only one playoff series win in his OKC career.
This isn’t a knock on those players. It’s extremely hard to be successful in the NBA without a good team around you, but that’s what Jokic has done. Despite the lack of talent around him and constant injuries to Jamal Murray, the Joker has led Denver to at least the second round of the playoffs every year since 2019, except for 2022.
Even with all the issues facing the Nuggets in the past couple of years, Jokic has managed to carry those teams to the second round and get them to a Game 7. They fell short, but he can’t be expected to do it all. Winning a title by himself is simply too much to ask, but he’s clearly closer to pulling off that feat than anyone else on earth.