It's always good for coaches and general managers to think highly of the stars on their squad. That's why it's not unusual for them to use some extra hyperbole when describing their players. But Los Angeles Lakers President of Basketball Operations and General Manager Rob Pelinka definitely went a little too far in praising his star, Luka Doncic. Pelinka completely forgot that the Denver Nuggets' Nikola Jokic is the best offensive player on the planet.
That's right. In a press conference today, Pelinka called Doncic "the world's greatest offensive player." Um, no. Unless Joker declares he's retired, he's still the best offensive player in basketball, and it shouldn't be a debate on that side of the ball.
Clown Jokic on the defensive side after the Minnesota Timberwolves performed layup drills in the first round of the playoffs last year, but don't forget about the world's best basketball player on the offensive side of the ball.
Jokic stands head and shoulders above Luka Doncic
Sure, Luka Doncic may have two scoring titles, but he also takes many more shots than Jokic while also getting more whistles and free throws than the three-time MVP Jokic. But if Jokic just shot more, which he should, he would definitely lead the league in scoring, because there is no player more efficient than Jokic. Ever. He's the all-time leader in Player Efficiency Rating (PER) at 28.8 for his career, and he's led the league in that category for the past six seasons. Just last year, Jokic had a 32.3 PER while Doncic's was just 27.9.
In fact, when it comes to the advanced stats, Jokic is better than Doncic by a landslide. Jokic tops Doncic in True Shooting (TS), Offensive Box Plus/Minus (OBPM), and the biggest one, Offensive Win Shares (OWS), which isn't even close. OWS is an estimate of the number of wins contributed to a player due to offense. Jokic has led the league the past six years in that category, too. Last season, Jokic had an OWS of 11.5 versus Doncic's 6.6.
And when it comes to passing, we all know that Jokic is the best passer in the game. Jokic led the NBA in assists for the first time last season, averaging 10.7 per game. Doncic? 8.3. It's not a comparison.
Clearly, Jokic is the best offensive player in the world. The stats back it up. And when the Nuggets take on the Lakers, Rob Pelinka will get a good reminder of why he was flat-out wrong to proclaim Doncic as the best.
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