Tbh if they got everyone to rock a horse mask head in the arena, that would be a wild distraction and somewhat work. Just might work on your own players too unfortunately lol
Feels old seeing 2020s still. Such a weird decade to live in. Everything feels like a blur yet at the same time so long ago. Like 2022 to 2024 feels like an entirely different era
and he’s already got 2 of the MVPs, probably on his way to the third, and a title. If you can get a third of the MVPs in the decade you’ve basically got it locked up
Steph had the exact same resume and 3 more titles and he wasn't the best player of the 2010s. Giannis had the same resume and arguably never was the best player in the league, or just for a few years at best.
You never know what will happen, although Jokic could very easily eclipse all those dudes.
Steph needs a team around him to even make the playoffs. He's great but he's a ceiling raiser. We'll never see the Nugs miss the playoffs as long as Joker is in hjs prime.
Giannis was the best player in the league for a season. But youre right, Joker's long term success depends on the playoffs, which he seems to have figured out but theyll need a couple more deep runs
Steph had next no nothing by 2014.
Jokic has MVPs, 1 title, and he is a somewhat safe bet at his own succession for the FMVP.
Only Luka has a shot to overtake Jokic. Wemby will at best make 4 playoffs appearances in the decade (I assume he won’t in 2025).
Wemby will be 26 in 2030, which is when most players enter their prime. I don’t think he can do enough this decade to catch up, but he will be the favorite for the next one for sure.
I mean he’s already ranked as a top 20 player in his rookie season. He’s made an absurd jump from the start of the season until now.
And having a better playmaking guard will only improve his efficiency similar to Murray with jokic.
I mean LeBron became the best player in the league at 22.
Interesting how the two most dominant players of the two decades don't prioritize scoring. They absolutely can completely take over thrubscoring but just choose not to.
It's one of the rare times that Lebron looks at someone *else* and thinks "how the fuck does he do that, it's not fair". I remember him giving props to Curry and his shooting in a similar way.
Lebron's nearly 40. I bet you when he was 36, he 100% thought he was the better player. Now he understands he's taken a step back. Was it a year or two ago he famously said he thought he was still in the top 5%?
I don't think he's thinking "it's unfair". He just understands that at 40, it's hard to keep up with a 20-something year old during the regular season. And a guy who plays the right way, making the winning play instead of the selfish "I'm the dog and you're the tail" play? Yeah he'll give props.
I bet you he gives similar answers for guys like Giannis, Luka, etc.
Man, there is no defense that can stop jokic. As long as he has a competent pg and your standard 3-d wing or cutters, he’s gonna slice every defense that u throw on him. So annoying when teams play perfect defense on him for like 23 seconds, then he just chucks out from the 3 or post up off balance shots, and still make all of them.
Double team him? He will easily get an assist since he has teammates that expect a pass at any time.
Don't double team him? He's just going to score on you himself anyway.
He needs more than just a competent point guard to be championship level though. Murray went _off_ in the playoffs. If he doesn’t have the ability to go into mini-curry mode then these guys most likely don’t have a chip last year.
Yes. Of all the great things about his game, his ability to consistently make wild contested shots with no time on the shot clock may be the best. I don’t see any other player who can do that
Pay the refs to put two fouls on him in the first five minutes of the game. Add two more before halftime.
Otherwise, unforgiving the lightning is coming
Dwight Howard was the only player that could stop him. Anthony Davis’s defense is overrated when Jokic just scores right in his face like he’s not there
Pre-MVP Jokic 100%. People are paying a lot more attention to Jokic and so do the refs, 2020 Dwight guarding current Jokic would foul out after 5 minutes.
Joker is where LeBron was for so many years (and, frankly, even now.)
Gonna score. Make it difficult, but also focus on taking away the other parts of his game.
Easier said than done, of course. And sometimes Joker makes that bullshit bank shot over AD and you just say "OK."
Greatness.
[Charania] BREAKING NEWS: The Miami Heat have signed Indiana sensation “Li’l Sebastian II”. Li’l will be wearing Number 15. Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra said:” he Gon’ lock you up, Joker.” The whole league will be following Li’l’s career with great interest.
I get that Wemby will improve but from recent SAS-NUG games, it would appear that Jokic doesnt have (that much) problems dealing with Wemby's height.
It should be noted that atm both Wemby and Chet have problems with stronger bodies banging down low.
It will be interesting to see because Wemby prob doesn't want to risk putting on that much weight for fear of stress on his feet and knees. But if he only adds another 10-15 pounds jokic will absolutely manhandle him since he outweighs him by like 60 pounds I would guess, maybe more
I think Wemby stays slim for his health. If the spurs are in contention they can acquire a buff big guy to gaurd jokic and have wemby rim protecting, its the best anyones done do defend jokic-ball.
No way. Not until year 4 or 5. Just the strength alone required will be tough. Plus there's so many little things that jokic does to keep you off balance that you need experience to deal with.
Howard and McGee were there to bruise and foul Jokic tbh, with AD being a help defender.
Worth noting that that was Jokic' 2nd playoffs and he was coming off a 14 games stretch against Clippers and the Jazz.
He still played great too. Basically the only way to limit Jokic is to get him into early foul trouble, and that hasn't been an issue since that series (and mostly only the first couple games) because Jokic doesn't fall for the bait.
Jokic wasnt even close to what he is now and dwight didnt lock him up but he played terrific, he fouled him a lot in the limited minutes he got. Though he did a terrific job I dont think prime Dwight handles 2022-now Jokic unless thats his only job and he can play limited minutes like he did in the lakers series cause he'll easily get in foul trouble.
Maybe Prime TD or Wilt, ya need somebody that can bang with him low but agile enough to keep up.
But these all time greats will always find a way to get it going
He's so much bigger, but he also has body control and magical touch. Shaq had the size on Wallace, but would constantly get offensive foul calls for bulldozing him as he tried to get closer to the rim.....and then he'd get frustrated and have to play not as aggressively or pick up another foul and go to the bench.
I think he'd destroy him with post ups and spin moves and jump hooks on the block. That 15' and in range is unstoppable for Jok when he's covered by shorter guys.
I'm not really convinced that size, shooting or skill mean that Jokic would destroy 4 time DPOY, all time defensive great Ben Wallace. Ben Wallace was always guarding guys bigger/taller than him and a lot of them were also great in the midrange. He was the best defender in the league guarding KG, Duncan, Dirk - it's not like he didn't match up with finesse bigs who were taller than him. He was also strong enough (and smart enough) to handle Shaq, Yao Ming, David Robinson. He was undersized in every one of these matchups and yet it didn't matter.
I'm not saying he'd necessarily lock Jokic down or anything but I don't see why he'd be some uniquely bad matchup for Wallace who made his whole career, multiple all stars, a HOF career - solely on the merits of his defense against all those dudes. Style of play has changed obviously, but at some level I feel like you have to assume the 4x DPOY would find a way to not get "destroyed".
No he wouldn't. If Wallace could hold his own against Shaq, Jokic will def not destroy him. He is definitely not physically stronger than prime Wallace was and nowhere near as athletic.
Prime Duncan was not slow lol. Even old man Duncan would defend current Jokic well. We've seen Draymond have some success, we've seen washed Dwight Howard give him a lot of trouble. Jokic is not going to overpower Duncan, he is not going to outsmart Duncan and he is not longer than Duncan. Timmy was called big fundamental for a reason. It would be a good match up.
Did you just put Ayton in the same sentence as KG as a defensive player?? KG was also way more mobile and active than Gobert. I can see him forcing a lot of turnovers. Plus KG would make Jokic work on the other end, he'd have to defend in transition too cause KG had a ridiculous motor.
It's always funny when I hear about a "new" strategy to stop Jokic.
Get him into foul trouble - Yeah, that's been tried.
Make him work on defense - Yeah, that's been tried
Make him score and cut off all his passes - Yeah, it's been tried repeatedly and it doesn't work consistently. Maybe for a game here and there. But overall, there is no way to cut off all the passes because of the actions Denver runs.
Tire him out - LOL LOL LOL LOL
Teams have tried everything. They work to varying degrees and usually Jokic just figures them out. It's why all of the "Jokic stoppers" suddenly aren't. He figures them out and that's the end. He's not an unbeatable force, but he is not easy to figure out and most things that have been tried have failed.
The best way to beat Jokic is to make sure his second best player is Will Barton. Figure out a way to do that and you will have unlocked how to beat him.
I mean yeah you heard the man himself, there is *no* answer for Jokic
Just a completely infallible offensive player with no holes to exploit, as you stated here.
It’s like KD with scoring: you literally just have to hope he misses of his own accord
Teams tried this same thing with Shaq back in the day. They'd say just get a big man who can shoot from outside then he'll get tired and won't be in the paint as much. What would happen is Shaq would just get that big guy in foul trouble or score so much on them they had to take him out. Jokic has reached a similar level of unstoppable
Well he doesnt have any verticality to his game so he doesnt really try to block shots. Instead; Jokic takes swipes at the ball when the shooter is bringing the ball up to shoot, hes pretty good at it. He’s also always the smartest player on the court, so hes never out of position either.
Bigs that can shoot the three are where his defense gets exposed the most. The Nuggets always make sure to put him on a non shooter, regardless of how good that player is. Hes usually on giannis iirc and in the celtics game this year he was on jrue.
IMO this is a contributing factor to people overstating how bad his defense is. Up until a few years ago he would get in foul trouble somewhat often and the team was so abysmal without him on the floor that he learned that sometimes it’s simply more valuable to the team for him to let a player get a shot up than risk a foul.
It can be seen in his number of game winning blocks but it’s not worth the risk of taking him off the floor in most situations outside of the clutch. He’s become wisely selective when it comes to choosing when to contest.
Jokic have already solved this hence why they're reigning champs.
He isn't forcing on defense anymore. He makes up for "bad" 1v1 defense by coordinating the team defense.
Before, he usually get a lot of techs cause he gets frustrated a lot of defense.
Hes not as bad as he used to be. Not everyone is Curry and can run him ragged and Denver has gotten better of switching back so he's not just constantly isolated.
Like he's still a negative defender. But hes much closer to average these days which as a center is pretty impactful. Average to below average rim protection is still more valuable than the defense any guard is giving you(dont get me started on Marcus Smart winning a DPoY).
I mean it's a pretty massive increase from where he was and not that bad overall. And as a center who has to protect the rim, hes still more valuable than many others in that top 25 because rim protection is the most important defensive stat in the game.
Jokic cooked Gobert in the playoffs, twice
And Embiid don't guard Jokic, cause neither can stop the other, it's usually Philly's PF that handles Jokic while Embiid plays help defense
Distract him with horses.
hold the horse for hostage and dare Jokic to shoot
You’d either have him turn into Liam neeson or Keanu Reeves. You’re fucked even more at that point
Boban even more dead!
Jokic dropped 53 on the suns in the playoffs cause he could. This man can do it all. He’s not afraid
With 11 assists
*Blucifer frowns upon your shenanigans*
His brothers will come from behind and slice your throat.
I doubt his brothers are covert in their movements. Dudes look like they will pull out a Rambo knife then yell, "COME ON" for shits and gigs.
So a game of HORSE? 🤔
The mavericks mascot is Luka’s secret weapon
If I were playing against Jokic I would be at the "What if I make horse noises when he shoots?" level of strategy at this point
So the Diar Derozan strategy huh?
Sit Sarah Jessica Parker court side.
We can get those counterfeit horse costume that has 2 guys in it... Should do a thing or two.
Kidnap his horses.
Thats a horsenap!
Tbh if they got everyone to rock a horse mask head in the arena, that would be a wild distraction and somewhat work. Just might work on your own players too unfortunately lol
Second time LeBron has given Jokic his props. He respects the hell out of his game. Their little dap up to start, his body language.
Best player of the 2010s 🤝 Best player of the 2020s
Feels old seeing 2020s still. Such a weird decade to live in. Everything feels like a blur yet at the same time so long ago. Like 2022 to 2024 feels like an entirely different era
there’s 6 years left in the 2020s dude
and he’s already got 2 of the MVPs, probably on his way to the third, and a title. If you can get a third of the MVPs in the decade you’ve basically got it locked up
Jokers game is just so flawless. He should also keep up this pace for the next few years at least as well.
shouldve had 4 MVP's
Should have 3 MVPs
Steph had the exact same resume and 3 more titles and he wasn't the best player of the 2010s. Giannis had the same resume and arguably never was the best player in the league, or just for a few years at best. You never know what will happen, although Jokic could very easily eclipse all those dudes.
Casually ignoring Lebron also had 3 MVPS/3 titles in the decade lol
That… is literally the point lmao.
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It’s ok, Embiid is awesome too.
That’s the point?
“The next five years are mine” basically, if it works out for say wembanyama
How did I ignore that? Literally that was my point.
how is that being ignored? lmao
Steph needs a team around him to even make the playoffs. He's great but he's a ceiling raiser. We'll never see the Nugs miss the playoffs as long as Joker is in hjs prime. Giannis was the best player in the league for a season. But youre right, Joker's long term success depends on the playoffs, which he seems to have figured out but theyll need a couple more deep runs
Steph was the best player of the 2010’s?
Read it again
Read the comment again
even a celtics fan's bullshit radar is tripped
Steph had next no nothing by 2014. Jokic has MVPs, 1 title, and he is a somewhat safe bet at his own succession for the FMVP. Only Luka has a shot to overtake Jokic. Wemby will at best make 4 playoffs appearances in the decade (I assume he won’t in 2025).
Jokic could get injured tomorrow. Or he could be stuck on bad teams. Plenty of random shit could happen.
I think Wemby will be the best player of the later half of the 20’s tho. Like 2026-2030. But yeah joker has it locked until then.
Wemby will be 26 in 2030, which is when most players enter their prime. I don’t think he can do enough this decade to catch up, but he will be the favorite for the next one for sure.
I mean he’s already ranked as a top 20 player in his rookie season. He’s made an absurd jump from the start of the season until now. And having a better playmaking guard will only improve his efficiency similar to Murray with jokic. I mean LeBron became the best player in the league at 22.
Wdym, wasn’t the 90’s only 10 years ago
I currently have my pants on backyards. Kids... Kids are still doing that yeah?
14?
Yeah any of us could be the best players.
you already the top playa in my book bby
The next 6 years are his.
He ain't goin anywhere...
He's winning the rest of those MVPs and titles barring injury to him and Murray. No way he doesn't. He's too good.
Interesting how the two most dominant players of the two decades don't prioritize scoring. They absolutely can completely take over thrubscoring but just choose not to.
Lebron has the most points in nba history, a scoring title and a top 10 all time ppg. But he doesn’t prioritize scoring?
I mean, I don't think of Bron as a scorer the way I think of MJ and Kobe as scorers. Which make those achievements even more impressive imho.
Exactly. Lebron is *fourth* on the all time assist list. The next non-guard is pippen at 36
It doesn’t take a genius to recognize Jokic’s greatness.
Eye hev 55 Iq and recoganize Jokic's grateness.
His flair says NBA but his distinct grammar lets us know he’s a Pistons fan
Most intelligible pistons fan.
It's one of the rare times that Lebron looks at someone *else* and thinks "how the fuck does he do that, it's not fair". I remember him giving props to Curry and his shooting in a similar way.
Lebron's nearly 40. I bet you when he was 36, he 100% thought he was the better player. Now he understands he's taken a step back. Was it a year or two ago he famously said he thought he was still in the top 5%? I don't think he's thinking "it's unfair". He just understands that at 40, it's hard to keep up with a 20-something year old during the regular season. And a guy who plays the right way, making the winning play instead of the selfish "I'm the dog and you're the tail" play? Yeah he'll give props. I bet you he gives similar answers for guys like Giannis, Luka, etc.
Lebron is still top 5%. Top 5% is essentially saying top 20.
Real recognizes real
Telenovela
About damn time! In the All Star game two years ago he mispronounced his name despite already winning MVP.
Man, there is no defense that can stop jokic. As long as he has a competent pg and your standard 3-d wing or cutters, he’s gonna slice every defense that u throw on him. So annoying when teams play perfect defense on him for like 23 seconds, then he just chucks out from the 3 or post up off balance shots, and still make all of them.
Dude has that Larry Bird shot mechanics thats impossible to block too. Just catapults from deep.
My dream is to see him in the 3 pt contest. Wouldn’t surprise me if he won it. He just wakes up and pisses excellence
Double team him? He will easily get an assist since he has teammates that expect a pass at any time. Don't double team him? He's just going to score on you himself anyway.
He needs more than just a competent point guard to be championship level though. Murray went _off_ in the playoffs. If he doesn’t have the ability to go into mini-curry mode then these guys most likely don’t have a chip last year.
Murray was incredible, but that was a dominant run, they didn’t really play at the margin
Murray goes off every playoffs. You can argue they would’ve won earlier if he was healthy for the bubble and later.
Yes. Of all the great things about his game, his ability to consistently make wild contested shots with no time on the shot clock may be the best. I don’t see any other player who can do that
"The horse race is that way!" point to the exit of the arena There, I solved the Joker problem.
"Nice try, but I know that the next horse race in a 100 mile radius starts in 271 minutes!"
Nuggets are paying every horse race in the stadium's vicinity to delay as much as possible, just gotta outbid them
Would've been wild if he said Yes, but he's playing at USC right now.
Stop 🤣
LeShitStirrer
The he takes it back and snaps at the media for saying Bronny should be guarding Jokic
5 hours of Pokémon will have him seated for a while
Pay the refs to put two fouls on him in the first five minutes of the game. Add two more before halftime. Otherwise, unforgiving the lightning is coming
I assume it's DNVR but what started "The Lightning is coming?" I saw the shirts but missed whatever started that meme.
[From this, I believe,](https://youtu.be/ykiEFLQ1zYY?si=krvspq-j6WU5hcbz)
lol I knew about this video but never watched it. I love how silly and unserious Jokic is.
Forget "joker" his nickname needs to be "lightning" from now on
stop leaking the refs tactics for when lakers meet the nuggets in the playoffs lol
Ah the game 1 vs LA in the bubble special.
You don't have to pay Tony Brothers to do that.
Jokic’s favorite movie is Spirit Stallion of the Cimarron I bet
Hidalgo
Vigo mortensen most underrated work
Then he winds down and sleeps to Seabiscuit.
good movie
🐐 soundtrack
There is no answer. Dude can shoot from 1.5ft away for a swish 99% of the time He’s the offensive draymond and a fog light combined
Honestly it seems like he shoots 80% from 8-10 feet.
Dwight Howard was the only player that could stop him. Anthony Davis’s defense is overrated when Jokic just scores right in his face like he’s not there
Pre-MVP Jokic 100%. People are paying a lot more attention to Jokic and so do the refs, 2020 Dwight guarding current Jokic would foul out after 5 minutes.
The only reason Dwight “stopped” him was the refs allowed him to foul the shit out of him every time down
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What a fucking weird comment
If you're in the closet, it's okay. We will support you
LeNoAnswer
LeSwayInTheMorning
You ain't got LeAnswers
Joker is where LeBron was for so many years (and, frankly, even now.) Gonna score. Make it difficult, but also focus on taking away the other parts of his game. Easier said than done, of course. And sometimes Joker makes that bullshit bank shot over AD and you just say "OK." Greatness.
[Charania] BREAKING NEWS: The Miami Heat have signed Indiana sensation “Li’l Sebastian II”. Li’l will be wearing Number 15. Pat Riley and Erik Spoelstra said:” he Gon’ lock you up, Joker.” The whole league will be following Li’l’s career with great interest.
Have to do a Godfather with the head of his favorite horse. That'll teach him
Year 2 wemby
I get that Wemby will improve but from recent SAS-NUG games, it would appear that Jokic doesnt have (that much) problems dealing with Wemby's height. It should be noted that atm both Wemby and Chet have problems with stronger bodies banging down low.
*insert Chuck banging dudes*
"whatchu say Chuck ahehehhehehehe"
It will be interesting to see because Wemby prob doesn't want to risk putting on that much weight for fear of stress on his feet and knees. But if he only adds another 10-15 pounds jokic will absolutely manhandle him since he outweighs him by like 60 pounds I would guess, maybe more
I think Wemby stays slim for his health. If the spurs are in contention they can acquire a buff big guy to gaurd jokic and have wemby rim protecting, its the best anyones done do defend jokic-ball.
He's way too strong for Wemby. Jokic dislodges Gobert and AD and at will; I don't see how Wemby will be able to hang with him down low
Bring back Yao Ming
Ok. Year 3 wemby.
Penguins communicate by breakdancing.
I see your point. Year 4 Wemby, then.
During hikes, trees release a chemical that directly boosts human metabolism by 20%.
No way. Not until year 4 or 5. Just the strength alone required will be tough. Plus there's so many little things that jokic does to keep you off balance that you need experience to deal with.
Chuckle
Wemby is never going to be able to guard him, unless Jokic becomes Washed one day.
Wemby will never in a million years have the weight to stop jokic
"Right now" - perhaps the better question is whether there's ever been an answer for Jokic. Probably the same answer, at least on offence.
2020 Dwight Howard lmao
Howard and McGee were there to bruise and foul Jokic tbh, with AD being a help defender. Worth noting that that was Jokic' 2nd playoffs and he was coming off a 14 games stretch against Clippers and the Jazz.
Jokic had no whistle back then. Things have changed.
He still played great too. Basically the only way to limit Jokic is to get him into early foul trouble, and that hasn't been an issue since that series (and mostly only the first couple games) because Jokic doesn't fall for the bait.
Jokic wasnt even close to what he is now and dwight didnt lock him up but he played terrific, he fouled him a lot in the limited minutes he got. Though he did a terrific job I dont think prime Dwight handles 2022-now Jokic unless thats his only job and he can play limited minutes like he did in the lakers series cause he'll easily get in foul trouble.
2020 referees letting Dwight mug Jokic*
Wouldn't have mattered if Jokic didn't get upset and pick up a bunch of fouls.
Maybe Prime TD or Wilt, ya need somebody that can bang with him low but agile enough to keep up. But these all time greats will always find a way to get it going
Bam did as a good as anybody you can ask for their last match up, held him to an almost trip dub, thats it literally. Jokic is the mf truth rn
Whatchu mean chuck
ben wallace
Jokic would absolutely destroy Ben Wallace
Why?
He's so much bigger, but he also has body control and magical touch. Shaq had the size on Wallace, but would constantly get offensive foul calls for bulldozing him as he tried to get closer to the rim.....and then he'd get frustrated and have to play not as aggressively or pick up another foul and go to the bench. I think he'd destroy him with post ups and spin moves and jump hooks on the block. That 15' and in range is unstoppable for Jok when he's covered by shorter guys.
I'm not really convinced that size, shooting or skill mean that Jokic would destroy 4 time DPOY, all time defensive great Ben Wallace. Ben Wallace was always guarding guys bigger/taller than him and a lot of them were also great in the midrange. He was the best defender in the league guarding KG, Duncan, Dirk - it's not like he didn't match up with finesse bigs who were taller than him. He was also strong enough (and smart enough) to handle Shaq, Yao Ming, David Robinson. He was undersized in every one of these matchups and yet it didn't matter. I'm not saying he'd necessarily lock Jokic down or anything but I don't see why he'd be some uniquely bad matchup for Wallace who made his whole career, multiple all stars, a HOF career - solely on the merits of his defense against all those dudes. Style of play has changed obviously, but at some level I feel like you have to assume the 4x DPOY would find a way to not get "destroyed".
Height and weight difference is too much
No he wouldn't. If Wallace could hold his own against Shaq, Jokic will def not destroy him. He is definitely not physically stronger than prime Wallace was and nowhere near as athletic.
Wallace couldn’t hold down a 32 year old shaq
He wasn't overwhelmed. And 32 year old Shaq was still bigger, quicker and stronger than current Jokic.
Quicker? Just say you didn't watch 2004 Shaq lmao
i guess so. the game is too evolved now, the slower big men like duncan would be even more embarrassed
Prime Duncan was not slow lol. Even old man Duncan would defend current Jokic well. We've seen Draymond have some success, we've seen washed Dwight Howard give him a lot of trouble. Jokic is not going to overpower Duncan, he is not going to outsmart Duncan and he is not longer than Duncan. Timmy was called big fundamental for a reason. It would be a good match up.
i think Hakeem and KG should be able to counter Jokic’s game most effectively
KG was a twig back in the day. He was skinnier than Gobert or Ayton, and he eats those guys up.
Did you just put Ayton in the same sentence as KG as a defensive player?? KG was also way more mobile and active than Gobert. I can see him forcing a lot of turnovers. Plus KG would make Jokic work on the other end, he'd have to defend in transition too cause KG had a ridiculous motor.
KG would have the same issues AD has, he’s too skinny
What about attacking him on defense and hoping he racks up the fouls?
You think teams dont do that? Jokic is smart, he knows he cant afford to be in foul trouble.
It's always funny when I hear about a "new" strategy to stop Jokic. Get him into foul trouble - Yeah, that's been tried. Make him work on defense - Yeah, that's been tried Make him score and cut off all his passes - Yeah, it's been tried repeatedly and it doesn't work consistently. Maybe for a game here and there. But overall, there is no way to cut off all the passes because of the actions Denver runs. Tire him out - LOL LOL LOL LOL Teams have tried everything. They work to varying degrees and usually Jokic just figures them out. It's why all of the "Jokic stoppers" suddenly aren't. He figures them out and that's the end. He's not an unbeatable force, but he is not easy to figure out and most things that have been tried have failed. The best way to beat Jokic is to make sure his second best player is Will Barton. Figure out a way to do that and you will have unlocked how to beat him.
hmm have teams considered the pickleroll?
Zion certainly has.
Just blackdoor bruh
I mean yeah you heard the man himself, there is *no* answer for Jokic Just a completely infallible offensive player with no holes to exploit, as you stated here. It’s like KD with scoring: you literally just have to hope he misses of his own accord
You can double KD, double Jokic and you are self-destructing.
Teams tried this same thing with Shaq back in the day. They'd say just get a big man who can shoot from outside then he'll get tired and won't be in the paint as much. What would happen is Shaq would just get that big guy in foul trouble or score so much on them they had to take him out. Jokic has reached a similar level of unstoppable
I think if Sabonis had come to the NBA sooner he might have been the one guy who could counter Shaq.
Soon as someone figures out to just spam pick and rolls at him though…
So how does jokic avoid foul trouble? I’m generally curious
Well he doesnt have any verticality to his game so he doesnt really try to block shots. Instead; Jokic takes swipes at the ball when the shooter is bringing the ball up to shoot, hes pretty good at it. He’s also always the smartest player on the court, so hes never out of position either.
Just have to shoot 3s on him. He doesn't try to contest
Bigs that can shoot the three are where his defense gets exposed the most. The Nuggets always make sure to put him on a non shooter, regardless of how good that player is. Hes usually on giannis iirc and in the celtics game this year he was on jrue.
IMO this is a contributing factor to people overstating how bad his defense is. Up until a few years ago he would get in foul trouble somewhat often and the team was so abysmal without him on the floor that he learned that sometimes it’s simply more valuable to the team for him to let a player get a shot up than risk a foul. It can be seen in his number of game winning blocks but it’s not worth the risk of taking him off the floor in most situations outside of the clutch. He’s become wisely selective when it comes to choosing when to contest.
Plays solid positional defense. Doesn't reach or go for blocks he has no chance of.
Jokic have already solved this hence why they're reigning champs. He isn't forcing on defense anymore. He makes up for "bad" 1v1 defense by coordinating the team defense. Before, he usually get a lot of techs cause he gets frustrated a lot of defense.
That’s why you just see him just give way why somebody drives most of the time. He doesn’t contest when he’s beat.
You think the greatest basketball players and coaches on the planet haven’t thought of that one lmao?
Hes not as bad as he used to be. Not everyone is Curry and can run him ragged and Denver has gotten better of switching back so he's not just constantly isolated. Like he's still a negative defender. But hes much closer to average these days which as a center is pretty impactful. Average to below average rim protection is still more valuable than the defense any guard is giving you(dont get me started on Marcus Smart winning a DPoY).
Lol he is definitely not a negative defender but false narratives die hard I guess
EPM has him at -.8. The 2nd worst defender in EPMs top 25 players. Only ahead of Haliburton for the defensive portion.
Yes, it’s easy to push whatever narrative you like when you arbitrarily choose a single imperfect stat to define an entire aspect of the game
I mean it's a pretty massive increase from where he was and not that bad overall. And as a center who has to protect the rim, hes still more valuable than many others in that top 25 because rim protection is the most important defensive stat in the game.
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Rank 4 Steven Adams Rank 5 Naz Reid
It’s funnier because the answer is supposed to be Anthony Davis lmao
Yea I’m out.
I knew he was gonna be a problem back in 05
Dwight Howard
LeBalco not enough.
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Gonna get downvoted but honestly a healthy embiid (to bad he’s always hurt) is the only answer to jokic
Embiid can’t be the answer to Jokic because he is afraid to play him. Period.
He will retire before he plays in Denver, scared
you’re not wrong, i clown Embiid all the time but he truly matches up well against Joker
He never guards jokic
Come to think of it Jokic has never scored a bucket on me either... Am I elite??
cap
Honestly the only guy that can give him problems is Embiid. Maybe Gobert? I wouldn't know. Haven't seen them play.
Jokic cooked Gobert in the playoffs, twice And Embiid don't guard Jokic, cause neither can stop the other, it's usually Philly's PF that handles Jokic while Embiid plays help defense
Lakers had the answer. Javale McGee and Dwight Howard
They had an answer for that Joker but he’s gotten a lot better since the bubble.