Nikola Jokic is the Next BIG Thing

If you haven’t heard about the Nuggets explosive 6 foot 10 Center already, you for sure heard about his big game last night.  The Nuggets center dropped a career-high 40 points to go along with 9 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals in 37 minutes against the New York Knicks.  I know it’s the New York Knicks and they have been struggling on defense, especially down-low with the lowest defensive rebounding percentage in the NBA at 74.9%, but Jokic has been putting up stellar performances like this one all year long.  It was in the paint where Nikola Jokic did a lot of his damage, shooting 13 of 16 from around the rim.  However, Jokic did utilize his ability to stretch the floor, knocking down 2 of 3 from long distance.  Jokic has even improved his three-point shooting from 33% last year to 35% this season, forcing bigs to respect his outside shot.  In putting up this monster performance against the Knicks, he also shut down 7 foot 3 Kristaps Porzingis, limiting the Latvian Power Forward/Center to just 17 points and 4 rebounds on the night.  The 21-year-old Serbian professional basketball player displays unique abilities on the court, flashing his untapped potential throughout games.  Nikola Jokic is the next big thing and he is coming at us fast.

In his last five games, coming off a left hip flexor strain, Jokic is averaging 20.4 points and 8.4 rebounds in just 28.4 minutes per game.  In the 8 games preceding his injury, the Serbian center was averaging 26 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 blocks per game.  His season averages of 15.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks do not do him justice as he has been turning it on as of late.  His play is on the rise, and it won’t be long before his name is in conversation for the All-Star game or being worthy of a max contract.  The Serbian center is playing unbelievably well, and aside from last night’s performance, his dominant play is being very much unnoticed around the league.  He has been playing alongside an injury plagued Nuggets squad, and has led them to 24 wins thus far.  The Denver Nuggets currently rank as the 8th seed in the Western Conference and people around the league should not count them out as a playoff team with Jokic’s recent dominating play.  Night in and night out, Nikola Jokic delivers and the Nuggets are becoming a legitimate young team that will be tough to beat.

Where did Jokic come from?

Nikola Jokic was drafted 41st by the Denver Nuggets in the 2nd round of the 2014 NBA Draft.  His first year after being drafted, Jokic played in the European Adriatic League.  During that year, he was named Adriatic League regular season MVP and the ABA League Top Prospect.  From there, he joined the Nuggets team for the following 2015-2016 season, where he posted 10.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in 21.7 minutes per game.  Those numbers have risen this season, like I said before, to 15.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in only 26.1 minutes per game!  If you look at his per 36 minute stats (for players averaging over 25 min/game), he ranks 2nd in the league in points scored with 39.3 points behind only Anthony Davis!  That should tell you a lot about Jokic’s efficiency and dominance while on the court.  Nikola Jokic is a stud and you will be hearing his name a lot in the near future.

The 21-year-old Serbian Center is on the rise, and his ceiling is unbelievably high as he is playing without even 2 years of NBA experience under his belt.  Blessed with one of the most talented young men in the NBA, Denver has a lot to love in their 21-year-old future All-Star.

Written by Nick Mattioli