Have We Ever Seen Anything Like Nikola Jokic?

I have never seen a living blueprint for such. Help me if I am wrong, but I do not think there has ever been a living blueprint for a player like the Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic. An unparalleled combination of height, weight, strength, nimble feet, ridiculous vision, and elite skill are the reality of what Jokic is.

Approaching 31 years of age on (his birthday is February 19), Jokic is putting up the best numbers of his 11 year NBA career so far in 2025-26.

Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images

Mind-Boggling Numbers

The 6-11, 284-pound point center is averaging 29.6 points, 12.2 rebounds, 11 assists so far this season. Jokic’s numbers are out of this world and something we’ve only seen in the NBA perhaps once before with Wilt Chamberlain.

Joker’s rebounding and assist averages lead the league. His points per game are fifth in the NBA and number one for big men. Then add in his 43.5 percent shooting from behind the 3-point line. So we are talking about a world class athlete who is upping his averages in his lower 30s.

Recently, Jokic suffered a hyperextended knee injury that will keep him out for an assumed four weeks. Perhaps that will compromise his chances of winning the MVP, but it is not necessarily going to affect his statistical averages nor his standing in the game. Winning MVP doesn’t matter; he’s arguably And if you ask me, I often expect a player to benefit from a four week rest during a long and grueling NBA season.

Joker’s Unique Game

Now, what is it that I like about Jokic other than his mind bending stats? For starter he is a quality teammate, teacher, example and anchor. Not just an anchor, but a playmaking anchor. He does not take his stardom seriously and is the ultimate leader/mentor for the Denver Nuggets.

When it comes to analyzing his game, Jokic is not your standard vertical athlete. He controls horizontal space, The over emphasis of the vertical in basketball is tantalizing and mesmerizing. However, give me the player who can control the horizontal space just beyond his supposed reach and create assists along the same plane. Those types of players dominate and Jokic easily tops that select group.

NIKOLA JOKIĆ WITH VIDEO GAME STATS ON CHRISTMAS DAY

56 PTS
16 REB
15 AST
2 BLK
4 3PM

THE FIRST 55/15/15 GAME IN NBA HISTORY pic.twitter.com/8LPXlFWO6V

— NBA (@NBA) December 26, 2025

Joker has an overall feel for the game that is sublime. He has an Einstein level of understanding of space and time. He also has a simplistic understanding of movement and numbers. Jokic can get his own almost on a whim, but what makes him special is how he unifies a team. When you can get a bucket, you get a bucket. When you draw a crowd of three, you find the open man.

The skilled and efficient nature of his game enables and empowers his teammates. Legendary college coach Rick Majerus always emphasized composure with the basketball. He would say post men need to slow down, slowdown, slowdown! Jokic is the supreme example of the type of player Majerus envisioned. He is strong with the basketball, on balance with the basketball, intentional with the basketball and skilled with the basketball.

Simply put, Jokic slows the game down in order to speed up the opportunities for his teammates. Very few players have the capability of doing such. Speed is often the calling card. Speed is great. Speed kills. Speed without proper precision and control also kills, but it kills the self. Jokic does not kill the self. He gives life to his team by providing a fulcrum of movement and balance.

Get the ball to Jokic and adjust positioning and get your hands ready. He reminds me of Larry Bird. When the ball was in Bird’s hand, the game slowed down. When the game slows down for a world class passer, the game speeds up for an intelligent teammate.

Hey, isn’t a bucket much more easier to finish when your speed finds controllable intention? Jokic makes the game look easy, perhaps more than any player who has ever laced’ em up.

The lead national recruiting scout for Rivals.com and 247sports.com for a 20-year span, Jerry Meyer grew up in basketball as the son of legendary coach Don Meyer. Jerry set the all-time career assist record for college basketball (1,314) and was a two-time Mr. Basketball in Tennessee. He coached at the pro and high school level, was previously an assistant at Vanderbilt and co-authored “Basketball Skills and Drills”.