The NBA has a long history of great big men who have dominated the league and led teams to championships after championships. Many of those have worn a Los Angeles Lakers jersey, including the likes of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain and, of course, Shaquille O’Neal. Now, the league has a new premier big man who is unlike any who have come before him in Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic.
The Serbian center is as uniquely skilled as any big man who has stepped foot on an NBA floor. He is capable of scoring from anywhere on the court and at a highly efficient manner. But what truly makes Jokic special is his vision and passing ability. Jokic is not only one of the best passing big men we’ve ever seen, but one of the best passers period.
On Monday night, Jokic led the Nuggets to their first NBA Championship ever while also receiving his first ever NBA Finals MVP. Afterward, Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal took to social media to welcome Jokic to the ‘Big Man Alliance’ inhabited by all the great centers of NBA past:
It is well deserved for Jokic and an acknowledgement from Shaq that the Nuggets star is one of the elite centers to ever play the game. In this championship run, Jokic became the first player in NBA history to lead the entire playoffs in total points, rebounds and assists.
Jokic nearly averaged a triple-double in this championship run, averaging 30 points, 13.5 rebounds and 9.5 assists in the 20 games with Denver going 16-4. He capped off the title with a dominant 28 point, 16 rebound performance in which he shot 12-of-16 from the field.
In addition to the former Lakers in Shaq, Abdul-Jabbar and Chamberlain, this ‘Big Man Alliance’ also includes the late, great Bill Russell, Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson and Patrick Ewing. And now Shaq has opened the door and allowed Jokic into the group.
LeBron James believes praises Nikola Jokic, calls Nuggets best team he’s faced as a Laker
Of course, the Lakers had their chance against the Nuggets in this postseason, but were ousted in the Western Conference Finals. Afterward, LeBron James had nothing but praise for Jokic and the eventual NBA Champions.
“Me and AD were just talking in the locker room for a little bit. I think we came to the consensus, this is if not, one of the best teams, if not the best team, we’ve played together for all four years,” LeBron said.
“Just well orchestrated, well put together. They have scoring. They have shooting. They have play-making. They have smarts. They have length. They have depth. And one thing about their team, when you have a guy like Jokic, who as big as he is but also as cerebral as he is, you can’t really make many mistakes versus a guy like that.”
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