NBA: Identifying the best offensive player at each position in 2022
Center: Nikola Jokic, Denver Nuggets
It’s rare that a team in the NBA can rely solely on one player to carry them offensively every night and still win a substantial amount of their games. Nikola Jokic is one of these few players right now and he’s been nothing short of sensational for the Denver Nuggets who are fifth in the West after 35 games.
The Joker is currently averaging 25.7 points, 14.0 rebounds, and 6.9 assists per game while hitting 56.3 percent of his shots, 35 percent of his 3’s, and 77.4 percent of his free throws. If the Nuggets had a healthy Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. then they would easily be right there with Golden State and Pheonix for the top seed in the West. The fact that Jokic has the Nuggets doing as well as they are is immensely impressive.
He is the best passing big in the NBA and one of the best in history. What makes him so difficult is that he can score well from anywhere, and you have to be extremely wary of cutters slashing to the rim, because Jokic will find them with a no-look pass. There is no way to contain him, you just have to hope you can slow him down.
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This season may be a write-off in terms of competing for a title, but next season the Nuggets will be real contenders when they are back to full strength, and Nikola Jokic will be leading the charge.