Reigning MVP Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic has emerged as one of the best players in the modern NBA. The 6-foot-11 superstar, 29, has ascended from being a flier No. 41 pick in the second round of the 2014 NBA Draft into the best player on a perennial championship contender.
Last season, he claimed MVP honors while posting averages of 26.4 points on .583/.359/.817 shooting splits, 12.4 rebounds, and 9.0 assists across 79 regular season games for the 57-25 Nuggets.
A year after winning the franchise’s first-ever league title, Denver finished as the Western Conference’s No. 2 seed, behind only the Oklahoma City Thunder, but fell in a seven-game semifinal series to the No. 3-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves.
Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
Jokic is, by any metric, an offensive marvel in today’s game — he’s the best current passer in the NBA, at perhaps the least likely position for that skill. A six-time All-Star and six-time All-NBA Teamer, as well as the 2023 Finals MVP, Jokic has been recognized by the league at large as one of its brightest lights.
But not everyone is convinced his greatness would translate to prior generations.
Speaking on Golden State Warriors power forward Draymond Green’s eponymous podcast, Boston Celtics assistant coach Sam Cassell opined that Jokic would hardly hold a candle to 12-time All-Star Houston Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon on either end of the hardwood.
“Hakeem is a beast in every sense on the floor,” Cassell said (h/t to Eurohoops for the transcription). “He’s in the top 10 in every NBA category—steals, rebounds, points. I think Jokic would score more points, but Hakeem would win because he would constantly pressure him. Jokic wouldn’t be able to do damage in the post; it simply wouldn’t happen.”
Olajuwon, who played from 1984-2002 with the Rockets and Toronto Raptors, guided the Rockets — which included Cassell, then a point guard — to a pair of consecutive championships in 1994 and 1995, earning Finals MVP honors both times. He was the 1994 league MVP, a two-time Defensive Player of the Year, a 12-time All-NBA honoree, and a nine-time All-Defensive Teamer.
Cassell, a one-time All-Star and All-NBA Second Teamer while with the Minnesota Timberwolves, earned three league titles overall. He won hIs final championship as a reserve for the Boston Celtics.
“On the other end of the floor, Jokic wouldn’t stand a chance,” Cassell continued. “[Philadelphia 76ers center] Joel Embiid gives him problems, and he wouldn’t have any hope against Hakeem. I believe Hakeem would have an answer for whatever Jokić tried defensively.”
Jokic has often been the source of ire from previous generations. Former three-time All-Star Washington Wizards point guard Gilbert Arenas stunningly called the big man “the worst MVP in 40 years,” even though Jokic has won the honor across three of the past four seasons and has already claimed his first title.
Read More: Historic Nikola Jokic Game Leads Serbia to Olympic Bronze Medal vs Germany
