These weeks may be the most important in the career of Nikola Jokic. The double NBA MVP has started playing the Western Conference finals against the Los Angeles Lakers. They are not the first to dispute. It already reached this round in 2020, in the bubble, where the Denver Nuggets fell precisely against the same rival, the Lakers, 4-1. But On this occasion, those of Colorado have much more hope in being the team from the West that is planted in the NBA Finals, which would be the first in the history of the franchise. the nuggets they are a more accomplished and experienced team that three years ago they’ve won their conference in the regular season and Jokic is a more complete player. So much so that he is capable of doing practically anything, especially in attack, at levels never seen before for a pivot.
This superlative level of the Serbian makes many wonder where he is in the historical ranking of European players. Like all lists it is somewhat subjective and everyone will have their tastes. For Misko Raznatovic, one of the great European player agents, the question is whether to place him as the best ever to have been born in the Balkan countries, cradle of many of the great names in the history of this sport on the Old Continent. And, of course, when you talk about Balkan basketball, a name inevitably comes up in the conversation: Drazen Petrovic.
“It’s always going to be difficult for me to admit that someone is better than him, but with what Nikola Jokic has done he may be a bit ahead. And everyone else is far behind. Yes indeed, you have to take into account the era in which Drazen played. The NBA was closed to foreign players so”explains Raznatovic, who continues to explain his idea. “Scoring more than 40 points, entering the Third Five of the Year… These are incredible things for the 90s. To this day, his basketball, that grace of movement, is the greatest fusion of sport and art I have ever seen.”.
The agent also opens up about what he thought of Jokic, a player he always liked but never believed he could reach these heights of brilliance: “I didn’t expect him to become such a star, no one thought so. It was clear that he had incredible talent, that there was something natural about him. But there isn’t a no one who would have thought he would be a two-time NBA MVP, especially without great athletic ability. I’m glad you proved me wrongHe is playing amazing and I hope he continues like this”.
Raznatovic points to the pivot’s way of being as one of the keys to his success: “He doesn’t pay attention to things that happen off the track, to social media and stuff. He is modest and punctual. He shows in interviews and public appearances that he is serious and intelligent, I am very satisfied with him. He built an image off the pitch and he became a man that new generations should look up to”.