Another Nikola Jokic Masterpiece | The Bill Simmons Podcast 

Right!! Nobody ever talks about this in the media

I agree mostly, but back then the combacks was icing on the cake, no one would've held it against Jokic for losing those, whereas losing to the wolves now would be on him, which is a huge increase in pressure. Jokic himself said this was the most important game of his career so I think he kinda thinks the same way

​@@zhenchen7769 but they did, nuggets have played well throughout jokic plus murray era

Also against the Clipers...they were "done" in that one...3:1 down and 20 down in game 5😂

It’s crazy to me people thinking it’s their first bit of adversity. These guys have gone through pain together, they are a true team.

That's a whole fact

That flies in the face of everything Jokic has shown us. There's probably an 80% chance Jokic doesn't even know what Shaq thinks and a 100% chance he doesn't care. It's part of what makes Jokic great.

​@@David-iv6jeShaq tolk Jokic to his face that he didnt deserve the MVP.

@@je5406We're talking about the "there's a parade?" guy. Jokic is emotionally centered and Shaq is a fat old guy who took Ozempic.

@@David-iv6je hm i don’t think you actually watch a whole denver game then cause you would’ve known after winning mvp what shaq said to jokic straight to to his face

Oh come on.....he had one assist last night. 😂

That ain't his job

@@tommydavidwalker2445 Take a joke chief, Michael Porter is a big boy itll be ok

MPJ is passing more than Murray these days, that joke is so old it still thinks MPJ is farm equipment.

MPj deserves a lot of respect given the stress he must carry knowing his brothers are idiots who ruined their lives - he has a been a real pro.

He shot 79%

Let's give some credit to Coach Malone as well. This is a great TEAM. Edit: I loved Simmon's observation that KCP took the ball so Jokic didn't get a turnover. AG has gone to Serbia in the Summer. TEAM.

@@Honestly__now 88% when Gobert was primary defender.

13 dimes with zero turnovers. That some prime Stockton levels of efficiency right there.

@@mj23goat3 Right? He's so boring about doing it we can lose track of how remarkable it is.

Because he’s literally shaq with a jump shot and great touch. He might be the strongest player in the nba when he actually tries to

He's just a heavy dude, he ain't strong like Steven Adams. But weight moves weight and he isn't afraid to throw it around. With the threeification if the NBA bigs are generally getting skinnier and more mobile, but that doesn't help when you have a dude that wants to bang.

@@taylorcurtis7179 Exactly. I see it, you see it, but talking heads constantly miss it or discredit it by blaming the defender for their "weakness" instead. In fact I was completely won over by Jokic in 2020 playoffs against Lakers when he backed AD down from 3 point to basket.

@@mosquitojoyride exactly it’s always throwing hate on the defenders when there actually good but jokic is just that unstoppable. You can’t double him anywhere because he’s to tall and can throw the ball over any defenders. I personally think him gaining all that weight was better for him then being skinny because you can’t move him from his spot

I was wondering this too, is there anyone in the NBA who's even consistent enough to make him look human?

I hate it, man. It's like those who rag on dudes who get dunked on. Playing defense should never be mocked and needs to stop being mocked or else 82 games will be the NBA All Star game on repeat. Rudy Gobert busted his ass trying to stop Nikola Jokic, didn't get lazy nor quit. That should be appreciated.

Lol sooo true

I hated it the whole time. And I still think he’s deserving of 1 DPOY max. That trade only pays off if the wolves win a chip. Until they do it sucks. You’ve got an actual burgeoning superstar and now you’re locked up paying $90m+ to 2 centers who both have playoff flaws. Oh and your vet PG is a free agent. They made building around Ant messy as hell going forward

Right? This show should be called "all cap, no facts." 😂

He clearly stated he was surprised den came back after 1st 2 games - typical internet random casuals just making up sht bcuz they don't like a sports pundit , but yet they watch all his content

@@notoriousLSGshow after game 2 he was one of the morons talking about a sweep. That's the only reason I even know about this podcast. Bills stupid face was in the montage of morons calling for a sweep, so for the last 3 games I've been paying visits to all these chumps just to watch them squirm. Anyone who thought Minnesota had a chance should be laughed at for eternity.

@@notoriousLSGshow you must be new here. Sit this one out, Champ.

Bill Simmons is the captain of prisoner of the moment.

The home team losing 2 to start is pretty significant

and if you win one game, and you are american and black. you are the best in the world..the next jordan.

@@sammyttheg412exactly. people acting like winning 3 straight games after dropping the first 2 at home is normal lol

Me 😅? I z m z b z​@@MaxJulien2701

​@@sammyttheg412 normally sth like this ends up as a 3-1 series or sth. This is jus jokic becoming Thanos

and jamals insanely great and tough shot making skill by running around the whole floor and fading multiple directions that shit was so cold!

they only fell to the lakers thanks to a last second AD super lucky shot that if he tried 10 more times he'd never make again

@@VincenzoBarbatoWait that shot decided the series? That’s amazing I didn’t know that. It was game 7? Oh wait no it wasn’t. It’s ok to admit the lakers were better in 2020 lmao weirdo

@@misinfluence they were better but Jokic was the second best player on the floor. Only AD was better to me.

@@BoxOffice22Jokic was not even close to better than Lebron that series. Lebron was putting up 27 10 and 9 playing great perimeter defense please stop these weird narratives. Jokic is great right now yes but trying to rewrite past series is ridiculous he wasn’t the player he is now in 2020

Yeah it's funny how fast the narrative switches. 2-0, MJ's son, Joker doesn't deserve the MVP. Now, it's Rudy Gobert is a basketball terrorist, Minny still doesn't have a good enough roster and Joker's a god.

If you listen to the players and not the talking heads, everyone acknowledges Jokic is the best in the world right now, and ANT really is the next up-and-coming great one. Both can be true.

If Jokic has an “off night” in the next game (25pts, 12reb, 8ast) and the Nuggets lose, the narrative will quickly switch back to: “Jokic is trash/overrated/fat. The Nuggets can’t beat teams with a winning record, etc…” When Minnesota won those first two games on the road, lots of people jumped at the opportunity to bury Jokic and anoint Anthony Edwards as the next generational superstar. The selective amnesia is unreal.

Kobe so overated

@@JonathanHerschhahahahahah Mj’s son People are so fucking dumb

phenomenal quote. However the credit really belongs to a script writer for "Tora Tora Tora!" The general never said that... but he shoulda.

You have not seen the game it seems! Rudy was atrocious, bad, really really bad! No passion, no effort no motivation no motor! The worst Timberwolf

Going 7/7 oversells how effective he was on offense though. His inability to make plays in the short roll or punish smaller defenders on post ups really hurts Minnesota. Rudy wasn't even bad on defense, Jokic is just that good.

@@eugeniovaldez7205Bomani Jones calls him and Townes 14 feet of disappointment haha

Can’t wait to see Simmons react to Denver crushing Boston.

Can't wait to see Simmons reacting to how he's reacted

It's going to be fun to watch...Nuggets in 6 over Boston is my pick..

What are the Celtics doing that makes you think they will get “crushed “?

I think that will be a pretty fun match up. Can I promise the Celtics will beat the Nuggets? Of course not but it is funny to me that Celtics are hitting every mark of a ascending champion. They are first in every metric you can use. Tatum has won more playoff games and scored more playoff points than anyone since he got in the league and if they win this year he will get one faster than Lebron/Curry/Shaq/Jordan. They’re the only team that wins consistently and the narrative is “yeah but I don’t like how they won. 😂😂😂

I mean Jamal couldn’t move after game 2. I don’t think bill forgot Jokic was good, he’s been a leading bandwagon member of is for a while.

It is still very hard for a team to go back-to-back on a championship, it is also rare for a team to win after being 0-2 at home(although it isn't done yet) and it is also rare to turn the situation 180° like that so I can understand the prediction done (outside of they're getting swept, that was too much). Because they were really getting crushed in those 2 games so it seemed unprobable that Nuggets would go 3-0 from there, but they did, that really shows their mental strength and good coaching too.

It wasn't Jokic, its that Jamal Murray looked bad.

Everyone knows offensive superstars are never truly stopped by one person. Most of the time the only one who can them is themselves. Absolutely bizarre Gobert is held to that standard.

Gobert numbers misleading. Nuggs were consistently leaving gobert open in the pick and roll and he could not make the necessary passes and we all know he can't create for himself. Goberts lack of post game and offensive skill is sad

You missed literally the most important thing that changed. They started having Gordon bring the ball up the court which killed the wolves pressure defense and gave Murray more energy for the shots. He was the back up point guard for Orlando so when you have to bring the ball court it means no turnovers or trapping and more energy on offense for the shooters.

Yeah biggest differences have been Gordon handling more and then Jokic/Murray/Gordon all being more deliberate with their dribble and passing. They were just being sloppy in games 1-2. Obviouslt twolves were playing great defense but so much of it was because the nuggets were leaving themselves in vulnerable positions everywhere on the perimeter

Number 4 is by far the biggest difference. Once officiated normally everything fell back into place. Game 2 was insane. Wolves were fouling every play and they still had twice as many free throws at half time.

I'll add one, having Gordon begin taking the ball up the floor which shifted the offense in ways the Wolves still don't seem clear how to handle.

@@ChristopherM720 it can’t be handled. He handles well enough to avoid strips (and is guarded by a big), and is tall enough to pass over traps. There’s just no way to pressure the ball properly without creating horrible mismatches on the other end. It has the added bonus of keeping Murray from getting worn down and missing easy shots.

He gets flack because he’s a 4 DPOY over those guys when a bunch of them have shown they’re stronger isolation defenders

@@gators9570 agree. But Jokic also cooked those guys too. The fact of the matter is that Jokic just has the tools to deal with any defender, even the best ones in the league. We should focus on giving him more praise rather than degrading his competition because (especially in the case of last game) he just is too good, no matter how you play him.

@@gators9570 Isolation defense is overrated, especially for Big Men. Good defense is to keep Giannis, AD, Gobert, off of the post threat, allowing them to come over and contest without fouling. Defending as part of a team is what's important, since the offense is constant movement, passing, and screening. There is no other big man who is as deadly in the Post as Jokic. Not Embiid, not anyone. So when AD is cooked by Jokic, and then Gobert is cooked by Jokic, who do you think would defend or stop Jokic? Who is a good defender then?

You just don't stop the greats 1 on 1. If you do, they're not one of the greats yet.

Jokic is a machine at this point but it's also the scheme that's in place to take advantage of Gobert and the Wolves Defense as well.. Mike Malone made Aaron Gordon either be the screener or the ball handler and that forces Gobert to have no choice but to be involved early in the action and away from his comfort zone as a roamer.. It looks over Thursday for the Wolves but will see..

What are you even talking about? How does he compare to Ohtani in any way? Ohtani is trying desperately to become Jokić-esque! Don’t get it twisted with dumb takes

@@rorydougherty lol ohtani is probably the greatest baseball player ever, Jokic isn’t close to being the greatest basketball player ever

​@pulse3554 Ohtani is a wanna-be Babe Ruth. He's not even close to being the best baseball player ever. What a stupid thing to say dude fr

@@aaronparker1221 LMAO Babe Ruth was a fat guy who was in the league at a time when black people weren’t even allowed, and the sport was not global. Think about how ridiculous that is and the level of competition. He wouldn’t be in the MLB today.

@@aaronparker1221 also you paint it like I’ve said something outlandish - which is actually the outlandish part. This is a common opinion from all sorts of actors in the sport. Writers, players, coaches, fans, etc

Magic and Kareem. Combined

unstoppable? JOrdan beat him in the finals. That's the definition of stopping someone.

@@elizabethchase6528 there’s a great story on a video from Porter Jr’s podcast where the owner is talking about trying to decide if they were going to stay with Jokic or the other good Center they had at the time and the analytics team brought a breakdown of Jokic and one other player by every statistical category to help him decide. He figured out that player A was joker because he had better statistics so he asked who was player B and they told him it was Larry Bird.

@@teddylovesit well Jordan was the best imo. Jordan would beat The Joker too.

Jordan was the darling of the nba. He played with different rules than everybody else. I bet you think he deserved 6 titles. 😅. ​@@knowsmebyname

He's the modern day Larry Bird. He can dominate the game with just 15 points/12 rebs/8 assists. He always goes after the mismatch and allows his teammates to get their volume and rhythm. Bird reached that selfless chess master level in the mid 80s. This is prime Joker at the top of his offensive powers. So skilled and so much smarter than 99% of the rest of the league.

It’s over … Conley is injured and gobert is in Jokic’s chamber hahaha

@@kennyduarte6744 I’m cheering for Denver. But the wolves are no joke.

@@17NateJohnsonthey aren’t a joke. But the nuggets are locked in now. They’re not losing 2 straight imo. And KAT + Gobert are not who you want supporting Ant in do or die games.

.... They have RU-vid in Australia. Just saying

Also because that intensity level was unsustainable. They are still picking up full court but the bigger difference is 1) in the rotations and 2) that Rudy can't move like KAT, Naz and Anderson. In game 2 every player was giving 2, 3, 4, 5 efforts on every play and they were moving as one. Now they look like a normal defense again. The emotional energy boost they got from Rudy being out is something you can't fake or replicate and they have only been able to get to that level in spurts since.

yea mostly this. You can bully Murray if you pick him full court with a big. You aren’t bully Aaron Gordon. He bullies you.

And never underestimate the refs going from '90s era whistle swallowing to calling every tic tac incident.

@@grahamjl766 It's the chicken and the egg. Did the Wolves win so big because of a change in officiating, and now the officiating is back to normal, or was it vice versa? I think Game 2 was unusual officiating, and it might have been the case in the Suns series as well. Maybe this Wolves postseason run has been fraudulent all along.

Yeah but Pat Beverley now plays for Bucks ... And they gone

What they did in game 2 is still as good as any game the Bad Boys, 04 Pistons or MJ Bulls have ever played. They are every bit as good as the 04 Pistons and I say that as a Pistons fan They *are* a historically great defense. They are 2.3 points better than the #2 defense and 6.3 above league average. They will likely have 2 guys on first team All-Defense and have two other guys who should get votes. Denver is just that good.

😂😂😂

Nope, Bucks won first two games at home, not on the road. And also, the most recent 0:2 to 4:2 was again Bucks against Suns in 2021.

Yea but at home going down 2-0 has happened like 5 times ever

No going down 0-2 at home and coming back has only happened 5 times.

@@kmozandinthis but he did it with the clippers in 21 against Dallas.

What's the name of his show?

There's a reason he's not shown on screens

This is the second time I've heard this,I love this random fact for some reason.

MyPlayer used to give you a TO for that. quickly pass it to your SF and watch him mope.

Incredibly surprised Bill of all people doesn't know that.

Correct. Thank you for posting that.

Didn't know that. It makes sense, because the last guy holding it as the time expires is usually a victim of some other player's poor decision.

Walking around whistling after Game 6...

AND HAKEEM OLAJUWON

😭😭😭😭

Oh ya, it was perfect!

It was spot on

I was so surprized by that. If I didn't live in cali I would've thrown the house on denver.

Wow the 2014 Sharks and the 2004 French Open Finals mentioned in the same paragraph..Interesting

@@OCPARKWAY Coria is my second favorite tennis player of all-time. I feel so bad for him in that final lol.

The level of smugness despite the Game 6 result.... Geeeeee whiz. How can it be the ultimate choke job when the series goes to Seven Games! What a doorknob of knowledge you turned out to be 👍👍👍

@@raven4475 Did the Twolves win the series? I merely stated that they were transforming into the 2014 San Jose Sharks and them losing this series will be the ultimate choke job. They will lose Game 7 to the Nuggets. My advice to you is to look in the mirror and see the smugness that emanates from you. Good day sir, good day!

@@soysaucehairdye7869 You wanna label a team choked when a series goes to Seven Games??? Are you stupid? Tell me this .... What's your label for the Lakers, 76ers, Suns, Cavs, Magic. I'm super curious "dickhead"

That’s not a petty technicality lol. But still I’m glad he didn’t get suspended. Fine the players all u want. Let them play though

I'm amazed Bill keeps bringing it up. The decision was made, and to keep questioning it is to cast a pall on the rest of the playoffs. I say if the media decided to sweep Embiid's grab on Mitchell's legs under the rug, when Mitchell was coming off an injury, and is now out for the playoffs as his team is trying to continue on, then they should shut the fuck up about Murray throwing a heat pack. Bill and the rest of the Media laughed at how mad fans were at Embiid for that dirty play, but said that they couldn't suspend him because it would end the series. But now Bill is going on and on about how Murray should have been suspended, using examples from 15 years ago, and a different commissioner! It's so bizarre, and it makes me think that Bill is mad because he lost money on a parley or something.

A big part of it is Minnesota just doesn't have the playmaking. Ant only being 6'4" matters on the perimeter because he just can't see the passing angles they way bigger players can but even once he gets off ball Minnesota can't make the next play fast enough to punish Denver Their best offensive lineups and best defensive lineups are not the same.

@@michaelahurt Michael Conley not playing last night was a brutal loss for Minnesota. Edwards has the speed, athleticism and ball handling skills to get seperation, or a split, of the double team. Last night their perimeter players were pounding the ball on the court and trying to create a bad three point shot, instead of quickly swinging the ball to the weak side, and dropping the ball into the weak side low post. High school players do a better job of that very thing, than what Minnesota did last night. When KAT is on the perimeter, Edwards is on the other side of the court. Edwards has to do a better job getting the ball back to the middle when the double comes, while KAT has to get into a low post/weak side position. If the ball gets back to the middle, since Denver doubled Edwards on the original strong side of the defense, all of a sudden it is 3 Wolves on 2 Nuggets, with a 7 footer in the low post ready to "eat BBQ chicken". At that point, it is Academic on the defense's weak side: the swing man drives the line, or the big gets an easy layup. Edwards isn't facilitating in these circumstances, while Denver can do it with either Murray or Jokic at the top of the key. That's why Denver got back, and is winning this series 3-2. The Coaching staff in Minnesota is blowing this series.....like last year.

@@zissiskonstantinou3311 It's not just last night but yes, having Conley or Morris or Anderson in those spots makes a huge difference because the ball moves side to side quicker. Although KAT would need to get a really good seal and go quick or they will bring would a double. But that's my point. The ball doesn't move because Minnesota has a bunch of guys who have to think about the next read vs already knowing the answer. I think the coaching issue is more about how do we get Ant involved by using him off ball. Which is where having Conley or Morris or Anderson comes in because you have to be organized and intentional. First get the switch for KAT then post him then swing swing back to Edwards so he can attack a weakside closeout before they can load up. Which sounds easy on paper but there's nuance because the defense isn't stupid. You need the collective playmaking to overcome the weak links in the chain. Those split seconds where the ball sticks is what allows the defense to recover. It's why we've seen a gradual move toward playmaking bigs and SF playing PF and away from Ilyasova, Mitotic, Ryan Anderson style stretch bigs because you have to be able to keep the defense in rotation. Defenses can recover to the shooter in time because the rotations are smarter than in 2014. Which is why I say the lineups don't match. You want Ant, KAT, Anderson and two of Morris/Conley/NAW on offense but you want McDaniels and Gobert on defense. You can coach it all you want, McDaniels and Gobert and to a lesser extent Naz and Towns are never going to read the game like guards who grew up making those reads. It's why bigs like Draymond and Jokic who can do that are so valuable.

@@michaelahurt When you have two bigs (KAT and Gobert/Reid) and two athletic players in Edwards and McDaniels, your number one priority has to be a "rebound and run" approach, with a steady handed PG like Conley pushing the break. By pushing the fast break, Jokic gets worn out, especially should he be taking a shot in the low post. He doesn't have the speed to chase down a fast break. Considering that Minnesota has 4 bigs, they have a lot of bodies to throw at Joker this way. If Denver gets back (Murray, KCP, Porter are fast enough to do so), then your half court set is a pick and roll on the wing, while you have a triangle set on the other side should the weak side come with the double team in the pick and roll. Denver has exceptional facilitators in Murray and Jokic to play the "hi-low" game at all times in the half court. I find that Minnesota hasn't game planned for the circumstances where an opposing defence comes with the double on Edwards. That is preparation, or coaching.

@@michaelahurt Remember also, re Play Making Bigs: In Minnesota's biggest win of the series, Anderson got the start because Gobert was home tending to the birth of his new born. The personnel isn't the issue for Minnesota, it is about adapting to changes that Denver has done the last 2-3 games. The Timberwolves were woefully unprepared, and uninspired when they took the floor in Games 3 and 4 at home.

If an opponent picks up the ball before the 24 second clock expires, the turnover goes against Jokic. Happened a couple times this year because he just drops the ball and walks away.

So Jamal Murray is better than Kobe and we should just ignore the MVP, scoring titles, 15 All-NBA's, 12 times All-Defense, 18 all star games and 4 all star MVP's? Those accolades don't measure how good Kobe was? No one is saying Murray sucks but no one really thinks that without Jokic he's better than Jalen Brunson or Ja Morant either Aaron Gordon is awesome, but he's not James Worthy or Kevin McHale or Draymond Green or Dennis Rodman KCP isn't Klay Thompson or Dennis Johnson or Michael Cooper or Joe Dumars Yes, Murray is better than his accolades in the same way Manu was but the guys who have 4, 8, 12 All-NBA nods *are* better than him.

This is a great comment!! .. I’m always looking at Jokic like I wonder what he’s thinking. The only thing I can see jokic paying attention to narratives is when Malone uses it for the team .. and even then I would wonder what is this guy thinking

Dallas did something similar. Because of Luka’s injury, it’s much easier to trap in or just harassing going up the floor so they have Kyrie or one of the small forwards bring the ball up that immediately pass it to Luca when they get across halfcourt. A small but necessary adjustment with the added bonus that you don’t put extra physical pressure on the valley who’s already playing on one leg.

Hey don't be bringing any logic or nuance into the discussion!