You must have been born yesterday if you’re not salivating over the coming clash of arguably the two best big men in the league. Forget step-back threes and fadeaway J’s, let’s see two seven-footers go at it in the paint.
I can picture it now, Nikola Jokic, at 7-feet and 284 pounds, calling for the ball on left block. Defending him is Anthony Davis at 6-foot-10, 253 pounds. Upon getting the ball, Jokic will peak over his left shoulder, looking for cutters or open shooters. If those options aren’t available, it’s Jokic’s crafty one-on-one, back-to-the-basket post play. Slow and steady, if you will.
As for The Brow, it’s a face-up style, mid-post action. Davis will call for the ball, also on the left block, turn and triple threat. He might shoot the jumper right away, so Joker has to be ready. But if AD starts hitting Jokic with a jab step, he’s driving by him in either direction. If it’s to the right and he’s cut off, Davis is spinning back to the left and finishing at the rim. If it’s to the left along the baseline, well, same result.
I’m getting juiced just thinking about it.
It remains to be seen whether the two All-NBA players will be matched up from the jump, however. Lakers coach Frank Vogel recently commented on the possibility of re-inserting centers JaVale McGee and Dwight Howard into the lineup.
“It does make this series a little different. A lot different, actually, in terms of how much we’ll use our centers,” Vogel said. “I don’t want to get into too much detail, but obviously we’re going to be the L.A. Lakers, who we’ve been all year. We adjusted to a small-ball team last series, but I would expect us to return to form.”
Vogel’s statement indicates McGee might return to the starting lineup and subsequently draw the Jokic assignment. But when the Lakers go small with AD at the five, we’ll see the two top-10 stars go at it.
But which player has the advantage in this series?
Offense
This is a tough call because both bigs are extremely talented and their respective numbers reflect that. In the playoffs, Jokic is averaging 25.4 points, 10.8 rebounds and six assists through 14 games. His shooting numbers are absurd as well, as he’s currently on a 52/44/83 split. Davis is no slouch, however. He’s averaging 27.6 points, 10.9 rebounds and 4.1 assists through 10 games on 59/39/75 shooting splits.
Yeah — they’re that good.
Jokic is one of the best passers in the game. Easily the best at his position, but up there with guys like LeBron James, Chris Paul and Ben Simmons. He gave the Clippers problems throughout their seven-game series, despite constantly being double-teamed.
The Serbian native can pass from every area on the court, too, and in every imaginable situation. Low post, mid post, top of the key, pick-and-roll, pick-and-pop. Not to mention the patented one-handed, full-court outlet football pass Jokic makes off rebounds. You name it, Jokic can do it. Davis had this to say on the multi-faceted European:
“He’s a tough guy to guard … able to shoot the ball, he can pass extremely well. He can go in the post. There are a lot of ways he can beat you.”
Jokic is more than a playmaker, however. The big-bodied center is a traditional back-to-the-basket big man who likes to operate in the post. He has a hook shot and a soft-touch floater. He also knocks down high-arcing, one-legged fadeaway jumpers and his three ball is pretty smooth, too. Jokic will present problems for the Lakers, but Davis will do the same for the Nuggets.
A former No. 1 overall pick in 2012, Davis is a load to deal with and has looked unstoppable at times this postseason. He’s nearly automatic from midrange, which is his bread and butter. A strong finisher at the rim who flies high for lobs with his lengthy frame. The University of Kentucky product also handles the ball like a guard and can cross up opposing bigs and quickly get by them with a dribble or two.
Here’s clip of Davis’ performance against Denver from Feb. 2020.
He can run the floor much better than Jokic can, part of the reason why the Lakers were one of the best transition-scoring teams in the league. Jokic is slightly more talented offensively than Davis, and for that reason, I’ll give him, and the Nuggets, the nod here. But it’s really close. Things aren’t so good for the Serbian on the other end of the floor, though.
Defense
Anthony Davis is far and away a superior defender than Nikola Jokic. Don’t kid yourself because there’s no debating that. AD was the runner up for DPOY and earned First-Team All-Defensive honors, as well. He also ranks seventh in defensive rating this postseason, per NBA stats.
He has impressive lateral quickness for his size, which is why he’s capable of guarding along the perimeter. Here’s a video of Davis defending both Jokic and Jamal Murray in a Dec. 2019 meeting earlier this season:
Davis forced Murray into difficult, contested shots over his outstretched arms. He also had Jokic second guessing to take shots in the paint and from outside because of AD’s shot-blocking ability.
On the flip side, Jokic can be a liability on defense at times. Despite having the second-most total boxouts (79) during the playoffs, he has slow feet, provides little-to-no rim protection and is the reason why Denver has to play drop coverage when defending PnRs. He can hold his ground in the post thanks to his size, but his lack of athleticism limits him beyond that.
The defensive advantage undoubtedly goes to Davis. And when we consider play on both sides of the ball, the conclusion is simple: Anthony Davis is the better player.
Hopefully, for the sake of our basketball fandom, we see the two matched up and battling it out countless times in the Western Conference Finals.
(stats via Basketball-Reference)
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