Nuggets' Nelson: 'I'm old and fat and I can jump higher than Jokic'
Stout Denver Nuggets point guard Jameer Nelson hasn't lasted 13 years in the NBA because of a traditional basketball body. Yet he's not afraid to point out that younger teammate Nikola Jokic isn't the world's most elite athlete either.
"Jokic an athlete? He's a good player," Nelson said, according to BSN Denver's T.J. McBride. "I'm old and fat and I can jump higher than Jokic ... off one foot."
Nelson's good-humored shade is no shock. The 21-year-old Jokic certainly isn't the best-conditioned center in the NBA, but that doesn't mean he's just a lumbering big. His passing skills have been compared to past greats like Vlade Divac, and he currently ranks fourth among regular NBA centers in assist percentage, per NBA stats.
Jokic looking like Pistol Pete. (I typed the comment before the announcer said it lol #GreatMinds) #Nuggets pic.twitter.com/BFtENR8vFp
— Bell Bibs DeVoe (@MBibs) December 16, 2016
Nuggets coach Mike Malone has praised Jokic's facilitator skills while admitting concern with his conditioning - which indirectly leads to foul trouble.
"When people get tired, they make mental mistakes," Malone told reporters on Sunday. "(Jokic is) such an integral part of who we want to be, that he has to be more disciplined."
Malone reiterated that the center's playmaking abilities stem from his younger days as an overweight pointman. "He will tell you, he used to be a fat point guard," he said.
Sounds a bit like Nelson.