Toni Kukoc: Never Admit Jokic, Doncic or Giannis Are Better
Hall of Famer Toni Kukoc praises Jokic, Doncic and Giannis but says he will never accept them as better than Drazen, Dino, Divac, Sabonis or Marciulionis.
Toni Kukoc, a Hall of Famer, says he will never accept that today's European stars are better than the players of his own era.
The remarks, made to the Croatian press, came against a backdrop of trophies. Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo have 5 NBA MVP awards between them, and Luka Doncic has been in the running for the prize in every full season since his second year in the league.
Kukoc rates all three highly. "Jokic is praised now, and he deserves it. He is a phenomenal basketball genius, his vision of the court amazes me," he said. He argued, though, that the game around them has changed. "In our time the paint was crowded with huge classical centres who dominated the rebounding battle. Jokic plays in an era when he does not have to deal with three physical defensive centres in every game."
He traced the shared strength of Jokic and Doncic to their schooling. " The basic skills there are honed and calibrated to an academic level, and the understanding of basketball these players have is superior to the rest of the league."
Kukoc then drew the line. "Jokic, Doncic, Giannis. Fine, three MVP-level players. Great ones. But I will never admit that they are better than Drazen, Dino, Divac, Sabonis or Marciulionis," he concluded.
About this article
Prepared by the editorial team with the help of algorithms, based on the sources listed