4X NBA champ Klay Thompson hails Nikola Jokic as ‘best center ever’
Mavs star Klay Thompson has huge praise for WC rival Nikola Jokic after recent loss to Nuggets in the NBA.
Follow Us
Luka Doncic and Klay Thompson
The conference rivals Denver Nuggets defeated the Dallas Mavericks 112-101 tonight after the Mavericks blew a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter. Notably, Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic, the Mavs’ stars, were sidelined by injuries. In light of this, Nikola Jokic, the star of the Nuggets, was at his best. He stunned Mavs star Klay Thompson with a spectacular fourth-quarter comeback in Dallas.
Thompson finished Sunday as the top scorer with 25 points. In addition, Thompson did a little bit of everything for the Mavericks, with six rebounds, two assists, one steal, one block, and six made threes. Leading the charge for the Nuggets were Jokic and Russell Westbrook. After the game, Thompson praised Jokic and referred to him as one of the best big men in NBA history in an interview with reporters.
Klay Thomspon said, “He’s one of the best players I’ve ever played against. Three-time MVP who puts up video game-like numbers… Nikola will go down as one of the best big men to ever play this game… Might be the best center I’ve played against.”
Klay Thompson says Jokic is the best center he's played against in his career.
— n i k o l a e s t h e t i c (@nikolaesthetic) January 13, 2025
"Nikola will go down as one of the best big men to play this game" pic.twitter.com/wkxn7QZCAz
Also, Jokic had nine assists, 18 rebounds, and 19 points in the end. In addition, Jokic has won three MVP awards and appears to be improving even more. In 33 games this season, Jokic is averaging 31.2 points, 13.2 rebounds, and 9.8 assists. Interestingly, both players have played their entire careers in the Western Conference, so Thompson has seen Jokic a lot.
In the first round of the 2022 NBA playoffs, Thompson faced Jokic after the Golden State Warriors overcame Denver in five games. Although Jokic excelled in the series, his squad was outmatched due to the dominance of Stephen Curry, Thompson, and Draymond Green.
Klay Thompson has ‘high praise’ for teammate Dereck Lively ll in recent loss
Despite the Dallas Mavericks’ defeat, Dereck Lively II recorded a career-high eight assists against the greatest passing center of all time, Nikola Jokic. Klay Thompson, who played one of his greatest performances of the season with none of their key players, received five of those assists. Thompson praised Lively ll’s performance after the game.
Klay Thompson told the reporters, “I can’t believe D-Live is only 20 years old. What a great player he is and will continue to be. He’s just scratching the surface of what he can be. So active, so athletic. What an incredible gift for him to be on our roster.”
Aside from this, with Lively and Daniel Gafford, Jason Kidd has used more dribble-handoffs this season. Although there have occasionally been some growing pains, Lively’s ceiling indicates that he can do it often, as do games like this one. Last season, Lively averaged 9.3 points per game, 8.1 rebounds per game, and 2.7 assists per game.
Stay Updated!
Kartik Mudaliar
(844 Articles Published)