Nikola Jokic and Magic Johnson’s highlight reel has stunning similarities

Before turning 30, Nikola Jokic has already won three NBA MVP trophies, one championship, and one NBA Finals MVP, establishing himself as the best basketball player in the world heading into the 2024-25 season. was. Jokic faced one of the biggest challenges of his career this season as the rest of the Denver Nuggets roster began to crumble around him. He responded with perhaps the best season of his career.

Jokic will start the new season ranked third in the NBA in points, first in rebounds and second in assists. He scores with very high efficiency (65% actual shooting) while operating at a massive 30% usage rate. The Nuggets go from being one of the best teams in the NBA when he's on the floor (+10.51 Net Rating) to the worst team (-15.28) when he's on the bench.

Jokic's three MVPs are tied with Magic Johnson, Larry Bird and Moses Malone for the most MVPs of all time. If he wins his fourth championship this year, and he is the current favorite, he will join LeBron James, Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan, Bill Russell and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He would be the only player in the league to win four or more MVPs. history.

On Thursday night, Jokic recorded his league-leading ninth triple-double in a game Denver narrowly lost. cleveland cavaliers. This was Jokic's 139th career triple-double, moving him past Magic Johnson for third place in league history. The NBA used this opportunity to celebrate the similarities between Jokic and Magic, but it's downright eerie how some of these moves feel like carbon copies of each other. Watch a supercut of Jokic and Johnson here.

Jokic is too young to have seen Magic in person, but it's clear that the versatility, creativity and high IQ that pulsed through Johnson's game is being translated into the modern era through the Nuggets star.

There are also many statistical similarities between Johnson and Jokic. Box Score Plus/Minus is an all-in-one statistic that estimates a player's impact on the court. Jokic and Johnson are each in the top five in NBA history in that metric.:

Win shares per 48 minutes is another stat where both Jokic and Johnson shine:

Only 12 players in NBA history have averaged more than 19 points, seven rebounds and seven assists in a career. Jokic and Magic are both on the list..

The Magic have a clear case for being a top 10 player in league history. Jokic is getting close, too.