Nikola Jokic draws Tim Duncan comparisons: “He’s a good guy to look up (to)”

Before Nikola Jokic was a superstar bound for his inaugural All-Star game start, and long before he was throwing down poster dunks in crunch time against the Chicago Bulls, the unheralded Serbian big man watched videos of legendary forward Tim Duncan.

“I looked a little bit at his videos, how he’s playing the game,” Jokic revealed after obliterating Chicago’s frontcourt for 17 points in the fourth quarter and rescuing a Nuggets win.

“I can just imagine him in his prime,” Jokic said after coach Michael Malone raised the comparison in his postgame press conference. “I think he knew it in every moment what he’s going to do on the floor, how he can manipulate the defender or whatever. He’s a good guy to look up for.”

Jokic still remembers fondly when the two crossed paths late in the 2015-’16 season. Back then, Jokic was a rookie and Duncan was two weeks shy of his 40th birthday, playing out the last few weeks of his storied career.

“I always said, he gave me the easiest 20 points ever,” Jokic joked. “He did not feel me. For real.”

But at least Duncan, who actually led the Spurs with 21 points that night, gave Jokic something more than just grainy clips to emulate.

On Monday night, after Jokic dropped 39 points on 17-of-28 shooting along with 14 rebounds and nine assists, Malone couldn’t help but draw a line from Duncan’s humble reign to the way Jokic consistently carries himself.

“I’m not saying he’s Tim Duncan,” Malone said. “Tim Duncan is arguably the greatest power forward to ever play the game. All I’m saying is that Tim Duncan was a world champion, and he was probably the most humble guy that you ever saw.

“Nikola carries himself in the same light,” Malone said.

Malone has said it repeatedly during Jokic’s steady march to stardom. He is the foundational piece at the heart of the franchise, the player whose demeanor sets the tone for the rest of the locker room.

Now averaging career-highs in points (26.7), rebounds (10.9), assists (8.5) and 3-point percentage (42.1%), Jokic is firmly entrenched in the MVP race. At this point, it’s the Nuggets’ record (19-15) that’s his biggest blemish, however there’s an argument to be made that Jokic’s case is strengthened when you consider where Denver would be without the modest superstar.

And without him in Chicago on Monday, there’s no chance the Nuggets would’ve prevailed.

“I see all these conversations about ‘Who would you want to start a franchise with?’” said Malone, his tone rising. “I never see Nikola’s name mentioned. And I’m dumbfounded by that. My nominee, I got a write-in nominee, ‘Nikola Jokic is a guy that I’d like to build a franchise with.’”

His tongue-in-cheek comment had as much to do with the outside perception of Jokic as it did the respect level he garners. Malone drew a technical foul, and flirted with an ejection, while arguing a no-call against Jokic in the first half.

“I’m just trying to fight for him, to get the calls that I think he deserves,” Malone said.

Despite a fierce competitive streak, Jokic’s quiet nature naturally evokes associations with Duncan. Their cerebral approach to the game isn’t dissimilar, either, and their shared goal of winning trumps everything else. Around Duncan, the Spurs won five championships, setting a culture of “we” rather than “me.”

“We’ve been pretty good, we’ve never won a championship yet, that’s our goal, but Nikola’s just happy to be a part of the group, help us win and doesn’t want the spotlight,” Malone said.

Sometimes, though, there’s no hiding from it.

Amid Jokic’s fourth-quarter assault, as the Nuggets trailed 108-106 with barely 2:00 remaining, he and Jamal Murray ran a high pick-and-roll that forged a crease in Chicago’s frontcourt. Murray fed Jokic a timely pocket pass, and two thunder steps later, he was elevating over Bulls rookie Patrick Williams, detonating on arguably the biggest dunk of his career. Duncan certainly wasn’t known for his explosions, and Jokic won’t be either.

“Is this my first-ever poster in my life?” he asked.

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