17-Year NBA Veteran Disagrees With Kevin Durant's Statement on Nikola Jokic

Former LA Clippers star Lou Williams weighs in on Nikola Jokic's legacy.
Dec 1, 2023; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant (35) against Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) in the first half at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Dec 1, 2023; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant (35) against Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) in the first half at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

After being drafted 41st overall in the 2014 NBA Draft, Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic has had a more successful career than many players could even dream of.

Jokic has won three MVPs in the last four years and finished second behind Joel Embiid in his lone loss. Leading the Nuggets to the 2023 NBA Championship was a spectacle, earning Finals MVP, but has not had a Finals appearance outside of that run.

This season, Jokic is looking to lock in his fourth MVP award, averaging an absurd 31.6 points, 13.0 rebounds, and 9.9 assists per game with 55.6/47.7/80.4 shooting splits. Already with three MVPs and a championship, Jokic is cementing himself as a first-ballot Hall of Famer but is also climbing up the all-time ranks.

Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15)
Jan 10, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) during the second half against the Brooklyn Nets at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Phoenix Suns superstar Kevin Durant credited Jokic as a top ten NBA player of all-time, but former LA Clippers star and three-time NBA Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams disagreed. Williams voiced his opinion on where Jokic stands on the Run It Back show.

"I don't know if [Jokic] makes my personal top ten, but he's for sure one of those guys that's going to make a huge mark on this league," Williams said. "What he's been able to accomplish, what he's still building out throughout his career. But right now, I for sure have got ten guys in front of him that I feel like have put together better bodies of work."

Jokic has certainly made a case to be one of the all-time greats, especially if he brings home his fourth MVP in five seasons, but Williams makes a strong point. Jokic is certainly a great player and could be in that conversation when he hangs them up, but he has not done enough in his career to be ahead of some of the all-time greats yet.

Another championship would do Jokic a lot of justice in that conversation, and the former Clippers star mentions how another championship and MVP would create a "different conversation."

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Logan Struck
LOGAN STRUCK

Logan Struck is a writer covering the NBA for Sports Illustrated's On SI since 2023