Throughout its 47 years of existence, the Denver Nuggets have featured plenty of legends and greats of the game, but no one gets closer to Nikola Jokic according to Dan Issel.
For Issel, whose No. 44 was retired by the Nuggets as he played 10 fruitful seasons for them from 1975 to 1985, Jokic is rightfully the greatest Nugget ever as he also confidently expressed that Denver is title-bound for the first time ever.
“People say, ‘How do you stop him?’” Issel told Andscape’s Marc J. Spears about Jokic. “I said, ‘Darned if I know.’ He’s got to be the most unselfish superstar in the league … He’s doing things where he is on lists with Wilt Chamberlain and Magic Johnson, for crying out loud. He’s incredible.
“It’s our turn to win the championship. I really think it’s our turn.”
Denver served as the home of several all-time greats like Issel, David Thompson, Alex English, Dikembe Mutombo, and Carmelo Anthony, but Jokic got ultimate hardware that is way much more lucrative to match.
The Serbian sensation already bagged back-to-back league MVPs, tons of All-NBA selections as well as All-Star honors. He is also on the verge of finally landing Denver in the basketball’s promised land as they only need one more win to capture the team’s maiden championship.
Should Jokic pulls it off by finally handing the Nuggets its first title, there should be no question already about who is the best player ever in the history of the franchise.
