Being a fabulous player is one thing, but sometimes you have to have a quality of reading and listening to what is happening around you to take on an even higher dimension. We spend our time throwing flowers at Nikola Jokic since the start of the playoffs – and even well before – but the Serb walks on water and seems to be one step ahead of everything that is happening before his eyes.
In Game 1 of the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat, the two-time MVP had his ears strained as he prepared to shoot a free throw. As we can see on the video below, highlighted by journalist Mat Issa, Nikola Jokic captures that the Heat will use the “Pistol” system. He then mimics a pistol in the direction of his teammates and his bench. Miami puts the ball back in play and actually executes this system (at least the 21 keep variation). Denver is in place to deal with it and it is Jokic himself who comes to stand in front of Bam Adebayo and pushes him to lose the ball.
Jokic is a genius.
He’s absolutely exhausted, yet he still picks up on the fact that the sideline is signaling for a Pistol action (this variation is called “21 Keep”).
He notifies his teammates, they are on top of it, and it leads to a back-breaking turnover for Miami. pic.twitter.com/hvRmshmRNV
– Mat Issa (@matissa15) June 2, 2023
No need to be the most athletic or the fastest. Sometimes you just have to be attentive and the basketball IQ does the rest.
The Pistol system and its main variant
2023-06-04 21:49:33
#Nikola #Jokic #grills #Heat #system #mimes #teammates #annihilates
