What we've already learned about Jokic, Westbrook, & each of the Denver Nuggets

[@gnomechomsky2524]

Croatian and Serbian are like 98% the same language

[@DammitBobby]

It's often compared to the difference between British English and American English.

[@almagic2228]

It’s the same, they use to be part of the same country before the war. They can understand each other perfectly.

[@gnomechomsky2524]

@@almagic2228 I’m Croatian and I can say for sure they’re not the exact same, but very close

[@ProjectExMachina]

​@@gnomechomsky2524Dude... Me from Šumadija being in Hercegovina... In a restaurant, I wanted pavlaka but I stopped myself and asked for vrhnje. The Croatian waiter was like he never heard that word before. My Croatian friend saved the day with "He wants kajmak" 🤷 In conclusion, an average Croat will understand Serbian better than Croatian dialects

[@superdopehiphop]

“The media’s job is to criticize him.” 😂 Ppl in the chat saying “Celtics 5 out unbeatable” when Nuggets went 2-0 vs them last year vs Celtics with Jokic Murray killing them. Nuggets 62-20 win pace last year in the games Murray played and his per 100 stats were elite. Celtics have a dope top6, but they had easiest road to finals opposing teams health wise (and even with that was behind most of games 1/3/4 vs my pacers, 2 of which without Haliburton). Nuggets if healthy I’m taking over anyone. They need that injury luck

[@Steveaugustin1]

You guys might want to back away from the mic when taking deep breathes. All i hear is deep breathes in my headphones 😂

[@Nopenopenope23]

That and the ice….

[@samist8792]

Serbian and croatian is the same language. Vlatko Cancar both parents are from Bosnia, so although he was born in Slovenia probably the first language he learnt when he was little was Serbian (Croatian). Luka Doncic father is Serbian and there is a clip where Luka gives an interviewto Slovinian media and where he forgot Slovenian and instead used Serbian word. So for Saric, Jokic, Luka and Vlatko Drrbian is their native language although for Luka and Vlatko so is Slovenian. But i expect that at home with parents they speak Serbian

[@tylerpeters2820]

The Saric, Vlatko, Hunter, Russ, Julian lineup sounds incredible. Obviously Jamal can be in there for Hunter and they go real small. The spacing for Russ and Jamal with those shooters is crazy.

[@SDesWriter]

If MPJ plays really well this season, Denver will be in the top 3. To me, he's the key.....since he's the one guy besides Joker who they have no replacement for. If he plays badly or gets hurt, they're just screwed. Even if Murray goes down, Westbrook could play PG and keep them alive. But there is nothing they can do if MPJ crashes.

[@superdopehiphop]

Stop it they have no one close to Murray. Westbrook is 36 soon and has a ton of mileage. Nuggets 62 win pace last year with Murray (#1 seed by far) and 48 win pace without him in 23 games (play in team). They’ve won 7 playoff series with healthy Jamal (19/20/23) and 2 series with no Murray or hurt Murray in 21/22/24. This isn’t rocket science.

[@SDesWriter]

@@superdopehiphop you’re missing the point. Murray is going to miss games with injuries so the question is are they just going to lose or will Westbrook give them enough at point guard where they can stay afloat? Now contrast that with MPJ and his three point shots. Who’s gonna come off the bench and give them offense from the wing if he’s missing games or if he just is playing badly? Who’s gonna make up the difference?

[@IamHailey8]

About Jamal, you call it sensitive, I call it proud. He's too proud. He doesn't take criticism well, and he definitely will not like Westbrook on his case.

[@harryleland9342]

I disagree. Jamal does not take criticism from normal Joes, you’re right. He has shown he can defer to Malone and Jokic. Russ has the cache to appeal to Mal’s Ego. They will be all right.

[@MarkLewis-l3f]

I have to laugh at people who think they know what kind of personal thoughts exist in the minds of athletes they have never met, know almost nothing about, & only have passing familiarity with through the lens of the very mediocre sports press that covers these players for their own beneficial motives. This team just won an NBA title & the guy most responsible for it next to the world's best player is suddenly developing a cast of hateful people in his own fan base who want to portray him as some kind of loser who is unworthy of respect. The Denver fans base in general has radically declined both in it's understanding of the games as well as the loyalty to the teams. This used to be a top 3 sports city in the country. Its far below that now.

[@IamHailey8]

@@harryleland9342 hope so

[@IamHailey8]

@MarkLewis-l3f i don't know how you got all that from what I said. Never said he was a loser or anything like that. Just said that he's proud.He avoids the media when things don't go well because he doesn't like the criticism

[@tylerpeters2820]

I also think Mike wanted to bulk up because he was getting moved around a lot in that Minnesota series. He was a great rebounder last season, adding 20 lbs of muscle, Mike could average 10 rebounds.

[@mikeyfantastic45]

When Jamal misses the inevitable 10 games for some stretch of the season. Look for Strawther to move to the starting lineup next to Russ

[@angelatanurdzic7508]

Let's go Nuggets!: 💪💪💪

[@skrbosmrdic2003]

Jokic-Serbian Šarić-also Serbian,but he grow up in modern day Croatia…Dario father and mother are Serbs Dončić-Serbian but he grow up in Slovenia,his father is patriotic Serbian from province of Kosovo and Metohija

[@SEANNABIS1]

If ur on locked on Nuggets, neither am I.

[@cowbaby]

The media's job is to criticize him?

[@AbcDino843]

Yeah, when he sucks. He got ALL the praise too, when he deserved it.

[@PetarZorić-k3b]

Harrison Wind is a great name for a horse

[@IamHailey8]

Horses are more intelligent than people realise. If you repeate the nelame close to them, they will learn to recognize it.

[@MarkLewis-l3f]

The media's job is not to criticize players, it's to report what is happening. That idea is probably responsible for the lack of journalistic integrity & arrogance we see coming from media people. The absurdity of a bunch of couch potatoes thinking it's their job to hold the some of the world's best athletes accountable is a sad joke. If Murray is surely with reporters, it's likely because he knows this too.

[@IamHailey8]

A journalist isn't there to criticize, but to report part of the report is to ask tough questions, and jamal needs to stop avoiding those tough questions

[@MarkLewis-l3f]

@@IamHailey8 What questions are you talking about?

[@IamHailey8]

@MarkLewis-l3f last year's tentrum in game 2 against Timberwolves is one example. He avoided the media after the game, and afterward, he was like, it's behind me. I don't wanna talk about it. That behavior invites criticism

[@UraStr]

Well 1 team out of 30 teams wins, not saying all 29 deserve criticism, but lot of them did soemthing wrong and esp. when you get paid millions to play basketball, media should point out when you suck at your job...so yeah they did exactly what you wanted them to do...reported facts

[@MarkLewis-l3f]

@@UraStr The media model you describe is one that largely exists only to perpetuate the narratives that benefit the media itself, not the readers or listeners. "Journalism" no longer exists on a wide scale in this country. Social media has altered the financial landscape, making it no longer about reporting the news but rather gaining internet traffic which drives advertising revenue. I've seen nothing of substance related to Jamal Murray that I consider anything more than what I just described...self serving BS designed to elicit controversy for the sake of attracting attention to the cult of personality that exists in the sports media world now. This is why I get 95% of my information about teams or players through direct research, not from local media hacks or social media posers representing themselves as journalists.

[@vatri357]

Croatian and Serbian are the same language, thought you guys would know that...

[@Wladislav]

Careful with those lip smacks and mouth sounds, guys!

[@gabrielarchuleta6798]

Studio B is your new home until the Broncos suck again. Haha

[@Jagdrasport-ek2po]

👍

[@UraStr]

Funny how they talk about Westbrook and Saric. On one hand high IQ players and fit for Denver, on other hand it's great to see Murray and Westbrook taking their turns. So which is it? Are we going to play your turn my turn or are we going to play smart basketball, because Westbrook is many things, he's definitely not smart basketball player.

[@MarkLewis-l3f]

Westbrook is coming off the bench, not starting. Malone figured out how to coach Boogie Cousins, which means he can do the same with Russ.

[@Him671-y9d]

This narrative that Russell Westbrook isn't smart but managed to get an MVP, managed to make multiple all nba teams and managed to have the best player in the league wanted him on his team is incredulous in thought.

[@UraStr]

​@@MarkLewis-l3fwhat is Saric doing? And since shen Murray doesn't stagger?

[@UraStr]

​@@Him671-y9dhe's smart human being, driven has great physical talent and knows how to take care of himself. But he's not smart baller he's type A hooper...let's not rewrite history

[@MarkLewis-l3f]

@@UraStr I don't know what you're talking about with respect to Saric. Murray won't be playing with the 2nd unit now that Russ is here. There's really no reason for that.

[@UnoDinero95001]

38:02 dj has said they get along great, so what are you even talking about man?

[@AbcDino843]

It's all roses now, but from experience, it's not likely that Jamal will take Westbrook's involvement well, but fingers crossed.

[@miljanmatovic880]

Serbian language vs croatian language = english vs american

[@BaronMagick]

Someone will get hurt on this stupid fancy adventure

[@zachlazarov548]

Croatian is equal to Serbian, Slovenian is not

[@UnoDinero95001]

26:09 theres no way u think russ is a bad defender, what are we doing here man😂

[@aden-oi2tz]

I'm a westbrook he's not a bad defender it's just that he gambles too much then sometimes he doesn't get back😭

[@superdopehiphop]

He’s almost 36 and 41st all time in career mins including playoffs (12th most for any guard). He’s -0.3 DPBM since 21-22. 113 DRtg since 2021-22 (104 ORtg). I was big fan of OKC Westbrook, but he’s (understandably) gotten worse every year since 21-22 (year 14, 15, 16, now yr17 this yr). He’s still a no brainer signing at vet minimum (for nuggets or any team), but he’s not close to a “good defender” by any means.

[@Him671-y9d]

@@superdopehiphopKCP had a higher defensive rating in 23-24 and in his career compared to Westbrook. So two questions, are you saying KCP is a bad defender as well and why lie when google is free?

[@superdopehiphop]

@@Him671-y9d KCP is a much better defender than Westbrook especially at this point in his career. DRating can def be a team thing based on how good the defense is around you. I should of just focused on DBPM (which you conveniently didn’t mention) where KCP last 2 yrs is > then Westbrook and more importantly DEFENSIVE EPM where KCP was +1.4 in the 88th percentile last year vs Westbrook +1.1 in 85th percentile. So actually by that metric Westbrook was better last year defensively than I had given him credit for. KCP is a solid hard working defender especially off ball and chasing ppl around screens. As an on ball 1-1 defender it depends on the matchup. He’s never made any 1st or 2nd team all NBA defensive team and wasn’t close to making one until last year so he’s never been a great defender. Westbrook has also never been a great 1-1 defender (and gets lost off ball at times not paying attention on back door cuts), he just plays his ass off, hustles, gets defections/steals (88th percentile in STL% last yr), but my main point was he’s going into year 17, more minutes played then all but 11 other guards ever, has had alot of leg injuries that add up so counting on him to be some good to great defender is fools gold just like it would be for any guard ever going into yr 17 and approaching 45,000 mins! Especially one who has played as hard as anyone ever and relied on insane athleticism. This isn’t rocket science.

[@Him671-y9d]

@@superdopehiphop ok, by your logic then Nikola Jokic is a better defender than Rudy Gobert, Giannis and Bam Adebayo considering that he had the best DBPM. The logic behind using a singular statistic to base defensive prowess can lead to your parochial argument. Second to that saying that Westbrook has never been a good 1 on 1 defender is your own fallacious and skewed belief, if you cannot provide evidence to provide credence to that claim then the notion fails. Especially since these things tend to be augmented due to the media, while it is widely understood that people take plays off including KCP. Age is a number and mileage does matter if you do not do anything to trammel its trajectory. Seemingly, while his athleticism has diminished from his prime years, he remains exceedingly spry more so than KCP. Therefore despite his injuries and his mileage, it would seem that he has taken care of his body enough to endure the hardship while being able to maintain high level athletics.