An American Can’t Imitate the Point Center Jokić Playstyle

Posted on by Jorden

I’ve been pretty open on this blog about how I don’t do a great job watching the NBA. I’ve always been more of a college ball kind of guy; it’s just in my blood. I’ve spent time way too much time watching highlights of the NBA combine scrimmages. Even though they are all tainted by Bronny (future influencer/SpringHill Company Executive), it’s cool to see Jalen Bridges in a scrimmage and be like, “Hey I know him.” Also, watching Jamal Shead play defense in scrimmages where it seems everyone is direly focused on offense. But after watching enough of these games, I got stuck on the stark difference between the specialization on the court, and the freeplay I see from Jokić.

Now, I see the issue with me comparing college players trying to secure a spot in the draft versus a three-time NBA MVP. In essence, it is a ludicrous comparison from the jump considering how different the level of play and coaching in college is to the NBA. But hear me out for a second, because it’s a larger discussion and look at the way Americans train and coach, versus the Serbians. And it all stems from a tweet I stumbled across today.

Yes, this led me down a sports-politics rabbit hole.

This led me to read the original article (here) about Jokić, which just condenses what a Time article says. In essence, the Tito regime of Yugoslavia inspired a training style of positionless basketball.

Socialism and Training

I have a difficult relationship with communism and socialism because when I was working at a frozen yogurt shop as a teen (colored berry), I got in trouble with the manager on duty for referring to our tipping system as “communist” to a customer. In my 16-year-old mind, communism basically meant “when we share”, and we shared our tips. I am still wildly annoyed by that whole interaction because I wasn’t making a policy prescription; it was a descriptive term.

There are a few things I know about the Eastern Bloc (I am including the former Yugoslavia in this): brutalism, a disturbing amount of red (King Charles core), and intense training. Of course, this perception comes from the stereotypical representations of Ivan Drago, or the real-life gymnastics teams. America had its own Eastern European coaches in the Károlyis. Turns out rigorous training leads to ample opportunities for abuse. I digress here.

But, as pointed out in the article, the thing that made Jokić was the Serbian training. Some may say it was Yugoslavian in origin, but that’s a larger Balkan-political discussion. Either way, it allowed Jokić to become the point center that wins MVPs. I’m not going to pretend I’m an expert. If I was a better blogger, I’d spend time reading up on Serbian/Eastern European training styles. From the outside looking in, the non-positional training allows freedom of expression. It’s similar to how South American soccer players are so creative in their play; their training (streetball/futsal) allowed it. (This is where I promote The Away Game).

Watching a guy like Jokić feel the necessity to take a three would send an AAU coach into an insurmountable level of shock. He may even start charging reasonable prices for an insane amount of travel. But, as the Time article said, “All young players trained using the same drills regardless of height or individual strengths.” And that’s how you concoct the perfect point center.

And you can’t get that in America.

Jokić and American Training

Jokić and Messi exist in the same corner of my mind as athletes. As insane as that sounds there is a reason. If I saw either walking down the street I would not think athlete. Even less would I think world-beating athlete who changed the game. Even watching Jokić, he is tall and clunky and something that a YMCA Wednesday night league is in desperate need of. Yet his style of play is like that of classical jazz – free-flowing and extraordinary when you see it all come together. And it’s not just him using booty ball to get to the post, it’s flashy assists and weirdly shot threes that change the game. In a sense, he is a physical paradox.

The Jokić style of play.
Seems fitting about Jokić’s playstyle.

And this is what brings me to the crux of the issue at hand – why I don’t think an American can play like this. In the comments of that original article, the only comment mentioned that Jokić’s style is similar to Bill Walton, a socialist. I didn’t watch Bill Walton; highlights can never do the past visual justice. To understand one’s game you have to see it in full context, not just the cool parts. So I’ll leave Bill Walton to have Bill Burr-style conversations on the Pac-12 Network (does it exist) and ESPN while letting those who watched him put his game in the proper context. And I will focus this blog on modernity.

There’s also a reason I focus more on the point center than other positions. Because you see guys like LeBron (even if he is somehow more than a generational talent), who is technically a forward but can do anything. There are the Marc Gasol’s and Joakim Noah’s of the world who technically could be classified as point centers, but they never put up the offensive or defensive numbers of Jokić. Nor did they run the floor like Jokić.

So, why do I bring this all up? In my mind, it has to do with early onset specialization. Anecdotally, in sports, I saw that same early, forced specialization. Everyone was pretty immediately put into a position that fit their body type from a young age. And, it makes sense from a coaching perspective; to focus early and get that third base specialized skillset embedded. From a capitalist perspective, it makes even more sense. Focus skills toward one direction and the assembly line runs incredibly well. Even modernly, think of LinkedIn searches and how everyone has a pretty direct line from job to job. It makes the workforce more efficient.

This isn’t supposed to be some diatribe or dissection of capitalism and its effects on sports training. Let’s not pretend the system hasn’t worked wonders. And there are times you get Julian Edelman’s where there’s a QB/WR combo that makes it deep into NFL history. At the same time, it’s going to limit the ability of another Jokić to emerge. But there is only one Jokić. You can make the argument that a Luka or, to a lesser extent, a Wemby is the product of that same environment. But, let’s not pretend that the league is made up of Europeans, even if some of the top players are European.

Not shown: Every European player losing to an American in the Spanish MVP race.

The point of this blog is not to emphasize or endorse one training style. For a Jokić to emerge from the Balkans, there are hundreds of other centers left behind. Jokić is a product of his athletic excellence, coupled with his non-positional upbringing, which has led us to this point. Sure, is there maybe some American out there who possesses the skills to become a second Jokić years and years down the line? Sure. But that’s not how our training works. He will be a dominant paint center and he will like it.

There’s probably someone out there who can do a better job at actually breaking down training than me. But from my experience, everything I’ve seen in real life and through college ball, Jokić is one of a kind. The best we can do right now is go full Moneyball and create Jokić in the aggregate. (Don’t give Daryl Morey any ideas).

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