When it comes to career kings among active NBA players, LeBron James and Stephen Curry will come first. LeBron is a player who is approaching an all-time high in cumulative records. He has regrets about the final win rate, but when it comes to the accumulation itself, he is accumulating tremendous achievements enough to compete with prominent legends in their respective areas.
In the case of Curry, who is recognized as the best shooter of all time, he has become a legend that will remain in a page of history in that he changed the league trend with his long-term 3-point shot. It is highly evaluated in that it did not simply take care of individual results, but made the Golden State Warriors, a team that belongs to it, into a prestigious team that stands shoulder to shoulder with the Chicago Bulls.
So who will be the next NBA career king to succeed LeBron and Curry? Since it is a part of talking about a player who will belong to the current era as well as the past, you have to pass very difficult conditions to fit here. Opinions may differ slightly due to the fact that there are many promising players or special players in the original league, but if you look at the performances they have shown so far and their future performances, Giannis Antetokounmpo (28‧ 213cm) and Joker Nicola Jokic (“The Greek Monster”) 27‧211 cm) would be the first thing that comes to mind for many people.
Of course, Luka Doncic (23‧201cm), a basketball genius from Slovenia, is also a worthy candidate. He is showing off a performance so great that it is impossible to predict what kind of performance he will achieve in the future, but the current performance alone is enough to compete with Antetokounmpo and Yochiki. However, when it comes to awards alone, it is still lacking in many ways. There is no MVP title or winning experience required in the process of becoming an all-time great player.
Considering my age in my early and mid-twenties, I don’t know what will happen later, but for now, I have a long way to go. A career in Europe is great, but it has nothing to do with the NBA. Aside from being non-Americans, Antetokounmpo and Yokichi also have something in common in that they are rare in terms of play style. ‘Has there ever been a player of this type before?’ I’m pretty sure I have my own color.
Antetokounmpo is a terrible power forward who attacks like a swing man with the body of a big man. While faithful to the role of number 4, he is sometimes capable of offensive and defensive movements like other position players. Yokichi takes another drink. Even though he is a white big man who does not have excellent athletic ability, he has a competitive edge as a center by making the most of what he is good at with his unique BQ.
Born in 1994, Antetokounmpo is steadily building his own career. He was named MVP in all of the regular season (twice), Finals, and All-Star Games, as well as 4-time First Team, 4-time Defensive First Team, 6-time All-Star, and Defensive Player of the Year. More than anything else, he deserves high marks for leading Milwaukee, where he debuted and grew up, to win the championship.
Yochiki, born in 1995, is also steadily adding to his career with 3 first team, 6 all-stars, and 2 regular season MVPs. Above all, this season is also a strong MVP candidate, so if he gets three consecutive MVPs for the first time since Larry Bird, it will be a great career in itself. Since he has no championship and finals MVP, he is still trailing behind Adetokounmpo. He could be equal right away if he only led his team to a championship.
Antetokounmpo is a player who amazes those around him by jumping farther than high jumps. He jumps high because of his great physical ability, but there are not a few players who are equal to or better than him, so there is nothing special about him. However, his ability to jump long distances with his stride length and flexibility is different. Unbefitting of his size, at the slightest gap he sprints toward the rim with terrifying speed.
He is a 210cm big man who dribbles through the defense from the 3-point line and dribbles. The high-level handling that does not match the physique (?) is enough to arouse admiration from the viewers. He is currently averaging 32 points (3rd overall), 5.2 assists and 11.8 rebounds in 33 games.
‘The heyday version of Sabonis?’, Lithuanian big man Abidas Sabonis (58‧221cm) is a legend who is considered one of the best European players of all time. Having been active on the professional stage and national team since the age of 17, he entered the NBA stage based on his outstanding reputation, but ended up being only a decent main center. It was largely because he stepped on the NBA stage in his heyday in his 30s and lost his athletic ability due to multiple knee surgeries. For this reason, it is true that there were many voices of regret among basketball players, ‘What would it be like if Sabonis came to the NBA when he was in his prime?’
Yokichi is evaluated as a big man reminiscent of the heyday or upgraded version of Sabonis. This is because, beyond the Europeans who have been active in the NBA, they are showing skills and presence that are not pushed back even compared to previous legendary big men such as the 4 centers in the 90s. Considering that he was from the 41st round of the 2014 NBA Draft, 메이저놀이터 it is no exaggeration to say that he literally hit the lottery for his team, the Denver Nuggets.
The biggest advantage of Yokichi is that he can play the role of a field commander even though he is a top-class center. No matter how modern basketball is in the era of position destruction, two players who will be responsible for leading and defending in the top 5 are needed. If there are clear players in 1 and 5, the other three can be configured as 3&D types.
Yokichi is a point center who can play that role alone. He can play commanding four teammates while guarding the bottom of the net. In particular, his passing ability based on his wide field of view is unparalleled among former centers. As mentioned before, he boasts a level that is not unreasonable to say that he has a tall point that is not simply good for a big man.
Using his height, he can see the court wide and make passes at angles that are difficult for guards to give. Above all, compared to heavy handler type aces, who focus on holding the ball to one person, it is possible to give a high score in terms of playing while having a more smooth team play. Currently, he is aiming for MVP for three consecutive times with 25.3 points, 9.5 assists (3rd overall), 10.8 rebounds and 1.4 steals in 36 games.