Nikola Jokić has stacked plenty of passes into his career reel, but the Denver Nuggets center has already picked out a favorite: the behind-the-back bullet he fired to Cam Johnson in the preseason opener against the Utah Jazz on Oct. 4.
Jokić was working Lauri Markkanen on the strong-side corner when he spotted Johnson waiting along the baseline. With three Utah defenders in the lane area, Jokić snapped the ball behind his back and sent it through the traffic directly to Johnson for an uncontested 3-pointer.
Johnson recently revisited the play with NBA staff and was still struck by how little time the pass gave the defense to react.
“I didn’t have to move my hands,” Johnson said. “Amazingly fast.”
The pass was not simply an improvised trick. Jokić said those reads can pop into his head in the moment, though he also needs repetitions to make them possible when the window opens.
That has been the defining feature of Jokić’s playmaking: a center seeing the floor like a lead guard, then delivering the ball before help defenders realize where the possession is headed. He has recorded 6,080 assists in his NBA career, placing him 41st on the league’s all-time list.
For all of those no-look feeds, touch passes and cross-court deliveries, Jokić put the Johnson pass at the top of his own list.
“That one would be right on top,” Jokić said. “I think that’s my personal favorite.”
