How would Arvydas Sabonis compare as a talent to Nikola Jokic?

[Im Still Ballin]

Any experts here? How would the Lithuanian's talent compare to Nikola's? We're talking about the pre-injury version of course. The best version; the one we never saw in the NBA. Anybody here with a good understanding of what Sabonis' game was? How would it compare to Jokic?


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpSmRpXi8ds


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1LMU2rZ3XA

[FultzNationRISE]

I only remember the older version of Sabonis and the athleticism disparity between him and Jokic I think is pretty significant.

Joker’s athleticism is slept on, I think the reason he rarely leaves his feet is because at his mass, it’s a huge energy burden and also a huge injury risk. But we see glimpses when he contorts his body to finish reverse layups and such that he’s extremely graceful relative to his size.

Im pretty sure he could even be a better rim protector than they ask him to be, but again it’s just not wise to have a 290 pound offensive megaforce picking up fouls and risking injuries trying to play like Robert Williams. It might make him look like a more dominant or complete player, but it would actually be counterproductive for their long term success.

[HoopologyPhD]

Prime Sabonis looks alot like The Dream to me, tough comparison since Sabonis played Euroball which is more of a finesse game

[Im Still Ballin]

Someone did a detailed scouting report based on 12 games prior to his first Achilles injury in 1986:

https://7fs.medium.com/arvydas-sabonis-retrospective-scouting-report-8383d0d8a1a6

He tracked all the shots:

https://i.ibb.co/pLzFFnY/1-Ak-Ez-ZPr-PLPWg-IVWWHMq32-Q.webp

This was his conclusion:


Ceiling: Honestly? If he fulfills his potential, he could be the best player in the world. He has all the qualities to be one of the greatest players in history. He also has weaknesses, he is not perfect, but stuff like defending in space also just is not very important in the NBA of the late ´80s.

Floor: If he does not improve at all and he remains the same player he is at age 21, you are still probably looking at a Top-15 player in the league. Even in that scenario, I could see him averaging 18+ points per game on good efficiency, 10+ rebounds per game, 4 assists and 2 blocks with good rim protection. That would still easily be an All-Star calibre player.

[tpols]

Young Sabonis looks explosive and scores only around the paint. Old sabonis is slow and stiff but making better passes plus hitting some outside shots. They honestly don't even look like the same person. :lol

[Im Still Ballin]

Young Sabonis looks explosive and scores only around the paint. Old sabonis is slow and stiff but making better passes plus hitting some outside shots. They honestly don't even look like the same person. :lol

Thumbs up.

[GimmeThat]

why would anyone need the internet to ask such a question, when the question itself assumes that the world is functioning just fine

[Baller789]

Young Sabonis was a stud.

[SATAN]

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/q2otowl97N0/hqdefault.jpg

[iamgine]

Sabonis was injury prone, which is no surprise given his size. While he was special in terms of his skill, he was not special in his ability to be "That size but still explosive and avoid injury" like Shaq or Lebron. He was always going to get seriously injured.

[Phoenix]

Prime Sabonis clearly had more verticality and force to his game. Would have been interesting seeing him in the NBA 5-10 years earlier with Drexler and co.

[90sgoat]

Old Sabonis is the only one I watched, but he was still a beast. His edge defensively was huge. He was one of the best defenders against Shaq.

If Jokic could shut down Davis, then Sabonis definitely could as well.

I think in terms of playstyle, they were actually remarkably similar, but Sabonis was probably the better 3 point shooter.

[Axe]

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/q2otowl97N0/hqdefault.jpg
:roll:

[L.Kizzle]

Was 88 Olympic version of Sabonis in his prime or past it?

[Im Still Ballin]

Was 88 Olympic version of Sabonis in his prime or past it?

He had already ruptured both of his Achilles tendons by then.

[L.Kizzle]

He had already ruptured both of his Achilles tendons by then.
He would have been a great improvement over the original KD, Kevin Duckworth. RIP.

[tontoz]

Hard to say since most of us didn't see him much until his rookie year in the NBA at age 31 when he was already hobbled.

[1987_Lakers]

full court having nightmarish flashbacks clicking this thread.

[Im Still Ballin]

A more athletic Bill Walton, maybe?

[Jasper]

I'll chime in :
Sabonis was a player anyone would admire.
I think next to Jordan he was maybe one of the smartest players that ever played the game.

But his outside shot was top of the post or the key.

Never had range like the Joker.
Joker is 1a to Sabonis in intelligence of the game.
(It has allowed him 2 mvp's)

And even though I think Sabonis was smarter , Joker has him in 3 pt shooting , range options , and 2 MVP's.