Josh Kroenke Reveals Why Nuggets Chose To Build Around Nikola Jokic
金塊總裁Josh Kroenke透露為什麼會選擇圍繞著阿肥建隊
Nuggets President Josh Kroenke broke down how the franchise committed to buildin
g around Nikola Jokic in his second season.
The Denver Nuggets made an ambitious call in 2015 when they decided to build the
ir roster around their second-round pick from the year before, Nikola Jokic. Tea
m President Josh Kroenke explained why they decided to build around Jokic instea
d of Jusuf Nurkic at the time.
金塊在2015年做了一個大膽的決定，就是要圍繞著他們的第二輪選秀阿肥建隊。球隊總裁Jo
sh Kroenke解釋為什麼選擇了阿肥而不是Nurkic
"The thing that was unfortunate was the league was trending to small-ball, shoot
ing everywhere. It was even more extreme than it is now, everyone was trying to
be the Warriors overnight. You couldn't play Nikola and Jusuf together. We had t
wo 7-footers who were incredibly skilled and unselfish guys, but trying to play
them together, it presented its advantages, but it was tough for them to cover w
hen you've got four guards out there moving in sync, it's a tough defensive cove
r."
不幸的是當時聯盟流行是打小球、要能在每個地方投射。當時比現在更極端，一夜之間，大
家都想變成勇士。你不能讓阿肥跟Nurkic同時在場上。我們有兩個技巧很好又無私的7呎長
人。讓他們同時在場上有它的優勢，但當有四名後衛同時在場上移動時，協防對他們來說太
難了。
Kroenke then revealed a statistical analysis showed Jokic was outperforming soph
omore-season Larry Bird, which ultimately tipped the scales in Jokic's favor.
Kroenke隨後透露一份數據分析顯示阿肥的數據比大鳥第二年的數據還好，也因此最終傾向
選擇阿肥
"After Nikola's first season, he made First Team All-Rookie. We were halfway thr
ough his second year and we realized we had to choose. They're both starting-lev
el centers. Jusuf's contract was coming up in a year, so we had our analytics gr
oup run a bunch of numbers of how to compare the two and what to look for... Thi
s comparison comes through with Player A and Player B in their second season wit
h the only difference being that Player A was two years older at the time of his
second season. You could see Player B's numbers were better in every category.
I guessed that Player B was Nikola... Player A was Larry Bird."
阿肥第一季後入選了新秀第一隊。第二年中間時，我們發現必須要做出選擇。他們兩個都是
具有先發水準的中鋒。Nurkic的合約一年後到期，所以我們讓我們分析團隊跑數據比較兩個
人跟看下能發現什麼。最後比較是球員A跟球員B在第二年的成績，唯一的差異是球員A在第
二年的年紀比球員B大兩歲。你能看到球員B在每一類的數據都比A好。我猜B是阿肥，A是大
鳥。（這是MPJ podcast的片段，總裁在裡面講的比較清楚，他說他猜B是阿肥，然後分析人
員說他對了，然後他問A是誰，是Nurkic或聯盟中其他人嗎？結果是大鳥）
The decision to build around Jokic over Nurkic was controversial at the time, bu
t everyone can say that it was the right decision without a doubt. While Nurkic
has had a solid NBA career, he never progressed to an All-Star level while Jokic
is looking to seal his third MVP in four seasons and hopefully, a back-to-back
NBA title.
選阿肥而不是Nurkic的決定在當時是引起爭議的，但大家現在能說那無庸置疑，是個正確的
決定。Nurkic有穩定的NBA生涯，但從未達到全明星程度，而阿肥正要拿下四年中的第三座M
VP，且希望能連續兩年奪冠
The statistical comparison that showed Jokic was better than Bird might have bee
n more precise, but Kroenke does mention the involvement of PER 36 stats. Sophom
ore Larry Bird averaged 19.4 points, 9.9 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per 36 minute
s played, while Jokic averaged 21.6 points, 12.7 rebounds, and 6.3 assists as a
sophomore.
顯示阿肥比大鳥好的數據分析比較可能會更詳細，但Kroenke有提到PER36。第二年的大鳥PE
R 36是19.4分、9.9籃板、5.0助攻，而阿肥是21.6分、12.7籃板、6.3助攻。
Nikola Jokic Looking To Beat The Lakers Once Again
阿肥希望再次打敗湖人
The Nuggets title-defense tour will have to go through Los Angeles, as the Nugge
ts face the Lakers in the first round of the playoffs. The Nuggets swept the Lak
ers in their 2023 playoff matchup and swept them in the 23-24 regular season. No
netheless, Jokic isn't underestimating his opposition given how tough their game
s have been.
金塊的衛冕之旅要先過湖人這關，他們將在第一輪就對上湖人。金塊在2023年季後賽橫掃湖
人，且在23-24例行賽也橫掃湖人。僅管如此，阿肥沒低估他的對手，因跟湖人每場都是硬
仗。
"I think every game in the playoff series was really tough, it could have gone e
ither way. It was probably the toughest series we had. Yes, we beat them 4-0, bu
t they're a really talented team. Well-built, they have a couple of guys. I have
huge respect for them and I think it'll be an interesting series/round."
我想季後賽每場都很困難，輸贏都有可能。去年跟湖人可能是我們最難打的系列賽。是的，
我們4-0打敗他們，但他們是很有天份的球隊，陣容堅強，對其中幾人有很大的敬意。我想
會是很有趣的系列賽
Jokic averaged 27.8 points, 14.5 rebounds, and 11.8 assists against the Lakers o
v
er the 2023 series. He's averaging 29.3 points, 12.0 rebounds, and 9.0 assists i
n three games this season, which should worry the Lakers if they hope to get ove
r the hump and pull off a massive upset in the first round.
阿肥在2023年對湖人場均27.8分、14.5籃板跟11.8助攻。今年例行賽三場則是29.3分、12.0
籃板跟9.0助攻。如果湖人想克服困難，在首輪爆冷，阿肥的確是他們該擔心的
https://reurl.cc/WxLQy9
金塊選阿肥可以算是隊史最好的選擇吧