Nikola Jokic set a new career milestone in terms of free-throw points, drawing criticism from supporters of Joel Embiid. During the clash with the Golden State Warriors, the Serbian center found himself at the free-throw line a remarkable 18 times, successfully converting all 18 attempts.
This game marked a unique occurrence in Nikola’s NBA career, where he had never previously scored as many points from the free-throw line in a single match. Concluding the game with an impressive stat line of 26 points, 14 rebounds, and eight assists, Nikola earned the distinction of being the first player since Tracy McGrady in 2002 to achieve an 18-point performance in a Christmas Day game.
Despite this remarkable feat, social media dubbed him a ‘Free Throw Merchant,’ implying heavy reliance on free-throw points. Notably, such monikers were frequently associated with Jokić’s primary competitor, Joel Embiid, making the appearance of such comments on Jokić’s account unsurprising.
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Was about time to treat MVP like a true MVP. The disrespect of referees towards him past seasons was rather difficult to understand. In season 2022-2023 Jokić was 22nd in free-throws attempted (6 per game). Take this into consideration – Giannis, Embiid, SGA and Luka all played in less season games than Jokić and all of them had at least 270 more FTA than Jokić. Call Jokić ,,free-throw merchant” if you want but don’t be hypocrites, call these guys the same.