Jokić’s genius and Brooks’ folly: 20 things I learned from the NBA playoffs

The “best player on the planet” crown is one that is ever-evolving, especially in times like these, when a player like LeBron, who held it for a decade-plus, has aged out of the distinction. Giannis had it for a couple of years, and there have been arguments to be made for Steph Curry in recent ones. But after Denver’s dominant wire-to-wire championship run, it feels pretty definitive: for the time being, at least, it’s Jokić’s to lose.

This Warriors season started out with a bang, literally, as video leaked of veteran Draymond Green punching his up-and-coming (and on the come-up) team-mate, Jordan Poole, square in the face in a pre-season practice. The team’s ire was mostly directed at the leaking of the video, and any ripple effects of the altercation were downplayed. But after a tumultuous season and a disappointing second-round exit, even Draymond himself was forced to admit the figurative impact of the literal impact.

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes. That’s what Memphis Grizzlies guard Dillon Brooks learned in the playoffs this year, when he proclaimed that he “pokes bears” like “old” LeBron James, who, as at worst the second best player in the history of the NBA, is probably not the particular bear you want to poke. Brooks got a lesson in humility in the form of a swift first-round exit and an equally swift release from the Grizzlies’ roster.

You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone (besides, perhaps, the most diehard Heat fans) who predicted earlier this season that Miami, who lost their first play-in tournament game, would end their season with an NBA finals appearance. But Erik Spoelstra didn’t get the memo that his team didn’t have enough on paper to compete this year. He never does. That unshakeable