Better passer Jokic or Bird

[EasternHeretic]

Who's the better passer

[cl2117]

I'd say they're close to on par, which is the highest of compliments for Jokic. He's genuinely the closest thing I think the modern NBA has to Bird. Larry Legend gets the benefit of the doubt, but Joker is a BEAST. His game is just so fun to watch.

[HollowEarth]

Bird. There's nobody in the NBA atm ahead of him in passing. Something I like about the comparison is both guys use(d) a lot of touch passes where they're passing and catching in one motion.

[70sFan]

Jokic is one of the very few players in NBA history who could be compared to Bird in terms of strict passing skills and vision. I might give Bird the slightest edge, but it's almost impossible to choose.

[cupcakesnake]

I can't differentiate between 2 players who are 10/10.

[The_Hater]

I know it’s sac religious to not pick Bird (or Magic) in a passing thread, but Jokic is also quite a special talent in this regard. It’s just sometimes harder to see the same greatness in a current player when comparing him to a retired ATG.

[boomershadow]

The fact that it's hard to choose isn't a knock on either player, it just means that Jokic is in elite company.

[NO-KG-AI]

Jokic is one of the very few players in NBA history who could be compared to Bird in terms of strict passing skills and vision. I might give Bird the slightest edge, but it's almost impossible to choose.

Agreed, I think I'm leaning Jokic, but it might be recency bias.

[cupcakesnake]

Bird and Jokic (and Magic and Nash and maybe a few other players) threw passes my mortal brain was unable to predict or comprehend without using magic (replaying it over and over again for years). Who am I to judge the gods? I can pick my favorite, but i'll never be smart enough to ascertain who was better. There are interesting differences between these players, in terms of what kinds of passes they threw, how they generated their passing, on-ball/off-ball passing, what other skills contributed to the threat of their passing etc. But trying to construct a reasonable argument for one of these guys being better than another is hard imo. They're the Mount Olympus of passers.

[Lalouie]

bird, and he's better than lebron too. 1 less apg and he wasn't even directing the floor

it takes a special player to make the true no-look touch pass. it brings court awareness to an almost metaphysical level. to instinctively be 3steps ahead of the pass itself. it's like bird is playing chess and he sees where all the pieces are.

imagine this,,,being aware of the floor with such clarity that when an instantaneous moment occurs for that brief millisecond touch pass, bird's mind has ALREADY done it. and he does it in moments of chaos, when there is no structure to the play. i have never seen a player demonstrate such INSTINCTIVE clarity of the smallest of things

Watch on YouTube

[SonicMcMahon]

I voted Bird but with hesitance.

The only passer I would have over them both with certainty is Magic. I think it's something like:

Magic
Bird
Jokic
Nash

HM: Kidd, Stockton

Edit: HHM: Lebron, CP3

^Did I mis anyone?

[nyczlegacy]

1a/1b both god tier passers

[Fencer reregistered]

The paint was more crowded in Bird's day, so his interior passing had a greater degree of difficulty. He also was an elite outlet passer and, when running the floor himself, part of the Celtics' no-dribble fast breaks.

I think that all puts him a little ahead of Jokic ... but yes, this is the correct comparison, as I've been (one of the people who's been) saying for a while.

[NuggetsWY]

Different time, different style of play --- plus, too many young fans did not see Bird's uniqueness. His greatness wasn't about no-look passes (but yes, he did some). His game was about making the right play and usually about avoiding mistakes.

Jokic takes more risks, but that's the modern game.

For those who don't remember: Bird tended to play off the wing while Jokic tends to play around the top-of-the-key. Passes from the wing can be more difficult IMO. (Those that do remember should feel free to correct that statement if I am wrong.)

[The Real Dalic]

Bird and Jokic (and Magic and Nash and maybe a few other players) threw passes my mortal brain was unable to predict or comprehend without using magic (replaying it over and over again for years). Who am I to judge the gods? I can pick my favorite, but i'll never be smart enough to ascertain who was better. There are interesting differences between these players, in terms of what kinds of passes they threw, how they generated their passing, on-ball/off-ball passing, what other skills contributed to the threat of their passing etc. But trying to construct a reasonable argument for one of these guys being better than another is hard imo. They're the Mount Olympus of passers.

I agree but I would personally add LeBron and Chris Paul to your list as well. Than it starts to get harder to find passers as great as them. Though I'm sure there are a couple.

[The Real Dalic]

I voted Bird but with hesitance.

The only passer I would have over them both with certainty is Magic. I think it's something like:

Magic
Bird
Jokic
Nash

HM: Kidd, Stockton

Edit: HHM: Lebron, CP3

^Did I mis anyone?

I made the same list and can't believe I managed to forget about Kidd and Stockon. Wow. I feel dumb.

[FinnTheHuman]

I give Bird slight advantage when it comes to effectiveness and the contribution to winning when it comes to passing.

When it comes to aesthetics, I go Jokic all the way. Jokic makes it look so effortless, he never goes for these extra athletic efforts to put himself into position to get the pass through defenders, he doesn't pass while exploding and just dumping it quickly like Bird did, everything is very smooth and in rhythm about his passing. Bird would have a lot of these effective, but anxious-looking herky jerky efforts in order to get the assist. So I would rather watch Jokic pass, but that doesn't make him a better passer.

[Gibson22]

I say bird is top 5 while jokic is borderline top 10, but jokic has more consistent creation

[cupcakesnake]

I voted Bird but with hesitance.

The only passer I would have over them both with certainty is Magic. I think it's something like:

Magic
Bird
Jokic
Nash

HM: Kidd, Stockton

Edit: HHM: Lebron, CP3

^Did I mis anyone?

I made the same list and can't believe I managed to forget about Kidd and Stockon. Wow. I feel dumb.

tbh I don't have Lebron, Cp3, stockton or Kidd quite in the same tier. Things obviously get a bit subjective because it's not like i'm basing this off numbers (assists, asst to turnover, asst % or even fancier box creation methods). Also, it goes without saying that these guys are all incredible passers, absolute no debate all-time greats. But I think the 4 mentioned (Magic, Bird, Jokic, Nash) had an extra somethin somethin. A big part of that I think was a risk factor. The big 4 all had a bit of a psycho edge to their passing where they were not afraid of the turnover. They all attempt(ed) high degree difficulty passes on a consistent basis. I view the next tier, which all those guys are in, as being genius passer floor-generals who were a little risk-averse. Great decision makers who put an emphasis on making the right pass all the time while controlling the offense to the best of their ability. Ultimately, I find each of these guys a bit conservative in their offensive style (for better or for worse). This is a bit of weird way of putting it, but I always felt the big 4 are constantly... pushing on the defense, leaning on it, keeping the pressure on it at all times. Whereas CP3/Lebron types are more probing trying to find the right opportunity to attack, or find the best way to draw the defense in to create a passing opportunity. Both/all these styles are valid, and all have been part of great offenses (Kidd to a lesser extent over his career due to his lack of scoring threat). But I do reserve the top tier for those 4 players, who I think are a micro-level up from everybody else in terms of how consistently they were able to threaten the defense with the pass. The improvisational energy just feels so constant with them, where the next tier down it feels like they have that energy slightly less of the time.

[Ballerhogger]

Bird. There's nobody in the NBA atm ahead of him in passing. Something I like about the comparison is both guys use(d) a lot of touch passes whete they're passing and catching in one motion.

Lebron