“Celtics aren’t even playing on Tuesday” - NBA analyst rips TNT apart for not featuring Nikola Jokic on opening night poster
NBA analyst Kevin O' Connor slammed TNT for not featuring Nikola Jokic on their opening night poster.
Jokic and the Denver Nuggets open their NBA 2023-24 regular season against the LA Lakers on Tuesday (October 24).
However, in the NBA on TNT poster, the superstar was nowhere to be featured in the network's opening night graphic title.
Instead, it had Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics who open their campaign on Wednesday (Oct. 25) against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
O'Connor slammed TNT for their lack of research and even disrespect for the reigning champions.
"Really strange Jokic isn’t featured on this graphic. The Celtics aren’t even playing on Tuesday!"
It further adds to the ongoing narrative that the media showcases big names and big teams as part of their coverage — something the Nuggets were vocal about last season.
In what comes as ironic, former NBA star Charles Barkley an analyst for Turner, had earlier lambasted ESPN for their favoritism of the Lakers and LeBron James.
Now, they have conveniently left out Nikola Jokic in the graphic when the Nuggets prepare to take on LA on opening night at the Ball Arena.
Nuggets coach Michael Malone had called out the media for their lack of focus on Nikola Jokic
During the Western Conference Finals between the Nuggets and the Lakers, their former coach Michael Malone ripped into the media for their disparity in coverage.
The spotlight was solely on LeBron James and the purple and gold, so Malone didn't mince words when he called out the press.
“Let’s be honest, the national narrative, was, ‘Hey, the Lakers are fine. They’re down 1-0, but they figured something out.’ No one talked about Nikola just had an historic performance (in Game 1). He’s got 13 (playoff) triple-doubles now, third all-time. What he’s doing is just incredible.
“But the narrative wasn’t about the Nuggets. The narrative wasn’t about Nikola. The narrative was about the Lakers and their adjustments. So, you know, you put that in your pipe, you smoke it, and you come back and you know what, we’re gonna go up 2-0.”
Malone was spot-on in his assessment of Nikola Jokic. The former MVP is a five-time NBA All-Star and posted a massive stat line of 34 points, 21 rebounds and 14 assists in Denver’s Game 1 win. However, there wasn’t much talk about him and the Nuggets before the start of their second game.
Now, the disparity seems to have continued with Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets snubbed in the opening night title card.