Nikola Jokic just keeps doing what he does: taking an injury-hampered lineup to victory night in and night out as he finds the right guys and makes the right plays. He scored a bunch early, passed a bunch late, and finished around the hoop in the closing minutes to bring this one home for a Denver Nuggets squad that struggled from deep most of the game and on the glass – usually a strength.
But the Nuggets found a way to get it done, as they did against the Memphis Grizzlies in the last game. Jokic was at the center of it all (no pun intended) making sure the Nuggets didn’t lose control of this one despite some questionable referee calls and the Pelicans canning 15 threes on open looks. Monte Morris had a huge game as the understudy floor general to the Joker and Malik Beasley kept doing Malik Beasley things (namely finishing in transition and assassinating teams from beyond the arc) but Joker’s hand at the tiller netted him yet another triple double with 20 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists. That moved Jokic into the top-15 all time in triple doubles with 24, and 12th is just ahead. It’s ridiculous the kinds of numbers Jokic puts up – we’re all getting a bit too comfortable with these triple doubles – but the fact that Denver is 22-2 in his trip-dub games makes the numbers more than just window dressing.
Nikola Jokic filling up the stat sheet leads directly to Denver wins, and that’s what Joker cares about most of all. Check it out below!
