Nikola Jokic makes more NBA history in game after wild ejection
Dec 14, 2023, 9:32 PM | Updated: Dec 15, 2023, 11:51 am
DENVER—In the Denver Nuggets’ first game since the nation turned on NBA officials for an absurd ejection of Nikola Jokic in Chicago on Tuesday night, the reigning Finals MVP had a classic game and on Jokmas eve.
Joker led the Nuggets as they blitzed the Brooklyn Nets out of Ball Arena 124-101, successfully starting a three-game home stand. Denver’s star big man tallied his league-leading 10th triple-double in the third quarter of the contest and finished with 26-15-10. In achieving yet another box-score-stuffing night, Jokic became the first player in NBA history to get 10 or more triple-doubles in a season for seven straight years.
Not Mr. Triple-Double Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, or modern-day statistic-compiler Russell Westbrook provided that type of consistency during their peaks. Though Johnson finished his career with more seasons of providing the Lakers with triple-doubles than Jokic has the Nuggets thus far.
Johnson is next for Jokic to surpass in career triple-doubles all-time. After Thursday, the Serbian now sits at 115, which is No. 4 in NBA history. Magic’s 138 is third all-time, with Oscar Robertson at 181 and Russell Westbrook at 198. LeBron James, is just behind the pack at 108 but has only tallied three over the past two years of his legendary career. Meanwhile, Westbrook has only scored four triple-doubles over the past two seasons, meaning the all-time target for Jokic is likely about 200, and after this season he could be alone in third place.
Jokic just missed out on averaging a triple-double for the entire season in 2022-23, falling 12 assists shy, that feat has only been done by Westbrook and Robertson. While that may have cost Jokic a third-consecutive MVP, he had a more impactful legacy-defining moment in bringing the Nuggets a first title. After Thursday’s game Jokic is averaging 27 points a game and leads the NBA in rebounds a game, just under 13, but is 14 assists short of where he needs to be to be averaging a triple-double, right now at 9.5 a game.
Funny enough not only did Jokic quickly tally his stats on Thursday, getting it done without playing the fourth quarter. He only took 12 shots, hitting eight. And a game after being ejected for a season’s long battle over poor officiating, he took his second-most foul shots of the season, 12 attempts.
“He was playing at such a high level,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “Heck of a player.”
The Nuggets host a surging Oklahoma City team on Saturday and then a rejuvized Mavericks group on Monday. Friday is the seven-year anniversary of Malone turning Jokic into his goto guy, known as Jokmas.
