Nikola Jokic was simply too much even for the Boston Celtics on Thursday night. The Denver Nuggets big man carved up the Celtics’ defense all night long, with the two-time league Most Valuable Player notching a triple-double of 32 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists to go with two steals.
Nikola Jokic Steamrolls The Celtics To Lead Denver Nuggets To Another Win
Jokic did not just flex his muscles. Perhaps even more impressive was his intelligence which was on full display. It seemed as though any defense the Celtics threw at the Denver Nuggets center, he knew how to break it down. Whenever a Celtic helped out on defense, Jokic almost always recognized which teammate was open. His all-around brilliance had Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis in awe.
“He’s just an incredible basketball player,” Porzingis said after the game (h/t ESPN).
“Some things I learned from him today, actually. He’s just so smart, so crafty, so many things you don’t see that he does on the floor that helps that team win. It’s incredible. Whenever you overhelp just a little bit, he’ll find Gordon, he’ll find all these guys. It speaks to how valuable he is for them,” the Latvian added.
The Nuggets’ offense mostly revolves around the mind of Jokic, who is remotely an athletic player but has an advanced understanding of the game.
Jokic leads the Nuggets in scoring with 26.0 points per game and in assists with 12.3 dimes per contest. As a team, Denver is top five in the league so far in the 2023-24 NBA season in assists per game (29.0) and assists per made field goal (0.662). In addition to those, the Nuggets are fifth in the NBA with a 66.2 percent assist rate.
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