Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic. Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

Nikola Jokic returns with a bang to put West rivals on notice

By Sai Mohan | Last updated Mar 27, 2025 8:07 AM ET

In his first game back from a five-game injury hiatus, Nikola Jokic looked like a man possessed.

The Nuggets star attempted 25 shots — 10 more than his career average of 14.9 — and controlled every possession on both ends during his 38 minutes on the floor. Unlike a lot of his "casual" triple-doubles earlier in the season, he played with intent and force, finishing with 39 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in Denver's 127-117 win over Milwaukee.

Jokic also recorded arguably the best assist of the year when he made a mindboggling no-look pass to a cutting Aaron Gordon on the baseline. The play was unique in that Jokic drew two Bucks defenders with a pump fake while driving to the rim. Typically, the three-time MVP finds cutters out of set actions or while posting up, but his aggressive intent to drive to the rim opened up the floor for his teammates.

JOKIC DIME OF THE YEAR???!

ARE YOU KIDDING ME. pic.twitter.com/hyYEnin3XS
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 27, 2025

With his 30th triple-double of the season, Jokic joined Russell Westbrook, Wilt Chamberlain and Oscar Robertson on an exclusive list.

TRIPLE-DOUBLE MACHINE

Nikola Jokić becomes just the fourth player in NBA history to record 30 triple-doubles in a season joining Wilt Chamberlain, Oscar Robertson and Russell Westbrook. pic.twitter.com/Rj3GGlhcc2
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) March 27, 2025

An aggressive Jokic will be a handful for teams to contend with in the upcoming playoffs. His five-game absence may ultimately cost the Nuggets a bit in the crowded Western Conference standings, but Jokic feels it was wise on his part to rest his ankle and get fully healthy for a postseason run.

"It was just smart," Jokic said of missing five games, via The Denver Post's Bennett Durando. "I couldn't really jump on my left leg. So it was really painful, and it was just better to feel good. I don't want to be on the floor and feel nervous because I cannot play how I want to play and on the level I want to play."

Jokic confirmed that he's nearly fully healthy and plans to finish the season on a high.

Does Jokic feel 100% or just good enough? “I feel much better than I thought. I don’t want to say percentages and stuff, but I feel much better than I thought I was gonna be. … I still feel (the ankle) a little bit, but it’s much much much much much less than how it was before.”
— Bennett Durando (@BennettDurando) March 27, 2025

The Nuggets (46-28) are 1.5 games behind the Rockets (47-26) for the second seed, but have an easier schedule the rest of the way. They also hold just a one game lead over the Lakers and Grizzlies for the fourth and fifth seeds. Incidentally, the regular season's final fixture, on April 13, will pit the Rockets against the Nuggets, in a game that could decide the final playoff seedings.

Sai Mohan

A veteran sportswriter based in Portugal, Sai covers the NBA for Yardbarker and a few local news outlets. He had the honor of covering sporting events across four different continents as a newspaper reporter. Some of his all-time favorite athletes include Mike Tyson, Larry Bird, Luís Figo, Ayrton Senna and Steffi Graf.

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