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Jokic shares spotlight with Watson in Nuggets win  
Denver Nuggets guard Peyton Watson (8) drives to the basket against New Orleans Pelicans forward Trey Murphy III (25) during the first half at Smoothie King Center. Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Nikola Jokic shares spotlight with Peyton Watson in Nuggets win  

By Mike J. Asti  |  Last updated Nov 20, 2025 12:45 AM ET

On a night Nikola Jokic recorded his ninth triple-double of the season, one of his teammates stood out in his own right. 

Jokic shared the spotlight with Peyton Watson as the Denver Nuggets beat the New Orleans Pelicans, 125-118, on Thursday. 

Continuing his normal standard, Jokic scored 28 points with 11 rebounds and 12 assists in 34 minutes. The three-time NBA MVP furthered his case for his fourth honor with his third consecutive triple-double.

Peyton Watson, not Nikola Jokic, led Denver in points and rebounds

But it was Watson who led the Nuggets in scoring and rebounding, posting a career performance. He put up 32 points, the most he's scored in any NBA game, while shooting 68.4% from the field, hitting on 5-of-9 from long range and adding 12 boards and three helpers as well.

Watson's 32-point game became the first time he's even reached 20 points this season. Entering the day averaging only 6.4 points per game, the No. 30 pick in the 2022 NBA Draft out of UCLA took the pressure off Jokic, at least for one night. 

The win improved Denver's record to 11-3, who are three games behind the Oklahoma City Thunder (15-1) for the top spot in the Western Conference.

Nuggets back on track after losing earlier in the week 

Despite falling to the surprising Chicago Bulls on Monday, the win over New Orleans makes the Nuggets victorious in eight of their last nine games. 

With no rest in between games, Jokic, Watson and the rest of the team will be back at it on Thursday night in Houston to battle Kevin Durant and the Houston Rockets, who sit right below them in the conference standings (10-3). 

Mike J. Asti
Twitter/X

Mike Asti is an experienced media personality and journalist with a vast resume and skillset, most notably from time with TribLIVE Radio and WPXI-TV. Asti now serves as the Managing Editor of WV Sports Now, where he leads the coverage of WVU sports. He has also covered the Steelers, Penguins, Pirates and other teams within the Pittsburgh market

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