Nikola Jokic is establishing himself as one of the most versatile offensive players of all time by dropping another triple-double in the Denver Nuggets‘ 114-126 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
This was Jokic’s 139th triple-double for his career, surpassing Magic Johnson’s career total of 138 for third position on the all-time triple-double list.
Nikola Jokić's 139th career triple-double:
🃏 27 PTS | 20 REB | 11 AST 🃏
He's now THIRD on the all-time TRIPLE-DOUBLES list! 💫 pic.twitter.com/9kQsP8vnhK
— NBA (@NBA) December 6, 2024
Jokic put up 27 points (13-26 FG), 20 rebounds, and 11 assists in the 114-126 loss to the Cavaliers, who currently hold the best record in the NBA.
Jokic is averaging a triple-double on the season with 29.9 points, 13.4 rebounds, and 10.4 assists per game. If he sustains these averages for the season, he’d be only the third player in NBA history to average a triple-double for the season.
The other two players to have completed that accomplishment are the two players ahead of Jokic on the list. Oscar Robertson is in second with 181 while teammate Russell Westbrook is the all-time leader with 200.
Jokic is on pace to surpass Westbrook’s record right now, but it depends on Jokic consistently averaging about 15-20 triple-doubles over the next four years. He’s had over 10 triple-doubles per season every year since 2017-18, with Jokic notching 63 triple-doubles since the 2022-23 season.
He’s already has nine this season and it’s entirely likely he will breach the 25-triple-double mark this season again after doing so in the last two years as well.
The Nuggets Are Overly Dependent On Nikola Jokic
The Nuggets are almost entirely reliant on Jokic to win games for them with co-star Jamal Murray having a rough season so far. Michael Porter Jr. seems to have emerged as the team’s No. 2 option behind Jokic, currently in the midst of a purple patch of form. Westbrook is looking the best he has in years with a bench role on the Nuggets, so there’s enough on the roster for Denver to stay a Playoff franchise.
Everyone is wondering if the Nuggets championship window has shut after they extinguished their draft capital and financial flexibility to put together the core they have right now. Unless players like Murray or Porter Jr. are moved, the Nuggets can’t reinforce their rotation to keep a competitive core around Jokic for the remainder of his career.
But with a floor-raising player like Jokic on the roster, the Nuggets will feel confident in their chances to remain perennial contenders as long as the center is in his prime. He’s currently the favorite to win a fourth MVP in five years, with his production this season at mind-boggling levels of excellent.
Unless one of the stars on a top-four team starts putting up equally mind-boggling numbers, a lot of people will favor Jokic for MVP given the Nuggets look like a lottery team without him and a Playoff team with him. Luka Doncic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Jayson Tatum will be the likeliest challengers for MVP.
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