Nikola Jokic’s season is reaching heights that have never been seen before in NBA history. When fans say he is playing like a mix of several legends at once, the numbers back it up. And the latest stats are making rounds, says it all: Jokic is scoring at a level higher than Shaquille O’Neal, shooting the ball better than Larry Bird.
Points
– Shaquille O’Neal’s career-high scoring average: 29.7 PPG (1999-00)
– Nikola Jokic’s scoring average this season: 29.9 PPG
Rebounds
– Karl Malone’s career-high rebounding average: 12.0 RPG (1987-88)
– Nikola Jokic’s rebounding average this season: 12.4 RPG
Assists
– Jason Kidd’s career-high assist average: 10.8 APG (1998-99)
– Nikola Jokic’s assist average this season: 11.1 APG
Field Goal Percentage
– Kareem Abdul-Jabbar career-high FG%: 60.4% in 1979-80
– Nikola Jokic’s FG% this season: 60.4%
Three-Point Field Goal Percentage
– Larry Bird career-high three-point percentage: 42.7%
– Nikola Jokic’s three-point percentage this season: 44.0%
Jokic is averaging 29.9 points, 12.4 rebounds, and 11.1 assists per game while shooting 60.4% from the field, 44.0% from three, and 85.5% from the free throw line. These are not stats from just four or five games. This is sustained excellence that the NBA has never seen before.
For context, Shaq’s career-high scoring season came in 1999–00 at 29.7 points per game. Jokic is currently above that mark. Karl Malone’s best rebounding season peaked at 12.0 boards per game. Jokic is at 12.4. Jason Kidd’s career-high assist average was 10.8. Jokic is at 11.1. Kareem Abdul- Jabbar once shot 60.4% from the field in his peak. Jokic is matching that exact number while taking jumpers and threes. Larry Bird never shot 44% from deep in a season. Jokic is doing it now.
And in some of the games this season, he is putting up video game numbers.
Against the Magic, Jokic put up 34 points, 21 rebounds, and 12 assists. On Christmas Day against the Timberwolves, he detonated for 56 points, 16 rebounds, and 15 assists in one of the most absurd stat lines the league has ever seen on a national stage. Over his last three games alone, Jokic totaled 119 points, 44 rebounds, and 41 assists. No player in NBA history has ever put together that kind of three-game stretch.
What makes this season even more shocking is where Jokic ranks league-wide. He is fifth in scoring, first in rebounds, and first in assists. He leads the league in double-doubles and triple-doubles, and he does it without breaking a sweat. The offense flows through him naturally. He reads the floor, punishes mismatches, and dismantles defenses with timing rather than speed.
The Denver Nuggets are reaping the benefits. With a 22–9 record, they sit third in the Western Conference and look like a team that understands exactly who they are.
The uncomfortable truth is this. We are watching a player who is simultaneously producing Shaq-level interior efficiency, Bird-level shooting touch, and point guard-level playmaking. That combination should not exist in one body, let alone a seven-footer who looks like he just wandered onto the court. Jokic is not just having an MVP season. He is redefining what a peak season can even look like in NBA history.
