Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic overtakes Magic Johnson on all-time triple-double list

Denver Nuggets star and three-time MVP Nikola Jokic has proven once again why he is the best basketball player in the world, overtaking Los Angeles Lakers legend Magic Johnson on the NBA’s all-time triple-double list. In Thursday’s loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, Jokic scored 27 points, grabbed 20 rebounds, and dished 11 assists.

With this incredible statline, the Serbian big man now has 139 triple-doubles, passing Magic for the third on the record books. Moreover, besides passing Magic Johnson, Nikola Jokic’s latest achievement also landed him in NBA history alongside several legends including the inimitable Wilt Chamberlain.

“[Jokic] records his 10th career game with a 20+ rebound triple-double, joining Wilt Chamberlain (59), Bill Russell (13), and Elgin Baylor (10) as the only players in NBA history with at least 10+ such games,” per the official NBA History account on X, formerly Twitter.

Nuggets star excels amid so-so team record

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Of course, all the player accolades in the sport don’t equate to team wins, and triple-double machine Nikola Jokic is finding out now what all the stars before him have had to deal with when they don’t have the ideal roster: Kobe Bryant in 2006, LeBron James in 2018, just to name a few.

For instance, the departures of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Bruce Brown, and Jeff Green hurt the Nuggets quite a lot, and while new signing Russell Westbrook has given them decent production off the bench, but he alone couldn’t replace their scoring, defense, and locker room leadership.

Likewise, his presence means Malone could stick another role player in Christian Braun to boost their atrocious depth. Besides Braun, they have no other bench guy who can produce on the same level.

Can they still win it all?

Still, the Nuggets are a dangerous team, though maybe just a step down from actual title contenders. At this point, they’re demanding too much from Jokic, while his backcourt partner Jamal Murray has underperformed his hefty extension. (If only all their opponents were the Lakers.)

Moreover, Michael Porter Jr. has provided a spark on offense, averaging 19.0 points and 7.2 rebounds on shooting splits of 50.9% from the field and 41.1% from three.

However, they will need him to embrace defense more, using his length to bother opponents on the perimeter and as a help-side defender in the paint.

This year, the Nuggets may probably just want to good enough to push Nikola Jokic to the playoffs, where their starting lineup can do damage because they don’t need their depth as much.

Still, the thing is, this approach means taxing the Serb too heavily in the regular season just to qualify for the postseason, meaning there’s a chance he’d enter the first round already gassed.

Think of the Lakers in 2023, where LeBron and AD were already exhausted after two months of playoff basketball just to make the playoffs, and it showed in their sweep to the same Nuggets team.