After playing big minutes in three games in four nights, Nikola Jokic decided to get his triple-double accomplished early Wednesday night.
Jokic sat the entire fourth quarter of the 19-13 Denver Nuggets’ 139-120 win over the 18-16 Atlanta Hawks after the Nuggets had a 20-point lead after three quarters. He earned that rest after scoring 23 points, dishing 15 assists and grabbing 17 rebounds for his league-leading 14th triple-double of the season.
He almost got there before halftime. In his first two quarters, Jokic had 14 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists. The Nuggets scored 74 points before halftime and were +14 with Jokic on the court, though they led by only three points at the break. So the Joker turned it up in the third quarter, posting 10 points, seven rebounds and six assists as Denver outscored Atlanta 41-24.
Some of those big stats came from Jokic’s newfound synergy with Russell Westbrook, who finished with 11 assists one game after his perfect-shooting triple double Monday.
Jokic had three assists passing to Westbrook in the game, and Westbrook had three assists passing to Jokic.
The passing was contagious. Denver finished with 44 assists, the second-highest total for a single game this season.
It was quite a display for Jokic, and a well-earned rest. He’s going to need it. Friday, the Nuggets face the San Antonio Spurs and 7-foot-4 Victor Wembanyama.
