Nikola Jokic bails out Nuggets on back of historic performance

The Denver Nuggets got another much-needed win on Tuesday night, beating the Brooklyn Nets 144-139 in overtime. After a painful 0-2 home start, the Nuggets managed back-to-back road wins in overtime against the Raptors and Nets.

But despite consecutive wins, it doesn’t exactly feel like everything is right again. These games were struggles, and the Raptors and Nets aren’t expected to be playoff teams this season. At this point, wins are wins, but this is not a sustainable long-term formula.

The Nuggets need to keep Jokic fresh for the playoffs

The starters are playing too many minutes and carrying too big of a burden right now. Jokic has logged over 40 minutes on back-to-back nights and this is just game number four of the season. The Nuggets infamously bowed out of the playoffs last season, blaming exhaustion, fatigue, and bemoaning the minutes load on the starters as they chased the one seed down the stretch.

The idea going into the season was for the team to be able to rely more on depth and young legs, keeping Jokic and the other core players fresh over the course of a long season. But just a week into the season, it seems like that plan has already gone out the window.

The Denver bench has been atrocious and the Nuggets needed every last second from their starters just to eke out these two early wins. More than anyone else, that applied to the league’s MVP and best player, Nikola Jokic.

Historical context for Jokic's early-season brilliance

On Monday night in Toronto, Jokic put up 40 points for the second straight game, and the Nuggets needed every last one. Then in Tuesday night’s victory, Jokic put up a ridiculous 29 points, 18 rebounds, and 16 assists.

To put that performance into some historical context, that’s just the sixth time in NBA history any player has reached those numbers. Oscar Robertson did it twice, Wilt Chamberlain did it twice, and Russell Westbrook has done it once.

This is also Jokic’s 7th time in his career reaching 25+ points, 15+ rebounds, and 15+ assists; that’s more than every other active player combined. To even take it one step further, there is only one player in NBA history for their career to put up a 25/15/15 game, a game with 40+ points and only 1 or fewer free throws, and a game with 7+ made three-pointers.

That player is Nikola Jokic and he has accomplished that feat in three consecutive games. It’s almost unfathomable what Jokic has already done this season. Just when you think you’ve seen his ceiling, he raises his game to another level. 

It has been amazing to watch and if this keeps up, there is no doubt that the Joker will earn his fourth MVP award in a few months. But in terms of the Nuggets and there chances at winning a title, this cannot keep up. 

The team simply must find a way to keep Jokic fresh and avoid burning him out during the regular season. The problem is that they also have to be good enough that the games matter once the regular season ends. It’s a delicate balance, but something has got to give.