The pundits have been saying he's no longer the best basketball player in the world. But he's still Nikola Jokic, and that's the x-factor that the Nuggets possess that still keeps them in title contention, and what Marc Stein thinks is enough for the Nuggets to still have hope of beating the Oklahoma City Thunder in the playoffs.
Stein gave the nod to Jokic on the most recent "All-NBA Podcast," hosted by Adam Mares. Stein was laying out the landscape of who he thought was still capable of beating the Thunder, and he landed on Denver. He couldn't help but give Jokic a tip of the hat for what he can do for the Nuggets.
"We have always kept them there because, as a hat tip to Jokic and how great he is, and what we think this team can be when it is whole," Stein said.
The Jokic factor. The three-time MVP of the league. Five times for George Karl and Nuggets fans, is the current league leader in rebounds and assists. And he just got all of his bandmates back in the rotation, too.
Nuggets are fully healthy for the first time since November
For the first time since November 12th, the Nuggets had the whole roster together. Peyton Watson returned to the lineup for the first time since Feb. 4th, and there's no longer anyone on the injured list. It's a welcome relief for a team that has been bitten by the injury bug this season.
And the Nuggets looked great. They beat the Portland Trail Blazers 128-112 in a game that wasn't really close after the first quarter. The Nuggets shot lights out, 54.4% from the field, and hit at their league leading 39% from three.
The Nuggets even played well defensively
The Nuggets allowed 40 points in the first quarter, something Mares pointed out, and it's still a reason he's not fully sold on this Nuggets team. But in the following three quarters, the Nuggets held the Blazers to 72 points. That's the kind of sustained defense that has been missing from the Nuggets this year.
Stein, on what the Nuggets can be when whole, continued, "I think we saw that tonight," referencing the win over the Blazers.
He could be right. Jokic had a triple-double through three quarters and finished with 22 points, 14 rebounds, and 14 assists, plus he finished with two steals. Watson had 14 points and 6 rebounds in 20 minutes in his return to action, and the Nuggets played great defense from the time P-Wat took the floor in the second quarter.
If the Nuggets can have more complete games like this, then Watson could be right about his belief that a healthy Nuggets team can beat everybody. Including the Thunder.