It’s been clear to everyone for a long time that the Denver Nuggets would be a marginal team if they didn’t have Nikola Jokic on their roster.
However, it’s alarming just how bad the Nuggets are without the Serbian basketball player.
Jokic is perhaps playing the best basketball of his life this season, so it’s even more obvious how much he affects Denver’s results.
Namely, the Nuggets are the league leaders in almost every significant statistical parameter when Jokic is on the court, and when he’s not playing, they’re almost always the worst, or one of the two or three worst teams in the league.
They’re literally first in offensive rating, field goal percentage, three-point percentage, assist-to-turnover ratio, and when he’s on the bench, they’re 30th in offense and shooting, and 28th in three-point percentage and assist-to-turnover ratio.
“The Denver Nuggets have been more dependent on Nikola Jokic over the past five years than the Chicago Bulls ever were on Michael Jordan. Jokic is the main rebounder, passer, playmaker, and leader in every game,” said legendary coach George Karl.
NBA stat of the day #408:
— NBA Stats (@sports_mediocre) December 4, 2024
Net ratings ranking:
1. DEN w/ Jokic +12.4
2. OKC +10.8
.
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30. WAS -15.5
31. DEN w/o Jokic -16.6
Never has a player done more with less pic.twitter.com/YuctohpN2c
Moreover, the Nuggets’ offensive rating with Jokic on the court is not only the best in the league this season but also the best in NBA history.
And without him, it’s the worst in league history! Worse even than the Washington Wizards, who are the worst team with a 2-18 record.
Therefore, it’s no wonder that there is increasing pressure and criticism from the public on the Nuggets’ management for not taking advantage of the fact that they have the best player in the league on their team with whom they could easily win several titles, if they had adequate teammates.
“I’ll say this about Denver. I hope they make a trade, because like this, they’ll waste Jokic’s career. You can’t do that, he’s the best player in the world. Get greedy!”, said Charles Barkley.
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Source: B92, Photo: Imagn Images