NikolaJokic of the Denver Nuggets continues to defy what it means to play the center position. His rare combination of size (he’s 7-foot-0) and skill is unlike anything we’ve ever seen in the NBA before and it’s no surprise that he’s breaking records at such a rapid rate – both in the regular season and the playoffs.
In the regular season, Jokic is averaging 20.2 points, 10.5 rebounds, 6.6 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.7 blocks in 30.8 minutes per game (596 games played). He has averaged a double-double in five of the past six seasons and came 12 assists shy of averaging a triple-double during the 2022-23 season.
Speaking of triple-doubles, Nikola Jokic has distanced himself as the only center with at least 100 career triple-doubles in the regular season – doing so in 105 of his 596 games played, which ranks sixth all-time behind JasonKidd, LeBronJames, MagicJohnson, OscarRobertson, and RussellWestbrook.
Nikola Jokic Has a History of Playing Well in the Playoffs
via Instagram (@nuggets)
Nikola Jokic has helped lead the Denver Nuggets to the playoffs in each of the past five seasons. While he has yet to lead them to the NBA Finals, the Nuggets have now made it to the Conference Finals in two of the past four seasons – including this season. In fact, the Nuggets are the current favorites to win it all.
And Jokic is a large reason why the Nuggets are in this position. In the 10 games they’ve played this postseason (so far), Jokic is averaging 30.6 points, 13.1 rebounds, 9.5 assists, 0.9 steals, and 0.7 blocks in 37.8 minutes per game – he has easily been one of the most impressive players in these 2023 playoffs.
What’s even more impressive is the fact that he has recorded a triple-double in 5 of his 10 playoff games this year – bringing his career total to 11 triple-doubles in the playoffs. He ranks tied-4th all-time in playoff triple-doubles and has the most playoff triple-doubles among centers – beating out WiltChamberlain.
While we wait for the 2023 Western Conference Finals to start, let’s take a look at each of his 11 playoff triple-doubles – starting with his first-ever playoff triple-double on April 13, 2019.
Spurs beat the Nuggets 101-96 in the Game 1 of #NBAPlayoffs
Nikola #Jokic posted a 10 pts/14 reb/14 ast triple-double and become the 4th player in NBA history to record a TD in the playoff debut.Denver made just 6 of 28 three pts and just 16 of 24 FT#joker#MileHighBasketballpic.twitter.com/xVA8QYpG6c
On April 13, 2019, Nikola Jokic recorded his first playoff triple double against the San Antonio Spurs in Game 1 of the Western Conference First Round. He finished the game with 10 points, 14 rebounds, 14 assists, and 2 steals, but it wasn’t enough to lead his Denver Nuggets to a win – the Spurs won 101-96.
Here’s a quick breakdown of his quarter-by-quarter production:
Jokic shot 4 of 9 (44%) from the field, 0 of 3 (0%) from beyond the three-point line, and a perfect 2 of 2 (100%) from the charity stripe. What makes this triple double extra special was the fact that it was Jokic’s playoff debut. While his Nuggets didn’t win, there were a lot of positives to take away from the game.
The Nuggets went on to win Game 2 and had back-to-back wins in Games 4 and 5 of the series, taking a 3-2 lead with an opportunity at clinching the series. The Spurs came through with a clutch win in Game 6 to force a Game 7, which led to Nikola Jokic’s second triple double of the series – more on that below.
On April 27, 2019, Nikola Jokic recorded his second career playoff triple-double vs. the San Antonio Spurs in Game 7 of the Western Conference First Round. He finished the game with 21 points, 15 rebounds, 15 assists, 1 steal, and 3 blocks in 43 minutes – the Nuggets beat the Spurs 90-86.
Here’s a quick breakdown of his quarter-by-quarter production:
Jokic shot just 9 of 26 (35%) from the field, 0 of 4 (0%) from beyond the three-point line, and 3 of 4 (75%) from the charity stripe. It was his second triple-double of the series and helped lead his team to victory in a must-win situation – advancing to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in his career.
He played in all 7 games of the Spurs’ series and averaged 23.1 points, 12.1 rebounds, 9.1 assists, 1.3 steals, and 0.7 blocks in 37.3 minutes per game – leading his team in each of those categories, except blocks. He shot 49% from the field, 33% from beyond the three-point line, and 88% from the charity stripe.
On May 3, 2019, Nikola Jokic recorded his third career playoff triple-double vs. the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 3 of the Western Conference Semifinals. He finished the game with 33 points, 18 rebounds, 14 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks in 65 minutes of action – the game ended up going to four overtime periods.
Here’s a quick breakdown of his quarter-by-quarter production:
Jokic shot 13 of 25 (52%) from the field, 4 of 7 (57%) from beyond the three-point line, and 3 of 5 (60%) from the charity stripe. It was his first triple-double of the series and was coupled with an impressive performance from teammate JamalMurray (34 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists), but the Nuggets lost.
The series was tied 1-1 heading into this game, but the Blazers’ win gave them a 2-1 series lead. Jokic had 37 points, 9 rebounds, and 6 assists in Game 1 and came just three assists short of a triple-double in Game 2 with 16 points, 14 rebounds, and 7 assists. The triple doubles continued in Game 4 of the series.
On May 5, 2019, Nikola Jokic recorded his fourth career playoff triple-double vs. the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 4 of the Western Conference Semifinals. He finished the game with 21 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists, and 2 steals in 38 minutes of action – the Nuggets took a 3-2 series lead with a 116-112 victory.
Here’s a quick breakdown of his quarter-by-quarter production:
Jokic shot 8 of 15 (53%) from the field, a perfect 1 of 1 (100%) from beyond the three-point line, and a perfect 4 of 4 from the charity stripe. It was his second triple-double of the series and fourth triple-double of the 2019 playoffs – it was also the first time in his career posting a triple-double in back-to-back games.
The win helped tie the series 2-2 and the Nuggets went on to win Game 5 to take a 3-2 series lead, but lost Games 6 and 7 – putting an end to Jokic’s first playoff experience. He averaged 27.1 points, 13.9 rebounds, 7.7 assists, 1.0 steals, and 1.1 blocks in 42.4 minutes per game in the Blazers’ series.
Jamal Murray dropped 40/5/4 and Jokic dropped 16/22/13 in Game 7 vs the Clippers completing the 2nd of their two 3-1 comebacks during the 2020 Playoffs pic.twitter.com/cjpRfJdd5U
On September 15, 2020, Nikola Jokic recorded his fifth career playoff triple-double vs. the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 7 of the Western Conference Semifinals. He finished the game with 16 points, 22 rebounds, 13 assists, 2 steals, and 3 blocks in 40 minutes of action – his Nuggets won the game 104-89.
Here’s a quick breakdown of his quarter-by-quarter production:
Jokic shot just 5 of 13 (39%) from the field, 0 of 4 (0%) from beyond the three-point line, and a perfect 6 of 6 (100%) from the charity stripe. The triple-double was his first and only triple-double of the 2020 playoffs (he played in 19 games), but it came at the right time with his Nuggets in a win-or-go-home situation.
The Nuggets were down 3-1 against the Utah Jazz in the first round, but won three straight games to advance. They then found themselves down 3-1 vs. the Clippers, but again came back to advance to the Conference Finals. Unfortunately, their playoff run ended there – losing to the Lakers in five games.
On June 11, 2021, Nikola Jokic recorded his sixth career playoff triple-double vs. the Phoenix Suns in Game 3 of the Western Conference Semifinals. He finished the game with 32 points, 20 rebounds, 10 assists, and 1 block in 40 minutes of action – despite his dominance, Denver fell to the Suns 116-102.
Here’s a quick breakdown of his quarter-by-quarter production:
Jokic shot 13 of 29 (45%) from the field, 1 of 6 (17%) from beyond the three-point line, and 5 of 9 (56%) from the charity stripe in the win. The triple-double was his first and only triple-double of the 2021 playoffs – it was also just his second playoff triple-double in the past two seasons, which is surprising for Jokic.
The Denver Nuggets defeated the Portland Trail Blazers in six games in the First Round of the playoffs, but things went south when they were matched up against a hungry Phoenix Suns’ team. The Nuggets ended up getting swept in the Semifinals – losing by an average of 15.75 points per game in the series.
On April 21, 2023, Nikola Jokic recorded his seventh career playoff triple-double vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 3 of the Western Conference First Round. He finished the game with 20 points, 11 rebounds, 12 assists, and 1 steal in 38 minutes of action – Denver ended up winning the game 120-111.
Here’s a quick breakdown of his quarter-by-quarter production:
Jokic shot 9 of 13 (69%) from the field, 2 of 3 (67%) from beyond the three-point line, and didn’t take a single free throw shot the entire game. The triple-double was his first triple double of the 2023 playoffs after coming eerily close to recording a triple-double in both Game 1 and Game 2 of the first round series.
Jokic finished Game 1 with 13 points, 14 rebounds, and 6 assists – just four assists shy of a triple-double – and finished Game 2 with 27 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists – just one assist and one rebound shy of a triple-double. The Nuggets’ Game 3 win gave them a 3-0 series lead, but they ended up losing Game 5.
On April 25, 2023, Nikola Jokic recorded his eighth career playoff triple-double vs. the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of the Western Conference First Round. He finished the game with 28 points, 17 rebounds, 12 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks in 42 minutes of action – Denver won the game 112-109.
Here’s a quick breakdown of his quarter-by-quarter production:
Jokic shot just 8 of 29 (28%) from the field, 3 of 8 (38%) from beyond the three-point line, and 9 of 10 (90%) from the charity stripe. It was his second triple-double of the series (it came just four days after his last one) and was the second time in his career he recorded a triple-double in a series-clinching game.
With the 4-1 series win, the Nuggets advanced to the second round of the playoffs and got off to an early 2-0 series lead against the Phoenix Suns on April 29 (Game 1) and May 1 (Game 2). While Jokic failed to record a triple-double in either of those first two games at home, he got right back into it in Game 3.
On May 5, 2023, Nikola Jokic recorded his ninth career playoff triple-double vs. the Phoenix Suns in Game 3 of the Western Conference Semifinals. He finished the game with 30 points, 17 rebounds, 17 assists, and 1 block in 42 minutes of action – the triple-double was nice, but his team lost 114-121.
Here’s a quick breakdown of his quarter-by-quarter production:
Jokic shot 11 of 19 (58%) from the field, 1 of 2 (50%) from beyond the three-point line, and 7 of 8 (88%) from the charity stripe – he had six offensive rebounds. It was his first triple-double of the series and third triple-double since the start of the 2023 playoffs, but it wasn’t enough to secure a Game 3 victory.
Despite the loss, the Nuggets still owned a 2-1 series lead. Unfortunately, the Suns followed Game 3 up with another win in Game 4 – despite Nikola Jokic putting up a 53-point, 11-assist double-double in 40 minutes of action. He shot 20 of 30 (67%) from the field and stayed hot in both Game 5 and Game 6.
On May 9, 2023, Nikola Jokic recorded his 10th career playoff triple-double vs. the Phoenix Suns in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals. He finished the game with 29 points, 13 rebounds, 12 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks in 38 minutes of action – the Nuggets won it 118-102 to take a series lead.
Here’s a quick breakdown of his quarter-by-quarter production:
Jokic shot 12 of 20 (60%) from the field, 2 of 3 (67%) from beyond the three-point line, and 3 of 5 (60%) from the charity stripe. The triple-double was his second triple-double of the series, fourth triple-double of the 2023 playoffs, and passed Wilt Chamberlain with the most career playoff triple-doubles by a center.
The triple-double also marked the fourth time Nikola Jokic had recorded two triple-doubles in the same playoff series – doing so against the Spurs, Timberwolves, and Trail Blazers. The Game 5 win gave the Nuggets a 3-2 series lead with a shot at advancing to their second Conference Finals in four seasons.
On May 11, 2023, Nikola Jokic recorded his 11th and most recent career playoff triple-double vs. the Phoenix Suns in Game 6 of the Western Conference Semifinals. He finished the game with 32 points, 10 rebounds, 12 assists, 3 steals, and 1 block in 38 minutes of action – the Nuggets won the game 125-100.
Here’s a quick breakdown of his quarter-by-quarter production:
Jokic shot 13 of 18 (72%) from the field, 0 of 1 (0%) from beyond the three-point line, and a perfect 6 of 6 (100%) from the charity stripe. It was the first time in his career that he recorded three triple-doubles in the same series and the second time he has recorded a triple-double in back-to-back playoff games.
Not only that, but it was his fifth triple-double of the 2023 playoffs and he’s likely not done. The Game 6 win gave the Nuggets a 4-2 series lead as they advanced to the Western Conference Finals. He played in all six of the games and averaged 34.5 points, 13.2 rebounds, and 10.3 assists per game in the series.
When Will Nikola Jokic Do It Again?
Nikola Jokic is no stranger to stuffing the stat sheet in the playoffs. Over the past five seasons, Jokic has appeared in 58 playoff games and is averaging 27.2 points, 11.8 rebounds, 6.9 assists, 1.0 steals, and 0.8 blocks in 37.0 minutes per game – highlighted by his 11 triple doubles, which we detailed above.
Only three players in NBA history have more playoff triple-doubles than Jokic – RussellWestbrook (12), LeBronJames (28), and MagicJohnson (30). At this rate, Jokic will pass Westbrook and hold sole possession of third on that list by the end of these playoffs and could even pass Magic in the future.
The big question everyone is answering is whether or not his triple doubles will lead to a championship. He came close in 2020, but lost to the Lakers in five games. This year will likely be his best shot at a ring, considering he has a healthy team around him and they are playing well at the right time – so stay tuned!
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