Nikola Jokic is giving the Nuggets exactly what they need exactly when they need it

DENVER — Nikola Jokic’s seventh triple-double of the season came Sunday against the Sacramento Kings when the 23-year-old recorded his 10th rebound of the night at the 1:25 mark in the third quarter. Jokic’s latest feat took him just 28 minutes — a far cry from the unofficial NBA record for quickest triple-double, which he set in Milwaukee earlier this season — and helped the Denver Nuggets to a blowout 130-104 win over the Sacramento Kings.

The win helped the Nuggets keep pace with the Los Angeles Clippers, Utah Jazz, San Antonio Spurs and a slew of other Western Conference playoff contenders. It was also the third-straight game where Jokic shined on offense alongside Paul Millsap. Denver initially struggled on that end of the floor when Millsap, a four-time All-Star, returned after missing 44 games.

Jokic, who’s had a rollercoaster of an offensive season as major injuries have put Denver’s starting lineup in flux for most of the year, is again playing like an All-NBA talent. Jokic has rediscovered his rhythm on the offensive end. Here’s how his last three games stack up, according to BSN Denver’s Dynamic Player Rating (DPR).

On the season, Jokic is averaging a 67.2 DPR per game — tops on the Nuggets ahead of Gary Harris (60.23), Paul Millsap (59.34), Will Barton (58.85), Jamal Murray (58.12) and Trey Lyles (54.44). Two of Jokic’s last three games also rated as his third and fourth best individual performances of the season, per DPR.

Jokic finished with 36 points (12-14 FG’s), 13 rebounds and six assists in Denver’s 113-108 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday, which earned him an 89.53 DPR. His 20 points (8-10 FG’s), 11 rebounds and 10 assists Sunday against Sacramento registered an 89.61 DPR. He finished a team-high plus-33 in Denver’s 26-point win.

“Once again he shows his ability to impact the game in every manner,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said after Denver’s win over Sacramento. “Scoring, facilitating, rebounding.”

Jokic’s top two individual performances of the season are still his 41-point effort against the Brooklyn Nets and his 30-point, 15-rebound, 17-assist performance in Milwaukee right before February’s All-Star break.

Jokic’s current three-game run is reminiscent of a strong February where he posted All-NBA-type numbers. From Feb. 1 through Feb. 25 (nine games), Jokic averaged 22.2 points, shot 54.7 percent from the field and 55.2 percent from three, and grabbed 11.9 rebounds to go along with 9.6 assists. Over that stretch of games, Denver went 7-2 and with Jokic on the floor, and the Nuggets outscored their opponents by 86 points (or 5.4 points per game) in 499 minutes.

After struggling offensively alongside Millsap, Jokic is averaging 25.7 points on 73.7 percent shooting and has hit seven of his last 10 three-point attempts, 10.0 rebounds and 7.3 assists per game. The Nuggets are outscoring their opponent by an average of 15.3 points per game over their last three matchups. Denver is also a plus-47 in the 96 minutes Jokic logged against the Cavs, Lakers and Kings.

“Everybody is playing for each other,” Jokic said.

When Millsap returned to Denver’s rotation, Jokic began to defer to the 33-year-old. But Malone and Millsap stressed to Jokic after his third consecutive single-digit scoring outing in Dallas that the offense ran best when it centered around him.

“Don’t worry about who you’re playing with,” Malone said about his message to Jokic. “Stop deferring. Be aggressive.”

Since then, Jokic’s focus and intensity are back to the level he played at in February. Denver will need that same Jokic to qualify for the playoffs. The Nuggets woke up Monday morning in a three-way tie for the West’s final playoff spot with the Clippers and Jazz with 15 regular season games remaining. Los Angeles holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over Denver if the two finish with the same record at the end of the season. The Nuggets’ tiebreaker with the Jazz would come down to division record as Denver and Utah tied the season series 2-2.

Jokic would trade the gaudy individual numbers he’s posted this season for his first playoff appearance.

“I just wanted to win the game,” he said Sunday while reflecting on another triple-double.