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Grades: Nikola Jokić brushes Wolves aside en route to win

Brendan Vogt Avatar
May 14, 2021

The Denver Nuggets didn’t need that win over the Minnesota Timberwolves Thursday night, but no one told Nikola Jokić. The big man looks intent on finishing the season without missing a game, and he made it look easy against Karl-Anthony Towns and company. JaVale McGee started alongside Jokić, and the pair dominated the glass. That’s about the beginning and the end of actual basketball observations on Denver’s side of things. But let’s hand out the report card all the same.

To the grades:

Nikola Jokić – A

It’s funny to reflect on the Jokić experience. It was once exciting in its own right that Jokić drew comparisons to some of the league’s best bigs. We know now there was no comparison after all in most cases. KAT is as talented as they come, but Jokić is on another level when it comes to elevating the floor and ceiling of any group. It simply doesn’t matter who Jokić shares the floor with — he gets the job done. He shared it with McGee Thursday night as the latter made his first start of the season in a Nuggets uniform. Jokić plays well alongside centers in the right lineups, and these two terrorized Minny on the boards. I don’t think we’ll see McGee start any playoff games, but this dynamic could benefit Denver down the road. It’s in their back pocket now.

Jokić finished with 31 points, 14 rebounds, and 4 assists.

Aaron Gordon – B+

Gordon knocked down over half his shots on his way to 15 points. He recorded four assists as well. He played well, but it can look like he’s cruising at times in matchups like these. If Denver does match up with Dallas in round one, it should be a different story. Denver brought him in to guard the likes of Luka Doncic. That Jaden McDaniels match-up is slightly less inspiring.

JaVale McGee – A-

We know Jokić plus a center can work. I wasn’t sure about Jokić and McGee with the lack of shooters in the lineup Thursday night, but it worked well. McGee corralled 13 rebounds as he and Jokić combined for 11 offensive rebounds and 27 total. McGee also knocked down half his shots and blocked two on the other end. I still have reservations about this pairing in different settings. McGee looked spectacular, but that ship can run off course at times. He’s still prone to some silly fouls and funky choices, and we should remind ourselves what works well against Minnesota at this point isn’t necessarily a blueprint for future success. Still, it yielded success when they turned to it, and it’s something to hold onto should they find themselves in a suitable series.

Facundo Campazzo – B-

Campazzo’s box score reveals he missed a bunch of shots and failed to record any steals. It does show nine assists, though, and watching the game revealed he made a winning impact beyond that. He almost picked up several steals in the second half — Near-steals, if you will. Campazzo has no idea the season is winding down. He’s still on one hundred.

Austin Rivers – B-

Nine of the ten shots Rivers took came from distance, and he knocked down four of them for 12 points. He made his best Facu impression with four rebounds from the guard position as well.

Vlatko Čančar – A

Vlatko set a career-high with 14 points off the bench. He knocked down a trio of 3s, and hit five of his seven shot attempts. Vlatko is a low-mistake, try-hard player. A perfect end-of-bench guy to deploy for games like this one. He got it done Thursday night and got the postgame interview on Altitude.

“I’m kind of nervous,” he admitted. “It is my first time on TV.”

Markus Howard – A

Howard’s 15 minutes aren’t up yet, and you have to respect his approach thus far — bombs away. Howard knows why Denver took a flier and what is his best chance of carving out future opportunities. Both he and the bench are in desperate need of buckets. Howard supplied them in the latest win. He finished with 15 points off the bench on 50% shooting and 4/8 from deep. 

Paul Millsap – A-

Millsap didn’t shoot well, but he played well. He also got in on the rebounding action with seven off the bench and flexed his muscles as a playmaker. Millsap recorded five assists, including an absolute dime to JaMychal Green underneath the rim. The tank isn’t empty yet.

JaMychal Green – C-

Green did not get in on the rebounding party, nor did he shoot well.

Shaq Harrison – C

Not much to write home about for Shaq. He was a non-factor

Game Notes:

Michael Porter Jr. did not play (rest). The Nuggets won their 11th straight game against Minnesota, dating back to ‘Game 82’.

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