"He needs help": Nikola Jokic's one-man show can't last

By the time Nikola Jokic caught the ball just below the foul line with 3 minutes and 40 seconds remaining in the third quarter and the Nuggets trailing by three, it had already been decided: whatever shot Jokic was going to manufacture for himself on that possession would probably be the best look that Denver could create on that trip down the floor.

Jokic had scored 35 of the Nuggets’ 71 points up until that point in the game, and without Jamal Murray on the court, Denver’s other potential release valves on the play looked bleak. Michael Porter Jr. was wide open on the right wing after Jaylen Brown went to double Jokic, but Porter was already 0-5 from three on the night. Facu Campazzo was also open at the top of the three-point arc.

So Jokic went to work. He shot-faked, and then put his left shoulder into Tristan Thompson’s chest. Thompson stood firm. Jokic then pivoted to face the basket. Thompson still didn’t budge. So Jokic pivoted again on his left foot and lofted a high-arching, turnaround hook shot that hit nothing but net.

It was an absurd shot and the toughest shot Jokic made throughout the Nuggets’ 112-99 loss. The accuracy, touch, rhythm and coordination needed to convert that look is absurd. Only a handful of NBA players can pull that move off. But when Jokic went into his left-footed pirouette, you knew whatever he was throwing up might drop.

It was just one of those nights.

Take a moment and try to wrap your head around the start to the season Jokic has had. He finished with 43 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals and 1 block against the Celtics. On the season, Jokic is averaging 27.1 points per game — the 10th-most in the league — and shooting an absurd 57% from the field and 39.2% from three, 11.3 rebounds and 8.6 assists per game.

Jokic leads the league in a slew of catch-all advanced metrics and is logging a monster 35.9 minutes per game, the sixth-most in the league and more than other top MVP candidates LeBron James and Joel Embiid. Through the Nuggets’ first 27 games of last season, Jokic played 848 minutes. Through Denver’s first 27 games this year, he’s already been on the floor for 970 minutes.

Jokic is the only Nuggets player to appear in all 27 games this season. In fact, Jokic hasn’t missed a game due to injury since Dec. 13 2017.

We’ll never see a better individual start to a Nuggets season.

But Denver is just 15-12. If the regular season ended today, the Nuggets would finish as the seventh seed and be in the play-in tournament. The reason why is pretty simple: Jokic hasn’t gotten enough help.

If there’s one night where the Nuggets had a valid excuse for not being able to surround Jokic with enough playmaking and scoring, it was Tuesday. The Nuggets were without five rotation players — Gary Harris, Paul Millsap, Will Barton, Monte Morris and PJ Dozier — in Boston.

Porter Jr., who’s shooting 9-41 (22%) from three over his last seven games and seems to have lost a fair bit of confidence in his jumper, and JaMychal Green combined to shoot 1-17 from the floor and 0-7 from three. Denver’s patchwork bench featuring RJ Hampton, Zeke Nnaji, Isaiah Hartenstein, Vlatko Cancar and Marcus Howard combined to chip in a pedestrian 14 points.

Murray did his part in the scoring column by tallying 25 points on 9-16 shooting. He also went 4-8 from three-point range. But Murray’s nine turnovers were debilitating. The Celtics scored 23 points off Nuggets giveaways. On seven of Murray’s nine turnovers, Boston scored on its ensuing possession.

“I put this game on me,” Murray said. “I don’t think I’ve ever had nine turnovers.”

Murray’s previous career-high was seven.

Facu Campazzo chipped in too. Campazzo got his first career start and played a career-high 40 minutes in the loss. He handed out eight assists (five went to Jokic) to just one turnover. But his poor shooting (5-12 from the field vs. the Celtics) is a trend to watch. Campazzo is shooting 5-21 (23.8%) from two-point range outside the restricted area this season.

However, Campazzo was able to get Jokic the ball where he wanted it and when he needed it, unlike Murray on this first-quarter turnover.

Campazzo also had two steals — we’re calling these particular types of takeaways Facu specials — and said Tuesday that he’s growing more and more comfortable with the NBA game by the day.

Michael Malone was non-commital postgame about whether or not the Nuggets would add any reinforcements Wednesday night in Washington D.C. against the Wizards, or over the remaining two games of Denver’s road trip Friday in Cleveland and Sunday in Atlanta. Will Barton was in Baltimore last Saturday to attend his grandfather’s funeral and should rejoin the team soon. Malone said earlier this week that his hope was that Harris and Dozier would return at some point during the current trip.

For as brilliant as Jokic has been this season, he can’t carry the Nuggets back up the Western Conference standings by himself. It’s also unrealistic for Denver to think Jokic can keep taking on this burden night in and night out. Jokic had 29 points on 10-12 shooting at the half in Boston but understandably tired as the game wore on. He badly needs more help.

Jokic’s 43 points against the Celtics would have been his second-highest point total across 73 regular-season games last year. This season, Jokic has hit 43 or more points three times in 27 games. He already went for 47 points in a win over the Jazz and 50 points in a loss to the Kings. It’s not because he’s wanted to score like this either. He’s had to.

Jokic is so selfless and such a team-first superstar that he’ll never come out and publicly say that he needs more help. He’s not going to throw his teammates under the bus like that. Jokic was asked postgame if he was frustrated by the lack of help and said he’s not.

Forty minutes earlier, his coach said it for him.

“It’s not just running out of gas,” said Malone. “It’s that he needs help.”

With a back-to-back on tap for Wednesday night in Washington, Jokic’s one-man show could be due for an encore. But the Nuggets have to find a way to give him some help. This trend can’t last.

“Every night Nikola goes out there and literally puts this team on his back,” Malone added. “And we just need some guys to step up and help him.”