Jack White makes a statement with his rebounding: "Dennis Rodman-esque"

Jack White saved his absolute best for last.

The rookie from Australia isn’t eligible for the playoffs since he’s on a two-way contract, so Sunday’s regular-season finale at Ball Arena was White’s final opportunity to leave a lasting impression on Michael Malone and the Nuggets’ organization. He ended up doing just that.

White subbed into the Nuggets-Kings matinee with three minutes remaining in the third quarter and the score tied at 78. He ended up playing the rest of regulation and helped the Nuggets outscore the Kings 26-14 in the fourth quarter to secure a 109-95 win on the final day of the regular season.

In his 15 second-half minutes, White dominated on the glass. He pulled down 8 rebounds (3 offensive), which tied for a team-high and prompted Malone to compare White’s work on the boards to a Hall-of-Famer and one of the best rebounders in NBA history.

“Dennis Rodman-esque. The Worm,” Malone said, referencing the nickname Rodman went by during his 14-year career. “The Aussie Worm.”

“Sometimes guys get rebounds that come to them. ‘Great rebound! Come on, man, it came to you, fell in your lap.’ Jack, he goes out and gets rebounds. He grabs rebounds in traffic. He clears people out of the way to get rebounds. I love that about him.”

Here are some of White’s best rebounds from Sunday.

He absolutely skied to get this board to close the third quarter.

White anticipated this Reggie Jackson miss perfectly. Watch how he gets to the opposite side of the rim — where many missed 3s from the left wing or corner are known to bounce.

After this dunk, which led to a Kings timeout, Peyton Watson met White at half-court and started jumping…like a kangaroo.

A lot of rebounding comes down to effort. White took advantage of some Sacramento laziness here.

White got pushed in the back on this rebound but was still able to control it in mid-air. It ignited a Nuggets fastbreak.

Malone awarded White the Nuggets’ Defensive Player of the Game chain and said postgame that he wanted to make sure White got minutes in Denver’s regular-season finale because he deserved them for the work that he put in this year.

“Jack’s been just a great person to have around,” Malone said. “He deserved the opportunity.”

“I thought Jack was outstanding tonight.”

White’s rebounding is old news to those who have been tracking his career arc with the Nuggets. The 6-foot-7 forward won his two-way contract with Denver at Summer League last offseason partly due to his prowess on the glass. He pulled down 15 rebounds in 21 minutes in one Summer League outing. He had 9 rebounds in 20 minutes in another.

In the G League, this season, White recorded 18 rebounds, 9 of which came on the offensive glass, in a March win over the Raptors 905. His 17 rebounds (10 offensive) against the Windy City Bulls helped the Grand Rapids Gold to another win. White also had games with 15 and 14 (twice) rebounds.

Behind the scenes, the Nuggets have been impressed with his overall athleticism, and White has gained a noticeable amount of athleticism since he joined the organization last summer, team sources told DNVR. He’s become a more athletic and mobile player under Denver’s strength and conditioning program. The Nuggets have been impressed with his 3-point stroke too. White shot 42% from 3-point range in the G League this season.

“Toughness, physicality, IQ. It’s in his DNA,” said Malone. “Jack White, no matter where he’s playing, is going to play hard, physical, tough, and he has the ability to step outside and also shoot the basketball.”

Who knows where White will play next season, but I’d think the Nuggets would love to have him back. He’d slot in nicely as an end-of-bench player next year and gives off the vibe of someone who could step in and supply spot minutes while impacting the game in a positive way. He’s a smart, two-way player, a capable and willing defender, and a worker.

He’s damn good on the glass too.

“Dennis Rodman was the first guy that came to mind,” Malone said of White’s performance. “Maybe he should color his hair.”