Nikola Jokic is playing the best basketball of his career and nobody seems to know

DENVER — He won’t get the credit or acknowledgment that he deserves nationally. He’ll rarely show up on SportsCenter’s Top 10 highlight reel at the end of the night because of where he plays. But Denver Nuggets star center Nikola Jokic is one of the league’s premier offensive talents and players. He’s playing the best basketball of his career, and he just might carry Denver to a playoff appearance that was inconceivable just one week ago.

Jokic’s latest masterpiece ended with him sitting at the end of the Nuggets’ bench as time expired, joking and conversing with fans who paid top dollar to see the Joker’s latest act. Denver outlasted the Indiana Pacers 107-104 as Jokic turned in his second-straight game with at least 30 points. The Nuggets collected their third-straight win and moved to within a half-game of the New Orleans Pelicans for the West’s last playoff spot with just four regular-season games remaining.

“He won’t get any recognition at the end of the season, but what he does every single night and how efficiently he does it, there are not many players that do that,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “Obviously, he’s Nikola Jokic, we’re Denver, so nobody’s going to talk about it. He’s an incredible player, and we ask him to do so much for this team as a third-year player trying to carry this team, and he doesn’t bitch. He doesn’t groan. He accepts it. He embraces it, and he goes out and does it every night at a very high level.”

Since Malone benched his center in the fourth quarter of a debilitating 101-94 loss in Dallas just over a month ago, Jokic has elevated his play. Over Denver’s next 14 games, where the Nuggets have gone 8-6, Jokic has broken the 30-point barrier four times, scored at least 20 points 11 times and tallied a pair of triple-doubles.

Jokic’s numbers over the month-long stretch are All-NBA worthy: 24.5 points on 56.4 percent shooting, 10.9 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game. The 23-year-old has hit 32 of his last 63 three-point attempts. Tuesday against the Pacers, he was responsible for four of the 10 threes Denver converted.

“If you look at his numbers right now, the numbers are a joke,” Malone said. “Break down his numbers, scoring, rebounding, playmaking, and the efficiency in which he’s doing so. I look forward to coaching him for a long long time.”

Jokic is on pace to be the third big man in league history after Wilt Chamberlain and Kevin Garnett to average 17 points, 10 rebounds and six assists per game. His current stat line — 18.1 points, 10.6 rebounds and 6.0 assists — has only been replicated by Russell Westbrook, Kevin Garnett, Oscar Robertson, Larry Bird and Wilt Chamberlain.

When he’s on the floor Denver has outscored its opponent by 316 points this season — an eye-opening mark for a team on the edge of playoff contention.

“I think I’ve played the same way since I came here,” Jokic said when asked if this is the best he’s played in his NBA career.

He left numbers on the board Tuesday night as well. Denver missed a slew of wide-open threes and whiffed on 13 shots from the restricted area — many of which would have counted as Jokic’s assists.

While Denver’s small market status gets overlooked by many, his rep with players and coaches around the league is strong. Warriors coach Steve Kerr said he’s one of his favorite players to watch because Jokic always seems like he’s “one move ahead on the chess board.” He’s also received the stamp of approval from basketball guru Kevin Durant.

“Man, he’s different, he’s different,” the 2017 NBA Finals Most Valuable Player said. “He’s still young, though. You gotta let him still develop and grow. But his feel for the game for a young player like that is different. The way he passes, the way he pushes the break, shoot the three, shoot the mid-range …. He’s going to figure it out at some point, and he’s going to be a force for a long time.”

Denver’s coach knows it too.

“It’s kind of like when I was fortunate enough to coach a guy like LeBron (James) or Chris Paul or Steph Curry. You recognize greatness,”  Malone said. “Obviously, there are moments in the game when you are so locked in and you’re worried about getting another stop, but some of the plays that he makes and how he makes the right play over and over again and how he makes all of his teammates better players. I do admire that. I do recognize that.”

Jokic has a chance at a spot on one of the All-NBA teams at the end of the season. But he’s not preoccupied with that thought. Team success is the only thing on Jokic’s mind with four regular-season games remaining. The Nuggets have a chance to break a four-year playoff drought.

Tuesday’s win over the Pacers was an important step — another must-win situation. Thursday, when the Nuggets host the Minnesota Timberwolves, who Denver trails by one game for the seventh seed with two head-to-head matchups remaining, may be the biggest game of the Malone era.

That’s also what makes Jokic’s play so impressive. He’s doing it in the heat of a high-stakes playoff race without Gary Harris, who’s Denver’s second-best offensive weapon.

If the Nuggets reach the postseason it will be on the back of Jokic, who’s proving game-by-game that he’s not only Denver’s best player but most important. The Nuggets don’t need their future All-Star to score in the 30s every night. But it certainly helps.

“Thirty points,” Jokic deadpanned. “Whatever.”