Nikola Jokic's killer triple double means no more zeroes

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”
– Lao Tzu

50 days after Jokmas brought a long-standing season of celebration to the Denver Nuggets, Nikola Jokic gave the Nuggets the first of 137 gift-wrapped triple-doubles he’s given them so far. And even with a 136 before last night, there was one of the league’s 29 other squads he’d never notched one against…

That goose egg at the end of the list is no longer, and Joker climbs the all-time triple double list with one more accolade piled on top of what is becoming a Rocky Mountain High-piled list. Every team in the Association has now been shredded by a Jokic triple double, and he wasted little time in making it a sure thing. In 17 minutes of first half play, Nikola was only one assist shy of the achievement by halftime. The rest was something of a foregone conclusion. By the time the game was said and done, he’d finished with the simultaneously preposterous and pedestrian (only for him) 21 points, 19 rebounds, and 15 assists, going 10 for 10 from the floor, before finally being pulled with four minutes left in the game, and the Nuggets safely ensconced in a win.

As always, Jokic’s triple double games make things contagious. Six (?) players finished the game in double figures, and two (?) other players – Michael Porter, Jr. and Christian Braun finished with double-doubles from all the sharing and caring. That’s an NBA first for Braun, by the way, and Jamal Murray came close to joining the group, with eight assists alongside his 18 points.

Such is the way with Nikola Jokic, though… the ultimate game elevator for all those around him. Jokic’s on/off splits are an unimpeachable argument for his impact on those around him, and it’s why he has these games where he simply racks up every stat, as the team across from him just gives him too many options to take it to them. Joker has the fastest per-game rate for triple-doubles in NBA history, after coming out of the gates pretty slow in that regard. If he can keep pace, or even continue to push that per-game average forward, he truly could find himself atop one of the greatest lists in all of sport.

The 137 triple-doubles listed above includes regular season and playoff games in total. As he continues to climb the commonly-kept list, based solely one regular season achievements, Jokic finds himself less than 20 games behind one of the greatest basketball players in history, a guy so famous he only needs the single name. Magic. Magic Johnson, possibly the greatest point guard and distributor in NBA history, is very squarely in the sites of Jokic, who ought to pass Johnson on the list sometime next season. To make it into the top three of this list already ensures Joker’s place in both Nuggets and NBA history. That he could still eventually pass the great Oscar Robertson, and even notorious stat hunter Russell Westbrook only continues to write his remarkable story, even for his doubters.

Another notch in his belt, another marker falls for the one and only Nikola Jokic as he continues his kill-you-with-kindness assault on the NBA record books. While it gets harder and harder to not normalize his remarkable and historic play, last night was one more reminder of the golden glow moment Denver Nuggets fans find themselves basking in. Michael Malone’s Jokmas gamble ended up paying off for us all, with his second round All-Timer center blowing up every other team in the association. Last night was one more data point of proof. One less zero for Denver sports fans’ new hero. That would make any of us want to stand up and cheer.