Wind Chimes: Nikola Jokic, the All-NBA defender?

Welcome to Wind Chimes, a notebook of reporting, observations and analysis from me about what I’ve seen, heard and talked to people around the team about over the last week.

Last night, I watched Nikola Jokic barely play a lick of defense through three quarters only to see him flip the script and help hold the Clippers to only 17 fourth-quarter points in the Nuggets’ 103-100 win.

Looking back, it was a masterclass from Jokic in conserving himself for the finishing kick.

Jokic played Sunday’s win as if he was running a marathon. He paced himself through quarters 1-3 because he knew that he’d need a monster fourth-quarter effort to get the Nuggets a win and move Denver back to .500 on the season. Like most nights, whether the Nuggets won or lost was ultimately up to him.

Michael Malone went back to Jokic with 10:34 left in the fourth and Denver trailing 86-79. It’s the earliest into the quarter that I can remember Malone pulling the reigning MVP off the bench after his third-quarter rest.

And like he’s done so many times, Jokic delivered.

With 5:39 left in regulation, Jokic stopped Eric Bledsoe at the rim.

Here are Bledsoe’s next two shot attempts. He gladly settled for the midrange jumper instead of testing Jokic at the rim again.

Jokic also had two fourth-quarter steals against the Clippers. His hands are part of what makes him such a unique defender. They’re some of the best mitts in the NBA.

Jokic averages 1.3 steals per game, which leads the Nuggets. He also averages a team-high 2.5 deflections per game.

There’s no doubt that Jokic’s defense has leveled up this season. His increased athleticism and agility have helped him better protect the rim and play more effective pick-and-roll defense. J0kic is constantly raising his defensive IQ too. His positional defense has always been a calling card of his.

I recently asked former Nuggets assistant Wes Unseld Jr., who was in charge of Denver’s defense for years and is now the head coach of the Wizards, what he’s thought of Jokic’s defensive improvements over the last few years.

“I don’t think he gets the credit he deserves, honestly,” Unseld said. “People still say he’s not a good defender, but the numbers bear it out. When he’s on the floor versus when he’s off, they’re better on both sides of the ball. He’s impacting pick-and-rolls. He’s got great hands and great timing. He’s got an agility for a big guy, a guy of his size. It’s uncanny.”

“He’s not the shot-blocker, the rim presence that you think a seven-footer should be. But he’s in the right spot at the right time more often than not. I think it’s a shift for him because he made it a priority. This group, last year and in the past, they wanted to change that identity. They’ve bought in and they’ve seen tremendous benefit from doing that.”

Watching Jokic’s defense improve over the last few years has been eye-opening, as has the national discourse around his play on that end of the floor. Locally, we’ve been on to his defensive improvements for a while now.

Prior to the Nuggets loss in OKC last week, Malone said that based on Denver’s analytics and defensive stats when Nikola Jokic is on and off the floor — the Nuggets are 14.2 points per 100 possession worse defensively with Jokic off the floor which is the largest individual differential in the league — he’s an All-NBA defender.

Michael Malone on Nikola Jokic’s advanced defensive stats/analytics: “He should be an All-Defensive player.”

— Harrison Wind (@HarrisonWind) December 22, 2021

I won’t say he’s an All-NBA defender even though the numbers he is. But there’s no doubt that his defense this season is significantly better than it was during last year’s MVP run.

More Chimes

PJ Dozier’s injury history

Dozier is out for the season after ACL surgery on his left knee. It’s the second time he’s had an ACL operated on in his career.

When Dozier was 11-years-old, he tore the ACL and MCL in his right knee but only had surgery to fix the MCL. Doctors told him at the time that they didn’t want to stunt his growth by operating on the ACL and that he couldn’t do any more damage to it, but eventually, he’d have to get it repaired to further his basketball career.

So Dozier played on a torn ACL from age 11 through his sophomore year of high school, was dubbed the No. 1 ranked sixth-grader in the country, became a top-50 recruit, and was pursued by some of the top college basketball programs in the country, including North Carolina, Michigan, Louisville and Georgetown. He did it all while playing on one ACL.

Dozier then had ACL surgery on his right knee during his junior season. He recovered and was eventually named a McDonald’s All-American. Dozier enrolled at South Carolina where he played for two seasons before turning pro.

He’s obviously well past that first surgery and is one of Denver’s more athletic players when healthy. But I’m guessing Dozier’s first ACL surgery is why he usually wears a sleeve only over his right knee.

Gary Harris’ resurgence

Harris opened the season looking like the same disappointing offensive player that he was in Denver over the past few years. He still could contribute defensively, but Harris’ shot was inconsistent and his overall offensive game left a ton to be desired.

But take a look at Harris’ stats over his last 13 games: 15.2 points (50.7 FG%, 41.2 3P%), 3.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists. He’s also the only regular Magic rotation player with a positive +/- over that stretch.

Here’s what’s interesting about those numbers: They’re pretty much identical to the stats Harris put up during his breakout 2016-17 season in Denver: 14.9 points (50.2 FG%, 42 3P%), 3.1 rebounds, 2.9 assists. Harris of course earned a four-year, $84 million contract after that breakout campaign. He’s once again in a contract year.

Harris could be a trade deadline target for contenders who are looking for defense, 3-point shooting, and experience. Right now, at this current moment in time, Harris gives you all three. But something that could hold up a trade is his salary. Harris is making $20.5 million this season, which is a lot of money to match and send back Orlando’s way if another team is looking to bring him on. It would be almost impossible for Denver to trade for that amount of salary unless Will Barton was included in the deal, which isn’t an avenue that the Nuggets likely would or should seriously consider.

Orlando could also buy Harris out, but I don’t know if he’d want to give back a lot of the $20+ million he’s owed since his next contract won’t be anywhere close to the one he’s been playing on the last few years.

How Orlando approaches the trade deadline is again a situation to monitor this season.

***Question of the Week***

Last week I asked you for your favorite weekend activity, summer or winter.

DNVR Member Brig-a-tron said: “During winter time I’m up and down the slopes skiing. Maximizes winter sunshine and is a good time to chat with strangers on the lift. Summer time has got to be camping. Exploring national parks and seeing what different states have to offer is about as peaceful as it gets.”

Thanks for the response. For me, a perfect Saturday or Sunday (in the summer) includes a morning hike at Chautauqua in Boulder — Royal Arch is my personal go-to — and then lunch and drinks somewhere in Denver. Finally, a Rockies game at night. I was lucky to grow up in Boulder. In college, I lived two blocks from Chautauqua. I wouldn’t have traded that for anything, and it’s tough to beat a Rockies game on a summer night.

If that also sounds enticing to you, don’t look at the weather for this week.

Fresh powder incoming.

Here’s this week’s question:

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live?