The Phoenix Suns fell 149-141 to the Denver Nuggets in a thrilling overtime showdown. The spotlight was squarely on Nikola Jokic, who led Denver to victory while etching his name in the NBA history books. The Serbian superstar’s performance prompted Kevin Durant to deliver a strong message about Jokic after the game.
The Serbian star turned in a jaw-dropping stat line with 31 points, 21 rebounds, and 22 assists, becoming the first player in NBA history to record a 30-20-20 triple-double.
After the game, Durant expressed amazement that Jokic hadn’t hit these numbers sooner in his already storied career, labeling him one of the greatest ever. “There’s so many possessions in a game, the whole offense is centered around him making a play. I’m actually surprised he hasn’t done this before, but he’s been so close,” Durant said via DNVR Nuggets. “He’s an all-time great, all-time great”.
“Crazy thing is he didn’t seem like he had those numbers. I looked up at the end over the overtime and was like, ‘Oh shoot, that’s crazy.’ I feel like we made him work for most of his stuff tonight,” he continued. “But he gets the ball every play, so the numbers are going to pile up after a while, especially when it goes to overtime”.
Jokic remains a top contender for his fourth NBA MVP award, currently averaging 28.9 points, 12.9 rebounds, 10.6 assists, and 1.8 steals per game while shooting an efficient 57.7% from the field and 43.9% from three-point range over 57 games this season.
“He’s an all-time great, you’re not going to take nothing away from him. He averages that for a reason,” Durant continued. “Just playing hard, and we can live with him hitting shots when we’re playing hard. He’s just Jokic; he makes shots”.
Durant on the MVP race
The two-time NBA champion also weighed in on the MVP race, noting that Jokic isn’t an underdog and shouldn’t be viewed as one. He acknowledged the tough decision voters face between Jokic and Shai Gilgeous–Alexander.
“He’s not an underdog. I’m not going to keep letting you do that. He’s never an underdog in any situation—stop. Never an underdog again; that was out the window with his first MVP,” Durant said.
“I don’t think that’s fair at all, voter fatigue. If a guy is balling out, he’s balling out. I’m glad I don’t have to make that decision between him and Shai, but there shouldn’t be voter fatigue,” Durant added. “Both of those guys have a great chance at the MVP. It’ll be a race down to the wire”.
Jokic reacts to his record-breaking performance
Despite the historic nature of his performance, Jokic responded with his trademark humility. While acknowledging the significance of the achievement, he quickly shifted focus to the upcoming schedule and the need to recover physically.
“I think I’m gonna see this and think about this when my career is over … I will say that … It’s gonna be nice to go finish my career, on my couch, and think I had a really good game,” Jokic said. “Right now, we have a back-to-back in three days or tomorrow in two days, so I’m thinking about how to get rest, how to recover myself”.