After a slap received against the Knicks two weeks ago, Michael Malone explained that he was waiting for more words from Nikola Jokic. “I need the players, the starters to talk more”he said. His wish was granted in Atlanta. The pivot spoke the day after the defeat against the Wizards, and a few hours before facing the Hawks.
“He spoke the morning of the match,” says the Denver coach. “I asked the guys to speak up, it’s their team. It was good to hear Nikola Jokic speak. And the icing on the cake was the performance that followed. »
The three-time MVP actually scored 48 points in the victory against the Hawks, just 24 hours after his 56 points in Washington, and the Nuggets were solid. What were the Serbian's words? “I don’t think I said anything special, but maybe it helped us”he replies, not wanting, as always, to put himself forward.
In Serbia, if you are less good, “the salary is a little less important”
Nikola Jokic, very critical of the performances of the 2023 champions since the start of the season and even more so after this pitiful setback against the Wizards (who remained on 16 losses in a row), hoped for a strong response.
“A reaction. In my country, where I come from, after such a sequence, the salary is a little less than usual,” he laughs. “Maybe we need that, motivation like that. Being put on the bench for example. It's a very good motivation too. »
In the end, he had a great match and set an example with his attitude. Even in “back-to-back”, the pivot gave his all physically, with several sprints.
“When I played a few minutes and came off the bench, I told myself that I must be tired when I came back on the bench. You have to give 100%, it doesn't matter if you play four, five, six, seven or I don't know how many minutes.”he concludes.
| Nikola Jokic | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2015-16 | DEN | 80 | 22 | 51.2 | 33.3 | 81.1 | 2.3 | 4.7 | 7.0 | 2.4 | 2.6 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 9.9 |
| 2016-17 | DEN | 73 | 28 | 57.8 | 32.4 | 82.5 | 2.9 | 6.9 | 9.8 | 4.9 | 2.9 | 0.8 | 2.3 | 0.8 | 16.7 |
| 2017-18 | DEN | 75 | 33 | 49.9 | 39.6 | 85.0 | 2.6 | 8.1 | 10.7 | 6.1 | 2.8 | 1.2 | 2.8 | 0.8 | 18.5 |
| 2018-19 | DEN | 80 | 31 | 51.1 | 30.7 | 82.1 | 2.9 | 8.0 | 10.8 | 7.2 | 2.9 | 1.4 | 3.1 | 0.7 | 20.1 |
| 2019-20 | DEN | 73 | 32 | 52.8 | 31.4 | 81.7 | 2.3 | 7.5 | 9.7 | 7.0 | 3.0 | 1.2 | 3.1 | 0.6 | 19.9 |
| 2020-21 ★ | DEN | 72 | 35 | 56.6 | 38.8 | 86.8 | 2.8 | 8.0 | 10.8 | 8.3 | 2.7 | 1.3 | 3.1 | 0.7 | 26.4 |
| 2021-22 ★ | DEN | 74 | 34 | 58.3 | 33.7 | 81.0 | 2.8 | 11.0 | 13.8 | 7.9 | 2.6 | 1.5 | 3.8 | 0.9 | 27.1 |
| 2022-23 | DEN | 69 | 34 | 63.2 | 38.3 | 82.2 | 2.4 | 9.4 | 11.8 | 9.8 | 2.5 | 1.3 | 3.6 | 0.7 | 24.5 |
| 2023-24 ★ | DEN | 79 | 35 | 58.3 | 35.9 | 81.7 | 2.8 | 9.5 | 12.4 | 9.0 | 2.5 | 1.4 | 3.0 | 0.9 | 26.4 |
| 2024-25 | DEN | 19 | 38 | 56.3 | 50.6 | 80.8 | 4.1 | 9.5 | 13.6 | 10.2 | 2.1 | 1.8 | 3.7 | 0.7 | 32.3 |
| Total | 694 | 31 | 55.8 | 35.6 | 82.6 | 2.7 | 8.1 | 10.8 | 7.0 | 2.7 | 1.2 | 2.9 | 0.7 | 21.3 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
