Nikola Jokic's blazing hot start to the 2020-21 campaign continues, as the Denver Nuggets superstar notched another historical achievement on Sunday.
In Denver's 128-117 win over the Utah Jazz at Pepsi Center, The Joker became only the second player in league history to open the season with 20 straight double-doubles, joining Bill Walton in the impressive feat.
Nikola Jokic today:
✅ 47 PTS
✅ 11 REB
✅ 5 AST
✅ 2 STL
✅ 17-26 FG
✅ 4-4 3P
✅ 9-10 FTJokic and Bill Walton (1976-77) are the only players since the ABA-NBA merger to open a season with 20 consecutive double-doubles. pic.twitter.com/38LjpVDP2Q
— Justin Kubatko (@jkubatko) January 31, 2021
The Nuggets were able to snap the Jazz's league-best 11-game winning streak, thanks to another dominating performance from the Serbian center. Nikola Jokic's impact was felt all over the floor, recording 47 points, 12 rebounds, five dimes, two steals and one block in 37 minutes. He drained 17 of his 26 total field goal attempts and went for an immaculate 4-for-4 clip from behind the arc.
Aside from putting up a double-double on a nightly basis, the 7-foot playmaker is also leading the league in triple-doubles this season with five.
After Sunday's statement win against the now-no.2 team in the Western Conference, Jokic increased his averages to stellar numbers of 26.8 points on 57.4 percent shooting from the field and 38.4 percent from deep, along with 11.8 rebounds, 8.6 assists and 1.8 steals in 20 games. The Nuggets have improved to 12-8 (fourth in the West), while the Jazz fell to 15-5.
Jokic's dominance is indeed a good sign for the Mike Malone-mentored team, considering he struggled at the beginning of the season last year. The 25-year-old slotman has further strengthened his case as the best center in the league today, although Philadelphia 76ers All-Star Joel Embiid probably begs to disagree. There's still a long season ahead, but fans can all expect the Nuggets' star big man to keep breaking records in the coming months.
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