DENVER (AP) Nikola Jokic minimized the matchup between teams tied atop the Western Conference standings, then put on a show for the ages – and for anyone still doubting he’s the best player on the planet.
The odds-on favorite to win a third MVP trophy, Jokic registered his 20th career 40-point game in powering the Denver Nuggets past the Minnesota Timberwolves 116-107 on Wednesday night.
Scoring 41 points to go with 11 rebounds and seven assists, Jokic made 16 of 20 shots against the NBA’s best defense while being guarded most of the night by the league’s top defender, Rudy Gobert, along with Naz Reid. All of it in front of the 41st sellout at Ball Arena and a national television audience on ESPN.
“Nikola always embraces the physicality. He never shies away from it,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “Rudy Gobert is going to be a Hall of Fame player one day. Rudy Gobert is going to be regarded as one of the best defenders of his generation. And it just speaks to how great Nikola is. I don’t think anybody in the NBA can guard Nikola 1-on-1.”
Jamal Murray added 20 points in 27 minutes and Michael Porter Jr. scored 18 for the Nuggets, who pulled away by holding Anthony Edwards without a bucket in the fourth quarter.
Edwards led Minnesota with 25 points but was a non-factor in the fourth as Denver’s reserves put on a show featuring Peyton Watson’s six blocks and Christian Braun’s rim-rattling dunks.
Edwards said Jokic kept blocking his way to the basket, so he had no choice but to dish and his teammates’ shots just weren’t falling.
“He’s just there, so there’s nowhere for me to go,” Edwards said. “Guy’s in a gap, I can’t drive, so I’ve got to get off of it. I was doing it, we got good looks, we just missed them.”
The Nuggets (56-24) took a one-game lead over Minnesota and Oklahoma City, who are both 55-25 in the West. The Thunder walloped San Antonio 127-89 on Wednesday night to stay within striking distance of the conference’s top seed.
The defending NBA champion Nuggets are a best-in-the-West 33-8 at home – where they parlayed the No. 1 seed last year into a 10-1 playoff record on their way to…
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