The Denver Nuggets have been hit hard by the injury bug. They came into the season with Jamal Murray and it wasn’t long before they lost another key player in Michael Porter Jr.
As the second and third option on the team, the Nuggets were put in a tough spot. But, as long as Nikola Jokic remains in the lineup, Denver has a chance to win every time they step on the court.
With Jokic on the court, despite the injuries, the Nuggets remain one of the toughest teams in the NBA. Jokic has an offensive rating of 115.6 and a defensive rating of 103.1, for a net rating of 12.5. When he is off the court, they are among the worst teams in the league.
Without Nikola Jokic, the Denver Nuggets offensive rating is an anemic 99.2. Their defensive rating balloons to 115.4, for a net rating of -16.2 That means the Nuggets have a net rating difference of 28.7 with Jokic on the court compared to off the court.
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That is an eye-opening number, one that is tough to wrap your head around. Based on the impact Nikola Jokic has on the game for the Nuggets, he should squarely be in the MVP discussion despite the Nuggets only being 14-14 at the moment. Without him, in the lineup, they could easily be in last place in the NBA.
Thus far this season, Jokic has missed five games. Denver is 1-4 in those outings with an average point differential of -12.4. They would assuredly not only be lottery-bound without Jokic but be on the fast track for a top-five pick.
Jokic is the reigning MVP, so it is expected that the team would have some drop-off without him on the court, but those differences are drastic. What is even more impressive is that he has improved his numbers this season.
Zach Lowe of ESPN got fired up during an appearance on NBA Today and he is 100 percent right that Nikola Jokic should be in the MVP discussion.
Knowing that the team needed a boost with two key players sidelined, Nikola Jokic has taken his game to another level. He is averaging 26.6 points, 13.6 rebounds, 7.5 assists and 1.3 steals in 32.9 minutes per game. His shooting numbers are extremely impressive, as he is making 58.8 percent overall from the field, 37.9 percent from the 3-point line and 74.8 percent from the foul line.
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Opponents just do not have an answer for him as he may be the single most important player to a team right now in the NBA. The impact he has on both ends of the court should be recognized as the Denver Nuggets are going nowhere fast if he was sidelined like Murray and Porter.
