Matt Moore here, the host of the daily Locked On Nuggets podcast, with your daily Locked On Nuggets newsletter. Each day we bring you the biggest stories about the Nuggets and the NBA, including the hottest links to other stories you need to read. Plus, Josh Lloyd delivers daily fantasy notes to crush your league.
Nikola Jokic Leaves The Basketball World Stunned
Jan 23, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) during the second quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy/Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
The 10-piece provides, stats, insights, and quotes from the Nugget’s 82 regular season games. Today’s discusses one of Jokic’s greatest games ever in a 132-123 victory over the Kings.
1. NIKOLA JOKIC IS ONE OF ONE AND HIM AND THE GREATEST NUGGET OF ALL TIME AND ONE OF THE BEST PLAYERS OF ALL TIME AND ALSO REALLY GOOD AT BASKETBALL: 35 points. 22 rebounds, 17 assists. No one’s ever had that stat line in NBA history until Thursday night when Nikola Jokic secured it in 37 minutes against the Kings in a win.
2. FROM WAY DOWNTOWN IN ANOTHER CITY ACROSS THE OCEAN: On top of everything else, Joker hit a near-70-feet (we’re waiting on the official distance) buzzer beater. It was not a heave. It was a one-hand, full rotation, perfectly on line, nothing-but-net shot that looked good from the time it left his hand and was perfectly on line. It was one of the most incredible full-court shots I’ve ever seen.
Jokic said “I took it to make it.”
3. OH BY THE WAY: He had a three-quarter court no-look outlet pass to Christian Braun that if anyone else had done it, we would lose our minds, and it wasn’t even the coolest thing Jokic did tonight.
4. In Other News: Christian Braun had his third straight 20-point performance with 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting, but CB also had a game-securing steal on a Domantas Sabonis kick-out that he took coast to coast for the take and bake dunk to ice the game. His phenomenal stretch of play continues.
5. Combo Guards: Russell Westbrook and Jamal Murray combined for 36 points on 15-of-28 shooting with 11 rebounds and eight assists. Or in other words, a normal Joker game at this point. But they were both really good, making the right reads and finding smart passes.
6. Lapsed: The Nuggets did mess around with this one after leading by 25 points as the Kings made a push in the non-Jokic 4th quarter minutes and carried the momentum to make it a five-point game late. It was very much in doubt down the stretch but they made enough plays, including the Christian Braun steal to get the win.
7. DAINTY: Russell Westbrook played with pink painted fingernails courtesy of his twin girls the night before. He commented “Hey, got the win, so thank you, girls.”
8. Relatable: Westbrook once again asserted his gratitude for the opportunity to play in Denver and with Jokic, and talked about how he and Jokic know what to do without talking about.
9. Room And Board: Michael Porter Jr. struggled from deep (2-of-8) but still finished with 20 points thanks to four offensive rebounds including several putbacks. Good work from Porter on a night where he had some tough stretches defensively.
10. Up Next: The Nuggets begin their road trip against the Timberwolves on Saturday.
Jan 23, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) reacts following the win over Sacramento Kings at Ball Arena. | Ron Chenoy/Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
If you watch NBA basketball then you know 3-pointers are up. You know because you’re seeing it, night after night, no matter the team you follow. Matter of fact, if you look at this season’s 3-point attempts there is going to be a deep-court shooter on your team. It doesn’t mean they are making those shots, but boy, are they chucking them.
You likely also know because we can’t stop talking about it. The royal “we” in this case of NBA media, and then onto fans, then back to media in a never-ending cycle. You may be sick of hearing about threes at this, the halfway point of the 2024-2025 season but I’m sorry say — tough luck.
At least half tough luck. Threes aren’t going away — we can pretty plainly see this to be true night after night — but the good news is their volume and habituality will make it so sooner or later our approach to them is less wide-eyed and speculative than accepting. They’ll become the new normal.
No other athlete embodies this normalization better than the greatest NBA player in the world at present: Nikola Jokic.
Katie Heindl is a credentialed NBA and WNBA writer, her bylines have appeared with The New York Times Magazine, SLAM, The Athletic, Yahoo Sports, Dime, Rolling Stone, among others. She writes the bestselling Substack, Basketball Feelings and is working on a book of the same name.
Analysis Victor Wembanyama is reshaping the NBA as we know it. (The Ringer)
Must Read The chosen one: Scottie Barnes as hope and saviour for the Raptors franchise. (Toronto Life)
Milestone Another game, another huge milestone for Nikola Jokic. (Sports Illustrated)
Rumor Speculation is rising about NBA teams considering a one-year rental on Jimmy Butler. The Nuggets might be one of the teams to watch in this intriguing scenario. (Bleacher Report)
Jan 15, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Guerschon Yabusele (28) in action against the New York Knicks during the fourth quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher/Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
As we approach Friday’s NBA action, we’re faced with an unusual schedule that demands careful consideration for fantasy managers. With only three games on the slate, it’s a critical day for streaming, especially given the peculiar schedule ahead.
The coming week presents a unique challenge: over the next six days of NBA action, several teams have zero quality game days. This means that adding a streamer without careful planning could result in zero games played, effectively wasting a roster spot. Teams like the Nets, Celtics, Bulls, Mavericks, Nuggets, and Pistons all have three games over the next six days, but none on streamable days.
Portland stands out as the best team for streaming, with three quality games over the next six days. Philadelphia is the only other team with more than one, boasting two quality games. This schedule advantage makes players from these teams particularly valuable for the short term.
Friday’s games feature the Blazers vs. Hornets, Cavaliers vs. 76ers, and Pelicans vs. Grizzlies. All teams playing on Friday are part of a back-to-back, with Portland coming off a Thursday game and the others playing again on Saturday.
Don’t let these episodes pass you by — stay locked in with the latest Locked On Nuggets podcasts.
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