INDIANAPOLIS — Joining a long lineage of great basketball minds who’ve put similar words to the beauty of passing, Nikola Jokic once said that an assist makes two people happy, whereas scoring a point only makes one happy.
He made 38 people happy on Monday night, by that logic.
Jokic set a career-high in assists with 19 as the Nuggets won for the 10th time in their last 11 games with a 125-116 victory over the Pacers. Asked if he still feels the same way about the joy of passing in relation to scoring, he said after the win, “Of course. It’s an easy question.” He was not aware of the new career record, however.
“I don’t (keep track),” he said, “but it’s nice to know.”
“There’s not one chink in that armor. The guy is just an amazing, complete basketball player,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “And I think the most remarkable thing is not just the 19 assists, but the satisfaction and joy Nikola gets from making his teammates better. He’d be happy getting 19 assists, no points and us winning — (more) than any other superstar I’ve ever come across.”
Denver’s home loss to the Lakers on Saturday was of the high-exposure variety. National television. The end of a nine-game winning streak. A new superstar in Los Angeles. A matchup the Nuggets had dominated in recent years.
They needed a bounce-back, and they got one at Gainbridge Fieldhouse to tip off a four-game road trip. Aaron Gordon scored 25 points on 11-of-17 shooting. Michael Porter Jr., Christian Braun, Jamal Murray and Jokic each contributed 16 or more points. And the Nuggets assisted 39 of their 53 made shots as a team, overcoming 19 turnovers by outscoring Indiana 74-46 in the paint.
Jokic finished one rebound shy of a triple-double. But after another wacky-looking box score — 18 points, nine boards, 19 helpers, four steals — he’s inching closer to averaging a triple-double for the first time in his career. He’s up to 29.2 points, 12.6 rebounds and 10.4 assists per game.
“He’s capable of doing that every year,” Porter said. “He’s capable of getting 10 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 points every single game. So even though it is very special, with the talent he has, you know every single night, he can do that.”
Murray made all four of his 3-point attempts in the first half, continuing to thrive on transition and pick-and-roll pull-up jumpers. But he picked up his third foul early in the second frame, forcing Malone to alternate between Russell Westbrook and Jalen Pickett until halftime.
Pickett has made the most of his occasional playing time this season. In Indianapolis, he added perhaps his most impressive highlight yet to the sophomore portfolio. He scooped up a loose ball late in the shot clock and buried a 15-foot baseline floater in rhythm, his momentum carrying him behind the backboard as he released. It brought the Nuggets to their feet on the bench behind him.
Gordon eventually joined Murray on the sideline with three fouls, ending his first half with 16 points in just shy of 10 minutes. Zeke Nnaji also supplied solid backup minutes at the four. He scored 14 points and blocked a pair of Pacers 3-pointers, one of them in isolation after getting switched onto Tyrese Haliburton.
“I know that when he steps back, he has a bit of a slower release,” Nnaji said. “So I know, even if he creates a little distance on that, I trust my ability to close that distance and eat up space. I saw he was going to the jump shot, so … I felt like I was in good range to contest and block it. I was able to get to it.”
Haliburton, one of the best passers in the sport, assisted 15 baskets to accompany his 19 points. All-Star Pascal Siakam was held to 19 points on 7-of-18 shooting. Myles Turner led the Pacers with 23.
Jokic was two nights removed from getting only seven shots up against a Lakers game plan that sold out to deny him the ball. “We all share in it,” Malone said pregame when reflecting on that number. “From me to Nikola to his teammates, again, giving them credit, but we all share in not allowing Nikola, giving him the proper spacing to be able to get open and do what he does better than anybody else in this league.”
Jokic proceeded to attempt only 14 shots on Monday, but this time it was more of a side-effect of his masterful passing night. The Nuggets built a 17-point lead late in the third quarter then had to fend off their hosts in the fourth. After the gap was sliced to six, Jokic had three timely assists to Braun in the lane, helping preserve the win.
Jokic does have 10 turnovers combined in his last two games, but as he sees it, that’s simply a complication of his and the team’s play style as well.
“We are passing the ball a lot,” he said, “and so we’re going to make mistakes.”
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