'He is Magic AND Kareem': James Worthy reveres Nikola Jokic with GOAT comparisons after 9th straight Lakers beating
The Denver Nuggets have once again beaten the LA Lakers after their Game One victory led by Nikola Jokic. After this latest win, the two-time MVP earned high praise from none other than James Worthy, who is a Laker legend himself.
Worthy, who played in the '80s and the '90s, is no stranger to greatness. He is an NBA great, having shared the floor with some of the NBA's best and brightest. To Worthy, Jokic plays at a level comparable to not just one, but two of the NBA GOATs combined. In fact, these two are legends whom Worthy had the honor of playing alongside during his playing days.
"To me, he is Magic [Johnson] and Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar] on the floor at the same time," Worthy said when asked about Jokic's talents. "He's a guard, he makes great decisions, hell of a passer. And then when he wants to be Kareem he goes out and dominates.
"He's a special player that does a lot of things and your antennas have to be up," Worthy added. [8:26-8:40]
With their latest victory, Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets have elongated their winning streak to nine straight games against the LA Lakers, including last year's Western Conference matchup.
The last time that the Lakers beat the Nuggets was with a 126-108 win in December 2022 at the Crypto.com Arena.
Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets take advantage of a third-quarter run to beat LA
The margin of victory achieved by the Denver Nuggets over the Lakers seems much smaller than it should be based on how they dominated in the second half, especially in the third quarter.
LA looked like they had the formula to beat Denver in the opening frame, outscoring them by eight points and ending the first quarter with a score of 33-25. The Nuggets got a measure of revenge in the second quarter but only did enough to narrow the lead by three (60-57).
Things began to swing in the Nuggets' favor in the third quarter, dropping 32 points while holding the Lakers to only 18.
This huge run gave Nikola Jokic and the team the push needed to put away LA in Game 1. Both teams exchanged blows in the final quarter, matching each other point-for-point as both teams scored 25 apiece in the fourth.
Jokic led the Nuggets in points and rebounds with 32 and 12, while also dishing seven assists. In terms of individual performance, Anthony Davis was nearly at par with Jokic, dropping the same number of points while grabbing two more rebounds but dishing two fewer dimes.
Game 2 between the Lakers and the Nuggets will be played at the Nuggets home court again and is scheduled to take place on April 22 at 10:00 p.m. ET.