"You know how hard that is?" - Michael Malone highlights Nikola Jokic's absurd consistency, quizzes media
Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets returned to winning ways against the Chicago Bulls on Saturday (November 4). After a humbling defeat to the Minnesota Timberwolves last week, the defending champions recorded a blowout 123-101 win against the Bulls.
Jokic was the man spearheading the victory once again, with yet another dominant performance that saw him notch up 28 points and 16 rebounds. This prompted head coach Michael Malone to point out the former MVP's ridiculous consistency and also question the media about the same.
Speaking to the reporters following Denver's comprehensive win, Malone was asked about Jokic and his consistency so far in the season. The former had a rather blunt response in store:
“The guy is just great every night. You know how hard that is? Like, is anybody in here great at their job every day? I know you guys. I know you’re not.”
Jokic has been stellar so far this season, averaging 27.3 points, 12.2 rebounds, and 7.7 assists. He has registered one 30+ point performance this season, followed by five games where he's dished out more than 22 points.
Malone could not have described Nikola Jokic's efforts better as the center is now tied for fourth on the NBA's triple-double list, with 107 of them. He is on par with Jason Kidd and LeBron James on the all-time list.
Despite his statistical achievements, Nikola Jokic has been solely focused on winning another NBA championship
Nikola Jokic's run so far has already seen him achieve a couple of milestones, but the larger picture for the Serbian has always been about winning another title. After winning his maiden NBA championship last season, Jokic has stressed that the Nuggets will be focused on defending their silverware.
Speaking on media day, Jokic was optimistic about the Nuggets repeating. Per an ESPN report:
"Just to win as many games as possible and try to have fun during that period," Jokic said of the next step for him this season. "Go get the opportunity to win another one. Probably that's going to be the next step for us. Like Jamal said, like why not win again?"
The Nuggets have their core players returning for this season. Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and Michael Porter Jr. are all set to run it back, and only time will tell if Denver can defend their title.
With teams in both conferences going for blockbuster trades, Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets have stiff competition coming up over the next 76 games in the regular season.