The Friday night game between the Denver Nuggets and the Phoenix Suns at Ball Arena in Denver, Colo., was significant, and its outcome could affect the NBA playoffs.
The Nuggets are the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference and are tied with the Los Angeles Lakers for the No. 2 seed. Meanwhile, the Suns hold the No. 11 seed and are 2.5 games behind the Dallas Mavericks for the No. 10 seed, which would grant them a spot in the play-in tournament.
The game featured exciting moments, including Suns forward Kevin Durant making a corner three-pointer as time expired to send the game into overtime. However, the Nuggets dominated the overtime period, ultimately winning the game 149-141.
Despite the thrilling game, it's not just the game's outcomes making headlines. During the game, Nuggets star center Nikola Jokic achieved a historic milestone, finishing with 31 points, 21 rebounds and 22 assists. With this performance, he became the first player in NBA history to record a 30/20/20 game.
After the game, Jokic was asked what he would tell his grandkids about his historic performance.
"I would lie," Jokic said. "I would lie, definitely. I would say they didn't follow the stats. I had more."
Nikola Jokic asked what he'd tell his grandkids about this game:
"I would lie, definitely."
"I would say they didn't follow the stats. I had more." pic.twitter.com/oBwJlQBqug
— DNVR Nuggets (@DNVR_Nuggets) March 8, 2025
Jokic is having a historic season, averaging 28.9 points, 12.9 rebounds and 10.6 assists per game. He has the potential to become the third player in NBA history to average a triple-double for a season, joining Oscar Robertson and his teammate Russell Westbrook.
Jokic's achievement is even more notable because he could be the first player to finish in the top three in each category. In the 1961-1962 season, Robertson finished fifth in points, ninth in rebounds and first in assists. Westbrook has averaged a triple-double in four seasons, with his best rankings being first in scoring in 2016-2017, sixth in rebounds in 2020-2021 and first in assists in 2018-2019. Jokic ranks third in scoring, third in rebounds per game and second in assists per game.
While Nikola Jokic's season is impressive, he currently holds the second spot on NBA.com's Kia MVP Ladder, trailing behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the star guard for the Oklahoma City Thunder. Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 32.8 points, 6.2 assists and 5.1 rebounds per game, leading the Thunder to the top of the Western Conference with a remarkable 52-11 record.
As the season comes to a close, it will be interesting to see whether Jokic can secure his fourth MVP award in five years or if Gilgeous-Alexander will claim his first.
Related: Kendrick Perkins Makes Bold Claim After Nikola Jokic's Historic Night
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This story was originally published March 8, 2025 at 3:30 PM.