DENVER – The Nuggets' star duo of Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray accomplished something in Game 3 that no pair of players has ever done in a game in league history.
Not just NBA Finals history.
Not postseason history.
Ever.
They became the first pair of teammates to both record a 30-point triple-double in the same game, in the regular season or postseason.
Jokic logged 32 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists.
Murray recorded 34 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
Jamal Murray & Nikola Jokic are the 1st teammates in NBA history (reg. season or playoffs) to each record 30-pt triple-doubles in the same game.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 8, 2023
They are also the 1st teammates to each have 30 pts & 10 ast in the same playoff game since Clyde Drexler & Terry Porter in 1992. pic.twitter.com/d73oP0uiUe
It's worth noting Murray's triple-double came thanks in part to Nuggets' head coach Michael Malone rolling the dice with a double-digit lead in the closing minute. Murray grabbed the final rebound of the game on a missed 3-point shot by Miami reserve Omer Yurtseven – with five seconds to play.
Jokic made a few pieces of individual history in the game, too.
He became the first player to ever record at least 30 points, 20 rebounds and 10 assists in an NBA Finals game. He also joined basketball legends Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain as the only players to record a 30-20-10 game in the playoffs.
Nikola Jokic has recorded the 1st 30-pt, 20-reb, 10-ast game in NBA Finals history tonight.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) June 8, 2023
It is his 3rd career 30-20-10 playoff game of any kind. There have only been 2 other 30-20-10 games in NBA postseason history (1 each by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar & Wilt Chamberlain). pic.twitter.com/uDVu9JJOoA
Always humble, Jokic had a tepid reaction to the historic line after the game.
"I don't care," he said. "If we [lost], no one would talk about it [...] It's just a number."
Jokic's first half was also one for the record books. It was his ninth playoff half with at least 10 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists in a half. According to ESPN Stats & Information, only two other players have three such halves in the last 25 years: LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Denver Nuggets