Denver Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic recorded his seemingly standard triple-double in the Nuggets’ win Wednesday night in Sacramento, snapping a four-game losing skid and pushing Denver to a 1-0 record in the post-Michael Malone Era.
Malone, of course, was fired two days earlier amid a stretch of underwhelming play that started a slide down the Western Conference standings.
But what was perhaps more pronounced than the 20 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists in the game for Jokic was his vocal leadership in the Nuggets huddle. At one point during the third quarter, the NBC Sports California broadcast cameras showed Jokic drawing up plays on the whiteboard and walking his teammates through them.
Coach Jokic drew up a play for the Nuggets 😅 pic.twitter.com/YgXfYDnbCk
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 10, 2025
Interim head coach David Adelman said there was an intentional effort in his first game at the helm for players to step up in that setting.
“We were trying to give them a little more leeway to let them communicate and talk first. That doesn’t always go well, but it did tonight,” he said after the game. “You have to be OK with criticism from your teammates. These are your brothers.”
Adelman praised Jokic’s unselfish play and his leadership, calling him “the most mentally tough person I’ve ever been around in sports.”
For Adelman, it was a strong start to a tall order, taking over a team in a near freefall and trying to propel them to a playoff turnaround in a matter of days. Adleman was a highly regarded assistant who has been with the team since 2017 and thought to be ready for the head-coaching challenge.
“This group really cares about each other – they did 48 hours ago and they do now,” Adelman said when asked, tongue-in-cheek, about his undefeated record. “It’s just different roles. That’s it. Everybody takes a little step up, everybody’s helping each other out like they always did.”
The Nuggets hold the No. 4 seed in the West with two pivotal games ahead. They play the Memphis Grizzlies, who sit a half-game behind the Nuggets as of this writing, on Friday at Ball Arena. Denver then visits the Houston Rockets – the West's 2-seed as of this writing – to close the season on Sunday.
Just a game-and-a-half separated the No. 4-seed Nuggets and the No. 8-seed Minnesota Timberwolves just days before season's end.
Denver Nuggets 2024-25 Schedule
- April 11: vs. Memphis Grizzlies
- April 13: @ Houston Rockets