Jokic becomes 1st player with 2K points, 1K rebounds, 500 assists in a season
Nikola Jokic continued solidifying his case for a second consecutive MVP award with another dominant performance in the Denver Nuggets' 122-109 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Thursday.
Jokic finished with 35 points, 16 rebounds, six assists, five steals, and one block while shooting 16-of-24 from the field across 35 minutes. In the process, Jokic became the first player in NBA history to register 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, and 500 assists in a single season.
With this basket, Nikola Jokic of the @nuggets has become the first player to have 2K points, 1K rebounds, and 500 assists in a season!
— NBA (@NBA) April 8, 2022
Watch Now on NBA League Pass: https://t.co/oz9UCQxdQa pic.twitter.com/DVVIx4vXMf
The 27-year-old's effort earned him a standing ovation from the Nuggets faithful and an embrace from head coach Michael Malone as he checked out of the game for the last time:
👏 Nikola Jokic receives a standing ovation in Denver after becoming the first player in NBA History with 2K points, 1K rebounds, and 500 assists in a season. pic.twitter.com/ef8YrkkMDL
— NBA (@NBA) April 8, 2022
Jokic entered Thursday's contest averaging 27 points, 13.7 rebounds, and 7.9 assists. No player in NBA history has finished a season with those combined averages, and Jokic's 32.8 PER is on track to be the best ever. The Serbian also leads the league in multiple other advanced statistical categories, including a 9.6 VORP (value over replacement player), a 13.6 BPM (box plus-minus), and 15 win shares.
Denver clinched a Western Conference playoff berth with Thursday's victory. The Nuggets sit just a half-game behind the fifth-seeded Utah Jazz with one contest remaining on Denver's regular-season schedule. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Timberwolves are locked into a play-in tournament spot as the West's No. 7 seed.