Listen to the articleListen to…
VAIL. Nikola Jokić, 30, has made history – again.
Last night, he passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and took over the lead in assists by a center.
– Things like this I get to look back on after my career, when I’m sitting on the veranda, drinking beer and lying to my children, he says.
Paying tribute to Sweden: “Nice and chill”
0:27
The Denver Nuggets are currently without three of their best defensive players – Aaron Gordon, Christian Braun and Peyton Watson.
But if you have Nikola Jokić in the team, you can still win.
In the night’s game against the Orlando Magic, he accounted for another “triple-double” (23 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists) and ensured that the Nuggets eventually won 126-115.
Record broken
His 13 assists brings his total to 5,663, which is the all-time record for a center.
The super-Serbian erases the legendary Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s previous record of 5,660 assists – and then you have to remember that Abdul-Jabbar played 1,560 games.
Jokić has only played 771 games.
Towards new MVP?
The 30-year-old has been named MVP three times and is well on his way to winning the award a fourth time.
So far this season, he is averaging 29.6 points, 12.3 rebounds and 10.9 assists per game.
But records and potential MVP honors aren’t on his mind right now.
– That’s what you take after your career. Then I will look back on everything when I sit there on the veranda, drinking bira and lying to my children, says Jokić.
One challenger to Jokić in the MVP race is Luka Dončić.
The LA Lakers star had a lackluster performance in the win against the Utah Jazz (143-135).
He was noted for – hold on now – 45 points, 11 rebounds, 14 assists and 5 steals.
