Coming off a hip injury that caused him to miss three games, Nikola Jokic was supposed to be on a minutes restriction from coach Michael Malone. But as it was clear early on that Jokic was back to form and feeling good, Malone rode his big man to a big night. In a 121-117 home victory over Milwaukee, Jokic recorded his first career triple-double.
Jokic strained his left hip in the fourth quarter of a win over Phoenix on Jan. 26 and subsequently missed Denver’s next three contests. Denver went 1-2 over that stretch, as they were also without Will Barton for two of those games. Barton, too, returned to the lineup against the Bucks. Barton logged 25 minutes, nine points and four assists in the win. Jokic scored 20 points, had 13 rebounds and tied a career high with 11 assists.
Denver’s big run came in the second quarter when they outscored Milwaukee 39-22 to take a 17-point lead into the locker room. They would hang on for the four-point win after the Bucks went on a run in the fourth quarter. Wilson Chandler had 23 points to lead Denver. Giannis Antetokounmpo also had 23 and Jabari Parker led all scorers with 27.
The Nuggets play their second consecutive back-to-back as they travel to San Antonio to face the Spurs on Saturday. On Tuesday and Wednesday Denver had a road-and-home back-to-back, dropping both games.
