The story on Nikola Jokić was that although he is an incredible offensive talent, capable of leading a top-five offense in the league through his scoring and passing abilities, he gives up some of that value on the defensive end. Slowly but surely, the discussion around Jokić’s defense has begun to evolve.
The numbers have always painted a different picture on the defensive end. According to Cleaning the Glass, the Denver Nuggets’ defense has been better with Jokić on the floor in each of his first four seasons in the league. Jokić has also posted a defensive box plus-minus of at least +2.2 in each of his four seasons and has graded out as a positive defender according to ESPN’s defensive real plus-minus metric throughout his career.
In the first round series against the San Antonio Spurs, Jokić has perhaps played the best defense of his career. Of course, with the series only being four games in there is a small sample size to analyze, but the numbers and eye test match-up in Jokić’s favor. According to Cleaning the Glass, Denver’s defense has been 32.2 points per 100 possessions better with Jokić on the floor during the postseason, which ranks in the 96th percentile. Denver’s All-Star also owns a +3.4 defensive box plus-minus throughout the early stages of the playoffs.
Opponents have shot under 45 percent from the field against Jokić during the playoffs, which is impressive given the fact that he has spent the majority of his time guarding Spurs All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge and Jakob Poeltl, who shot 64.5 percent during the regular season.
"The thing I’m probably most proud of Nikola is his defense,” Nuggets head coach Michael Malone said following practice on Monday. “The commitment, the energy, the pride he’s taking. Whether its pick and roll, or post up, I see a very engaged Nikola Jokic on that end of the floor.”
In Game 1, Jokić often used his big frame and strength to make things difficult for Aldridge in the high post.
In the below clip, Jokić first successfully navigates a pick-and-roll between Aldridge and Derrick White before again using his frame to make Aldridge take a contested, fadeaway jumper.
Over the first two games of the series, Aldridge shot 14 of 39 (35.8 percent) from the field as a result of strong defense from Jokić and Paul Millsap. Diving deeper into the matchup, Jokić has held Aldridge to 14-of-33 (42.4 percent) shooting from the field during the first four games of the series. Jokić has also held Poeltl to 37.5 percent from field when he has defended San Antonio’s starting center.
While Aldridge has had more success in the past two games of the series, Jokić has continued to showcase defensive versatility as the series has unfolded. In the Nuggets’ crucial Game 4 victory, the 24-year-old big man impressed with his defensive awareness and recovery during a key third quarter possession.
In that above clip, Jokić deters White’s drive to the rim, recovers back to his man, gets out to prevent an open 3-pointer for Bryn Forbes, and then ultimately gets back to Aldridge and is in position for the rebound.
Jokić’s improved defense hasn’t prevented him from being the driving force of Denver’s offense, as he has averaged 20.5 points, 11.8 rebounds and 9.3 assists per game while playing nearly 37 minutes per contest.
“Now, it’s not just Nikola the scorer, the playmaker or the rebounder, it’s also the defensive component that he’s bringing to the table,” Malone said. “It’s a big sign of growth and it couldn’t have come at a better time."
With Jokić improving on the defensive end, Denver is poised to take advantage of having two of the final three games of the series at home, if the series extends to seven games. Jokić led Denver to 54 wins with an MVP-caliber season, but the case can be made that as a result of his strong defense against San Antonio that he has been even better in the playoffs.