{"id":1866438,"date":"2026-04-05T02:08:25","date_gmt":"2026-04-04T23:08:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1866438"},"modified":"2026-04-05T02:08:25","modified_gmt":"2026-04-04T23:08:25","slug":"nikola-jokic-victor-wembanyama-deliver-a-classic-show-what-nba-can-be-at-its-best","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1866438","title":{"rendered":"Nikola Joki\u0107, Victor Wembanyama deliver a classic, show what NBA can be at its best"},"content":{"rendered":"
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DENVER \u2014 In a league threatening to get lost in everything wrong, what happened here Saturday was oh so right.<\/p>\n

It was Denver 136, San Antonio 134. In overtime.<\/p>\n

This wasn\u2019t illegal contracts to subvert the salary cap. It wasn\u2019t a gambling scandal. And there were no stars avoiding the grind of a late-season game, no team trying to tuck away a star to preserve playoff hopes.<\/p>\n

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This was two of the game\u2019s biggest stars leading two of the NBA\u2019s hottest franchises and giving performances for the ages in a game that left a sellout crowd sweating, hoarse and exhausted.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIn sports, pessimism is everywhere,\u201d Denver coach David Adelman said. \u201cI would pay to watch these two teams play. This is, like, very good basketball.\u201d<\/p>\n

Nikola Joki\u0107, the clever Denver center, had 40 points, 13 assists, eight rebounds and zero turnovers in 44 minutes. Victor Wembanyama, the Spurs\u2019 transcendent center, had 34 points, 18 rebounds, seven assists and five blocks.<\/p>\n

It was an instant classic. An homage to when \u201cthe NBA is faaaaaaantastic\u201d was more than just a slogan. A time when the hype of the national broadcast was matched by the stars on the marquee.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s good for sports,\u201d Adelman said. \u201cI mean, the way they both do it is completely different. And at the same time, it\u2019s its own unique, awesome thing. And like I said, that\u2019s what I was talking about buying a ticket to this. You\u2019re not gonna see two people like this in many generations.\u201d<\/p>\n

This wasn\u2019t just a game; it was theater. Two stars at their finest. Co-stars\u00a0(Jamal Murray) diving into the bench for loose balls. Role players (Julian Champagnie) sharing the limelight (18 points on six 3-pointers). Referees playing the heel, unconvinced by Joki\u0107\u2019s amateur foray into acting (he embellished a couple of hands to the face).<\/p>\n

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What You Should Read Next<\/div>\n
\n \"How<\/p>\n
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\n How our experts think SGA, Wemby, Luka and Joki\u0107 stack up in MVP race and beyond\n <\/div>\n
\n All four stars are doing things we’ve rarely seen, but who will own the NBA a year from now?\n <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cThese are the games you live for,\u201d said Denver guard Christian Braun, who had 21 points.<\/p>\n

Added Spurs coach Mitch Johnson: \u201cFelt like there were high stakes from the first possession. A really fun game to be a part of.\u201d<\/p>\n

Before the game, both coaches stumped for their guy to win the league\u2019s Most Valuable Player award, and both players lived up to the praise.<\/p>\n

Joki\u0107 was especially impactful late. He hit a cutting Aaron Gordon for a dunk with 6.2 seconds left in regulation to tie the score, then in overtime, he hit a how-did-he-do-that rainbow over Wembanyama from 11 feet that gave the Nuggets a 133-129 lead. Joki\u0107, who was blocked twice by Wembanyama on Saturday, said there was a reason why he lofted the ball so high over the 7-foot-4 string bean.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIf you guys remember, a few years ago, he actually blocked the type of shot,\u201d Joki\u0107 said. \u201cBut it was nothing different. I think I just created a little bit more space, who knows?\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n Nikola Joki\u0107 was blocked twice by Victor Wembanyama on Saturday but got a crucial one over him late in the game. (Justin Edmonds \/ Getty Images)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Then he iced it with another floater, this time from 7 feet with 9.8 seconds left.<\/p>\n

Joki\u0107\u2019s performance was quite the proof added to the pudding Adelman served up pregame.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe is the best player in the world,\u201d Adelman said. \u201cI mean, the efficiency this year, what he\u2019s done, I just, growing up around this, I understand that there has to be multiple stories, and different people have to win awards. I think that\u2019s really cool. And what Wembanyama is, he is so good for the game. He\u2019s so unique. What Shai (Gilgeous-Alexander) is, bringing back kind of an old-school \u201990s scoring mentality with a new-school 3-point shot. You know, all these guys are so good for the game.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I just don\u2019t want people to skip past our guy because he\u2019s won it three times,\u201d Adelman said. \u201cI think that\u2019s, I don\u2019t know, it\u2019s just disappointing to me. He\u2019s historical. And so he should be in the conversation every time, and I shouldn\u2019t have to, you know, argue for him. I think if anybody watches basketball, has any idea what\u2019s going on in the game of basketball, knows that he should be up in the MVP, and should be one of the favorites to win.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Joki\u0107 reinforced his value, Wembanyama continued his breakout season as the NBA\u2019s next game-changing force. Two of his blocks against Jonas Valan\u010di\u016bnas bordered on comical \u2026 he grabbed the ball from the release point of the 6-11 center as if he were taking plates off the shelf to prepare for dinner. And he had a collection of artful passes, where he rotated his body in midair and found a teammate, or showed deft touch on lobs.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so fun to watch really good players who can both really pass,\u201d Adelman said. \u201cI mean, when Wembanyama threw a pass in the first half, directly to the other corner off his left hand, he\u2019s the only one that can make that pass with that kind of size and that kind of vision. And then you see some of the plays that Jok makes every night. \u2026 Even the shot making that Jok had tonight over the top of that guy\u2019s hand is just absolutely incredible. The touch, and then some of the blocked shots that kid had.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou just don\u2019t see some of the stuff that we saw today,\u201d Adelman marveled.<\/p>\n

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\n Victor Wembanyama attacks the basket for two of his 34 points Saturday. (Justin Edmonds \/ Getty Images)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

And to think, this could just be the appetizer. It is looking more and more like the Spurs and Nuggets could be on a course to meet in the second round of the playoffs.<\/p>\n

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San Antonio (59-19) had its 11-game win streak snapped, and the Spurs are 27-3 in their last 30 games \u2026 with two of the losses coming to Denver.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s ominous for the Spurs because Denver (50-28) won its eighth straight and moved to within a half game of the suddenly limping Lakers. If Denver can pass the Lakers for third place in the West, and the Spurs remain in second, they could meet in the second round of the playoffs.<\/p>\n

That means more of Joki\u0107 versus Wembanyama. The Joker versus The Alien. Two MVP-worthy, generational centers, going head to head, game after game.<\/p>\n

In seven career head-to-head games, Joki\u0107 owns a 5-2 record against Wembanyama while posting averages of 37.3 points, 10.8 rebounds and 9.1 assists. Wembanyama, who is most often guarded by Gordon when facing the Nuggets, has averaged 26.4 points, 15.1 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 4.1 blocks in the seven matchups.<\/p>\n

There is obvious respect between them, but neither was effusive in stroking the other. Joki\u0107 said he respects the entire NBA so much that he has to be up for every game.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s great to be a fan of basketball right now, especially NBA,\u201d Joki\u0107 said. \u201cLike, every day, every night, you can find some really, really interesting game and a really fun matchup. So yes, I mean, do I enjoy (competing against Wembanyama)? I enjoy competing against everybody. Against him doesn\u2019t really make any special. I think it\u2019s just another game for me. But I like to compete against everybody in the league, just because I think the league is so talented. I think we are getting spoiled and we don\u2019t appreciate it enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

Added Wembanyama: \u201cIt was really enjoyable. Really challenging. Looking forward to doing that again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yes. Please.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

DENVER \u2014 In a league threatening to get lost in everything wrong, what happened here Saturday was oh so right. It was Denver 136, San Antonio 134. In overtime. This wasn\u2019t illegal contracts to subvert the salary cap. It wasn\u2019t a gambling scandal. And there were no stars avoiding the grind of a late-season game, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,241],"class_list":["post-1866438","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-nytimes-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1866438","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1866438"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1866438\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1866438"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1866438"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1866438"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}