If he’s shown us anything through the first ten seasons of his career, it is that Nikola Jokic is inevitable. Three weeks into the 2025-26 NBA season, that remains the case, and The Joker is once again leading the Denver Nuggets as a true title hopeful in the Western Conference.
Helping his team to a 7-2 record, Jokic is currently averaging 25.2 points, 13 rebounds, and 11.9 assists on 64.4% shooting. His scoring is top 15 in the league, while his rebounding is second, assists are first, and shooting percentage is sixth. Though he hasn’t received the same amount of attention compared to players like Luka Doncic or Victor Wembanyama, Jokic is once again putting together an MVP-level season.
Most recently, Jokic was honored for his hot start, specifically his latest performances, as he was named the NBA Western Conference Player of the Week in the third week of the season.
In that span, the Serbian averaged 31.3 points, 11.3 rebounds, 13.3 assists, and 2.0 steals on 69.6% shooting while leading the Nuggets to a perfect 4-0 record. He has now won the award 18 times, the most in franchise history. Jokic also now has six triple-doubles through the first nine games of the season, the most by far for any player in the league.
Nikola Jokic Is On Fire To Start 2025
With his play over the past five years, it is hard to say that Jokic winning the Player of the Week award is a surprise. However, his numbers over the past week make him deserving of the honor, regardless of how many other times he’s won it.
Beginning with a 34-point, seven-rebound, 14-assist, and four-steal night against the Sacramento Kings, Jokic quickly showed a primer of what he can do on any given night. He followed that performance with an even better 33-point, 15-rebound, and 16-assist game against the Miami Heat just two nights later. It was the seventh time in his career to hit that stat line of at least 30, 15, and 15, only behind Oscar Robertson, who did it 11 times during his career.
The Joker followed those two games with a near-30-point triple-double on 80% shooting against the Golden State Warriors, and 32 points, 14 rebounds, and 14 assists on 71.4% shooting versus the Indiana Pacers the next night. The game against Indiana marked his 170th triple-double, and the 72nd time he did it before the fourth quarter.
“The Sombor, Serbia native is 11 triple-doubles away from surpassing Oscar Robertson for second-most in NBA history (181),” Matt Brooks wrote on the Nuggets’ official league website.
At this point, Jokic leading the team in scoring, rebounding, and assists is hardly seen as notable, but the sheer level of influence and impact he has for the Nuggets is historic. Jokic puts up nearly impossible numbers while leading Denver to be tied for second in the Western Conference with the San Antonio Spurs, and only trailing behind the one-loss Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Nuggets Are True Title Contenders
The numbers and history he is making with the Nuggets could be discussed for ages, as if he keeps this play up, another MVP and numerous other accolades are in his future. However, as Jokic has mentioned, winning remains his utmost priority, and so far in 2025, he is doing a strong job at putting his team and teammates in winning positions.
Through ten games, Denver is first in points and assists per game, third in field goal percentage, as well as second in net rating (13.0), third in offensive rating (121.1), and second in defensive rating (108.1). While the offensive numbers could be chiefly recognized as a result of Jokic, the defensive and net ratings are a sign that Denver is a serious contender this season.
All of that being said, Denver has had a relatively easy strength of schedule. Yet still, they’ve gotten great performances out of their other stars that surround Jokic, which is always a good sign for a team that has found more success with an offense that doesn’t care who scores.
Aaron Gordon is perhaps the biggest key to that, as he is averaging a career-high 20.1 points and 5.4 rebounds on 54.6% shooting. Jamal Murray has also been strong, averaging a career-high 22.8 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 5.6 assists on 48.2% from the field. Jokic remains the ignition of the offense, but the two are a near-perfect fit alongside the triple-double monster.
New head coach David Adelman has also gotten good performances out of Christian Braun, Tim Hardaway Jr., and Jonas Valanciunas, but it remains the Jokic Show in Denver, as it will be for as long as he is under contract with the franchise.
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