Charles Barkley After Nikola Jokic’s Latest 20/20/10 Playoff Game: ‘I Hope We Appreciate This Dude’

The Denver Nuggets, somehow, have a 2-0 series lead on the Los Angeles Lakers after a thrilling 20-point comeback win in Game 2 on Monday night.

After a rough start, Jamal Murray closed the game with a flurry and tore the Lakers hearts out with a fading buzzer-beater over Anthony Davis to give Denver a 101-99 win. It was a game Denver had no business winning, but was emblematic of what they’ve become. LeBron James hit big shot after big shot late. Anthony Davis had 32 points and 11 boards. D’Angelo Russell hit seven threes and the Lakers as a team shot 43 percent from deep compared to just 23 percent by Denver.

And yet, it’s still a 2-0 Nuggets lead despite them not playing anything approaching their best ball as a team so far in the series. That’s largely because they have the best floor-raiser in the NBA in Nikola Jokic, who put up yet another outrageous stat line with 27 points, 20 rebounds, and 10 assists to lead the comeback before Murray put the game on ice.

After the game, Charles Barkley wanted to make sure that in all the excitement of the finish, Jokic’s performance didn’t get lost and that fans don’t take what he’s doing for granted.

The stat Barkley was referencing was this one that has Jokic doubling up Wilt in 20/20/10 triple-doubles in the playoffs after his Game 2 performance.

Jokic’s current run is nothing short of phenomenal. He’s likely going to be handed his third NBA MVP award at some point in the next month, and he simply demands that an opponent put together 48 full minutes to beat the Nuggets. He is doing things at a level of, as Barkley notes, the all-time greats of the game and he’s going to continue climbing the ranks as he brings down accolades and continues winning. It’s cool to hear Barkley take a moment to shout out his greatness and he’s right that we should appreciate what we’re getting to watch.