SAN FRANCISCO — Nikola Jokic controlled every facet of Sunday night’s primetime matchup in Chase Center, stalling Golden State’s momentum with a video-game stat line.
Jokic registered 32 points, 16 rebounds, 16 assists, four steals and a block as Denver completed their season series sweep over the Warriors. Three of those four games went down to the final seconds, so it wasn’t all complete domination, but the Nuggets have the Warriors’ number.
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For the Warriors to make a surprise run back to the NBA Finals this year, they’ll have to go through Jokic. And Karl Anthony-Towns and Rudy Gobert in Minnesota. And Anthony Davis and LeBron James, the superstar Lakers frontcourt duo.
The concern for Golden State then is the same as it ever was: whether or not they’re big enough.
For the better part of the past decade, the Warriors have answered in the affirmative. Despite not having a dominant traditional center, Golden State has out-smarted, out-skilled and out-shot opponents. Draymond Green’s ability to guard centers — along with every other position — and their perimeter-oriented lineups’ tendency to draw opposing big men out of the paint has led to four Larry O’Brien trophies.
This year, with Green starting and playing almost exclusively at center, might cross the break-even point. Against Jokic and the Nuggets, it certainly looked like it.
Golden State’s game plan against the two-time MVP has been to try to force Jokic into a scorer, which goes against his natural instincts. Jokic is a Magic Johnson-level passer who happens to be 7 feet tall and he tends to skew pass-first.
To take away the pass, the Warriors play Jokic straight up, with sending double teams only sporadically and only late in the shot clock. The idea is to let Jokic get his in the post and hug shooters on the perimeter.
The Warriors didn’t execute. Jokic picked them apart, both as a scorer and passer. He became the first player in NBA history with at least 14 assists and 14 rebounds in three straight games.
“It’s a lot to ask Draymond to guard him the entire time out there,” Kerr said postgame. “He’s just such a dominant force in every way.”
Other players who got a crack at Jokic were Kevon Looney — whose minutes have slipped but is more involved in the game plan against Denver — and Trayce Jackson-Davis. Late in the game, Klay Thompson stuck with Jokic in the post, which could end up being a unique wrinkle; putting a smaller defender on him could be a different way to lure him into taking more shots instead of creating for others.
The Warriors’ overall track record this year suggests Jokic’s once-in-a-lifetime skill may present a unique set of issues for the Warriors, though.
Even with their relative lack of size, the Warriors are second in the league in overall rebounding. Brandin Podziemski’s a terrific rebounder for his size, and Jonathan Kuminga and Andrew Wiggins have done a nice job of boxing out bigger opponents this month.
They’re 17th in opponents points in the paint, meaning teams aren’t just manhandling them inside (although they do foul too much, which could be somewhat of a reflection of being smaller).
And against imposing non-Jokic big men, the Warriors have had success.
In a 119-107 win over the 76ers, Golden State limited then-MVP frontrunner Joel Embiid to 14 points on 5-for-18 shooting. Green handled the brunt of the Embiid matchup, holding the center to just two free throw attempts. It proved that with Green at his best, and with the right scheme, they can topple a giant.
Even in two losses to the Timberwolves — decided by a total of nine points — the Warriors out-rebounded Minnesota in each contest. They even did so in the game Green got kicked out of two minutes in for choking Rudy Gobert.
Three-time All-Star Domantas Sabonis is shooting 51% in four games against the Warriors this year, 11 percentage points below his season average.
Although Looney appears less effective at wearing down opposing centers as he was during their title run, the Warriors have had enough success against star centers to stash away the alarm bells.
Except against Jokic and the Nuggets, who seem like the one team in the West that would have no qualms facing the Warriors in a playoff series.
