As Nikola Jokic gathered an entry pass in the lane, stared down Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan, spun and gently flipped a baby hook that rattled inside the rim for a sweet two points, a sweet vision for the Nuggets’ future rattled inside my imagination:
What if point guard Emmanuel Mudiay, who lost his temper Tuesday night during a dust-up with coach Mike Malone, ultimately proves to be the second-best player from Denver’s rookie class of 2015?
“I did not expect Nikola Jokic to be our starting center 14 games into the season. But he has earned it. … He’s a guy who was wearing a pink uniform and playing in the Adriatic League last year. Now he is in the NBA, starting and doing great things,” said Malone, whose young team revealed the cranky side of immaturity during a 111-94 loss to the Clippers.
The frustration of a fourth-consecutive defeat for Denver culminated in a public, ugly little spat on the floor between Mudiay and Malone late in the game.
“I have to apologize. … I was in the wrong, as well. We could have talked one-on-one back here (in the locker room). It didn’t have to be out there,” said a contrite Mudiay, who owned up to his role in the verbal confrontation with Malone. “It’s just a part of the game. We’re tired of losing. It’s frustration. He hates losing. I hate losing.”
Mudiay is 19 years old. Jokic is 20.
It would be crazy to promise Jokic and Mudiay will be the two players that finally make fans believe Denver can stop being a flyover state when the Larry O’Brien Trophy is awarded amid streamers falling from the arena rafters during a championship party.
But, given time, the Nuggets are going to be good again. That I will guarantee, with Malone offering an amen to my fondest basketball prayer.
“Good things are going to happen for us,” Malone said. “It’s going to be a matter of when, not if.”
Given time, Jokic and Mudiay could be the best inside-out combo the Nuggets have had since Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups.
An NBA playoff contender can be built in myriad ways, with ferocious defense and small-ball marksmen, or nasty rebounders and greyhounds running the fast break.
But unless a coach has a scorer capable of going for 20 points each and every game, his team is going nowhere in the postseason. In April, May and June, it’s all about putting the ball in the basket at crunch time of the fourth quarter with a best-of-seven series tied at two games apiece.
Jokic, who already uses his 6-foot-10 frame to launch a soft jumper that’s nearly impossible to block, has given more than an inkling he could develop into a stretch four that leads the Nuggets in scoring for the majority of seasons from now until 2030. Although Danilo Gallinari would like to be the man who takes the big shots for Denver, when the Nuggets get where they want to go, Gallo will be a key complementary piece rather than the man.
Yes, it requires imagination to see the scorer Jokic can become in 2017. But his offensive talent is undeniable. What’s required is tender, loving care and patience. “The Steph Curry you see today is not the Steph Curry you saw five years ago,” Malone said.
All the hullabaloo has been about Mudiay, the young point guard whose long and winding road to Denver began in Africa and made a stop in China before landing at the foot of the Rockies. But I firmly believe Jokic can be better than his more-acclaimed rookie teammate. That’s meant as no disrespect of Mudiay. In fact, it’s the best reason I know to give local NBA fans a reason to smile.
While fancy stats are tools in the box rather than a mansion on the hill, it’s worth an early peek at Player Efficiency Rating, a popular if flawed measurement developed by analytics guru John Hollinger.
Among NBA rookies, Karl-Anthony Towns of Minnesota entered this week ranked No. 2 in the rookie class with a PER score of 21.89. Largely because of erratic shooting from the field, Mudiay is well down the list with a 9.54 PER. But guess who stood No. 1 among rookies? It’s Jokic, at 22.13.
Am I suggesting Jokic is more talented than Towns? No. Jokic, however, was an absolute find for the Nuggets.
With a 6-9 record, Denver can forget the playoffs; the Nuggets are too young to contend in the Western Conference. Put it this way: The 1968 UCLA Bruins, an all-time great college basketball squad that shaped the legends of John Wooden and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, had a starting lineup with an average age of 21 years old. The Denver starters Malone sent out to play the Clippers included three players 21 years old or younger.
Pencil in the Nuggets for 34 victories this season and another chance in the draft lottery. Before the trade deadline, you can bet Kenneth Faried will be a hot commodity in the rumor mill, and Denver should strongly consider pulling the trigger on a deal. There will be annoying growing pains and too many empty seats in the Pepsi Center. There will be losses, but the Nuggets are no longer a lost franchise.
“This is Year 1, so everybody needs to take a deep breath and relax,” Malone said. “I’m not going to worry about what anybody else says. It’s about me and those players in the locker room.”
In the not-too-distant future, Jokic and Mudiay are going to be big-time players in the NBA.
It’s a not question of if, but when.
Mark Kiszla: mkiszla@denverpost.com or
