and Mason Plumlee started together for just the second time in a month during the Nuggets’ 129-101 rout of the Lakers on Monday night.
That fact may be difficult to believe given the chemistry the two displayed in a season-high 15 minutes together, a stretch that produced the kind of handling, passing and scoring from the big men that the Nuggets envisioned when they traded to Portland for Plumlee a month ago.
“We knew going into that game that when Mason and Nikola are on the floor, our offensive numbers and our defensive numbers are fantastic,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “That’s something we can look to do moving forward.”
The figures support Malone’s desire to play his two centers together more often, a move that was dictated Monday by a groin injury to starting forward . The Nuggets average 1.2 points per possession and limit opponents to 1.018 points when Jokic and Plumlee share the floor this season, according to the advanced metrics website nbawowy.com.
Compare that to the time the Nuggets played Jokic and Jusuf Nurkic together before the trade: Denver averaged 0.97 points per possession and opponents averaged 1.12 with those two sharing the court. The sample sizes, in both cases, are relatively small, and analysis of two-man lineups comes with the variable of three other players who contribute to the numbers.
Still, the production Jokic and Plumlee have provided fits the vision the Nuggets had for the duo when they made the trade. Denver began the season with the idea that its offense could be built around two versatile big men. The plan, of course, hasn’t happened the way Denver imagined it back in the fall, but it’s starting to become a reality nonetheless with Plumlee aboard.
“They bring a different dynamic because they both are good-passing bigs who can bring the ball up the court,” said Nuggets guard , who has been on the floor for roughly half of the 56 minutes the two centers have logged together so far. “So now, they get a rebound and you can just run. Mason could bring it up or Jokic could bring it up. They both can pass and finish. It’s just a different element to our game. It’s a difference-maker.”
The pairing of Jokic and Plumlee affords the Nuggets flexibility at both ends of the court. They’ve played big most often in that setting. That means playing small forward and giving the Nuggets three players on the floor 6-foot-10 or taller. But that lineup can also match up small given Plumlee’s ability to extend his defense to the perimeter in stretches.
“Playing with Gallo and Jokic and some of these frontcourt guys, they are making the game easy,” Plumlee said.
Plumee shook his head with a smile after Monday’s game, remembering an alley-oop pass from Jokic that he wasn’t quite able to throw down.
“It would be better if I caught his lobs,” Plumlee mused. “But it will keep getting better.”
Better together
When Nikola Jokic and Mason Plumlee share the court, the Nuggets have higher team offensive and defensive ratings — measured by points per 100 possessions — than they do when either big man plays without the other. A closer look at the numbers, since Feb. 15, as produced by the advanced metrics website nbawowy.com:
Pairing … Off. rating … Def. rating
Jokic, Plumlee … 120.0 … 101.8
Jokic, no Plumlee … 118.2 … 103.5
Plumlee, no Jokic … 113.5 … 119.6
