The Denver Nuggets‘ pairing of Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic has just one game left on their regular season calendar against the Memphis Grizzlies before heading into the All-Star break; a weekend where the pairing will be set to head to Los Angeles for this year’s festivities, making them the first duo of All-Stars the franchise has had in a single season dating back to 2010.
It’s been an impressive, career-best campaign for both Jokic and Murray that, while facing some recent ups and downs, have kept the Nuggets afloat in the Western Conference throughout the season, and shape up to be a tough duo to take down once it comes time for the postseason later this spring.
The excellent season for the Nuggets’ pairing is one that Grizzlies head coach Tuomas Iisalo made sure to highlight ahead of the Grizzlies’ matchup against Denver, as he would break down just how tough it is to match up against their offensive tandem.
“Jokic might be the best offensive player to ever lace them up, so that obviously helps,” Iisalo said. “Murray’s having an incredible season, very deserved All-Star nod for him. But it’s not just their individual brilliance, they’re very complementary. Both can be with the ball or without the ball. They can run regular ball screens or inverted ball screens. When you try to double Jokic, get the ball out of his hands, now one of the best shooters in the league has it and vice versa.”
“If you try to be more aggressive with Murray, you can drop to Jokic and he can play make out of that little pocket. Both are also very efficient, even when the other guy is not on the court, and it’s not a surprise that they have the best offense and best half-court offense in the league.”