Following the Denver Nuggets’ 130-116 win against the Los Angeles Clippers on Nov. 12, head coach David Adelman spoke in the postgame press conference about Nikola Jokić’s preparation when it comes to the season and days when the team is playing in a back-to-back. 

Jokić provided a little insight further into what that preparation looks like in his own postgame comments, starting with the simple things he does on a gameday heading into the second contest of a back-to-back stretch.

“Eat really good for breakfast, take a nap, come here, eat really good,” Jokić said. “Try to warm up. A little bit harder to warm up, but when you warm up and you get yourself going, it’s kind of easy.”

Jokić’s pregame formula appears to be working well, as he’s played in all 11 of the Nuggets’ games to start the 2025-26 campaign, which has included two back-to-backs thus far. 

The 2023 NBA champion and three-time MVP is off to quite the start this season, as he’s averaging a triple-double with 28.8 points, 13.1 rebounds and 10.9 assists per game, continually impacting all aspects of the game in ways that have never been seen by a center in this league. 

Against the Clippers, he scored a season-high 55 points, nearly reaching his career high of 61 points – a number he tallied toward the end of last season. Jokić also drained five 3-pointers in the 34 minutes he played, not to mention the block and steal he added to his statline to go on top of the scoring, rebounding and assists numbers.

“I had a good night,” Jokić said. “The ball was going in and we won the game. The guys [and] coach were running plays for me and it’s simple as that.”

The Nuggets (9-2) are off to their best start through the first 11 games of a season since the 2023-2024 campaign, which resulted in a 9-2 record to begin play as well. 

Last season, Denver came just one game short of advancing to the Western Conference Finals, ultimately losing to the Oklahoma City Thunder who went on to win the 2025 NBA Finals. 

The Thunder currently serve as the primary team standing in the Nuggets’ way, not only because of the recent history of their postseason matchup back in May, but because Oklahoma City currently holds the top spot in the Western Conference standings with a 12-1 record, whereas Denver is two games behind. 

The Nuggets don’t face off against the Thunder until Feb. 1, a matchup close to the all-star break that will prove to be hotly contested if both teams continue what they’ve built through the first four weeks of the 2025-26 season.