Nikola wanted to set an example for his teammates with high-energy, physical play.

He did that and much more.

„He was really aggressive from the jump,“ Murray said of Jokic. „Whether it was Nurk (Jusuf Nurkic, Al-Farouq) Aminu, whoever was on him, he was going at them and they had no answer for him. He just kept scoring and took over the load for a while. We need those nights from him. So it was a huge, great night, but that’s not going to be his only 40-point performance.“

Jokic, who was serenaded at times with chants of „MVP!“ from the crowd, said he sensed during pregame warmups that the team was a little flat and he determined he should go out and play aggressively to help set the tone for his teammates.

„I thought during warmups we were kind of loose and not focused, so I tried to pick up the energy,“ Jokic said.

Jokic finished a point off his career high. He added 10 rebounds and eight assists, just missing his sixth triple-double of the season.

„Jokic is a hell of a player,“ Portland coach Terry Stotts said. „He is a difficult guy to guard. He scores inside, scores outside and he passes. We didn’t do a very good job with him tonight, no matter who was on him.“

ESPN