Nikola Jokic records triple-double by halftime vs. Timberwolves, 3.5 minutes shy of his NBA record

Nikola Jokic didn’t need long on Tuesday night.

The Denver Nuggets star recorded a triple-double before halftime of their matchup with the Minnesota Timberwolves. The feat took him just 18 minutes, and marks the second-fastest triple-double in his career.

Incredibly, Jokic was still several minutes away from the record he set in 2018. Jokic recorded the fastest triple-double in league history against the Milwaukee Bucks that year in just 14 minutes and 33 seconds.

Jokic’s triple-double on Tuesday is the third-fastest. Jim Tucker of the Syracuse Nationals has the second-fastest at 17 minutes, something he set back in 1955.

Jokic had 19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists at halftime on Tuesday. His performance led the Nuggets to a 79-48 lead after a dominant first quarter, where Denver held Minnesota to just 19 points and still outscored them by 30 points.

Jokic entered the night averaging 24.8 points, 11.3 rebounds and 10.1 assists per game. The two-time league MVP is in his eighth season with Denver, which took him with the No. 42 overall pick out of Serbia in 2014.

This post will be updated with more information shortly.