Rudy Gobert, Nikola Jokic lead top 10 frontcourt players in plus/minus

Reigning Kia MVP Nikola Jokic and reigning Kia Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert lead frontcourt players in plus/minus.

The Denver Nuggets visited the Utah Jazz on Wednesday night, in what would have been a clash of the reigning Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic and the reigning Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert — the two players that top our leaderboard of the top plus/minus among frontcourt players so far this season.

Unfortunately, it didn’t happen as Jokic was sidelined with a toe injury and Gobert missed his fifth straight game with a calf strain. However, both players missing that matchup brought another aspect of plus/minus to mind. While the plus/minus leaderboard looks at the top players in point differential in the minutes they are on the court, we can also examine what happens when they are off the court.

The Jazz defeated the Nuggets 108-104 to snap a five-game losing streak and are 2-8 this season without Gobert (compared to 29-13 with Gobert is in the lineup). Denver’s loss dropped the Nuggets to 1-5 without Jokic in the lineup compared to 27-18 when he does play.

When we look at the disparity between on-court and off-court success, we have to begin with Jokic. In his 1,485 minutes on the court, the Nuggets have outscored their opponents by 10.6 points per 100 possessions. In his 973 minutes off the court, the Nuggets have been outscored by 11.4 points per 100 possessions. That 22.0 on-court off-court net rating differential is the largest in the league among the 168 players that have logged at least 1,000 minutes so far this season.

When we narrow the focus to frontcourt players, Gobert has a commanding lead over the rest of the field, with Gobert third with a 13.7 differential.

To put Jokic’s stats in more context, consider this. His plus-10.6 on-court net rating is better than the top net rating of any team this season (Golden State at 8.2); and his minus-11.4 is worse than the lowest net rating of any team this season (Detroit at -9.2).

We have on-court off-court net rating differential data going back to the 2007-08 season. Of the 14 Kia MVP winners during that time, only two have finished with a differential higher than Jokic’s current mark of 22.0: Stephen Curry in 2015-16 (23.1) and LeBron James in 2008-09 (22.7). By comparison, Jokic finished with an 8.9 differential when he won MVP honors last season.

When looking at the rest of the field, we see teammates from the two teams with the top records in the Western Conference: Mikal Bridges and Jae Crowder from Phoenix; and Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green and Otto Porter Jr. from Golden State.

Mikal Bridges (6.5) and Jae Crowder (5.7): When we look at Phoenix’s top five lineups in plus/minus, there are three players that appear in all five: Chris Paul (who ranked fifth among guards in plus/minus), Bridges and Crowder.

Andrew Wiggins (5.9), Draymond Green (5.8) and Otto Porter Jr. (5.3): Wiggins and Green are part of Golden State’s most used lineup, which ranks fifth in the league in minutes played (347 over 29 games) despite Green having been out since Jan. 9. With Green out, Porter has started 11 games and is part of Golden State’s next six most-used lineups, which have combined to post a plus-110 in 278 minutes.

Giannis Antetokounmpo (MIL, 6.1), Joel Embiid (PHI, 5.4) and Jayson Tatum (BOS, 5.3): Giannis and Embiid are the only two players in the league to rank in the top 10 in both scoring and rebounding. Giannis ranks third in scoring (28.9 ppg) and seventh in rebounding (11.3 rpg), while Embiid ranks second in scoring (career-high 29.1 ppg) and eighth in rebounding (10.8 rpg). Tatum hits the mark in scoring (10^th at 25.9 ppg), but ranks 25^th in rebounding (career-high 8.4 rpg).

Giannis and Embiid have both already been named to the 2022 NBA All-Star Game as starters from the Eastern Conference, while Tatum will have to see if his name is called tonight when the reserves are announced as he looks for his third straight All-Star selection.