BREAKING: Clippers’ Tyronn Lue has intriguing response to Nikola Jokic amid triple-double average

Nuggets star Nikola Jokic is averaging a triple-double against the Clippers, so how do Tyronn Lue and Ivica Zubac respond?

The Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers are headed back to the Mile High City with their first round playoff series knotted up at two games apiece. With Nikola Jokic dominating the series, Tyronn Lue, Ivica Zubac, and the Clippers have their hands full.

But Lue doesn’t seem to be concerned. At least judging off his comments from Monday’s practice.

Clippers’ Tyronn Lue sparks debates with interesting Nikola Jokic response

Through four games against the Clippers, Nikola Jokic is averaging 28.5 points, 13.5 rebounds, 10.8 rebounds, and 2.3 steals per game while shooting 54.4 percent from the field and and 47.6 percent from three.

The Clippers took a 2-1 series lead heading into Game 4 in Los Angeles, but Jokic dropped a monster game with 36 points, 21 rebounds, and eight assists to lift his Nuggets and even the series.

Now, Tyronn Lue and the Clippers have to decide how they want to attack the Serbian big man. It’s not nearly as simple as deciding whether to make him a passer or making him a scorer, but as the series has gone along, Jokic has gotten more and more aggressive for his own shot.

When asked what the Clippers have planned for Jokic now that he’s averaging a triple-double.

“We’ll see. We’ll see tomorrow.”

“What does that entail, we’ll see?” asked the reporter.

“We’ll see,” Lue reiterated.

While everyone is focused on Jokic, Tyronn Lue is focused on the team’s defensive identity, especially to start games. Outside of Game 1, the Nuggets have been the aggressors to open games and scored at will before the Clippers defense made itself felt.

“We know there’s a sense of urgency from Game 1. It’s not just because it’s 2-2. We understand when the playoffs start, you’ve got to have urgency from the beginning. As soon as the jump-ball goes up, you’ve got to be ready to go and you’ve got to be impactful in any ways you can. We know we’ve got to start the games better. Games 2 and 3, they had 16 points in the first four and a half minutes and in Game 4 they had 20 points in the first four-and-a-half minutes. We’ve got to start games better, especially with a defensive identity.”

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“All these games are the same,” Tyronn Lue said. “You’ve got to be ready to come out and compete from the start. You’ve got to have an attack mentality on both sides of the basketball, and you’ve got to go from there. I thought last game, they came out and attacked us early and kind of had us on our heels to start the game.”

Ivica Zubac has been the Clippers’ primary defender on Nikola Jokic, and has done a great job on him for the entirety of the series. Jokic, however, is a three-time NBA MVP, an NBA Champion, and a Finals MVP for a reason. He’s going to get his no matter how good the defense is.

That’s why Zubac isn’t moved or discouraged by the numbers that Jokic is putting up.

“Don’t get bored with the process,” Ivica Zubac said after Monday’s practice before flying out to Denver. “It’s what he does. It’s what he’s been doing for years now. He averaged a triple double for the season. It’s what they do, it’s what he does, that’s how they play. That’s it. You shouldn’t be discouraged by looking at the other player’s stats, you should be discouraged if you’re down 20 or something like that. You shouldn’t be discouraged if he’s got a triple double and the score is good for us. We’re focused on winning. We’re not looking at the other player’s stats and being discouraged by that. We want to win the game.

“We know how to play this team. We beat them twice. We know what it’s going to take, and it’s just making sure we’re locked in into our coverages, that we know what we’re doing every possession. They made some adjustments, they did some stuff differently, we went over that. And the vibe is pretty good.”

Game 5 between the Clippers and Nuggets is set to tip off on Tuesday night at 7PM PST on TNT.