Victor Wembanyama’s work around the rim on defense this season has been a boon for the Spurs.

The Denver Nuggets are 6-3 without Nikola Jokić, back in second place in the Western Conference despite the absence of the three-time Kia MVP. Their ability to win without him is a significant development and surprising given that, over the last four seasons, the Nuggets were 20 points per 100 possessions better with Jokić on the floor than they were with him off the floor.

Nuggets’ point diff. per 100 possessions, Jokić on & off floor

Season
On floor
Off floor
Diff.
Rank

2021-22
+8.4
-7.9
16.3
1

2022-23
+12.5
-10.4
22.9
1

2023-24
+11.8
-8.6
20.4
1

2024-25
+10.5
-9.3
19.8
1

TOTAL
+10.8
-9.2
20.0

Rank = Among players who played at least 1,000 minutes for an individual team.

Jokić had the league’s biggest on-off differential (minimum 1,000 minutes played) in each of those four seasons. During those four seasons, the Nuggets were 13-23 when he didn’t play. This season, they’ve got a winning record and a relatively easy schedule over the next two weeks (seven of their next nine games against teams with losing records).

Of course, Jokić is still near the top of the on-off leaderboard. Here are the players with the biggest on-off differentials, with the season set to hit its midway point on Friday …

Note: All stats are through Wednesday, Jan. 14.

1. Offense

Deni Avdija’s ability to score on 3 levels is just one reason he’s in the midst of a breakout campaign for the Trail Blazers.

The best players have the most significant impact on their team’s offensive numbers. There are five former Kia MVPs in the top 13 on the list below, with Stephen Curry just below the top 12 shown …

Biggest on-off differential, team’s points scored per 100 possessions

On Court
Off Court

Player
Team
MIN
OffRtg
MIN
OffRtg
Diff.

Deni Avdija
POR
1,414
116.9
564
98.1
18.8

Giannis Antetokounmpo
MIL
761
123.7
1,169
105.3
18.4

Julius Randle
MIN
1,368
120.9
615
105.3
15.6

Nikola Jokić
DEN
1,106
128.0
882
113.3
14.7

James Harden
LAC
1,316
119.6
614
105.2
14.4

Jalen Brunson
NYK
1,276
123.5
644
109.8
13.7

Donovan Mitchell
CLE
1,286
119.9
740
106.2
13.7

Michael Porter Jr.
BKN
1,026
116.3
803
102.9
13.4

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
OKC
1,298
122.1
695
108.9
13.2

Jamal Murray
DEN
1,317
125.0
671
113.1
11.9

Pascal Siakam
IND
1,354
110.4
624
98.8
11.6

Peyton Watson
DEN
1,145
125.9
843
114.5
11.4

OffRtg = Points scored per 100 possessions
Minimum 500 minutes on the floor (271 players)

Some notes …

The Wolves’ offense has been excellent (119.6 points scored per 100 possessions) in 901 minutes with both Anthony Edwards and Julius Randle on the floor. It’s been even better (123.5 scored per 100) in Randle’s 467 minutes on the floor without Edwards.

The Nuggets’ offense has been ridiculously good (133.2 points scored per 100 possessions) in 511 total minutes with Jamal Murray, Peyton Watson and Nikola Jokić on the floor together. And it’s still been pretty efficient (120.1 scored per 100) in 310 minutes with Murray and Watson on the floor without Jokić, though Denver has been outscored (with bad defensive numbers) by 1.8 per 100 in those minutes.

The Nets are 0-7 without Michael Porter Jr., having lost those seven games by an average of 15.3 points.

The bottom of the list: The Bulls have scored 10.5 fewer points per 100 possessions with Patrick Williams on the floor (105.7 per 100) than they have with him off the floor (116.2 per 100).

2. Defense

Boston’s Hugo Gonzalez (-11.7 differential) ranks No. 1 in the biggest on-off differential on defense so far this season.

Defensive on-off differentials tend to favor reserves, because they’re generally defending against other reserves, and most of the players below have spent more minutes off the floor than on. So if a full-time starter appears at or near the top of this list (and if his team is in the top 10 defensively), he just might be a Kia Defensive Player of the Year candidate…

Biggest on-off differential, team’s points allowed per 100 possessions

On Court
Off Court

Player
Team
MIN
DefRtg
MIN
DefRtg
Diff.

Hugo González
BOS
509
104.5
1,363
116.2
-11.7

Ronald Holland II
DET
756
101.5
1,078
112.9
-11.4

Victor Wembanyama
SAS
753
103.3
1,172
114.4
-11.1

Vince Williams Jr.
MEM
547
104.6
1,335
115.6
-11.0

Rudy Gobert
MIN
1,268
107.2
715
117.8
-10.6

Lauri Markkanen
UTA
1,187
116.2
763
126.1
-9.9

Day’Ron Sharpe
BKN
661
109.1
1,168
118.7
-9.6

Jalen Suggs
ORL
584
106.1
1,351
115.4
-9.3

Jay Huff
IND
816
109.2
1,162
118.0
-8.8

Steven Adams
HOU
678
105.8
1,128
114.5
-8.7

Klay Thompson
DAL
844
106.9
1,149
115.6
-8.7

Jose Alvarado
NOP
776
112.5
1,308
121.1
-8.6

DefRtg = Points allowed per 100 possessions
Minimum 500 minutes on the floor (271 players)

Some notes …

Some of this is 3-point luck. For 11 of the 12 players on this list, the teams’ opponents have shot worse from 3-point range with the player on the floor than they have with them on the floor, with Ron Holland having the biggest differential in that regard (31.6% vs. 37.6%).

But Spurs opponents have actually shot better from 3-point range with Victor Wembanyama on the floor (36.1%) than they have with him off the floor (35.9%). So his impact is more real, and it’s more about the interior, both how often and how well the opponents have shot in the paint …

Opponent paint shooting w/ Wembanyama on/off floor

Wembanyama on/off
FGA
FG%
%FGA

On floor
543
50.8%
39.7%

Off floor
1,120
58.8%
50.4%

Diff.

-7.9%
-10.7%

%FGA = Percentage of total FGA

Rudy Gobert has a similar differential regarding opponent field goal percentage in the paint (52.2% vs. 59.8%), but not nearly as dramatic regarding the percentage of Minnesota’s opponents’ shots that have come in the paint (49.6% vs. 52.7%).

The bottom of the list: The Knicks have allowed 12.5 more points per 100 possessions with Jalen Brunson on the floor (119.2 per 100) than they have with him off the floor (106.7 per 100).

3. Overall

Giannis Antetokounmpo (left) and Nikola Jokić are among the overall leaders in on-off differential in 2025-26.

Below is the list that Jokić has dominated for the last four seasons, and we have a new leader this season …

Biggest on-off differential, team’s point differential per 100 possessions

On Court
Off Court

Player
Team
MIN
NetRtg
MIN
NetRtg
Diff.

Giannis Antetokounmpo
MIL
761
+9.9
1,169
-10.7
20.6

Nikola Jokić
DEN
1,106
+12.3
882
-3.6
15.9

Lauri Markkanen
UTA
1,187
-0.9
763
-16.7
15.8

Donovan Mitchell
CLE
1,286
+8.4
740
-6.4
14.8

Hugo González
BOS
509
+17.2
1,363
+3.2
14.0

Jalen Suggs
ORL
584
+10.1
1,351
-3.1
13.2

Deni Avdija
POR
1,414
+0.6
564
-12.0
12.6

AJ Green
MIL
1,093
+2.2
837
-10.4
12.6

Victor Wembanyama
SAS
753
+12.2
1,172
+0.1
12.1

Donte DiVincenzo
MIN
1,290
+9.2
693
-2.6
11.8

Jalen Smith
CHI
600
+4.1
1,330
-7.4
11.5

Alex Caruso
OKC
535
+20.5
1,458
+9.7
10.8

NetRtg = Point differential per 100 possessions
Minimum 500 minutes on the floor (271 players)

Some notes …

The Bucks are 3-11 without Giannis Antetokounmpo, and they’ve also lost three games in which he had a positive plus-minus.

Lauri Markkanen and Jalen Smith are the two players whose teams have been at least five points per 100 possessions better on both offense and defense with them on the floor than they’ve been without them off the floor. With their loss in Chicago on Wednesday, the Jazz are 0-7 in games Markkanen has missed.

The Magic have outscored their opponents by 16.7 points per 100 possessions with Jalen Suggs, Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero all on the floor — but that’s been for a total of just 136 minutes.

The bottom of the list: The Bucks have been 18.7 points per 100 possessions better with Gary Trent Jr. off the floor (plus-6.2 per 100) than they have with him on it (minus-12.5 per 100). Their two most-used lineups are Ryan Rollins, AJ Green, Antetokounmpo and Myles Turner, with either Trent or Kevin Porter Jr taking the last spot. The Porter lineup (plus-16.3 per 100 in 160 minutes) has been 25.3 points per 100 possessions better than the Trent lineup (minus-9.0 per 100 in 169 minutes), with the bigger difference coming on defense.

* * *

John Schuhmann has covered the NBA for more than 20 years. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on Bluesky