SI

Nikola Jokic Harshly Summed Up His Performance in Nuggets Win vs. Thunder

Tim Capurso

Jokic had eight turnovers and shot 0-for-10 from three-point range in Denver's win.
Jokic had eight turnovers and shot 0-for-10 from three-point range in Denver's win. / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
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In the vast majority of the Nuggets' 50 regular season wins—and their six postseason wins thus far—the club won because of three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic. On Friday night, the Nuggets won in spite of The Joker.

The Nuggets star center struggled with his shot—he was 8-for-25 from the field and 0-for-10 from three-point range—and turned the ball over eight times. If you're looking for a snapshot of just how poor of a game this was for Jokic, look no further.

And Jokic didn't need anyone to tell him how badly he played. In fact, speaking to reporters after the game, Jokic dubbed himself the "worst player on the court."

"...They're aggressive, they're physical, they're handsy," Jokic said of what the Thunder were doing to bother him defensively. "They're playing passing lanes. I mean, I don't know what they were doing, because if I know, I'm not having those kinds of mistakes. I need to figure out what they're doing.

"Basically, I was the worst player on the court today. But we won the game. And that's most important."

It wasn't all bad for Jokic. He pulled down 16 rebounds, handed out six assists and tallied a pair of blocks and steals. He also was, somewhat surprisingly, a plus-5 for the night.

But for Denver, it was largely the other guys who stepped up, including guard Jamal Murray (team-high 27 points), forward Aaron Gordon (22 points and a clutch game-tying shot) and forward Michael Porter Jr. (21 points).

"AG [Aaron Gordon] had a really big three, " Jokic said. "AG had really big free throws. Jamal was amazing the whole game. Mike had a big corner—not corner—45-degrees right slot area three. So it was really a team effort but I think defense was something that stood out the most."

The win gave Jokic and the Nuggets a 2-1 series lead. Game 4 of the conference semifinals tips off on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. ET.

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Tim Capurso
TIM CAPURSO

Tim Capurso is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Prior to joining SI in November 2023, he wrote for RotoBaller and ClutchPoints, where he was the lead editor for MLB, college football and NFL coverage. A lifelong Yankees and Giants fan, Capurso grew up just outside New York City and now lives near Philadelphia. When he's not writing, he enjoys reading, exercising and spending time with his family, including his three-legged cat Willow, who, unfortunately, is an Eagles fan.

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