Al Horford Praises Nikola Jokic After Warriors' Win Over Nuggets

The Denver Nuggets have not won consecutive games since January, as even after their historic 54-point win over the Portland Trail Blazers, they fell flat in their next outing. The Nuggets lost 128-117 against a severely shorthanded Golden State Warriors team on Sunday.

In the loss, though, Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic went for 35 points, 20 rebounds, and 12 assists on 11-21 shooting from the field, with almost all of that work coming in the first three quarters. While the Nuggets fell short, Jokic earned some praise from Warriors 19-year veteran Al Horford, who embraced the matchup with Denver's three-time MVP.

"Unbelievable, I mean, 35 points, all the assists in the world. I mean, it’s difficult because early in the game we kind of looked up and there was six minutes in the first quarter and he already had like seven assists. So his ability to read the game, it’s kind of like a coach out there when he’s playing, he just reads the game so easily and he’s making the right play every time," Horford said after the game.

Nikola Jokić is DROPPIN' DIMES.

He's already got 6 assists in Q1 🤯 pic.twitter.com/XOK8j3Ui9Y
— NBA (@NBA) February 22, 2026

Jokic erupts in a losing effort

Jokic has been struggling recently, as head coach David Adelman admitted that his wrist injury has been bothering him. However, he looked more like himself in Sunday's loss.

"Then he’s bigger, so it’s like he doesn't really get sped up much, he plays at his own pace, and can really score the ball," Horford continued. "So it really is just kind of make his catches tough, contest his shots, try to be as physical as you can with him. He’s really crafty at drawing fouls, so you have to kind of play that game."

Over his last two games, Jokic has completely dominated the first three quarters, as it seems like he is playing his own game out there. With the NBA MVP race heating up, it is hard to deny how much impact Jokic has on the game, even though the Nuggets have lost six of their last nine games.

Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic drives the ball against Boston Celtics center Al Horford — Jan 19, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) drives the ball against Boston Celtics center Al Horford (42) in the first quarter at TD Garden. | David Butler II-Imagn Images

How do you defend Jokic?

Horford admitted that it takes an entire team to try to defend a player like Jokic, comparing his impact to that of Warriors superstar Steph Curry.

"But then ultimately it comes to the whole group has to do a good job of it. When you have a player like that it’s like him, Steph (Curry), a few players that the whole team has to be engaged because you can't just guard the player one-on-one, they’re just too good," Horford said.

Warriors head coach Steve Kerr also addressed how they were able to limit Jokic in the fourth quarter, as he went for just two points on 1-2 shooting in the final six minutes.

"I just thought we did a good job of getting them out of their sets on a few key possessions where they weren't in rhythm. So he didn't get the ball in the usual spots, and we forced him away from the hoop a little bit further, and it was just enough to maybe disrupt things," Kerr said.

It was clear that Golden State's gameplan was centered around Jokic, especially in the fourth quarter, and despite what he was able to do in the first three periods, it worked in the end. Jokic is an all-world player, and the Nuggets need to make sure they can capitalize on his dominance late in games. However, after playing a back-to-back series right before Sunday's matchup, it was clear that Jokic and the rest of the team were exhausted.

The Nuggets now move on to face the Boston Celtics in their next matchup on Wednesday, giving them some much-needed rest.