One Nuggets Player Was Quick to Stand Up For Nikola Jokic After He Got Shoved

Stephen Douglas | May 8, 2025

Russell Westbrook had words for the Oklahoma City Thunder after Nikola Jokic got shoved. / Photo by Joshua Gateley/Getty Images

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The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Denver Nuggets soundly on Wednesday night to tie their second round series at one game each. Things got out of hand early as the Thunder jumped out to a 24-point lead in the first quarter as they pushed the Nuggets around both literally and figuratively.

At one point in the opening quarter Jaylin Williams fouled Nikola Jokic and then gave the Nuggets big man a shove. Williams was then quickly approached by Russell Westbrook who let him know that was not a good touch.

Despite the shove, Williams was only assessed a common foul. Westbrook however earned a technical foul for yelling at Williams, most of his teammates and probably the officials. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made the technical free throw, but it barely factored into the final score.

The Nuggets were mostly tight-lipped about the officiating after the game, but it's clear that both on and off the court they're looking out for Jokic.

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Published May 8, 2025

STEPHEN DOUGLAS

Stephen Douglas is a senior writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has worked in media since 2008 and now casts a wide net with coverage across all sports. Douglas spent more than a decade with The Big Lead and previously wrote for Uproxx and The Sporting News. He has three children, two degrees and one now unverified Twitter account.