Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic addressed Friday’s 142-103 defeat to the New York Knicks at Ball Arena, describing it as a “bad bad game for us.” He noted, “Of course, I think we started the game decent. We had open looks and then everything from that moment went downhill. It was bad energy, bad rebounding, 50/50 balls were there and it was just a bad performance by us.”
Jokic acknowledged the impact of Jamal Murray’s early exit due to a sprained ankle, saying, “Of course Jamal got hurt, that didn’t help us…hopefully it’s just that kind of game.” He emphasized that energy and focus were key issues: “I think this is the first time in a long time that we kind of quit and maybe not quit, but they were just better than us, you know, they had better energy.”
The Nuggets returned Aaron Gordon and Cam Johnson from injuries but struggled to establish rhythm. Jokic pointed to ongoing team health concerns, including Peyton Watson’s absence: “Peyton was not back, so he’s definitely a big factor, and then Jamal got hurt. It’s been the whole season…hopefully we can find a way to get healthy and start playing much better.”
Despite the blowout, Jokic stressed learning from adversity: “Definitely we need to learn from it and watch the film. Whenever you win or lose, you can learn from the game and get better, and we’re going to do that. We’re going to see how we respond.”
The Nuggets suffered a 39-point loss at home, tying their worst defeat in Denver since 1998. Jokic led the team with 38 points, but the Nuggets shot just 45% from the field and 20% from three, missing 17 consecutive triples at one stretch. Murray had 12 points before leaving the game, and Gordon contributed only three points on 1-of-7 shooting.
Jokic’s remarks underline the challenges of maintaining consistency amid injuries and lineup changes. He concluded by focusing on improvement and recovery: “We need to learn from it…watch the film…get better…and see how we respond.”
Denver (39-25) will visit the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday night, aiming to regroup after a tough night against the Knicks. New York (41-23) begins a five-game road trip following the dominant performance.
