Denver (22-10 straight up, 18-14 against the spread) is going to be without three-time NBA Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic for the next four weeks after he sustained a hyperextended left knee in last night’s 147-123 loss at Miami, the club announced early Tuesday.
However, the Nuggets have to feel good about that diagnosis with their star center avoiding major damage to his knee. Jokic will not need surgical repair and will be reevaluated in late January.
The 6-foot-11 Jokic went down in the final seconds of the first half. He had already produced 21 points, eight assists and five rebounds on 9-of-14 shooting from the field in what was a tie game at halftime.
In 31 regular-season games this year, the 30-year-old Jokic is averaging 29.9 points, 12. 4 rebounds, 11.1 assists and 1.4 steals per game. He’s made 60.4 percent of his field-goal attempts, 44.0 percent of his 3-pointers and 85.5 percent from the free-throw line.
Denver is already short-handed with Aaron Gordon, Christian Braun and Cameron Johnson sidelined with injuries. For the time being, point guard Jamal Murray is the Nuggets’ only healthy starter.
The injuries have really hurt Denver at the defensive end of the court, as the ‘over’ has hit in four straight games and is on a 16-4 roll in its last 20 contests. The Nuggets return to the court on New Year’s Eve at Toronto.
As of late Tuesday afternoon, most books had the Raptors installed as seven-point home favorites.
When Jokic has been out of the lineup injured over the last five seasons, Denver has limped to a 13-23 record.
“You just have to stay with it as a team and as a group,” Nuggets coach David Adelman said Monday night. “And honestly, you have to stay with it as a team and a group because that’s how you best support your teammates that are out — by honoring them when you play. So, we’ll move on from there. This is part of the NBA.”
FanDuel has Denver listed with 10/1 odds to win the 2026 NBA Finals. Those are the second-shortest odds on the board behind the Oklahoma City Thunder, who are the +100 ‘chalk.’